Saudi oil pipeline shut down after attack triggers fires

Saudi Arabia has shut down a key oil pipeline after it was attacked by drones from Iraq, as repercussions of the Iran war widen.

The development is more bad news for the Saudi government after the Iran-backed Houthis captured strategic points along the Red Sea, bringing them close to controlling the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a critical energy route.

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Energy confirmed in a statement posted to its website Friday that the pipeline had been attacked and “was shut down as a precautionary measure.”

Two US officials familiar with the matter earlier said the pipeline system in Saudi Arabia was struck by projectiles on Thursday,

An early analysis found that pump stations, which are located next to the pipeline itself, were hit, one of the US officials said. A satellite image taken Friday appears to show extensive fire damage at one pumping station, and an image of a different pumping station, taken Thursday, showed a small fire sending up plumes of thick, black smoke.

It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the strikes or if sections of the pipeline itself were damaged.

US President Donald Trump said Iran was likely behind the attack on Saudi Arabia that shut down the pipeline, when asked about the incident by a reporter during a visit to Ireland.

“I think they are, probably they are,” Trump told journalists in Dublin.

Responding to a question about the fresh concerns in Saudi Arabia following the closure of the pipeline, and whether he could help move marine traffic through the Strait of Hormuz in light of the developments, Trump said everything will “work out fine.”

The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs later released a statement condemning “the attack on the East-West Pipeline in the Riyadh and Madinah regions by several drones coming from Iraq, which resulted in injuries and some damage that is currently being addressed.”

The statement said they would not respond at this point to allow the Iraqi government space to react.

The strike and the Huthi advances signal that the kingdom’s oil resources — and its ability to export those resources — are facing increasing threats as the Iran War continues.

It was not immediately clear how long it would take to repair the damage to the pipeline system, sources said.

The Ministry of Energy statement said that the pipeline “was subjected to multiple attacks” on Thursday that “resulted in a number of injuries.” The statement added that teams were “taking the necessary measures to secure the pipeline and assess its safety.”

The Iraqi government put out a statement later Friday condemning the attacks, saying it had ordered an urgent investigation into those responsible and said it will not allow its territory or airspace to be used for attacks.

“The Iraqi government condemns the attacks that targeted the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and affirms its rejection of any attack that undermines the Kingdom’s security and stability or harms the deep-rooted fraternal relations between the two countries,” the statement carried by state-run news agency INA said.

On Saturday, Iraqi security authorities said the country has closed a number of its borders as a precautionary measure following recent events.

This week oil prices surged past $100 a barrel amid sharp swings driven by events in the Middle East.

The Saudi Arabian oil giant Aramco did not respond to a request for comment. The State Department and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. US Central Command declined to comment on the incident.

Though the source of the attack was unclear, Iran-allied militia groups in Iraq have used drones in the past to attack Saudi Arabia, according to Behnam Ben Taleblu, Iran program senior director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), and may have done so again amid a broader Iranian strategy to use its proxies to push Arab nations to reject American forces in the region.

In late July, Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman met with US President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance in Washington, DC, to convey the Kingdom’s assessment on the ongoing US war with Iran – that Iran would seek to create leverage through escalation and would try to make use of its remaining proxies – militias in Iraq and the Houthis – to do so, sources told CNN.

Satellites detected nine large fires burning close to Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline on Thursday, though the locations of at least six of the fires appeared to correspond to flare pits, where oil and gas can be burned off in the event of an emergency.

The pipeline has become key to Saudi Arabia since the outbreak of the US-Iran war. The kingdom has rerouted about 5 million barrels of oil per day that would have been destined for awaiting oil tankers in the Persian Gulf, as Iran effectively shuttered the Strait of Hormuz. Instead, that oil has traveled through its East-West pipeline to its port of Yanbu on the Red Sea.

With Houthi fighters declaring they would target any Saudi ships attempting to pass through Bab al-Mandeb out of the Red Sea, that outlet for the kingdom’s oil could also be at risk.

Repairing pump stations could be less burdensome than repairing major damage to the pipeline itself, said US officials and experts.

The strike on the pipeline system also comes as Saudi Arabia reported to OPEC that its production of crude oil plunged last month, sinking to the lowest levels since 1990.

CNN’s Jennifer Hansler and Nadeen Ebrahim contributed to this report.