Yemeni Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for a series of attacks in Saudi Arabia on Friday.
Free Practice 2 of the Saudi Arabian Formula 1 Grand Prix in Jeddah was delayed on Friday after a series of attacks in the country, including on an oil facility in the city, claimed by Yemeni Houthi rebels.
The session started at 8:15 p.m. local (6:15 p.m. French) instead of 8:00 p.m. (6:00 p.m.), after the drivers and team bosses were received by the CEO of F1, Stefano Domenicali, to inform them of the situation. “He informed them that the weekend will go ahead as planned and that the security of the event has been a priority for the authorities before this incident. He will continue to update them on any new information and will likely meet with the Team Principals in the evening to share any new information.“Said an F1 spokesperson.
black smoke cloud
The attack on the oil site in Jeddah, which is among 16 claimed by the Houthis, caused a gigantic fire and a cloud of black smoke visible from the circuit during Free Practice 1 at 17:00 (15:00).
Dutch driver Max Verstappen (Red Bull) even asked his team over the radio: “I smell a burning smell, is that my car?“. The fire “was subdued and caused no casualties“, indicated the military coalition which intervenes in Yemen against the rebels in a press release at the beginning of the evening, specifying that it would not have “no impact on activities in the city of Jeddah».
Saudi Arabia, at the head of this coalition, is regularly the target of attacks by the Houthis, some having hit oil sites. Friday’s attacks come on the eve of the seventh anniversary of the coalition’s intervention in Yemen to fight the Houthi rebels, close to Iran.
The Saudi kingdom, the world’s largest exporter of crude oil, warned on Monday of the risk of a drop in its oil production in the aftermath of several drone and missile attacks claimed by the Houthis. One of them had targeted a refinery in the industrial city of Yanbu, on the Red Sea, about 100 km north of Jeddah.