Dieses Jemenkrieg-Mosaik besteht aus zwei Teilen / This Yemen War Mosaic is divided in two parts
Part 2: https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-576a-yemen-war-mosaic-576a
... USA beschuldigt Iran wegen Angriffe auf saudische Ölanlagen, Spannungen steigen – und mehr
Sep. 19, 2019: US Congress report on Yemen – The Yemen War, a genocide? – 92,000 landmine victims are disabled – US and Saudis arming IS in Yemen – US accuses Iran for attacks at Saudi oil facilities, rising tensions – and more
Schwerpunkte / Key aspects
In Italics: Part 2
Klassifizierung / Classification
Für wen das Thema ganz neu ist / Who is new to the subject
cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important
cp1a Am wichtigsten: Seuchen / Most important: Epidemics
cp1b Am wichtigsten: Kampf um Hodeidah / Most important: Hodeidah battle
cp1c1 Am wichtigsten: Huthi-Angriff auf saudische Ölanlagen: Deutsch / Most important: Houthi air raid at Saudi oil facilities: German
cp1c2 Am wichtigsten: Huthi-Angriff auf saudische Ölanlagen: Englisch / Most important: Houthi air raid at Saudi oil facilities: English
cp2 Allgemein / General
cp2a Allgemein: Saudische Blockade / General: Saudi blockade
cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation
cp4 Flüchtlinge / Refugees
cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis
cp6 Bürgerkrieg im Südjemen / Civil war in Southern Yemen
cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks
cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia
cp8a Jamal Khashoggi
cp9 USA
cp9a USA-Iran Krise: Wachsende Spannungen am Golf / US-Iran crisis: Mounting tensions at the Gulf
cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain
cp11 Deutschland / Germany
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
cp12b Sudan
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms Trade
cp13b Wirtschaft / Economy
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
cp15 Propaganda
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
cp18 Sonstiges / Other
Klassifizierung / Classification
***
**
*
(Kein Stern / No star)
? = Keine Einschatzung / No rating
A = Aktuell / Current news
B = Hintergrund / Background
C = Chronik / Chronicle
D = Details
E = Wirtschaft / Economy
H = Humanitäre Fragen / Humanitarian questions
K = Krieg / War
P = Politik / Politics
pH = Pro-Houthi
pS = Pro-Saudi
T = Terrorismus / Terrorism
Für wen das Thema ganz neu ist / Who is new to the subject
Einführende Artikel u. Überblicke für alle, die mit den Ereignissen im Jemen noch nicht vertraut sind, hier:
Yemen War: Introductory articles, overviews, for those who are still unfamiliar with the Yemen war here:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-einfuehrende-artikel-u-ueberblicke
cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important
(** B H K P)
Congressional Research Service - Yemen: Civil War and Regional Intervention
Updated September 17, 2019
This report provides information on the ongoing crisis in Yemen. Now in its fifth year, the war in Yemen shows no signs of abating. The war has killed thousands of Yemenis, including civilians as well as combatants, and has significantly damaged the country’s infrastructure. One U.S.- and European-funded organization, the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), estimated in June 2019 that more than 90,000 Yemenis have been killed since 2015, including more than 30,000 in 2018 and nearly 12,000 in 2019.
Despite multiple attempts by the United Nations (U.N.) to broker a cease-fire that would lead to a comprehensive settlement to the conflict, the parties themselves continue to hinder diplomatic progress. In December 2018, the Special Envoy of the U.N. Secretary-General for Yemen Martin Griffiths brokered a cease-fire, known as the Stockholm Agreement, centered on the besieged Red Sea port city of Hudaydah. Eight months later, the agreement remains unfulfilled and, though fighting around Hudaydah has subsided, other fronts have intensified. Parallel initiatives to secure the western city of Taiz and exchange prisoners also remain to be implemented.
Although media coverage of the 2015 Saudi-led intervention tended to focus on the binary nature of the war (the Saudi-led coalition versus the Houthis), in fact, there have been a multitude of combatants whose alliances and loyalties have been somewhat fluid. In the summer of 2019 in southern Yemen, long simmering tensions between the internationally recognized Republic of Yemen government (ROYG) and the separatist Southern Transitional Council (STC) boiled over, leading to open warfare between the local allies of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Many foreign observers have denounced human rights violations that they charge have been committed by all parties to the conflict. In the United States and other Western countries, there has been vociferous opposition to errant coalition air strikes against civilian targets. Some lawmakers have proposed legislation to limit U.S. support for the coalition while others have highlighted Iran’s support for the Houthis as a major factor in Yemen’s destabilization. The Trump Administration opposes congressional efforts to restrain U.S. support for Saudi Arabia and continues to call for a comprehensive settlement to the conflict in line with relevant U.N. Security Council resolutions and other international initiatives.
According to U.N. officials, Yemen’s humanitarian crisis is the worst in the world, with close to 80% of Yemen’s population of nearly 30 million needing some form of assistance. Two-thirds of the population is considered food insecure. The United Nations notes that humanitarian assistance is “increasingly becoming the only lifeline for millions of Yemenis.” As of midSeptember 2019, U.N. financial appeals for 2019 programming in Yemen sought $4.2 billion, but had received only $1.5 billion (36%) through U.N. plan channels.
Historical Background and Overview
For over a decade, the Republic of Yemen Government (ROYG) has been torn apart by multiple armed conflicts to which several internal militant groups and foreign nations are parties. Collectively, these conflicts have eroded central governance in Yemen, and have fragmented the nation into various local centers of power. Though until 1990, Yemen was largely devoid of a single government, the gradual dissolution of Yemen’s territorial integrity has alarmed the international community and the United States. Policymakers are concerned that state failure may empower Yemen-based transnational terrorist groups; destabilize vital international shipping lanes near the Bab al Mandab strait (alt. sp. Bab al Mandeb, Bab el Mendeb); and provide opportunities for Iran to threaten Saudi Arabia’s borders. Beyond geo-strategic concerns, the collapse of Yemeni institutions during wartime has exacerbated poor living conditions in what has long been the most impoverished Arab country, leading to what is now considered the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
Many foreign observers have denounced human rights violations that they charge have been committed by all parties to the conflict, with particular attention paid in the United States and other Western countries to errant coalition air strikes against civilian targets. Some lawmakers have proposed legislation to limit U.S. support for the coalition, while others have highlighted Iran’s support for the Houthis as a major factor in Yemen’s destabilization. The Trump Administration continues to call for a comprehensive settlement to the conflict in line with in line with relevant resolutions of the United Nations Security Council and other international initiatives.
Prospects for a Political Settlement
It appears that one of the many impediments to a reaching a political solution to the Yemen conflict is that even though the conflict began as a localized affair, it has become part of a larger narrative of regional confrontation between Iran and its proxies on one side and the United States and Gulf monarchies on the other. According to one unnamed Saudi official, “The kingdom does not want to be dragged for much longer into war [in Yemen]…. But amid all the tension with Iran, Saudi Arabia does not want to look weak or show that it is hurting.” 66 Even if regional tensions cool, the Houthis and the Saudi-led coalition appear to disagree over the framework for a potential political solution. The Saudi-led coalition demands that the Houthi militia disarm, relinquish its heavy weaponry (ballistic missiles and rockets), and return control of the capital, Sanaa, to the internationally recognized government of President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who is in exile in Saudi Arabia. The Houthis seem determined to outlast their opponents while consolidating their control over northern Yemen.
Although the international community, including the United States, continues to support Yemen’s unity, the question of how best to share power between a central authority and Yemen’s various regional power centers remains unresolved. Fundamentally, Yemenis disagree over whether or how to create an effective federal system and provide security in Yemen. Members of the international community also appear to disagree over questions of who may legally use armed force in Yemen. With so many de facto authorities across Yemen wielding military force of some type, the disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration of Yemen’s various militias into a centrally led security force that international actors might partner with to counter terrorism seems an unlikely prospect for the near term.
https://fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/R43960.pdf
(** B H K P)
From 2016: Genocide in Yemen: Is the West Complicit?
Abstract: This essay examines the current situation in Yemen and the possible genocide taking place there. Genocide used in the context of this essay is defined as: The deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular ethnic group or nation. The main research question is two part. First, is there a genocide in Yemen? Secondly, if so, is the West complicit? Evidence is presented of probable genocidal war crimes by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen and indications that certain Western powers may be culpable. Also, this paper will look at a new cold war between Saudi Arabia and Iran and how the conflict in Yemen is a proxy war. Finally, I will address the research questions and offer conclusions, analysis, and how a new approach to international relations by the powers involved in Yemen could help reach an end to hostilities – by Harold Ray Taves
https://www.academia.edu/26387348/academia.edu_copy--Genocide_in_Yemen.docx?auto=bookmark
(** B H K)
Houthis-landmines maims 92,000 Yemenis
The number of handicapped people is on rise due to contact with landmines that were randomly planted by the Houthi rebels throughout the country, a local non-governmental organization said.
Nuzha Makhlooq, a female human rights defender confirmed in a talk she delivered to the Human Rights Council session on Monday that 92,000 people in Yemen were injured by the Houthis’ made-landmines.
She explained that three million handicapped people in Yemen are among the 82 percent of the country’s population who are in urgent need to humanitarian assistance.
She added that large number of the handicapped people or disabled people has died due to lack of care access.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-33169
(** B K T)
Leaked arms dealers’ passports reveal who supplies terrorists in Yemen: Serbia files (Part 3)
Islamic State weapons traced back to US, Saudi Arabia and Serbian vice prime minister’s father
Leaked documents including scanned passports of US, Saudi and UAE arms dealers and government officials expose for the first time an international weapons shipment network for arming militants in Yemen, including Islamic State terrorists in Yemen.
