Missiles target Riyadh’s financial hub, witnesses report damage

Riyadh’s financial district was hit on Sunday and a tower belonging to oil giant Aramco was damaged, witnesses told AFP. The Saudi-led coalition said it had intercepted missiles fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

“The Aramco tower at KAFD was definitely targeted,” one witness said, referring to the King Abdullah Financial District. Two other witnesses said they saw damage to the building. One said several floors appeared to be hit, with shattered windows and part of the facade damaged.

Shortly before, authorities issued an alert and AFP journalists heard powerful explosions. Coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki said on X that two ballistic missiles fired toward Riyadh by the “Houthi terrorist militia” had been intercepted and destroyed. He added that two cruise missiles aimed at the capital and the south of the country had also been downed.

It was not immediately clear whether the damage was caused by a direct hit or by falling debris from an interception.

A symbolic escalation

The Iran-backed rebels have repeatedly targeted Riyadh, including its airport, since October. But striking KAFD, a showcase of the kingdom’s reforms with its skyscrapers, luxury shops, homes and busy metro station, would mark a major escalation.

The Houthis had accused Saudi forces of two deadly attacks on civilians in Yemen on Friday and Saturday.

The strikes came hours after Saudi authorities announced that in-person classes would resume in Riyadh, following weeks of remote learning imposed after an earlier wave of attacks.