Saudi Arabia has shut down its East-West oil pipeline after a drone attack that Riyadh and Baghdad say originated in Iraq, halting a route that carries 4% to 5% of global oil supply. The closure lands as Houthi forces tighten their grip on Red Sea shipping lanes, adding pressure to an energy market already strained by the wider Middle East war. President Donald Trump said Iran was probably to blame for the strike.
Pipeline halted after attack traced to Iraq
Saudi Arabia has closed its East-West pipeline as a precaution after an aerial attack hit the 1,200-km line, which has been carrying 4 million to 5 million barrels a day, or 4% to 5% of global supply, for the past six months while the Strait of Hormuz has been largely shut by war. Both Baghdad and Riyadh said the drone strike originated in Iraq, where Iranian-backed militias operate, and Iraq dismissed a military commander on Saturday in response.
Satellite images showed black smoke rising from an area of the pipeline south of Medina. The Saudi Foreign Ministry said the attack caused some injuries and damage still being assessed, without detailing the impact on exports. Trump, visiting Ireland for a golf tournament, said Iran was probably to blame.
Houthis tighten their grip on the Red Sea
Oil prices have risen over the past week, and the retail price of diesel in the United States surged past a record $6 a gallon as the United States and Iran fired on tankers and the Iran-aligned Houthis advanced along the Red Sea. Four Yemeni government sources told Reuters that the Houthis seized the strategic island of Perim on Friday, in the middle of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The Saudi Civil Defence said a Houthi projectile injured two people in the Jazan region on Saturday and damaged several buildings, including a mosque. Saudi crude supply has fallen to its lowest level in more than three decades, the International Energy Agency said Friday, partly because of attacks on ships crossing Bab el-Mandeb by Houthi-linked groups.
Washington weighs military help for Riyadh
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman phoned Trump on Thursday to ask for U.S. military help against the Houthis, three sources told Reuters, and was told Washington would not intervene directly for now but would help with intelligence. Trump confirmed the call on Saturday and said the Houthis had also asked his administration not to become directly involved.
There have been no talks between the United States and Iran since a June agreement collapsed within weeks. Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian parliament's national security committee, said on X that unless Washington accepts all of Iran's conditions, "dialogue and negotiation are of no use." Iran is set to meet Gulf Arab states in Oman on Monday to discuss the Strait of Hormuz, though a senior Iranian official played down the chances of a breakthrough.
Source: Investing.com/Reuters
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