Saudi Oil Pipeline System May Have Been Targeted in Drone Attack

US authorities suspect that a key oil pipeline system in Saudi Arabia was targeted in an attack that caused fires at the site, CNN reported. The alleged assault occurred on September 11 and was said to have been carried out using drones launched from Iraqi territory.

Satellite imagery revealed damage to pumping stations near the pipeline, but it is unclear whether the pipeline itself was damaged.

The attack threatens a critical alternative to Saudi Arabia's Gulf export routes at a time when shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is severely disrupted. The East-West Pipeline has a capacity of about 7 million barrels per day and transports roughly 5 million barrels of export crude daily to Yanbu on the Red Sea coast.