Video: Explosion and Fire Reported at Saudi Oil Port of Yanbu

The main Saudi oil export terminal on the Red Sea, located at Yanbu, appears to have been hit by an unidentified projectile on Thursday. The port has become a critical vulnerability in the European oil supply chain, and last week French President Emanuel Macron pledged to protect Yanbu with France's air defense capabilities. 

Bystander videos from the scene show one isolated fire in the vicinity of a tank farm; security consultancy Vanguard Tech confirms that the projectile landed within the port area and caused a fire. The terminal temporarily suspended operations due to the attack, Vanguard said. 

Unconfirmed footage showcasing fires earlier today at Saudi ARAMCO Yanbu North Crude Terminal, Al Madinah Province, Saudi Arabia. https://t.co/oMK6Y8eCVP pic.twitter.com/sV0ItNBSZa

Saudi forces reported shooting down a small number of attempted drone and ballistic missile strikes at Jazan and the inland city of Khamis Mushait on the same day.

The new strike at Yanbu follows shortly after Saudi Aramco had successfully restored loadings at the terminal. Yanbu ceased operations temporarily last month due to a major strike on the East-West Pipeline, which feeds the terminal with crude from Saudi fields along the Arabian Gulf. The attack damaged three pumping stations on the line, and Yanbu – at the far western end – was shut down for 17 days while Aramco's repair teams worked to restore flow. The terminal resumed loadings on Monday; by Wednesday, it was loading 11 tankers simultaneously, according to Bloomberg's Javier Blas. 

Saudi officials have attributed last month's long-distance drone attack on the East-West Pipeline to Iraqi militias. No one has publicly claimed Thursday's strike on Yanbu, but past attacks have been linked to Yemen's Houthi rebels, who are actively fighting the Saudi-backed internationally-recognized government of Yemen. 

The French deployment to Yanbu is limited in scope, intented to protect the terminal's operations but not to involve France in the intensifying conflict in neighboring Yemen. "We are going to send military assets, meaning soldiers, radars, and defense systems to protect this site," Macron said in a live interview with two French television networks. "Not to involve ourselves in any conflict, but to protect the site."