Pompeo calls attack an Iranian ‘act of war’

CAIRO — U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday that attacks on Saudi oil facilities over the weekend were an Iranian “act of war” and called the Houthi rebels’ claim of responsibility “fraudulent.”

“We were blessed that there were no Americans killed in this attack, but any time you have an act of war of this nature, there’s always risk that that could happen,” he said before arriving in Saudi Arabia.

Pompeo added that the U.S. intelligence community has “high confidence” the Houthis do not possess the weapons used in the attack.

“We’ve seen no evidence that it came from Iraq. It could have well have traveled over Kuwait, we’ve not seen that,” Pompeo added.

Saudi Arabia is leading an alliance of Arab nations fighting against Houthi rebels in Yemen, who are supported by Iran.

Tensions mounted in the oil-rich region after drone attacks, repeatedly claimed by the Houthis, struck major Saudi oil facilities operated by Aramco, the Saudi Arabian national petroleum and natural gas company, over the weekend.

Ahead of Pompeo’s arrival, Saudi Arabia also said the attacks did not originate from Yemen and were “unquestionably sponsored by Iran.”

“The Iranian regime attacked the facilities with 18 drones and seven cruise missiles, including three that landed short and did not reach their final destination,” Turki al-Malki, the spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, told a news conference.

He said that the range of the cruise missiles was 700 kilometers, or about 435 miles, which means that they could not have been fired from inside Yemen, and that they were launched from the north toward the south. Iraq and Iran are to the north of the kingdom.

At the news conference, al-Malki displayed remains of the alleged Iranian cruise missiles and drones used in the attack.

He added that “the findings of the investigations show the attack was systematically and intentionally planned to destroy civilian infrastructure.”

Riyadh and Washington have repeatedly blamed the attack on Iran, a regional rival of Saudi Arabia, though Tehran has denied the charge.

Pompeo and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met Wednesday and the pair agreed that Iran must be held accountable for its “aggressive, reckless and threatening behavior,” said State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus.

Iran renewed its denial of involvement in the attack in an official letter to the U.S., the Iranian news agency IRNA reported Wednesday.

“Iran has nothing to do with the attack,” states the letter, which was delivered to the United States via the Swiss Embassy in Tehran. Switzerland represents Washington’s diplomatic interests in Iran.

“If action is taken against Iran, we will promptly retaliate and the dimensions would not be limited,” Tehran wrote in the letter, according to parts of it published by IRNA.

The letter was delivered to the Swiss Embassy on Monday, according to the agency.

The Saudi state news agency SPA, citing an unnamed Defense Ministry official, reported that the alliance would cover the vital waterways of the Strait of Hormuz, Bab al-Mandab, the Sea of Oman and the Gulf.

The Saudi crown prince called the attack a “real test to the international community’s will in confronting subversive acts threatening international security and stability,” in a telephone call with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, according to SPA.

French President Emmanuel Macron also spoke with the crown prince by telephone Wednesday and agreed to send French experts to Saudi Arabia to help investigate the cause of the attacks, according to a statement from the Elysee Palace.

The United Nations said Wednesday that it is also sending a team of experts to look into the incident. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in New York that the team was already on its way.