US blames Iran as drone blitz cripples Saudi oil supplies
WASHINGTON has blamed Tehran rather than the Houthi rebels in Yemen for the drone strike that crippled Saudi oil production.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused Iran of launching an “unprecedented attack on the world’s energy supply”.
Iran accused the Americans of telling “maximum lies” while the nation’s air force chief, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, said yesterday: “Everybody should know that all American bases and their aircraft carriers in a distance of up to 1,250 miles around Iran are within the range of our missiles.”
Mr Hajizadeh warned that Iran was ready for a “fully fledged” conflict.
Shortfall
Officials confirmed the strike cut crude oil production by 5.7 million barrels a day, about half the country’s output and six per cent of the world’s oil supply.
The Saudis promised to restore production and make up the shortfall from reserves but analysts fear the impact on oil prices.
On Saturday up to 10 drones blitzed the vast Saudi Aramco oil processing facility at Abqaiq, north east of the capital Riyadh, and Khurais, a massive Aramco oil field.
The unmanned aircraft slipped through a multibillion pound air defence net and videos later appeared online showing giant fires at Abqaiq.
Machine gun fire could be heard in the background of some clips as soldiers vainly attempted to shoot down the drones.
There was speculation a cyber attack had paralysed air defence systems.
Iran-supported rebels in Yemen claimed responsibility amid a conflict with Saudi Arabia and its allies supporting the Yemeni government.
But Mr Pompeo quickly dismissed this as sources revealed that the drones mostly flew from Iran in the north rather than from Yemen in the south.
Iran foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said: “Such fruitless and blind accusations and remarks are incomprehensible and meaningless.”
Mr Mousavi said Saudi Arabia had “repeatedly violated Yemen” and that the “Yemenis have shown resistance to aggression”.
President Donald Trump called the Saudi crown prince, Mohammad bin Salman, to offer his support and was told Saudi Arabia is “willing and able to confront and deal with this terrorist aggression”.