A petroleum products distribution terminal in Jizan, Saudi Arabia, was attacked late on Thursday local time, the Kingdom said, blaming the Iran-aligned Houthi movement and vowing to take measures to preserve the stability of the global oil supply.
Late on Thursday, an attack with a projectile was made on the petroleum products distribution terminal in Jizan, an official spokesman at the Saudi Ministry of Energy said, as carried by the official Saudi Press Agency.
The attack caused a fire in one of the petroleum tanks at the terminal on the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia, close to the border with Yemen. There were no casualties, the Saudi agency reported.
"The Kingdom strongly condemns this cowardly attack against vital installations. The attack does not only target the Kingdom, but also petroleum exports, the stability of energy supply to the world, freedom of world trade, as well as the global economy," Saudi Arabia said.
The Saudi Ministry of Defense said that "the terrorist, Iran-backed Houthi militia's attempt to target Jazan's petroleum products distribution terminal Thursday evening (25 March 2021) is a cowardly act of vandalism, which does not target the Kingdom and its economic installations, in fact it targets the core of global economy, the security of oil exports and stability of petroleum supplies, as well as the security of maritime navigation and international trade."
The ministry added it would "undertake all necessary, deterrent measures to safeguard its national assets in a manner that preserves the security of global energy, and puts an end to these assaults."
The attack on the Jizan terminal follows attacks in recent weeks, in which the Houthis claimed a drone attack on the Riyadh refinery and a drone-and-ballistic-missile attack at oil facilities at the Saudi port of Ras Tanura, one of the world's largest oil ports.
Thursday's attack also comes amid concerns that global oil supply could be disrupted by the ongoing blockage of the Suez Canal, which could take weeks to clear for shipping after a giant container ship got stuck sideways in the narrowest section of the canal. Oil prices were rising by around 3% on Friday, supported by the Suez Canal disruption and the latest Houthi attack in the world's largest oil exporter, Saudi Arabia.
By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
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Comments
Moreover, Saudi Arabia should build bridges of trust with Iran. It should realize that the United States has been playing Iran against Saudi Arabia since the days of the Shah to blackmail the Saudis to pay Mafia-like protection money in the form of arms deals worth hundreds of billions of dollars.
There are no substantive issues between Iran and Saudi Arabia that can’t be resolved peacefully in quiet diplomacy leading to a rapprochement between the two countries. Both Saudi Arabia and Iran could jointly be the regional powers in the Gulf region.
They could both reap huge economic and geopolitical benefits from a rapprochement between them in terms of security, prosperity and stability in the region and a coordinated oil policy inside OPEC that could support higher oil prices.
Dr Mamdouh G Salameh
International Oil Economist
Visiting Professor of Energy Economics at ESCP Europe Business School, London
I believe Houthis and Iran should come out to the public with a formal statement to justify that. It doesn't make sense to the public that Saudi Arabia 'buys' its weapons, while Houthis are 'given' theirs!