An administrative building at Saudi Aramco's headquarters in Dhahran was struck on the night of October 13, 2026, in an attack the Saudi-led coalition blames on Houthi missiles and drones, marking a sharp escalation in the week-long retaliation cycle between the coalition and the Yemen-based group.
What happened at Aramco's Dhahran headquarters
Six sources told Reuters that loud booms were heard near Aramco's headquarters complex in Dhahran, in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province. Four of the sources said the building was evacuated, and one source with direct knowledge told Reuters the headquarters had been "struck" — though it remained unclear whether the damage came from a direct missile hit or from falling interception debris.
Saudi Arabia's Energy Ministry confirmed on Wednesday, October 14, that an administrative building belonging to Saudi Aramco in Dhahran was targeted, causing what it described as a limited fire. The ministry said there were no injuries or deaths, and that authorities responded late Tuesday night and took the necessary measures. A separate company source told Reuters that a ballistic missile struck an office tower, damaging its top three floors. Bloomberg reported the fire had been extinguished.
The Saudi-led coalition's spokesman, Turki al-Maliki, said coalition defenses intercepted Houthi missiles and drones aimed at Dhahran, Riyadh, and Dammam, and that shrapnel from a missile destroyed over Dammam fell on a residential area in Dhahran. CNN reported the coalition intercepted three cruise missiles and two drones targeting the Riyadh region and southern Saudi Arabia. Saudi civil defense, quoted in Reuters, said falling interception debris injured four people in Riyadh and damaged 15 homes. Aramco itself has issued no official statement.
Retaliation cycle: Sanaa fuel depot struck hours earlier
The Dhahran strike came hours after the Saudi-led coalition attacked the Yemen Petroleum Company's al-Sabaha fuel depot on the outskirts of Sanaa on Tuesday, after issuing a civilian-evacuation warning for the area. The coalition said the strike was aimed at neutralizing Houthi missile and drone capabilities.
Earlier on Tuesday, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree declared Aramco oil facilities "legitimate targets," explicitly naming the Aramco headquarters in Dhahran and a Riyadh refinery, and urging employees and civilians to evacuate. Houthi media said the coalition's Sanaa strike killed two civilians and injured two others, and the group vowed a "harsh and painful" response — framing the attack as energy infrastructure for energy infrastructure.
US President Donald Trump blamed Iran for the attacks on Saudi Arabia in a social media post.
Escalation after a week of airport strikes
The attack caps a week of escalating Houthi strikes on Riyadh's airport, including an October 10 attack that killed 13 people and injured more than 300, and an October 11 strike that killed one more — launched in retaliation for Saudi backing of Yemeni government forces in the reignited Yemeni civil war. Oil markets will now be watching whether the exchange widens to more of the kingdom's energy infrastructure.
Music in this post's reel: Kevin MacLeod - Volatile Reaction (incompetech.com), licensed under CC BY 3.0
Sources: Reuters, CNN, Al Jazeera, Bloomberg