Recently I anonymously received explosive documents from the Serbian state-owned arms manufacturer Krusik, including e-mails, internal memos, contracts, photos, delivery schedules, and packing lists with lot numbers of weapons and their buyers. Among the leaked documents I also received scanned passports of arms dealers and government officials from the US, Saudi Arabia and UAE. They visited the Serbian arms factory to purchase weapons (mortar shells and rockets) on behalf of the US Government, Saudi Defence Ministry and UAE Army. Some of these weapons, however, have ended up with terrorists in Yemen.
Tracing Islamic State weapons in Yemen back to their suppliers
Serbian mortar shells manufactured by the Serbian state-owned arms factory Krusik can often be seen in the hands of Islamic State terrorists in their propaganda videos in Yemen.
I traced back two particular lots of Serbian mortar shells whose identification marks were clearly visible. I used the documents that were leaked to me from the Serbian arms factory Krusik to find out who had originally ordered and purchased these lots of weapons.
The two letters KV mean that those mortar shells were manufactured by the Serbian arms factory Krusik (K stands for Krusik and V – for Valjevo, the town where the factory is located). The following digits 04/18 mean that the mortar shells are lot 04, produced in 2018.
According to the documents, such 82 mm M74HE mortar shells KV lot 04/18 which appear in the Islamic State video in Yemen were purchased by the American company Alliant Techsystems LLC (a wholly owned subsidiary of ATK Orbital, USA) on behalf of the US Government. The end user indicated is the Afghan Army. However, weapons from this particular lot appear with Islamic State terrorists in Yemen.
These mortar shells 81 mm M72 HE KV Lot 01/18 were purchased by the Saudi Ministry of Defence, according to documents from the manufacturer Krusik. The exporter was the Serbian private company GIM, represented by the Serbian interior minister Nebojsa Stefanivic’s father – Branko Stefanovic. Besides being interior minister, his son Nebojsa Stefanivic is also the vice prime minister of Serbia.
GIM signed four contracts with Saudi Arabia for the delivery of 517,000 pcs. of mortar shells from Krusik (one contract – in 2016, and three contracts – in 2018 respectively). The exporter from Serbia was GIM and the importers in Saudi Arabia were two private companies: Rinad Al Jazira, Saudi Arabia and Larkmont Holdings LTD, an offshore company registered in the British Virgin Islands. The end user was the Ministry of Defence of Saudi Arabia.
These exports are just a small part of a covert international weapons shipment network for arming militants in the Middle East. I have published documents and evidence linking these exports directly to Islamic State terrorists in Yemen. I have also published the names and passports of arms dealers and government officials from the US and Saudi Arabia because they must be interrogated and those who arm terrorists must be held to account.
If you have any information about these people, or other illicit arms deals, please, contact me here, and help us to stop the arming of terrorists and to save lives – By Dilyana Gaytandzhieva (photos, documents)
More leaked documents you can read here:
Islamic State weapons in Yemen traced back to US Government: Serbia files (part 1)
US Task Force Smoking Gun smuggles weapons to Syria: Serbia files (part 2)
cp1a Am wichtigsten: Seuchen / Most important: Epidemics
(* B H)
50 rabies deaths and more than 9000 suffering from rabies as a result of the acute medicine shortage and spread of dogs in the Houthi-held areas.
https://twitter.com/BelqeesRights/status/1173961050888318981
(* B H)
The cumulative total number of suspected cholera cases from 1st January to 31st August 2019 is 671,598 with 845 associated deaths (CFR 0.14%). Out of the reported cases, 73,802 cases were reported in August 2019. Children under five represent 25% whilst the elderly above 60 years of age account for 7% of total suspected cases. The outbreak has so far affected 22 of 23 governorates and 305 of 333 districts in Yemen.
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-health-cluster-bulletin-august-2019
(* A H)
Film: Yemen [Sanaa gov.] starts Cholera vaccination campaign in capital Sana’a
Yemen’s Ministry of Health along with the global health bodies has begun a new campaign to eradicate an epidemic disease which has claimed many lives in the impoverished country.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=372151060397741
cp1b Am wichtigsten: Kampf um Hodeidah / Most important: Hodeidah battle
(A K pS)
Houthis continue breaching Hodeida ceasefire
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-33209
(A K pS)
A baby, his 4-year-old sister seriously injured by Houthi snipers in Hodeida
Houthi militia snipers critically wounded a four-month-old baby and his four-year-old sister in front of their own mother in Hodeida province on Tuesday.
The two victims were with their parents when the snipers of the Iran-backed rebel militia fired their bullets on the motorcycle the family was riding in the south of Hais town, southern Hodeida province (photo)
and also https://almasdaronline.com/articles/171733
(A K pH)
In Hodeidah, two children were injured with a shell fired by US-Saudi mercenaries on a house in Attohayta district. The mercenaries targeted several areas of Kilo-16 with medium machineguns.
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=8859
(A K pS)
Houthis continue to shell joint forces in Hodeidah
http://en.adenpress.news/news/13319
(A H K pH)
Saudi invaders block UN aid convoy to besieged Durayhimi for the second time
Inhabitants of Durayhimi face imminent disaster as chronically needed aid is kept out
For the second time in less than a month, the aggression led by Saudi Arabia has prevented the entry of a convoy of relief and food aid to the inhabitants of the city of Durayhimi, who have been trapped and encircled for more than 300 days.
Jaber Al-Razhi, Director of the Humanitarian Management and Coordination Commission in Hodeidah, said, “We were notified today that the forces of aggression prevented the entry of an aid convoy to the people of Durayhimi, which had been provided by the the UN organisations working in the province.”
Al-Razhi explained that the convoy was prepared after obtaining the prior approval.
(A K pH)
In Hodeidah, a civilian was injured with a gunshot and houses were destroyed with US-Saudi mercenaries missiles and artillery shells in Baet Al-Faqih district. US-Saudi mercenaries targeted populated villages in Addurayhimi and Kilo-16 with over 17 artillery shells and heavy and medium machineguns.
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=8840
(A K pS)
video: - The damage caused by the indiscriminate targeting of Houthi militias on the homes of citizens in Al-Tahita
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VchS5C116Fs
(A K pS)
Video: Houthi terrorist snipers targeted citizens of Hays Directorate south of Hodeidah with machine guns and wounded two children.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG-uSFws8k8
(* B K P)
Yemen’s peace process: The Hodeida Agreement that never was?
Although the UNMHA’s mandate was recently renewed for another six months, until Jan. 15, 2020, and a third chief of mission, retired Indian Army Lieutenant General Abhijit Guha, has been announced, neither the Hodeida Agreement, nor the hopes of millions of Yemenis have yet to see the light of day.
While Griffiths considers Hodeida “the gateway to the political process” to end Yemen’s four-year war, the agreement’s poor design and the protracted, opaque process of implementation are not a promising basis for a credible peace process and an end to the conflict. This is because the envoy has exploited the humanitarian situation to gain international attention and leverage British lobbying in an effort to normalize the status quo, chipping away at the “Yemen peace process” and shattering the old peace references.
Normalization agenda
The Hodeida Agreement normalized the status quo. First, it specifically froze the battle for Hodeida by replacing the demand for withdrawal with one for the mutual redeployment of troops, which by definition regarded the forces of the last elected authority and militias as equals. Recognizing the military presence of the Houthis in Hodeida, without a military victory or a nationwide settlement, should be taken as a sign of normalization.
Second, as much as the strategic ambiguity used in the agreement has been problematic, it is also increasingly evident that it is part of a broader plan to normalize the role of the Houthis. Whose “local security forces” and “central bank branch” should collect revenues in Hodeida was left unspecified in the agreement and remains unresolved, requiring greater “flexibility” according to Griffiths. If any observer were to step back and look at the chain of events the UN envoy has helped put into motion, however, they would doubtless see a pattern: the normalization of the Houthis.
Chipping away at the Yemen peace process
By treating Hodeida and Taiz as two separate issues, the UN envoy has turned the Yemen peace process into a sort of “mix and match” of geography and external influence. But this is no joke: mixing local realities and matching external interests, as was evident in the Aden clashes/coup, is very alarming indeed.
The Hodeida Agreement cannot be expanded or scaled up to a comprehensive nationwide agreement for the simple reason that it did not and is not meant to contain violence elsewhere.
Shattering peace references
When UNSC resolutions implicitly contradict each other, the message is clear: the old peace references do not work, and it is time to discard them and develop a new one. What Yemeni officials may have overlooked in the Hodeida Agreement is the implications it had for the three previous peace references
There is no doubt that the state of the Hodeida Agreement reflects that of the peace process more broadly – by Ibrahim Jalal
https://www.mei.edu/publications/yemens-peace-process-hodeida-agreement-never-was
(A K pH)
Saudi Aggression Continues In Violation Of Stockholm Agreement
Saudi aggression and its mercenaries attacked residential areas of Hodeidah province over 24 hours.
The mercenaries waged artillery and missile attack on the areas in districts of al-Tuhytah, al-Duryhimi and Bait al-Faqih in Hodeidah.
https://sabanews.net/en/news3068516.htm
(A K pH)
In Hodeidah, A civilian was critically injured with US-Saudi shelling in Attohayta district.
