Attacks on Saudi pipelines may have originated from Iraq

Ahmed Sultan

The Middle East Forum has said the latest drone attack that targeted Saudi Aramco’s pumping station was carried out by an Iranian-affiliated Iraqi militia, and not the Houthi rebels in Yemen.

The forum affirmed a report by the Wall Street Journal that U.S. officials have concluded that drone attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil industry in May were launched from Iraq, not Yemen, raising concerns that Iran’s allies in the region are trying to open a new front in the conflict between Tehran and Washington.

The drone attack happened two days after four vessels, including two Saudi oil tankers, were damaged by sabotage off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.

The attacks took place against a backdrop of U.S.-Iranian tension following Washington’s move to try to cut Tehran’s oil exports to zero and beef up its military presence in the Gulf in response to Iranian threats.

The forum pointed out that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo traveled to Iraq in May, after warnings from US National Security Adviser John Bolton of the threats posed by the Iraqi militia to the security of the United States and its allies.

The Middle East Forum confirmed that one week after Pompeo’s visit, the Shiite militia targeted Aramco stations and bombed a number of bases and camps of US forces in Basra, Taji and Mosul.

According to US officials, As’ib Ahl al-Haq and Iraqi Hezbollah brigades may have been involved in the attack on oil installations.

Riyadh has accused Iran of ordering last week’s drone strikes on two oil pumping stations in the kingdom, for which the Houthis claimed responsibility.

The strikes on Aramco pumping stations came two days after attacks on vessels, including two Saudi oil tankers, off the coast of the UAE, which no one has claimed responsibility for.

The Houthis have repeatedly targeted Saudi cities and oil installations with missiles and drones, mostly n border areas. Twice, in 2016 and 2017, the coalition said the group had launched a missile toward Mecca, but the movement said it was targeting nearby airports.

Moreover, the Houthis in Yemen have launched their third attack in three weeks on Abha International Airport in Saudi Arabia, wounding at least nine civilians. Among those injured in the drone attack were eight Saudis and one Indian passport-holder.

The Iranian-aligned terrorist group confirmed that they had “launched a wide operation aimed at warplanes at Abha international airport.” The civilian facility has come under repeated fire by Houthi terrorists in recent weeks.

The forum considered that the latest attack will increase tension between the United States and Iraq, which is currently allying with Iran, stressing that the Shiite militia called on more than one occasion to remove US forces in Iraq.

Iraq’s Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi issued a decree this week ordering the country’s Shiite militia known as The Popular Mobilization Front to choose between full integration into the Iraqi armed forces or disarmament.

While Iraqi Political expert Firas Elias sees that Mahdi’s decision was just to tickle the feelings of the delegation of the UN Security Council, which is visiting Iraq during the current days, and try to convey a message to the international community and the United States that the popular mobilization is part of the Iraqi armed forces, and is not directed by any outside parties.