Pakistani injured in attacks on Saudi oilfield and Dammam airport

A Pakistani worker was among those injured when debris from an intercepted drone struck near Saudi Aramco’s Shaybah oilfield on Wednesday, Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry said, while a separate attack on an airport in Dammam killed one resident and injured eight others, The Express Tribune reported, citing Reuters and the Saudi Press Agency.

The oilfield

Saudi air defences intercepted a drone as it tried to strike one of the facilities at the Shaybah oilfield in the Eastern Province, a ministry official said, according to the Saudi Press Agency.

Debris from the interception set fire to a vehicle belonging to a contractor working at the field, outside the facility’s perimeter. Two foreign nationals were killed, from the Philippines and Nepal. The two injured were from Pakistan and India.

The ministry said the incident did not affect operations at the field. It did not say who launched the drone. Shaybah lies near the border with the United Arab Emirates.

The ministry did not name the injured Pakistani or describe his condition. Relevant authorities responded to the incident and took the necessary measures, according to the statement.

The airport

An attack on King Fahd International Airport in Dammam on Wednesday evening killed one resident and injured eight others, Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation said.

Yemen’s Houthis have attacked Saudi Arabia almost daily this month, including a strike on Riyadh’s international airport that was the kingdom’s deadliest in years. On Wednesday the Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted six drones, including over the Madina region, while Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree denied the group had carried out any “deep” operations inside Saudi territory.

Inside Yemen, the Houthis said they fired a ballistic missile at what they called the “operations room” of Saudi forces at the Badr camp in Aden, where the Yemeni government is based. Officials said the group also attacked Riyan airport in Mukalla, which houses forces from the Saudi-led coalition, Dawn reported.

Diplomats told to leave

The State Department has ordered non-emergency US government employees and their families to leave Saudi Arabia. Spokesperson Tommy Pigott said: “Iranian-supported Houthis have increasingly engaged in hostilities against Saudi Arabia, including attacks on civilian airports and other critical infrastructure resulting in civilian casualties and severe travel disruptions.”

Four US officials told Reuters that US missions in other Gulf states would also order family members to leave. Washington had returned some diplomats to the region in recent months, after many were pulled out when Iran attacked US facilities following the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran in late February.

The fighting in Yemen has opened another front in the regional war, which has disrupted global energy trade and hurt Gulf economies. Oil climbed above $110 a barrel on Thursday after the US order.

Pakistan’s stake

Pakistan is bound to Saudi Arabia’s defence under the Makkah defence pact, which treats an attack on one member as an attack on all. Pakistan has also been working to keep diplomacy open with Iran, with army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir holding talks in Tehran this week.