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=8820
(A K pS)
The militias are continuing the shelling. Engineering teams continue to clear mines around wheat mills in Hodeidah
Houthi militias continue to shell with heavy artillery, joint forces positions and residential areas in southern Hodeidah province in western Yemen.
On the other hand, the engineering teams of the National Demining Program and the joint forces continued to dismantle and remove the mine networks planted by Houthi militias during their control of positions east of Hodeidah.
https://almasdaronline.com/articles/171644
cp1c1 Am wichtigsten: Huthi-Angriff auf saudische Ölanlagen: Deutsch / Most important: Houthi air raid at Saudi oil facilities: German
(* A K P)
Huthi-Rebellen drohen mit Angriffen auf Dubai und Abu Dhabi
Sie könnten Dutzende Ziele in den Vereinigten Arabischen Emiraten ins Visier nehmen, sagt ein Militärsprecher. Man werde nicht zögern, Drohnen einzusetzen.
Nach der Bombardierung saudischer Ölanlagen haben Jemens Huthi-Rebellen mit Angriffen auf die Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate (VAE) gedroht. Die Huthis hätten Dutzende Ziele in den VAE, darunter Abu Dhabi und Dubai, die jederzeit ins Visier genommen werden könnten, sagte der Militärsprecher der Rebellen, Jahja Saria, am Mittwoch. Die Huthis würden nicht zögern, eine umgehenden Antwort zu geben, wenn die „feindseligen Operationen“ im Jemen nicht endeten.
(* A B K P)
Trump kündigt neue Sanktionen gegen Iran an
Trump verschärft damit den Wirtschaftskrieg, je nach Ziel und Ausmaß der Sanktionen wird er damit Iran mehr oder weniger verärgern, aber, das kann man ihm zugutehalten, er geht damit nicht den Weg, der eine militärische Eskalation befördert. Das wäre bei einer Präsidentin Clinton nicht unbedingt der Fall gewesen.
Der Druck, die Angriffe auf die saudischen Ölanlagen martialisch zu beantworten, ist da.
Zwar wird die "militärische Option" selten ausdrücklich so benannt, aber die Forderung nach einer robusten Antwort ist herauszuspüren, wenn es etwa in einem Bericht der New York Times aus Expertenkreisen heißt, dass "viele Amerikaner überzeugt sind, dass US-Interessen, die darin bestehen, Ölnachschub aus dem Nahen Osten zu sichern, dramatisch nachgelassen haben."
Der ganze NYT-Bericht dreht sich um die Frage, wie Trump agieren soll, um seine angekratzte Glaubwürdigkeit wiederherzustellen. Dass sich das Interesse an der Sicherung des Ölnachschubs aus dem Nahen Osten nicht mit der Fracking-Ölproduktion innerhalb der USA erledigt hat, wird dann an anderer Stelle nochmal herausgestrichen (Der Mythos der US-Energieunabhängigkeit ist in Rauch aufgegangen).
Und dann gibt es ja noch die Debatte über die iranische Bedrohung, in der entschlossene Antworten gefordert werden. "Iran testet die US-Administration", so der Sound des Chors aus dem Hintergrund, der von US-Medien versendet wird. Iran fordert geradezu eine Antwort von Donald Trump, sagt der ehemalige US-Botschafter im Jemen, Gerald Feierstein.
Gerald Feierstein ist nicht der einzige aus diesem Hintergrundchor.
Iran warnt vor Reaktionen, falls die USA Schritte gegen das Land unternimmt
Wie die iranische Führung auf die Verschärfung der Sanktionen reagieren wird, ist noch offen.
Die EU will mehr Geopolitik betreiben
Sehr vage bleibt die Rolle der Europäer – von Thomas Pany
https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Trump-kuendigt-neue-Sanktionen-gegen-Iran-an-4533526.html
(* B K P)
Bomben gegen den reichen Nachbarn: Was treibt Jemens Huthis?
[Überblicksartikel]
(* A K P)
Pompeo nennt Angriffe auf Öl-Anlagen "Kriegshandlung"
Mit neuen Vorwürfen und der Androhung verschärfter Sanktionen haben die USA die Spannungen mit dem Iran angeheizt. US-Außenminister Mike Pompeo beschuldigte die Führung in Teheran bei seiner Reise nach Dschidda, in einem "kriegerischen Akt" am vergangenen Samstag wichtige Ölanlagen in Saudi-Arabien angegriffen zu haben. US-Präsident Donald Trump teilte am Mittwoch auf Twitter mit, er habe das Finanzministerium angewiesen, die Sanktionen gegen den Iran "bedeutend" zu verstärken.
Für Saudi-Arabien steht "unzweifelhaft" fest, dass Iran hinter den Angriffen auf die Öl-Anlagen vom Wochenende steckt. Als Beweise präsentierte Riad am Mittwoch Trümmerteile von angeblich iranischen Drohnen und Marschflugkörpern. Nach Angaben des Sprechers des saudiarabischen Verteidigungsministeriums, Turki al-Maliki, stammten sie von den Angriffsstellen in Abkaik und Churais.
Es seien iranische Drohnen des Typs "Delta Wing" sowie "Ja Ali"-Marschflugkörper eingesetzt worden, erklärte al-Maliki. Insgesamt seien 25 Flugkörper beteiligt gewesen – 18 Drohnen in Abkaik und sieben Raketen in Churais. "Der Angriff kam aus dem Norden und wurde fraglos vom Iran unterstützt", sagte al-Maliki. Der genaue Ausgangspunkt müsse noch ermittelt werden.
Die iranische Regierung wies am Mittwoch erneut jede Verantwortung für die Angriffe auf die Ölanlagen in Saudi-Arabien zurück
(* B K P)
Ein neuer Luftkrieg
Drohnen-Einsätze schüren die latenten Spannungen zwischen Israel und Iran
Drohnen sind klein, lassen sich preisgünstig produzieren und können Radarsystemen ausweichen. Für Israel sind sie auch bei Einsätzen im Gazastreifen fast schon das zentrale Element des eigenen Militärarsenals, was den Iran anspornt, auf diese unbemannten Systeme bei Zusammenstößen mit Israel ebenfalls zurückzugreifen oder Alliierte damit auszustatten. Man schätzt die chirurgischen Eigenheiten der Drohnen-Technologie. Laut Aussage israelischer Regierungsvertreter gegenüber EU-Diplomaten schickte Israel die beiden am 1. September in Beirut abgestürzten Drohnen, um die Hisbollah daran zu hindern, moderne Lenksysteme in einfache Raketen einzubauen. Die Drohnen krachten in einem südlichen Vorort der libanesischen Kapitale und damit einer Bastion der Hisbollah zu Boden. Nach Bergung der Maschinen war von der zu hören, an Bord seien mindestens fünf Kilo Plastiksprengstoff gewesen. Wie aus diplomatischen Kreisen in Beirut verlautet, könnte es sich um den Versuch eines Attentats oder um eine Aktion gehandelt haben, mit der ein Stützpunkt zur Raketennachrüstung zerstört werden sollte. Wenig später drangen laut libanesischen Militärs nochmals drei israelische Drohnen im Süden des Landes in libanesischen Luftraum ein. Sie seien zwar beschossen, aber nicht getroffen worden, und kehrten zurück. Israel besteht darauf, dass der Einbau von Lenkungssystemen in Tausende von Raketen, die sich im Besitz der Hisbollah befinden, eine existenzielle Bedrohung sei.
Zum Lagebild eines neuen Luftkrieges passt die Behauptung schiitischer Milizen im Irak, wonach Israel Drohnen schicke, um Ziele im Nord- und Zentralirak anzugreifen, die als Transitzonen für Waffen gelten, die für iranische Stellungen in Syrien nicht weit von der Grenze zu Israel bestimmt sind. Seit Mitte Juli soll Israel zusätzlich hochtechnisierte, mit Raketen ausgestattete Flugkörper Hunderte von Kilometer weit in irakisches Gebiet geschickt haben. Insgesamt fünf Ziele, an denen iranische Militärverbände standen, wurden demnach attackiert.
Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, erklärter Verbündeter des Iran und Vizechef der irakischen Milizenallianz Mobilisierte Volkskräfte (PMU), deren Mitglieder gemeinsam gegen den Islamischen Staat (IS) gekämpft haben, meint: „Wir haben Beweise dafür, dass die USA in diesem Jahr vier israelische, in Aserbaidschan stationierte Drohnen in ihre Luftwaffe integriert haben, um Angriffe auf irakische Militärstützpunkte zu fliegen.“
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/the-guardian/ein-neuer-luftkrieg
(** B K P)
Jürgen Todenhöfer: Lügt uns nicht schon wieder in einen Krieg hinein!
Liebe Freunde, die USA haben fast jeden ihrer Kriege mit Lügen begründet. Erinnert ihr euch noch an die frei erfundenen „Massenvernichtungswaffen“ des Irak? An die zum „Beweis“ vorgelegten amerikanischen Satellitenaufnahmen? Alles war erlogen. Wer traut noch den „Beweisen“ der USA?
WAR IRAN DER ANGREIFER?
War das von Atomwaffen umzingelte Land wirklich so dumm, in dieser aufgeheizten Situation ausgerechnet saudische Ölanlagen anzugreifen? Das Herz der Weltwirtschaft? Äußerst unwahrscheinlich!
Analysiert man die von den USA vorgelegten Satellitenbilder genauer, deutet vieles daraufhin, dass die Geschosse nicht, wie von den USA behauptet, aus dem Norden (Iran) oder dem Nordwesten (Irak) kamen, sondern aus dem Westen, wie sogar die New York Times inzwischen berichtet. Oder aus dem Südwesten. Der Südwesten würde auf die von den Huthis kontrollierten Gebiete im Yemen deuten. Sehr peinlich für die USA, aber auch peinlich für zahllose westliche Medien, die die leicht widerlegbare Propaganda der USA wieder einmal ungeprüft übernommen haben.
