Saudi Pipeline Shut After Iraq-Origin Drones; Trump Says Iran “Probably” Responsible

Saudi Arabia shut its East-West oil pipeline after drone strikes that Riyadh and Baghdad both say were launched from Iraqi territory, and President Donald Trump said Saturday that Iran was “probably” responsible.

The line runs about 1,200 kilometers from the Eastern Province to Yanbu on the Red Sea. Ship-tracking firms and analysts said it had been moving 4 million to 5 million barrels a day in recent months — roughly 4 to 5 percent of global supply — after the Strait of Hormuz war made the Red Sea the kingdom’s main way to keep crude off tankers that would have to pass Iranian guns.

The Saudi Energy Ministry called the closure a precaution. The Foreign Ministry said the drones came from Iraq, caused injuries and damage, and that the kingdom would not retaliate immediately so Baghdad could “take the necessary measures.” Satellite imagery reviewed by Reuters showed black smoke south of Medina along the pipeline route.

Iraq’s government confirmed the launches originated in Maysan province. Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s office said a commander responsible for that sector was dismissed. An umbrella group of Iran-backed Iraqi militias denied involvement. Trump, speaking to reporters during an unofficial visit to Ireland, was asked whether Iran was behind the attack. “Well, I think they are. Probably they are,” he said. He added that he had spoken with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The pipeline hit landed as Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis claimed fresh missile and drone attacks on a Saudi military base near the border and pressed territorial gains along the Red Sea. Yemeni government sources told Reuters the Houthis reached Perim Island in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait after Saudi-backed forces pulled back, and took the mainland town of Dhubab facing the island. If those reports hold, Iran-aligned forces would sit on both sides of a chokepoint that normally carries about 12 percent of world trade.

Oil was already back above $100 a barrel. The International Energy Agency said Saudi crude supply fell 2.3 million barrels a day in August, to 6 million — the lowest in more than three decades — in part because Houthi-linked groups have been targeting ships in the Bab el-Mandeb.

Trump said his administration has “had discussions” with the Houthis and that they “don’t want to fight with us.” He did not describe the terms. Saudi officials have separately urged Washington to treat the Houthi advance as part of the same Iran war that has already closed most Hormuz traffic.

The East-West line was built in the 1980s as a hedge against a Hormuz shutdown. By early June, the IEA said, Saudi exports from the Red Sea port at the pipeline’s end had more than doubled. That hedge is now offline. Repair timing has not been announced.

The United States has spent the past week striking IRGC-linked tankers after Iranian missiles were fired at Navy ships. This pipeline attack is a different front: a land route inside a U.S. partner, launched from a third country, attributed by the president to Iran.