Yemen's Houthi forces have issued a warning ordering all staff and civilians near Saudi oil facilities to evacuate, calling the sites "legitimate targets."
The group's spokesperson, Yahya Saree, issued the evacuation warning on Tuesday, after the Saudi-led coalition urged civilians to leave the al-Sabah central station of the Yemen Oil Company in the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa ahead of an expected military operation.
Shortly after the coalition's evacuation order, Al Jazeera's reporting team on the ground said explosions could be heard in Sanaa. Houthi-affiliated media said airstrikes by Saudi-backed forces hit an oil facility in the al-Sabaha area of the capital.
After the explosions were reported, Saree said Houthi fighters were confronting Saudi-backed forces in Sanaa.
Saree responded to the coalition's evacuation order by warning that any airstrikes targeting Sanaa would be met with a "fierce and painful" response in the Saudi capital Riyadh.
In a statement on X, Saree said the Houthis would target the sites that had been ordered evacuated if the Saudi-led coalition launched an attack on Sanaa.
Civilians were told to evacuate from Aramco's headquarters in Dammam, King Khalid International Airport and an Aramco refinery in Riyadh.
An attack on King Khalid International Airport on Saturday killed at least 13 people and wounded more than 300, shaking the world's leading crude oil exporter. Another person was killed and 11 wounded on Sunday after a flying object struck the airport in Riyadh.
Several international airlines have since suspended flights to Saudi Arabia and neighbouring countries following the deadly Houthi attacks over the weekend, including Air France-KLM, Air India, Etihad, Lufthansa, Delta, Gulf Air and Qatar Airways.
The kingdom, a key backer of Yemen's internationally recognised government, was still facing fresh attacks on Tuesday, when the coalition said its forces intercepted three drones north of Riyadh.
Saree also reiterated the Houthis' warning to airports in Saudi Arabia after recent attacks on multiple airports and oil facilities across the country since last week, a spillover from the wider regional conflict between the United States and Iran.
In recent weeks, Saudi Arabia has carried out airstrikes targeting the Houthis and is backing a counteroffensive by the Yemeni government called "Yemen Dawn," after the group seized strategic territory along the Red Sea coast last month.
