🔶 Saudi Arabia shuts down East-West pipeline after drone attack

🔶 Saudi Arabia shuts down East-West pipeline after drone attack

Saudi Arabia announced on Friday that it has halted the East-West pipeline, an action taken after a drone attack on the pipeline and amid the advance of Houthi forces backed by Iran in the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

The Saudi Ministry of Energy described the shutdown of the East-West pipeline as a “precautionary measure.”

The pipeline is one of Saudi Arabia’s important routes for transferring oil from the east of the country to Red Sea ports and has grown in importance in recent years, especially after disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.

Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry said the attack was carried out with several drones that came from Iraqi territory. Riyadh stated that it will not respond for now, to allow the Iraqi government time to take “the necessary actions.”

Meanwhile, according to the Yemeni government, the Houthis have taken control of all the strategic islands in the Bab al-Mandab Strait; a strait that connects the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean and is vital for global trade and oil exports.

A Yemeni government official said the Houthis have fully imposed control over the Bab al-Mandab area after the withdrawal of government forces.

According to a Yemeni army official, after seizing the islands of Mayun and Zuqar, the group has now also brought the two Hanish islands under its control. With this development, the Houthis have taken control of four important islands in the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

A Yemeni government official also told Agence France-Presse that all areas under government control on Yemen’s west coast have fallen to the Houthis, and the group now controls the entire Yemeni coast on the Red Sea.

Bab al-Mandab is one of the most important sea passages in the world and connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. This route is of particular importance for Saudi oil exports.

Since the start of the Iran war and the widespread restriction of transit through the Strait of Hormuz, the importance of Bab al-Mandab has increased, and the route has been discussed as one of the strategic alternatives for shipping and energy exports.

Since July, coinciding with the Iran war, the Houthis have increased their attacks on Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea.

The seizure of the Bab al-Mandab islands, especially the island of Mayun located in the center of the strait, could increase the group’s ability to target ships along this route.

Hashtags: ["DW Farsi"]