Saudi Arabia has shut down its East-West oil pipeline as a precautionary measure after a drone attack originating from Iraqi territory struck the vital conduit, which carries roughly 4 to 5 percent of the global oil supply. The 1,200-kilometre pipeline, running across the Arabian Peninsula from major eastern oil fields to the Red Sea port of Yanbu, has served as the kingdom's primary alternative export route for six months, allowing it to bypass the Strait of Hormuz — currently disrupted by the broader conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran. Several drones struck areas near Riyadh and Medina on Thursday, causing injuries and damage that Saudi authorities said was still being assessed. Saudi Arabia announced it would not retaliate immediately, granting Baghdad time to investigate.
Iraqi authorities confirmed the attacks originated from Maysan province, a southeastern region bordering Iran where Iranian-aligned militias have long operated. Security forces located and seized a drone-launching platform linked to the strikes, and intelligence agencies continued working to identify those responsible. Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi dismissed the province's military commander and police chief and reshuffled other senior border security officials. Iraq also temporarily closed key border crossings with Iran, including Shalamcheh and Chazabeh, before partially reopening them for humanitarian traffic. Baghdad stated it had approved an Iranian request to join the investigation, while also maintaining close intelligence-sharing with Saudi authorities. An umbrella group of Iran-backed militias in Iraq denied responsibility for the attack, while stopping short of condemning it.
The pipeline closure compounds an already severe set of pressures on Riyadh. Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen — who operate from the country's north and west — have rapidly advanced down Yemen's Red Sea coast, seizing the port city of Mokha and the strategic island of Perim in the middle of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the narrow waterway at the mouth of the Red Sea through which roughly 12 percent of global trade passes. The Houthis have declared a blockade of Saudi shipping and resumed large-scale attacks for the first time since a 2022 ceasefire. With the Strait of Hormuz still constrained by ongoing conflict, and now both ends of the pipeline route under threat, Saudi Arabia's oil export options are significantly narrowed. Oil prices rose sharply over the past week in response.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reportedly called US President Donald Trump to request direct military assistance against the Houthis, but was told Washington would not intervene militarily for now, though it would provide intelligence support. Trump said Iran was "probably" behind the pipeline attack, and sought to calm markets, saying "everything's going to work out fine and dandy." Analysts note that US forces are already heavily committed around the Strait of Hormuz, and that Trump faces political constraints ahead of congressional elections. Former US ambassador to Saudi Arabia Michael Ratney described the situation as "incredibly frustrating" for Riyadh, noting the kingdom had long feared precisely this kind of coordinated, multi-front pressure.
Experts say Saudi Arabia has few good options. Military escalation risks intensifying Houthi strikes on energy infrastructure, while the Houthis' weapons are now far more sophisticated than during the previous Yemen war, which ran from 2015 to 2022 and killed an estimated 150,000 people. A diplomatic path remains narrow: the Houthis have demanded the lifting of a Saudi-led blockade, and Iran has expressed little interest in de-escalation without significant US concessions. Iran's president said Monday that a regional meeting between Gulf foreign ministers and Tehran was planned to discuss management of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. As one analyst summarised it, the mere threat of further disruption is itself destabilising: "Having the threat there is very powerful because you get insurance companies becoming nervous about putting ships through that area."