Smoke rises from a fire at the Aramco refinery south of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 3, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. (Credit: Reuters)
A large plume of smoke and flames was seen rising near an Aramco facility in Riyadh on Saturday, a witness told Reuters. Saudi authorities did not immediately confirm the fire. Aramco did not immediately respond to a request for comment, AFP reported.
The fire comes amid escalating hostilities between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis of Yemen, allies of Iran, who have intensified their attacks on Saudi cities and energy infrastructure.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for Saturday's fire.
The Houthis claimed last week to have attacked Saudi Aramco facilities in Yanbu using missiles and drones. Saudi Arabia stated that it had intercepted six ballistic missiles fired by the Houthis toward Taif and the Yanbu region, but did not report any damage to the Aramco facilities.
