Saudi Aramco HQ said to evacuate remaining staff

Saudi oil giant Aramco has told remaining staff to evacuate from its headquarters, two sources briefed on the matter tell AFP, as disruption deepens in Saudi Arabia following weeks of Houthi attacks.

Nonessential staff had been working remotely since the headquarters in eastern Saudi Arabia was hit last week, three sources say, speaking anonymously for security reasons.

But now the remaining employees have also been told to work from home until further notice, two of the sources say.

“There was an evacuation order issued for these staff, no specific reason was given,” one of the sources says.

Residential areas in the sprawling complex in Dhahran were not closed or evacuated, both sources say.

They spoke hours after a late-night attack on Dammam airport, also in Saudi’s east, killed two people and injured eight.

Houthi attacks have caused widespread problems for Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, closing Riyadh’s airport for days and forcing the postponement of a major investment conference.

Last Wednesday, the Houthis said they targeted Aramco’s headquarters, a vast complex comprising numerous buildings and residential compounds. Saudi officials said a building was hit in the area housing Aramco’s operations center.

Last week, two company employees who also spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity said a tower in the headquarters was struck. The “top three floors were gone,” one of them said.

Houthi attacks on Saudi civilian infrastructure, especially oil facilities and airports, have reached an unprecedented scale in recent weeks.

Twenty-two people have been killed in attacks on Saudi airports this month, according to an AFP tally of official figures.

Earlier, Saudi Arabia said it intercepted four drones in the areas of Riyadh and the holy city of Medina.