A 10-drone attack has resulted in fires at Aramco's Abqaiq oil processing facility and the Khuaru oil field in Saudi Arabia.
According to Yemen's Houthi rebels, they were responsible for the drone attack, which targeted the Saudi Aramco oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais in Saudi Arabia. However, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed that Iran, which supports the Houthi rebels, was behind the attack but argued that there was "no evidence the attacks came from Yemen."
Preliminary findings show that the attack originated from Iraq since Iran has significant influence in Southern Iraq and it has more proximity to the said oil facilities in Saudi. Pompeo added "Iran has now launched an unprecedented attack on the world's energy supply."
Seyyed Abbas Mousavi, a spokesperson for Iran's foreign ministry, denied the accusation and said "blind accusations and inappropriate comments in a diplomatic context are incomprehensible and meaningless." Meanwhile, Iraq denied that its territory was used in the attacks.
Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman released a statement saying the attack affected 5.7 million barrels a day of crude oil and gas production, which is more than half of the total Saudi production, which the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) data indicated at 9.8 million barrels per day. The energy minister pointed out "These attacks are not only aimed at the vital installations of the kingdom, but also on the global oil supply and its security, and thus pose a threat to the global economy." He added that Aramco "is currently working to recover the lost quantities" of oil and will give a public update within two days.
Jason Bordoff, founding director of the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University, explained "Abqaiq is perhaps the most critical facility in the world for oil supply. Oil prices will jump on this attack."
