Saudi Arabia Shows Evidence Of Iranian Involvement In Oil Attack
Saudi Arabia on Wednesday displayed wreckage of drones and cruise missiles it said were used in weekend attacks on its critical oil infrastructure as “undeniable” evidence of Iranian involvement.
Displaying remnants of drones and missiles recovered from the attack sites at Abqaiq and Khurais, Saudi defense ministry spokesman Turki al-Maliki showed maps aimed at proving the strikes originated from the north and were “unquestionably sponsored by Iran”.
Col Malki said 18 drones and seven cruise missiles were fired from a direction that ruled out Yemen as a source. "Data recovered from the computers [on the UAV] shows it's Iranian," he said, adding that 18 UAVs had been fired at the Abqaiq oil facility and seven cruise missiles had been launched at both targets. Four cruise missiles struck the Khurais oilfield and the other three fell short of Abqaiq. Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi rebels have said they are behind the attacks. Iran has denied any involvement and warned it would retaliate against any attack that targeted it. Twenty-five pilotless aircraft and cruise missiles were used to attack the two sites, Maliki said. He told reporters gathered in Riyadh that the weapons were of Iranian origin but Saudi Arabia was still working to pinpoint the exact launch point. The range and accuracy of the weapons were beyond the capabilities of the Houthis, he added. The US has stood by its accusation that Iran was behind the attacks. While Trump initially said the U.S. is “locked and loaded” for a potential response, he has since signaled that he isn’t eager for another Middle East conflict. “I have just instructed the Secretary of the Treasury to substantially increase Sanctions on the country of Iran!” Trump tweeted. Just before the press briefing, he said he had decided to tighten U.S. sanctions on Iran following the attacks, which had raised the risk that the key energy-exporting region could slide into a regional conflict.
Col Malki said 18 drones and seven cruise missiles were fired from a direction that ruled out Yemen as a source. "Data recovered from the computers [on the UAV] shows it's Iranian," he said, adding that 18 UAVs had been fired at the Abqaiq oil facility and seven cruise missiles had been launched at both targets. Four cruise missiles struck the Khurais oilfield and the other three fell short of Abqaiq. Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi rebels have said they are behind the attacks. Iran has denied any involvement and warned it would retaliate against any attack that targeted it. Twenty-five pilotless aircraft and cruise missiles were used to attack the two sites, Maliki said. He told reporters gathered in Riyadh that the weapons were of Iranian origin but Saudi Arabia was still working to pinpoint the exact launch point. The range and accuracy of the weapons were beyond the capabilities of the Houthis, he added. The US has stood by its accusation that Iran was behind the attacks. While Trump initially said the U.S. is “locked and loaded” for a potential response, he has since signaled that he isn’t eager for another Middle East conflict. “I have just instructed the Secretary of the Treasury to substantially increase Sanctions on the country of Iran!” Trump tweeted. Just before the press briefing, he said he had decided to tighten U.S. sanctions on Iran following the attacks, which had raised the risk that the key energy-exporting region could slide into a regional conflict.
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