WAR ES DER JEMEN?
Kann der Jemen Drohnen oder Raketen über 1000 Kilometer ins Ziel bringen?
Die Behauptung der USA, der Iran habe dem Jemen, trotz all dieser Checkpoints, riesige Mittelstreckenraketen geliefert, ist ein Ammenmärchen, das man nur deshalb erzählen kann, weil durch die saudisch-amerikanische Blockade Journalisten nicht mehr durchs Land reisen können. Und weil Lügen halt so praktisch sind.
Die Jemeniten sind inzwischen ein Volk der Bastler und Tüftler geworden. Sie bauen mit viel Geschick alte russische und nordkoreanische Waffen um. Kurzstreckenraketen zu Mittelstreckenraketen, Luft-Luft-Raketen zu Boden-Luft-Raketen usw. Das scheint nicht übermäßig schwer zu sein. Alle erforderlichen Infos gibt es im Internet.
Dass der Jemen Drohnen baut, bestätigen sogar die Saudis. Auch Drohnen mit großer Reichweite. Da werden einfach große Motoren aus anderen Waffensystemen eingebaut. Erst Anfang September griffen die Saudis nach eigenen Angaben im Jemen „ein Lager für Drohnen und Raketen“ an. Und töteten dabei wieder einmal über 100 Menschen.
Die Huthis könnten also sehr wohl die saudischen Erdölanlagen angegriffen haben. Ich sage bewusst „könnten“, weil auch ich nicht dabei war. Ein Motiv wäre allerdings leicht zu finden.
Darf man die ketzerische Frage stellen: Was ist mehr wert, saudisches Öl oder das Leben jemenitischer Kinder? In der unvorstellbaren Not, in der die Jemeniten leben, ist es schwer, von den Jemeniten eine maßvolle, rationale Verteidigung zu verlangen.
Vielleicht glauben die Huthis, sie könnten die Saudis durch Angriffe auf das Zentrum ihres Wohlstands an den Verhandlungstisch zwingen. Irrsinn? Irrsinn verzweifelter Menschen, die sich gegen die völlige Vernichtung ihres Landes wehren?
GIBT ES EINE LÖSUNG?
Die USA haben mit ihren völkerrechtswidrigen Sanktionen den Jemen und den Iran ins Elend gestoßen. Sie haben versucht, diesen zwei stolzen Ländern die Würde zu nehmen. Solange die USA ihre rechtswidrigen Sanktionen nicht aufheben, wird die Lage im Mittleren Osten hochexplosiv bleiben. Jeden Tag kann ein großer Krieg ausbrechen, der die ganze Welt in Mitleidenschaft zieht.
https://www.facebook.com/JuergenTodenhoefer/photos/a.10150173554135838/10156666680200838
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Washington beschuldigt Iran und bereitet weiteren Nahostkrieg vor
Der US-Imperialismus präsentiert sich der Welt einmal mehr als Kläger, Richter und Henker und steuert rücksichtslos auf einen weiteren Krieg im Nahen Osten zu, mit potenziell katastrophalem Ausgang. Diesmal nutzt Washington die Angriffe auf saudische Anlagen am Samstag als Vorwand für einen Krieg gegen den Iran.
Die Reaktion von US-Außenminister Mike Pompeo auf diese Angriffe, die die Ölproduktion des saudischen Königreichs fast halbiert und die globale Tagesproduktion um 6 Prozent reduziert haben, war bemerkenswert schnell und eigenartig formuliert:
„Der Iran hat jetzt einen beispiellosen Angriff auf die Energieversorgung der Welt begonnen“, verlautete Pompeo am späten Samstag via Twitter. Und weiter: „Es gibt keine Beweise, dass die Angriffe aus dem Jemen kamen.“
Die Behauptung, der Iran stecke hinter den Anschlägen, die eine Reihe von Bränden auslösten und zwei Ölförderanlagen im Osten Saudi-Arabiens verwüsteten, wird von keinem Beweis gestützt. Es steht lediglich die dünne Aussage im Raum, es gäbe „keinen Beweis“ dafür, dass die Angriffe vom Jemen ausgingen.
Jemen kann nach Ansicht des US-Außenministers und seiner Kriegslogik als Angreifer ausgeschlossen werden, da die Houthi-Rebellen, die den größten Teil des Jemen kontrollieren, die Verantwortung für die Angriffe übernommen und ein klares Motiv haben, und zwar den mörderischen Krieg der Saudis gegen die Zivilbevölkerung des Jemen. Die US-Massenmedien haben die Behauptungen von Pompeo im Großen und Ganzen als absolute Wahrheit wiedergegeben. Am Montagabend zitierten Fernsehnachrichtensendungen ungenannte Informationsquellen, führten nicht spezifizierte Beweise an und behaupteten, der Iran sei für die Angriffe verantwortlich. Zweifellos ist dieser „Beweis“ genauso überzeugend wie der von US-Seite erfundene Zwischenfall im Golf von Tonkin in Vietnam und die Lüge von den „Massenvernichtungswaffen“ im Irak. Dieselben Medien erwähnen die saudischen Verbrechen im Jemen praktisch nicht.
Wenn die Erklärung der jemenitischen Houthis wahr ist, nämlich dass sie mit einem Schwarm von 10 waffenfähigen Drohnen die saudischen Einrichtungen angegriffen haben, dann war die Aktion eindeutig ein Akt der Selbstverteidigung und im Verhältnis weitaus geringer als das Gemetzel, das dem Jemen vom saudischen Regime zugefügt wird.
Unterdessen wiederholte Washingtons neue Botschafterin bei den Vereinten Nationen Kelly Craft am Montag die Vorwürfe gegen den Iran bei einer Sitzung des Sicherheitsrates der Vereinten Nationen zum Jemen. Sie lieferte nicht mehr Beweise als Pompeo zwei Tage zuvor und wiederholte lediglich die Formulierung, dass „es keine Beweise dafür gibt, dass die Angriffe aus dem Jemen kamen“. Sie beschrieb die Schäden an den saudischen Ölanlagen als „zutiefst beunruhigend“.
Wie die Regierung, die sie vertritt, findet die UN-Botschafterin - die Frau des milliardenschweren Kohlebarons Joe Craft aus Kentucky und führende Unterstützerin der Republikaner - das verschüttete Öl der saudischen Monarchie eindeutig viel beunruhigender als das vergossene Blut von Zehntausenden jemenitischen Männern, Frauen und Kindern.
Am Samstagabend telefonierte Präsident Donald Trump mit dem saudischen Kronprinzen Mohamed bin Salman, dem de facto Herrscher des Königreichs, und sprach einem Mann, der als kaltblütiger Mörder entlarvt wurde, sein Beileid und seine uneingeschränkte Unterstützung aus.
Trump kündigte daraufhin an, dass die USA nun bereit seien, saudisches Öl mit militärischer Gewalt zu rächen.
Es gibt nach Washingtoner Lesart „keine Beweise" dafür, dass die Angriffe aus dem Jemen kamen. Man könnte gleichsam, wohl noch trefflicher behaupten, dass es ebenfalls „keine Beweise“ dafür gibt, dass sie nicht von den USA selbst oder von dem wichtigsten regionalen US-Verbündeten Israel ausgingen.
Wenn man von der uralten Ermittlermaxime Cui bono? ausgeht, also die Frage stellt, wer der Nutznießer ist, so ist Teheran recht unverdächtig. Der schnelle Vorwurf aus Washington lohnt einen zweiten Blick auf das Geschehen.
Der Angriff auf die saudischen Ölanlagen liefert einen casus belli, der von einem großen Teil der herrschenden US-Oligarchie und ihrem Militär- und Geheimdienstapparat gewünscht wird, um einen Krieg gegen den Iran mit dem Ziel des Regimewechsels zu führen.
Das Denken dieser Kreise zeigt sich anschaulich in einem Leitartikel aus dem Wall Street Journal, dem Sprachrohr des US-Finanzkapitals. Das Journal warnte am Montag, dass der Iran „Herrn Trump genauso sehr auf die Probe stellt wie die Saudis“. Und weiter: „Sie testen seine Entschlossenheit, ‚maximalen Druck‘ auszuüben, und sie spüren Schwäche.“ Missbilligend verweist der Artikel auf Trumps Versagen, im Juni nach dem Abschuss der US-Drohne Luftangriffe zu starten – von Bill Van Auken
https://www.wsws.org/de/articles/2019/09/18/pers-s18.html
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Saudi-Arabien und USA verschärfen Vorwürfe gegen Iran
Saudi-Arabien und die USA verstärken nach den Angriffen auf zentrale Ölanlagen im Königreich ihre Vorwürfe gegen den Iran.
Es sei so gut wie sicher, dass der Iran die Attacken unterstützt habe, sagte der saudiarabische Botschafter in London, Prinz Chalid bin Bander, am Mittwoch der BBC. Die Führung in Riad kündigte für den Nachmittag an, konkrete Belege vorzulegen, die “eine Verwicklung des iranischen Regimes in den Terrorangriff beweisen”. US-Außenminister Mike Pompeo wurde in der Hafenstadt Dschidda erwartet. Dort sollte er nach US-Angaben mit Kronprinz Mohammed bin Salman Bemühungen gegen “die iranische Aggression in der Region” koordinieren.
