https://www.foxnews.com/world/...facility-iran-rebels


Looks like Iran is stepping up their game with Saudi Arabia. Houthi's (Iranian proxy fighters) are taking credit.

The world's largest oil processing facility and a nearby oil field in Saudi Arabia were set ablaze early Saturday morning after reported drone attacks by Iranian-backed Yemeni rebels.

The Interior Ministry was quoted by state-run media as saying the fires at the Abqaiq oil processing facility in Buqyaq and the nearby Khurais oil field operated by Saudi Aramco were “targeted by drones.”

It wasn’t immediately clear if there were any injuries.

Houthi rebels – who are backed by Iran in a yearslong Saudi-led war against them in Yemen – have reportedly claimed responsibility for the attacks and vowed that further attacks could be expected in the future.

The military spokesman Yahia Sarie said in a short address aired by Houthi’s Al-Masirah satellite news channel that the group launched 10 drones in a coordinated attack on the sites.

“The only option for the Saudi government is to stop attacking us,” he added.

State television showed footage showing smoke from the blazes clearly rising behind a correspondent.


This Saturday, Sept. 14, 2019, satellite image provided by NASA Worldview shows fires following Yemen's Houthi rebels claiming a drone attack on two major oil installations in eastern Saudi Arabia.

The smoke could be seen from space.

Saudi officials have not commented on who they think is behind the attacks. Saudi Aramco did not immediately respond to questions from the AP.

Meanwhile, Wall Street Journal reported that the government is shutting down half of its oil output after the drone strikes, which amounts to a loss of about five million barrels a day - or roughly 5 percent of the world's daily production of crude oil. Sources said Saudi Aramco held an emergency board meeting on Saturday to manage the unfolding crisis.

The oil facility processes sour crude oil into sweet crude, then later transports onto transshipment points on the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea. Estimates suggest it can process up to 7 million barrels of crude oil a day.

The Khurais oil field is believed to produce over 1 million barrels of crude oil a day. It has estimated reserves of over 20 billion barrels of oil, according to Aramco.

The plant has been targeted in the past by militants. Al Qaeda claimed suicide bombers tried but failed to attack the oil complex in February 2006.

The U.S. Embassy in Riyadh said it was unaware of any injuries to Americans. Saudi Aramco employs a number of U.S. citizens, some of whom live in guarded compounds in the kingdom near the site.

"These attacks against critical infrastructure endanger civilians, are unacceptable, and sooner or later will result in innocent lives being lost," U.S. Ambassador John Abizaid, a former Army general, said.

The Saudi-led coalition has been battling the rebels since March 2015. The Iranian-backed Houthis hold Yemen's capital, Sanaa, and other territory in the Arab world's poorest country.

The war has become the world's worst humanitarian crisis. The violence has pushed Yemen to the brink of famine and killed more than 90,000 people since 2015, according to the U.S.-based Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, or ACLED, which tracks the conflict.

This is a serious escalation and seems like an act of war that won't be settled with a retaliatory strike.

So who wins? Saudi vs Iran. Saudi has better equipment and more money, Iran probably has better trained ground troops and lots more of them, from what little I’ve seen.

So, I guess the price of gasoline will jump about 20 cents overnight?

I would give the edge to the Saudis. However most likely they will just up their game in Yemen.

The Saudis have air power that Iran can only dream about and the Saudis have the money to buy all the bombs and ammo they need. American arms manufacturers will stay open 24/7, Sundays, and holidays to keep the Kingdom engaged.

quote:

Originally posted by MRMATT:
So, I guess the price of gasoline will jump about 20 cents overnight?

+1.

quote:

Originally posted by PD:
The Saudis have air power that Iran can only dream about and the Saudis have the money to buy all the bombs and ammo they need. American arms manufacturers will stay open 24/7, Sundays, and holidays to keep the Kingdom engaged.

"Everything that guy just said is true!"

quote:

Originally posted by MRMATT:
So, I guess the price of gasoline will jump about 20 cents overnight?

Probably $0.40 overnight. Even though that oil is a month from ever getting here.

I’m rooting for the Iranians.

quote:

Originally posted by Voshterkoff:
I’m rooting for the Iranians.

Why? (Just curious)

The goal is for oil prices to skyrocket thereby saving the Iranian economy.

When 7 of 8 of the Iranian retirement funds, including those for their military, are close to being insolvent and collapsing the economy as a while, they need to do something. If Iran gets a nuke, we'll see a change in the global economy of the likes never seen in our lifetime.

quote:

Originally posted by synthplayer:

quote:

Originally posted by Voshterkoff:
I’m rooting for the Iranians.

Why? (Just curious)

Just a guess on my part, but guess who's the world's most active, effective propagator of the Islamic faith?

With all of the Military shit we have sold the Saudis I think they can take are of themselves.
BONUS: reorders of Military shit.

quote:

Originally posted by smschulz:
With all of the Military shit we have sold the Saudis I think they can take are of themselves.
BONUS: reorders of Military shit.

Oil prices still skyrocket and Iran still wins.

quote:

Originally posted by smschulz:
With all of the Military shit we have sold the Saudis I think they can take are of themselves.
BONUS: reorders of Military shit.

They don't seem able to do squat in Yemen so I don't give them any hope unless we do it for them.

I have no love for either the Saudis or Iranians. Both of these countries are peopled with savages; the best we can hope for is that they continue to pound away at each other.

I'm mostly curious as to the Saudi response since the Iranians are targeting their oil production in country. Also, I have often wondered when drones would start being used more often and more effectively for attacks on a large, coordinated scale.

It’s very likely that with a wink and a nod the Saudis will allow authorize air space to the IDF

quote:

Originally posted by braillediver:

quote:

Originally posted by smschulz:
With all of the Military shit we have sold the Saudis I think they can take are of themselves.
BONUS: reorders of Military shit.

They don't seem able to do squat in Yemen so I don't give them any hope unless we do it for them.

We're in no position to be criticizing anybody for lack of effectiveness against insurgents.

quote:

Originally posted by synthplayer:

quote:

Originally posted by Voshterkoff:
I’m rooting for the Iranians.

Why? (Just curious)

15/19 of the 9-11 hijackers were Saudi, and they only have received diplomatic knob jobs in exchange. They are not our ally.