Saudis shut down oil pipeline as Houthis tighten grip on Red Sea shipping

Saudi Arabia has shut down its East-West pipeline after the vital ‌oil conduit came under aerial attack in the widening Middle East war.

The world’s largest crude oil exporter temporarily ​closed the pipeline after a drone attack that both Baghdad and Riyadh said had originated in Iraq, where Iranian-backed militias operate. Iraq ⁠dismissed a military commander on Saturday in response to the attack.

The 1,200-kilometre (745-mile) pipeline running across the Arabian Peninsula had helped Saudi Arabia to bypass a shipping logjam in the Strait of Hormuz, where tanker traffic has slowed to a trickle due to the war between the U.S. and Iran.

The Saudi energy ministry said it ‌had shut the pipeline as a precaution. The line has been moving 4 million to 5 million barrels per day in recent months, amounting to 4% to 5% of global supply, according to ship tracking companies and analysts.

The attack comes as ‌Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen tightened their grip in the Red Sea, which combined with the Strait of Hormuz disruptions has put an ‌energy ⁠squeeze on both sides of the Arabian Peninsula and sent global oil prices back above $100 per barrel.

Four Yemeni government sources ⁠told Reuters that Houthis had seized the strategic island of Perim on Friday at the mouth of the Red Sea, in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

The dual attacks reported on Friday - on the pipeline and Perim island - could represent a dangerous escalation while diplomatic efforts to end the war have stalled.

Saudi Arabia has asked Washington for military help with the Houthis, ​sources said, at a time when higher fuel prices ‌during the war have already exacted a political toll on U.S. President Donald Trump and his Republican Party ahead of November congressional elections.

The East-West pipeline was hit on Thursday morning in Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh and Medina regions, the Saudi energy ministry said. It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the strikes.

The cashiered Iraqi military commander had led operations in Maysan province, according to Saturday’s statement by the Iraqi prime ‌minister’s office. Maysan province, which borders Iran in southeastern Iraq, has long been regarded as an area where Iran-backed Shi’ite militias ​operate and maintain influence.

Saudi Arabia has opted against retaliation so far following a request from the Iraqi prime minister, the Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement, while adding the kingdom reserves the right to “take all measures necessary” to protect ⁠its interests. Iraq’s government condemned attacks.

Saudi crude supply fell to the lowest levels in more than three decades, the International Energy Agency said on Friday, partly due to attacks on ships transiting Bab el-Mandeb by Houthi-linked groups.