Die Islamische Republik wies die Vorwürfe entschieden zurück. Wie Saudi-Arabien beteuerte sie ihr grundsätzliches Interesse an einer Deeskalation.
Das saudiarabische Verteidigungsministerium setzte für 16.30 Uhr (MESZ) eine Pressekonferenz an. US-Regierungsvertretern zufolge gingen die Angriffe auf die Ölanlagen vom Südwesten des Iran aus. Es seien Marschflugkörper und Drohnen eingesetzt worden. Dies deute darauf hin, dass die Angriffe komplexer und aufwendiger gewesen seien als zunächst gedacht. Die Amerikaner legten für ihre Angaben keine Beweise vor, zeigten sich aber zuversichtlich, dass Saudi-Arabien “überzeugende forensische Belege” präsentieren werde.
NICHTS ÜBERSTÜRZEN
Prinz Chalid bin Bander sagte, Saudi-Arabien wolle nicht übereilt handeln. “Denn das Letzte, was wir brauchen, ist ein weiterer Konflikt in der Region.” Sein Land versuche gemeinsam mit den USA, Großbritannien, den Vereinten Nationen und anderen Partnern aufzuklären, woher die Angriffe gekommen seien. Frankreich kündigte die Entsendung eigener Experten nach Riad an, um bei den Ermittlungen zu helfen. Die Bundesregierung will gemeinsam mit Frankreich und Großbritannien zu einer Bewertung der Anschläge kommen. Dazu würden die bisherigen Informationen mit eigenen Erkenntnissen abgeglichen, sagte Außenminister Heiko Maas. Russlands Präsident Wladimir Putin forderte nach Angaben des Kreml in einem Telefonat mit dem Kronprinzen eine sorgfältige und unvoreingenommene Untersuchung der Angriffe.
Irans Verteidigungsminister Amir Hatami sagte laut einem Bericht der halbamtlichen Nachrichtenagentur Tasnim, der Iran habe bei den Angriffen am Wochenende keine Rolle gespielt. Die Lage sei klar: Der Konflikt herrsche zwischen zwei Ländern, dem Jemen und Saudi-Arabien.
https://de.reuters.com/article/saudi-arabien-iran-idDEKBN1W310A
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Riad will nach Angriff auf Ölanlagen internationalen Druck
Noch immer ist unklar, wer für die Angriffe auf wichtige saudische Ölanlagen verantwortlich ist. Die USA und Saudi-Arabien sehen den Iran als Drahtzieher. Die Spannungen könnten weiter eskalieren.
https://www.nau.ch/news/ausland/eskaliert-die-lage-trump-vermutet-iran-hinter-angriffen-65585122
Mein Kommentar: Die Berichte unterscheiden sich nur wenig. Die politisch motivierten Behauptungen der USA und der Saudis werden im Wesentlichen unkritisch wiedergegeben.
(A K P)
Angst vor Eskalation wächst-Pompeo berät in Riad über Angriffe auf Ölanlagen
Auch wenn sich die Huthi-Rebellen zu den Angriffen auf saudische Ölanlagen bekannt haben: Die USA sehen die Schuldigen in Teheran. Heute ist US-Außenminister Pompeo in Riad.
Nach dem Angriff auf wichtige Ölanlagen in Saudi-Arabien will US-Außenminister Mike Pompeo heute mit der saudischen Führung über eine Reaktion beraten. Das Außenministerium in Washington teilte mit, Pompeo werde an diesem Mittwoch in der Hafenstadt Dschidda mit dem saudischen Kronprinzen Mohammed bin Salman zusammenkommen. Pompeo werde dabei auch "Bemühungen koordinieren, der iranischen Aggression in der Region entgegenzuwirken". Saudi-Arabien ist ein enger Verbündeter der USA.
(B K P)
Krieg im Jemen könnte eskalieren
Frage: Herr Nouripour, nach den Angriffen auf die Raffinerien in Saudi-Arabien spitzt sich die Lage weiter zu. Wie lässt sich eine weitere Eskalation verhindern?
Nouripour: Der Angriff bedroht nicht nur die Weltwirtschaft, sondern vor allem auch den Frieden. Die Lage in der Region ist ohnehin angespannt. Da stehen sich die feindlichen militärischen Kräfte sehr nah gegenüber. Jetzt muss dringend unabhängig aufgeklärt werden, was genau passiert ist und wer für die Drohnenangriffe auf die saudi-arabischen Ölfelder verantwortlich ist. Deutschland sollte mit seinem Sitz im UN-Sicherheitsrat dafür sorgen, dass dieses Thema dort auf die Tagesordnung gesetzt wird.
https://www.nwzonline.de/interview/krieg-im_a_50,5,3749742449.html
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Saudischer Militärsprecher: Angriffe kamen nicht aus dem Jemen
Nach den Angriffen auf wichtige Öleinrichtungen in Saudi-Arabien hat ein Militärsprecher des Königreichs den Iran für die Attacken mitverantwortlich gemacht. Die Angriffe seien "ohne Frage vom Iran gefördert" worden, sagte Turki al-Malki am Mittwoch. Untersuchungen hätten gezeigt, dass die Raketen nicht aus dem Jemen abgefeuert sein können, sondern aus dem Norden kamen. Der Angriff "kam nicht aus dem Jemen, trotz der Versuche des Irans, das so aussehen zu lassen", sagte der Sprecher des saudi-arabischen Verteidigungsministeriums. Die bei dem Angriff benutzten Drohnen seien außerhalb der Reichweite der Drohnen, die die Huthis benutzten. Bei dem Angriff auf die Ölraffinerie in Abkaik seien 18 Drohnen eingesetzt worden, bei der Attacke auf die Ölanlagen in Churais insgesamt sieben Marschflugkörper. Vier der Raketen hätten ihr Ziel erreicht, drei weitere seien vorher auf den Boden geschlagen. Bei der Pressekonferenz in der saudischen Hauptstadt Riad präsentierte das Verteidigungsministerium Überreste von iranischen Drohnen und Raketen, die dem Sprecher zufolge bei den Angriffen eingesetzt worden waren.
https://www.wallstreet-online.de/nachricht/11751380-roundup-saudischer-militaersprecher-angriffe-kamen-jemen = https://www.zeit.de/news/2019-09/18/saudischer-militaersprecher-angriffe-kamen-nicht-aus-jemen = https://www.faz.net/aktuell/politik/ausland/saudisches-militaer-angriffe-auf-oelanlagen-kamen-nicht-aus-jemen-16391229.html
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Iran dementiert offiziell Beteiligung an Angriff auf Ölanlagen
Die USA bezichtigten aber den Iran. Der iranische Präsident und der Außenminister weisen die Vorwürfe nun mit Nachdruck zurück.
In einem offiziellen Schreiben an die USA hat das iranische Außenministerium jegliche Beteiligung an den Angriffen auf saudische Ölanlagen zurückgewiesen. "Der Iran hat mit dem Angriff nichts zu tun", heißt es in dem Brief, der den USA über die Schweizer Botschaft in Teheran zugestellt wurde. Die Schweiz vertritt im Iran die diplomatischen Interessen der USA.
"Falls gegen den Iran eine (Militär-)Aktion ausgeübt werden sollte, werden wir die umgehend erwidern und die Dimensionen wären nicht limitiert", heißt es in dem Schreiben, aus dem die Nachrichtenagentur Irna am Mittwoch zitierte. Es soll der Schweizer Botschaft schon am Montag übergeben worden sein.
https://web.de/magazine/politik/iran-dementiert-offiziell-beteiligung-angriff-oelanlagen-34027754
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Rohani nennt Angriff auf Ölanlagen eine "Warnung" der Huthis
Die Trump-Regierung macht Teheran für die Angriffe auf Ölanlagen in Saudi-Arabien verantwortlich. Irans Präsident Hassan Rohani weist dies zurück. Mit den Attacken wehrten sich Jemeniten gegen die Vernichtung ihres Landes.
Irans Präsident Hassan Rohani hat die jüngsten Angriffe auf Ölanlagen in Saudi-Arabien als eine "Warnung" an die Regierung in Riad bezeichnet. Saudi-Arabien solle daraus "Lehren" ziehen. Die Jemeniten hätten das legitime Recht, sich gegen die Vernichtung ihres Landes zu wehren - und als Warnung auch industrielle Ziele anzugreifen, sagte Rohani in Teheran. "Diese Warnungen sollten ernst genommen und das Kriegsfeuer in Jemen sollte ein für allemal gelöscht werden."
Rohani bezog sich in seiner Erklärung aber nicht ausdrücklich auf die schiitischen Huthis.
Er wies ferner jede Beteiligung Irans an den Angriffen auf die Ölanlagen zurück. "Neben den politischen und wirtschaftlichen Sanktionen kommen die USA nun auch mit Unterstellungen gegen den Iran", sagte Rohani. Die USA wüssten selbst, dass die absurd und grundlos seien und auch international nicht ernst genommen würden.
Auch in einem offiziellen Schreiben an die USA wies das iranische Außenministerium jegliche Beteiligung an den Angriffen zurück. "Iran hat mit dem Angriff nichts zu tun", heißt es in dem Brie
und dazu
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„Jemenitische Warnung an Saudi-Arabien“? Was der iranische Präsident wirklich gesagt hat
Der Spiegel zitiert eine Erklärung des iranischen Präsidenten über die Angriffe auf die saudische Raffinerie. Leider zitiert er sie nicht vollständig, sodass sie einen völlig anderen Eindruck erweckt.
