Saudi Arabia drone strike: Indian national among 2 killed in Dammam airport attack, 2 injured

Two people, including an Indian national, were killed and two were injured in a drone strike on Aramco’s Shaybah oil field in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province early Wednesday.

The Indian Embassy in Riyadh said in an X post on Thursday that Saudi authorities had informed it about the casualties and that officials were contacting the affected families to ascertain further details.

“Saudi authorities have informed that one Indian national was among two people who unfortunately lost their lives in the attack on Dammam airport yesterday night and two Indian nationals were injured,” the embassy said.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and loved ones of the deceased and we wish speedy recovery of the injured,” it added.

Operations at the field, which has the capacity to produce 1 million barrels of crude a day, were unaffected, the Saudi Energy Ministry said, citing one of its officials without identifying them.

Iran-backed Houthi rebels, who have been attacking Saudi Arabia from Yemen over the past few months, have not immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

The Houthis this month repeatedly targeted Saudi airports, killing at least 19 people, mostly in the capital Riyadh. The campaign caused the kingdom’s flagship conference, the Future Investment Initiative, to be postponed till next year.

The US Department of State issued an ordered departure on Wednesday for non-emergency government employees and their family members in Saudi Arabia, spokesman Tommy Pigott said on X. Earlier, The US Embassy in Riyadh urged extreme caution when using airports in the kingdom due to attacks from the Houthis.

The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen on Wednesday morning said it intercepted a drone fired toward the eastern region.

The drone was targeting a processing facility, according to the energy ministry, causing a vehicle to catch fire outside the target’s perimeter. The two deaths are of a Filipino and a Nepali.

A week ago, the Houthis hit Aramco’s headquarters in Dhahran, east of the kingdom.

The Houthis are one of Tehran’s main proxy militant groups, controlling swathes of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa. In July, they announced a blockade of Saudi ports, claiming the kingdom was besieging parts of the country.

The militia started firing on Saudi Arabia almost daily in September, attacking energy facilities among other targets. It also advanced south from its stronghold in northwest Yemen toward the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial chokepoint for energy tankers and container ships transiting between Asia and Europe via the Suez Canal.

The fighting further intensified in early October, when the Saudi coalition announced a large operation to recapture Houthi-held territory and “eliminate” the group.

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