Houthi rebels: Missile hits Saudi oil facility in Jiddah
Dubai, March 4: Yemen's Houthi rebels said they struck a Saudi oil facility in the port city of Jiddah on Thursday, the latest in a series of cross-border attacks the group has claimed against the kingdom amid the grinding war in Yemen.
Saudi Arabia's stateowned media did not immediately acknowledge any incident in Jiddah. Brig. Gen. Yehia Sarie, a Houthi military spokesman, tweeted that the rebels fired a new Quds-2 cruise missile at the facility. He posted a satellite image online that matched Aramco's North Jiddah Bulk Plant, where oil products are stored in tanks.
The rebels claimed they hit the same facility last November, an attack the Saudi-led coalition later admitted had sparked a fire at the plant. The facility sits just southeast of Jiddah's King Abdulaziz International Airport, a major airfield that handles Muslim pilgrims heading to Mecca.
Flights coming into airport diverted or otherwise flew in circles early Thursday morning without explanation, according to tracking data from website FlightRadar24.com. Since 2015, the Houthis battling the Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen have targeted international airports, along with military installations and critical oil infrastructure, within Saudi Arabia. In recent weeks the group has stepped up its attacks, repeatedly crashing drones and missiles into the kingdom's Patriot missile batteries. A Saudi-led military coalition intervened in Yemen after the rebels seized the country's capital, Sanaa. The war has settled into a bloody stalemate, with Saudi Arabia facing international criticism for its airstrikes killing civilians.
IN RECENT weeks the group has stepped up its attacks, repeatedly crashing drones and missiles into the kingdom's Patriot missile batteries.
At 6.9 per cent, the unemployment rate has recovered to its pre-lock-down levels. However, the labour participation rate (LPR) and employment rate continue to be weak.
In February 2021, the unemployment rate stood at 6.9 per cent, lower than the February 2020 unemployment rate of 7.8 per cent. The unemployment rate had ranged from 6.5 per cent to 9 per cent in the post-lock-down period since July 2021, according to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy.
“The return of the unemployment rate to pre-lockdown times is not worth celebrating because it is more a reflection of a shrinking labour force than a decline in the count of the unemployed.” said Mahesh Vyas, CEO and MD of CMIE.
Meanwhile, the Naukri JobSpeak Index shows hiring in the ITsoftware/software services industry registered a record growth of over
33 per cent in February compared to January because of the increased adoption of digital technologies in India.
The index witnessed an uptick of over 22 per cent in hiring activity in February at 2,356 job listings compared to
1,925 in January.
It said most industries saw a positive sequential uptick in recruitment activities after a long gap.
Laxmi Siri Dandu will clash with M. Manognya in the girls singles finals of the Under-16 AITA Championship series being played at Sania Mirza Tennis Academy in Murtuzaguda.
In the semifinals on Thursday, sixth seed Laxmi defeated Kavya Sakineni in straight sets at 6-1, 6-2 while Manognya was too good for Hansika Reddy as she beat her 6-1, 6-0.
In the boys section, unseeded G. Chaitra Reddy toppled top seed Naishik Reddy in the semifinals, with a dominant 6-0, 6-1 scoreline to set up the final with sixth seed Chandan Shivraj who tamed No.7 seed Trishant Reddy 6-2, 60.
Meanwhile, P. Riddhi Chowdary & Sama Chevika and Soma Suhas & Chandan Shivraj won the girls and boys doubles titles respectively.
THE RESULTS
Girls singles semifinals: Laxmi Siri Dandu (6) bt Kavya Sakineni 6-1, 6-2; M. Manognya bt Hansika Reddy 6-1, 6-0.
Boys singles semifinals: G. Chaitra Reddy bt Naishik Reddy (1) 6-0, 6-1; Chandan Shivraj (6) bt Trishant Reddy
D (7) 6-2, 6-0.
Girls doubles final: P. Riddhi Chowdary/ Sama Chevika (1) bt Diya Malik/Apara Khandare 3-6, 61, 12-10.
Boys doubles final: Soma Suhas/ Chandan Shivraj bt Trishant Reddy D/ V Sahan Reddy (4) 6-1, 6-2.