Tatsächlich lautete diese Passage aus der Erklärung des iranischen Präsidenten folgendermaßen:
„Der Jemen hat seine Reaktion gezeigt und einen Schlag gegen ein konkretes Ziel ausgeführt, nicht gegen Krankenhäuser. Sie haben keine Schule und keinen Markt in Sanaa angegriffen, sondern ein Industrieobjekt, um Euch zu warnen.“
Es verwundert kaum, dass der Spiegel die Erklärung nicht komplett zitiert hat, denn dass Saudi-Arabien mit Unterstützung der USA immer wieder zivile Ziele in der jemenitischen Stadt Sanaa bombardiert, ist zwar kein Geheimnis, wird von den deutschen Medien aber nur ungern gemeldet. Hätte der Spiegel die Erklärung des iranischen Präsidenten Rohani komplett zitiert, hätte der eine oder andere Leser denken können „so unrecht hat er auch wieder nicht“.
(A K P)
Zarif: Beendigung des Jemen-Krieges ist einzige Lösung für alle
Außenminister Zarif hat am Dienstagabend mit zwei Botschaften auf seiner Twitter-Seite die schnelle Beendigung des Jemen-Krieges gefordert.
Mohammad Javad Zarif schrieb in seiner ersten Botschaft unter Hinweis auf die Kriegsverbrechen im Jemen durch die saudisch geführte Angreifer-Koalition mit Unterstützung der USA: "Die USA leugnen die Realität wenn sie glauben, dass die Opfer der schlimmsten Kriegsverbrechen, die seit viereinhalb Jahren im Jemen stattfinden, nicht alles was in ihrer Macht steht tun werden, um darauf zu antworten."
"Vielleicht ist es den Vereinigten Staaten peinlich, dass ihre hunderte Milliarden schweren Rüstungsexporte nicht in der Lage waren die jemenitischen Angriffe abzuwehren", fügte der iranische Außenminister hinzu.
Bezüglich der amerikanischen Behauptungen und Beschuldigungen Irans über die Beteiligung an den Angriffen auf die arabischen Aramco-Ölanlagen schrieb er: "Die Beschuldigung Irans ändert nichts, die Beendigung des Krieges ist die einzige Lösung für alle."
In einem weiteren Tweet schrieb er, dass die USA niemals über die Bombardierung jemenitischer Kinder durch ihre Verbündeten der saudi-arabisch geführten Koalition beunruhigt seien. Aber sie seien furchtbar beunruhigt, wenn die Opfer so reagierten, wie es ihnen möglich sei, zum Beispiel mit Drohnen auf die Ölraffinerien der Angreifer."
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Atomabkommen mit dem Iran: Im Gegensatz zur EU erfüllen Russland und China ihre Verpflichtungen
Die EU „bemüht sich um den Erhalt des Atomabkommens mit dem Iran“ können wir in der Presse immer lesen. Dass man tatsächlich etwas dafür tun kann, anstatt sich nur zu „bemühen“, konnte man bei einem Treffen der Präsidenten Russlands und des Iran sehen. Was sind die Unterschiede?
Im Gegenzug verpflichten sich die USA, Russland, China, Deutschland, Frankreich und Großbritannien, die Sanktionen gegen die Iran aufzuheben und den vollständigen Handel mit dem Iran wieder aufzunehmen.
Das Abkommen wurde vom UN-Sicherheitsrat in einer Resolution in den Stand des Völkerrechts erhoben und ist damit für alle Staaten der Welt völkerrechtlich bindend. Es gibt im Abkommen auch keine Ausstiegsklausel, sondern es wurden dort Regularien festgelegt, wie man mit Verstößen der Vertragspartner umgehen würde.
Dort ist geregelt, dass, sollte der Iran seine Verpflichtungen nicht einhalten, die Sanktionen automatisch wieder in Kraft treten. Sollte ein anderer Vertragspartner seine Verpflichtungen nicht mehr erfüllen und zum Beispiel wieder Sanktionen gegen den Iran einführen, regelt das Abkommen in Artikel 26, dass der Iran nicht mehr verpflichtet ist, sich an das Abkommen zu halten. Wörtlich heißt es dort:
Die EU hingegen verkündet folgendes, wie man immer wieder in den deutschen Medien lesen kann:
„Die europäische Seite sei entschlossen, den legitimen Handel mit Iran aufrechtzuerhalten, um das Abkommen zu erhalten.“
Das klingt gut, aber die EU hat sich verpflichtet, den Handel zu ermöglichen. Derzeit wird er jedoch von der EU verhindert. Da europäische Banken aus Angst vor US-Sanktionen keinen Zahlungsverkehr mit dem Iran abwickeln, kann es auch keinen Handel geben. Denn wie soll Handel funktionieren, wenn man seine Rechnungen nicht bezahlen kann?
Davon spricht der Iran, wenn er die EU auffordert, sich endlich an ihre Verpflichtungen aus dem Atomabkommen zu halten. Aber anstatt das Thema aufzugreifen spricht die deutsche Presse von „Ultimaten des Iran“, was natürlich für den Leser nach einer Frechheit des Iran klingt. Dabei fordert der Iran nichts anderes, als dass die EU sich endlich an gültige Verträge hält.
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Angriff auf saudische Raffinerie – Was sind die bekannten Fakten?
Die erste wichtige Frage ist also, ob die Huthis die Raffinerie überhaupt angegriffen haben und wenn ja, wie das geschehen ist. Immerhin liegt die Raffinerie gut 1.000 Kilometer vom Jemen entfernt, nahe der Grenze zu Bahrain. Man kann also bezweifeln, dass die Huthis vom Jemen aus den Angriff durchgeführt haben. Das liegt zum Einen daran, dass es technisch eine Herausforderung ist, mit selbst gebastelten Drohnen diese Entfernung zurückzulegen und ein Ziel zu treffen. Noch wichtiger aber ist etwas anderes: Dort ist ein Kriegsgebiet und ganz sicher wird es sehr eng mit dem Radar überwacht. Solche Flugkörper wären der saudischen Flugabwehr sicherlich aufgefallen und man hätte genug Zeit gehabt, sie abzuschießen.
Die USA haben sofort den Iran beschuldigt. Interessant ist die Begründung: Außenminister Pompeo teilte mit, dass es der Iran gewesen sein müsse, weil es keine Beweise dafür gibt, dass die Angriffe aus dem Jemen kamen. Das ist die übliche US-Logik am persischen Golf: „Wir wissen nicht, wer es war, also war es der Iran“.
Daher kamen Meldungen auf, der Angriff sei in Wirklichkeit aus dem Nordosten erfolgt, also aus dem Iran. Sicher hätte der Iran die technischen Möglichkeiten dazu. Aber die Lage in der Region ist hochexplosiv und sicher ist die Luftüberwachung in der Region sehr aktiv. Man muss sich also fragen, warum kein Radar etwas aus dem Iran hat anfliegen sehen, obwohl Saudi-Arabien über moderne Technik verfügt und auch die US-Truppen vor Ort ihre Radaranlagen sicher nicht ausgeschaltet haben, sondern die Region genau überwachen.
Allein die Tatsache, dass niemand Flugobjekte auf dem Radar gesehen hat, die einige hundert oder sogar eintausend Kilometer weit fliegen mussten, um ihr Ziel zu erreichen, kann in meinen Augen nur bedeuten, dass der Angriff anders durchgeführt wurde.
Bleibt die Frage, wer es war.
Wenn man sich die Frage stellt, wem der Angriff nützt, dann kommen fast alle Beteiligten in Frage.
Auch die Huthis kommen natürlich in Frage, sie können einen solchen Angriff organisiert haben. Auch ohne Hilfe des Iran.
Aber es gibt noch andere, die davon profitieren.
In den USA gibt es Kräfte, die einen Krieg gegen den Iran wollen
https://www.anti-spiegel.ru/2019/angriff-auf-saudische-raffinerie-was-sind-die-bekannten-fakten/
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Riad will nach Angriff auf Ölanlagen internationalen Druck
Noch immer ist unklar, wer für die Angriffe auf wichtige saudische Ölanlagen verantwortlich ist. Die USA und Saudi-Arabien sehen den Iran als Drahtzieher. Die Spannungen könnten weiter eskalieren.
Nach der Bombardierung wichtiger Ölanlagen drängt Saudi-Arabien die internationale Gemeinschaft zu einer entschlosseneren Reaktion, um weitere Angriffe zu verhindern.
Die Verantwortlichen für diese «Aggressionen» müssten zur Verantwortung gezogen und abgeschreckt werden, teilte das Kabinett am Dienstag in Riad mit, wie die saudische Agentur SPA meldete. Das Land werde seinen Boden und seine lebenswichtigen Einrichtungen verteidigen.
König Salman erklärte, die «feigen Angriffe» hätten nicht nur auf Ölanlagen des Landes abgezielt, sondern auch auf die internationale Ölversorgung. Sie bedrohten die Stabilität der Region. Jemens Huthi-Rebellen drohten dem Königreich jedoch mit neuen Angriffen.
(* B K P)
Drohnen aus iranischer Produktion – aber wer startete sie und wo?
Die technischen Hintergründe des Angriffs auf saudiarabische Erdölanlagen sind noch weitgehend im Dunkeln.
Das Feld nach der Attacke auf die saudischen Ölanlagen ist gepflastert mit Fragezeichen. Es ist nicht klar, womit die Attacke ausgeführt wurde. Und es ist nicht klar, wo die unbemannten Flugzeuge gestartet wurden. Und deshalb ist es auch nicht möglich, definitiv zu sagen, wer für die Attacke verantwortlich ist.
