Saudi Arabia has shut down its East-West oil pipeline after drone strikes that Riyadh says were launched from Iraq, widening a conflict that has already disrupted the world's most important energy corridor.
The 1,200km (745 mile) pipeline carries crude from Saudi oilfields in the east across the peninsula to the Red Sea coast. It was built so the kingdom, the world's largest crude exporter, could keep selling oil when the Strait of Hormuz is blocked. Reuters, citing ship tracking companies and analysts, reported the line had been moving 4% to 5% of global oil supply.
Iraq confirms the launch site
Iraq's prime minister's office said the operations commander in Maysan governorate, a province that borders Iran, had been removed from his post after investigators confirmed the drones came from that region. Baghdad said it had opened an investigation into the attack on its neighbour.
The Saudi foreign ministry said the strikes caused injuries and damage that was still being assessed, and that Riyadh reserved the right to take all necessary measures to protect its sovereignty and its facilities. It also said the kingdom would not retaliate at this stage, following a call from Iraq's prime minister, and would instead support Iraqi efforts to stop attacks launched from Iraqi soil. The Gulf Co-operation Council condemned the strike as a dangerous escalation.
A second shipping route under pressure
The pipeline closure comes during a fast advance by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen. The group says it now controls the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the gateway to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, and that navigation is safe for all companies except Saudi vessels. Fighters are also reported to have seized Perim, a strategic island on the shipping lane.
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed for months and Houthi forces pressing a second chokepoint, traders pushed crude oil above $100 a barrel for the first time since July. The disruption lands in the seventh month of the US-Iran war, and analysts warn that higher energy costs will feed into inflation and shipping rates worldwide.