KSA: Iran arms used in oil attacks
Press shown fragments of Iranian missiles, drones •Pompeo: Strikes on energy installations ‘act of war’
Authorities in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday displayed the remnants of Iranian drones and cruise missiles it said were used in the attacks against Aramco oil facilities at the weekend.
The attacks were “unquestionably” sponsored by Iran but investigations are continuing in an attempt to pinpoint the exact launch location, Defense Ministry spokesman Col. Turki Al-Maliki said. However, he added that the strikes definitely originated from north of the targets and not from Yemen.
“The attack was launched from the north and unquestionably sponsored by Iran,” he said. “The evidence ... that you have seen in front of you makes this undeniable. “The precision impact of the cruise missile indicates advanced capability beyond the capacity of Iran’s proxies. The targeting direction of the site indicates a north-tosouth direction of travel.”
Eighteen drones and three missiles were launched against Abqaiq, the location of the world’s largest oilprocessing facility, but the missiles “fell short” of the target, Al-Maliki said. A further four missiles targeted the Khurais oil field, he added.
The Ya Ali missiles, which have a range of 700 km, are known to have been used by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, he said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin
TACKLING TERROR
strongly condemned the attacks during a phone call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and said Russia was ready to assist with the investigation. UN experts have already traveled to Saudi Arabia to investigate the attacks, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said. He warned of “devastating” consequences should the crisis escalate.
The US wants to assemble a coalition of European and Arab partners to deter Iran from taking further action after last weekend’s attack, which Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described as “an act of war” against the world’s top oil exporter. “This is an attack of a scale we’ve just not seen before,” Pompeo said as he flew to Jeddah for talks with the crown prince. “The Saudis were the nation that were attacked. It was on their soil. It was an act of war against them directly.” He confirmed that the flight patterns suggested the attack did not come from the south, which would rule out a launch from Yemen, and said the US intelligence community has “high confidence” that the weapons used are not part of the Houthi arsenal.
“Were that true (that the attack originated from Yemen) — it’s not, but were that true — it doesn’t change the fingerprints of the Ayatollah as having put at risk the global energy supply,” he said, referring to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
US President Donald Trump said he has “many options” available in addition to military strikes against Iran, and that full details of his newly announced further sanctions against Tehran will be revealed within 48 hours.
Asked about the possibility of a military attack on Iran, Trump said: “There are many options. There’s the ultimate option and there are options a lot less than that.” He clarified that by ultimate option, he meant war.