Klar ist, dass die aktuelle Attacke nicht aus heiterem Himmel kam. Die Huthi-Rebellen in Jemen haben immer wieder zivile Einrichtungen in Saudi-Arabien mit UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles – unbemannte Flugzeuge) angegriffen
«Die aktuelle Attacke passt zur Folge der bisherigen Angriffe», sagt Jean-Marc Rickli vom Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP), «neu ist die Entfernung und das Ausmass der Schäden.» Aber dass die Drohnentechniker sich laufend verbessern, ist keine Überraschung.
Zu weit weg vom Jemen?
Der aktuelle Angriff in Saudi-Arabien wirft dennoch eine Reihe von Fragen auf. Denn die getroffenen Einrichtungen liegen rund 800 Kilometer von den Huthi-Basen in Jemen entfernt, und eine solche Reichweite kriegen nur grosse Drohnen hin. «Der saudi-arabische Luftraum wird von den USA und Saudi-Arabien so gut überwacht, dass es schwer nachvollziehbar wäre, wenn Drohnen dieser Grösse nicht bemerkt worden wären», sagt Marcel Dickow, Forschungsgruppenleiter Sicherheitspolitik bei der Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik in Berlin. Vieles spreche dafür, dass es sich um kleinere Drohnen gehandelt habe. Diese wiederum haben geringere Reichweiten und können nicht in Jemen gestartet worden sein.
Mein Kommentar: Westliche Medien „schießen“ sich auf den Iran ein. Amerikanische Behauptungen werden kaum hinterfragt.
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Trump gegen Konflikt mit Iran – doch mit neuer Drohung
Das Dilemma des US-Präsidenten: Er sieht Teheran hinter dem Drohnenangriff auf Saudi-Arabien, will aber Krieg vermeiden. Irans Präsident verteidigt die Attacke.
US-Präsident Donald Trump will nach den jüngsten Angriffen auf zwei Öl-Anlagen in Saudi-Arabien einen militärischen Konflikt mit dem Iran nach eigenen Worten möglichst abwenden. Er würde einen solchen Konflikt "sicherlich vermeiden wollen", sagte Trump am Montag im Weißen Haus. "Ich will keinen Krieg mit irgendjemandem." Zugleich bekundete er allerdings seine Bereitschaft, Saudi-Arabien nach diesen Attacken zu "helfen".
Nach Ansicht des US-Präsidenten deutet vieles auf den Iran als Urheber der Angriffe hin. "Es sieht danach aus", sagte Trump, fügte aber hinzu, dass Untersuchungen andauerten. "Wir müssen definitiv herausfinden, wer es getan hat", sagte Trump.
In die Zurückhaltung mischten sich aber auch neue Drohungen. Die Vereinigten Staaten seien mehr als jedes andere Land auf einen Konflikt vorbereitet, erklärte der US-Präsident. "Das war ein sehr großer Angriff. Er könnte von unserem Land sehr leicht mit einem viel, viel größeren Angriff erwidert werden."
Trump war zuvor von Verteidigungsminister Mark Esper über den Stand der Erkenntnisse zu den Attacken unterrichtet worden, wie der Pentagon-Chef mitteilte. Dieser bekundete am Montag die Entschlossenheit der US-Regierung, die internationale Ordnung zu "verteidigen". Esper schrieb am Montag bei Twitter, Beratungen von Regierung und Militär der USA mit internationalen Partnern über eine Antwort auf diese "beispiellosen" Attacken seien im Gange. Die US-Regierung macht Teheran für die Angriffe auf die zwei Öl-Anlagen verantwortlich.
Aktuelles siehe auch https://www.merkur.de/politik/usa-nach-iran-attacke-auf-saudi-arabien-trump-rudert-mit-kriegsdrohung-zurueck-aber-zr-13004719.html
https://www.dw.com/de/trump-droht-mit-angriff-will-ihn-aber-nicht/a-50453086
Mein Kommentar: „Entschlossenheit der US-Regierung, die internationale Ordnung zu "verteidigen"“: Was soll diese „internationale Ordnung“ sein? Die USA beim Wort genommen: Es ist das, was den US-Interessen dient. Und (im angeblich eigenen Interesse) spielt sich die USA dann als Weltpolizist auf, wie diese Formulierung beweist. Nur: Wirklich zu „verteidigen“ gibt es für die USA auch nur auf dem eigenen Territorium. Alles andere ist Aggression.
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Irans asymmetrischer Krieg
Welche Rolle spielte der Iran bei den Angriffen auf die Raffinerie in Saudi-Arabien? Vieles spricht für eine zumindest indirekte Beteiligung. Das Land hat nichts zu verlieren.
Vieles spricht dafür, dass der Iran an den Drohnenangriffen auf die saudi-arabischen Ölanalagen beteiligt war - direkt oder indirekt. Teheran sieht sich rasant wachsenden wirtschaftlichen Problemen durch Washingtons "maximalen Druck" ausgesetzt.
Die iranische Führung kann nicht darauf hoffen, dass die Trump-Administration die gegen ihr Land verhängten Sanktionen lockert
Die Huthi-Rebellen im Jemen geben an, sie seien für die jüngsten Drohnenangriffe auf saudische Einrichtungen verantwortlich. Tatsächlich haben die Huthis gute Gründe, Saudi-Arabien anzugreifen.
Teheran unterstützt die Huthis aus reinem Machtkalkül. Zum einen baut der Iran damit an der Südgrenze Saudi-Arabiens eine potenzielle Drohkulisse gegenüber Riad auf. Zum anderen war der saudische Kronprinz Mohammed bin Salman - der gleichzeitig auch Verteidigungsminister ist - dumm genug, aktiv in den Krieg im Jemen einzugreifen und damit sein Land in eine extrem prekäre Lage zu bringen.
Es ist sehr gut vorstellbar, dass iranische Ingenieure und Militärtechniker an der Konstruktion der Drohnen beteiligt waren, die im saudischen Churais und Abkaik größtmöglichen Schaden angerichtet haben.
Teheran setzt auf asymmetrische Kriegsmittel. Die iranische Führung dürfte sich bei aller menschenverachtenden Selbstüberschätzung darüber im Klaren sein, dass ihr Land der geballten Feuerkraft der USA und deren Verbündeten im Nahen Osten nichts Gleichwertiges entgegenzusetzen hat.
Der Iran hat nichts zu verlieren
Dass Teheran trotz unterlegener konventioneller Feuerkraft militärisch nicht zu unterschätzen ist, hat auch der Abschuss der amerikanischen Spionagedrohne vom Typ RQ-4A "Global Hawk" im Juni gezeigt. Der Iran steht wirtschaftlich am Rande des Abgrunds und hat nichts zu verlieren.
https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/iran-analyse-101.html
Mein Kommentar: Westliche Medien überbetonen die Rolle des Iran. Der Angriff auf die saudischen Ölanlagen gehört nicht zu “Irans Krieg”.
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Mit Drohnen gegen die Übermacht: Sechs Fragen und Antworten zum Angriff auf die saudischen Erdölanlagen
Die Huthi-Rebellen aus dem Jemen spielen sich als angriffslustige Militärmacht auf. Doch auch drei Tage nach dem Drohnenangriff auf die saudischen Erdölanlagen bleibt vieles ungewiss.
Was ist in Saudi-Arabien genau passiert?
Wer hat die Angriffe ausgeführt?
Die Vorstellung aber, dass die eher kleine Huthi-Miliz einen derart gewaltigen Schaden verursacht hat, ist für die hochgerüsteten Amerikaner und Saudis nicht hinnehmbar.
Saudi-Arabien-Experte Steve Ganyard sprach im US-Fernsehsender ABC von einer «asymmetrischen Kriegsführung». Mit wenigen Drohnen hätten die Angreifer Waffenabwehrsysteme umgangen, die Hunderte Milliarden Dollar kosteten. Diese Demütigung wollten die Saudis und ihre Verbündeten, die Amerikaner, nicht einfach so hinnehmen. Reflexartig zeigt man daher auf den Iran, der den Huthis mit der Weitergabe von Blaupausen beim Bau eigener Drohnen geholfen haben dürfte. Schuld an der Gewalteskalation ist auch der Westen, der den Saudis aus wirtschaftlichem Interesse die Waffen für den Krieg im Jemen geliefert hat und dies noch immer tut.
Wieso zielte der Angriff ausgerechnet auf Erdölanlagen?
Mit Angriffen auf eine Stadt – und den damit verbundenen zivilen Toten – hätten sich die Huthis auf eine Stufe mit den Saudis gestellt, die im Jemen entsetzliches Leiden unter der Zivilbevölkerung verursacht haben. Mit den Angriffen auf die grösste Ölverarbeitungsanlage der Welt wollte die Schiitenmiliz der saudischen Regierung den grösstmöglichen wirtschaftlichen Schaden zufügen und damit die Saudis zu einem Waffenstillstand zwingen. Gestern haben die Huthis mit weiteren Attacken gedroht.
Wer profitiert von dem Angriff? Wer sind die Verlierer?
Droht jetzt ein neuer Krieg im Nahen Osten?
Welche anderen Konsequenzen hat der Angriff?
Der Angriff hat gezeigt, dass die «asymmetrische Kriegsführung» gegen Saudi-Arabien erfolgreich sein kann. Die Iraner wenden ähnliche Taktiken an, verfügen aber über bessere Waffen als die jemenitischen Huthi-Rebellen.
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Wer steckt hinter den Angriffen auf Saudi-Arabien?
Die USA sind sicher: Der Iran ist für den Angriff auf die größte Ölraffinerie der Welt verantwortlich. Dabei bekannten sich die Huthi-Rebellen im Jemen zur Attacke. Wer war es wirklich? WELT erklärt die vier plausibelsten Möglichkeiten.
Die Implikation ist klar: Wenn Teheran tatsächlich für den Angriff direkt verantwortlich ist, dann müssen Riad und Washington reagieren, was der Beginn einer militärischen Eskalation sein könnte – im Persischen Golf, dessen Anrainer ein Drittel der globalen Erdöllieferungen fördern.
Seine Zurückhaltung könnte zwei Gründe haben: Entweder fürchtet selbst Trump die verheerenden Folgen einer direkten militärischen Konfrontation mit dem Iran. Oder die USA sind nicht sicher, wer Abkaik angriff. Die bislang bekannten Indizien weisen in mehrere Richtungen.
Möglichkeit 1: Es waren die Huthis
Gegen eine Huthi-Täterschaft spricht: In Satellitenaufnahmen, die Abkaik nach dem Angriff zeigen, sind mindestens 17 Einschläge zu erkennen. Die Attacke wurde folglich mit mehr als den zehn Drohnen durchgeführt, von denen die Huthis sprachen. Amerikanische Experten sprechen von einem Angriff mit mindestens 17 „Drohnen und Marschflugkörpern“, die koordiniert abgeschossen worden seien.
Möglichkeit 2: Der Angriff kam aus dem Irak
Die Regierung in Bagdad hat eine solche Möglichkeit indes kategorisch ausgeschlossen.
Möglichkeit 3: Der Angriff kam aus Saudi-Arabien selbst
scheint diese Option wenig wahrscheinlich, aber angesichts der Aufstände, die das Land in der Vergangenheit immer wieder erschütterten, immerhin nicht unmöglich.
Möglichkeit 4: Es war der Iran
Damit bleibt noch der Iran als möglicher Täter – die wohl überraschendste aller Optionen.
Laut Angaben der US-Administration erreichten nicht alle Geschosse Abkaik. Ein Teil der Drohnen oder Marschflugkörper wurde geborgen und dürfte in diesen Stunden untersucht werden. Bald wird man zumindest in Washington und Riad Beweise haben, um den Verantwortlichen für die Attacke zu benennen. Ob dieses Wissen jedoch mit der Weltöffentlichkeit geteilt wird, wird davon abhängen, ob ein solches Vorgehen den strategischen Interessen Saudi-Arabiens und der USA dient
Mein Kommentar: Die transatlantische „Welt“ will die wahrscheinlichste Variante – hier Nr. 1 – als unwahrscheinlich darstellen, es bleibt eigentlich nur der Iran übrig. Ganz im Sinn der US-Politik.
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Warum Saudi-Arabien Iran beschuldigt
Doch Riad glaubt nicht, dass der Anschlag aus Jemen kommt. Am Montagnachmittag tritt Turki al-Maliki, der Sprecher der von Saudi-Arabien angeführten Militärkoalition in Jemen, vor Journalisten in der Hauptstadt. Alles deute darauf hin, "dass die Waffen, die bei beiden Angriffen genutzt wurden, aus Iran stammten", sagt al-Maliki. Außerdem seien die Anschläge nicht von jemenitischem Boden aus verübt worden. Al-Maliki betont, man werde wichtige Einrichtungen zu verteidigen wissen. "Wir haben die Fähigkeit, diesen Angriffen entgegenzutreten", sagt er und verspricht, Beweise vorzulegen.
Die Frage ist nun: Wie weit reicht der Arm der Huthis wirklich? Die jemenitische Grenze ist mehr als 1000 Kilometer von den Anschlagsorten entfernt. Washington zufolge wurde zudem aus dem Norden oder Nordwesten angegriffen. Das würde auf Iran oder Irak hindeuten.
https://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/saudi-arabien-iran-oelanlagen-konflikt-1.4602753
Mein Kommentar: Und wieder werden die Behauptungen aus den USA recht kritiklos wiedergekäut.
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Irans Präsident sieht legitimes Recht des Jemens zur Verteidigung
Der iranische Präsident Hassan Ruhani hat die Angriffe aus dem Jemen gegen Ziele in Saudi-Arabien verteidigt. "Es ist legitim für die Jemeniten, sich gegen die Vernichtung ihres Landes zu wehren und die Flut der amerikanischen Waffenlieferungen an die Saudis zu erwidern", sagte Ruhani am Montag in Ankara.
Alle redeten von Raffinerie und Öl, anstatt über den Krieg und die menschliche Katastrophe in Jemen zu sprechen. Die einzige Lösung für Jemen sei ein Ende des brutalen Kriegs und der Leiden der Menschen.
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USA machen Iran verantwortlich für Drohnenangriff
Die Führung der Islamischen Republik bestreitet jede Beteiligung am Angriff in Saudi-Arabien.
Nach den Drohnenangriffen auf Saudi-Arabien will die US-Regierung bereits wissen, woher die Angriffe stammten und hat Satellitenaufnahmen der getroffenen Produktionsstätten veröffentlicht. Gemäss ersten Erkenntnissen sind Drohnen des Typs «Ababil» aus dem Iran eingesetzt worden.
Vertreter der US-Regierung erklärten gemäss Medienberichten, die Angriffe seien so komplex gewesen, dass die Huthis sie nicht alleine hätten ausführen können. Die USA untermauerten ihren Vorwurf, dass Iran hinter den Angriffen steckt: Es gebe Hinweise, dass die Flugkörper aus west-nordwestlicher Richtung und damit aus Richtung Irans gekommen seien – und nicht aus südlicher Richtung, wo Jemen liegt, sagte ein US-Regierungsvertreter.
Nach den Angriffen verstärken sich die Sorgen vor einer militärischen Eskalation im Nahen Osten
cp1c2 Am wichtigsten: Huthi-Angriff auf saudische Ölanlagen: Englisch / Most important: Houthi air raid at Saudi oil facilities: English
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Evidence of Iran’s Culpability in the Attack Isn’t Important
Tehran is equipped to take us off-guard at any moment. Questions should focus on how and why.
The stunning success of Saturday’s drone attack on Saudi Arabia’s main oil export processing center has brought the Iran crisis to a new and pivotal point. It has demonstrated that Iran has significant capability to pressure the United States to end its war on the Iranian economy, and has the will to bring it to the next level.
A set of complex issues related to different Iranian and Houthi weapons systems and other forensic evidence surrounding the destruction at Abqaiq will be the center of attention in the coming days. The forensic evidence presented by the administration may be weak or persuasive, but in either case, it would be a strategic mistake for those who oppose the war in Yemen and America’s involvement in it to make this the story. That will only allow the war state to obscure or confuse the central political issues that must be addressed now: why did this attack happen? And what does it portend for a situation that was already one small crisis away from a very serious Middle East war?
Whether the Abqiaq attack was a combined Houthi-Iranian operation or a completely Iranian one is of a secondary measure of importance. It is obvious that whatever the precise nature of the strike, Iran likely played a role in both creating the drones and/or cruise missiles involved and in the strategic rationale for it. But one can argue that both the Houthis and Iran had legitimate reasons for carrying out such a strike.
For the Houthis, it was to force Saudi Arabia to stop its systematic war on the civilian population in the Houthi-controlled zone of Yemen and its denial of its ability to obtain basic goods by air and sea; for the Iranians it was to force the United States to end its blockade of Iran’s economy through pressure on Iran’s customers. Saudi Arabia has violated the most fundamental principles of international law in its aggressive war to change the regime in Yemen, since it was not under attack by the Houthis when it launched that war. Efforts to end the conflict through resistance, negotiation, and strikes on lesser targets in Saudi Arabia had failed to halt what has been broadly regarded around the world as a criminal war.
For Iran, on the other hand, the Abqiaq strike was an absolutely necessary step to signal to the United States that it cannot not continue its assault on the Iranian economy without very serious repercussions. And the timing of the strike is almost certainly the result of the sequence of aggressive, offensive U.S. moves against Iran’s most vital interests ever since the Trump administration tore up the deal on Iran’s nuclear program and reimposed U.S. sanctions.
The Trump policy of “maximum pressure” on Iran thus represents an extreme violation of a state’s right to participate in the global economy, without which a modern state cannot survive.
The Aqiaq strike is also a dramatic demonstration of Iran’s ability to surprise the United States strategically and upsetting its political-military plans
The urgent task for opponents of any coming war is not to be distracted by the issue of forensic evidence pointing to Iranian responsibility. It’s to focus on the urgent problems with American policy that are being swept under the political and media rug – by Gareth Porter
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Will Americans Let Trump Start World War III for Saudi Arabia and Israel?
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, however, immediately blamed Iran, noting that that the air strikes hit the west and north-west sides of the oil facilities, not the the south side that faces toward Yemen. But Iran is not to the west or northwest either - it is to the northeast. In any case, which part of the facilities were hit does not necessarily have any bearing on which direction the missiles or drones were launched from. Iran strongly denies conducting the attack.
CNN reported that Saudi and US investigators claim "with very high probability" that the attack was launched from an Iranian base in Iran close to the border with Iraq, but that neither the U.S. nor Saudi Arabia has produced any evidence to support these claims.
But in the same report, CNN reported that missile fragments found at the scene appeared to be from Quds-1 missiles, an Iranian model that the Houthis unveiled in July under the slogan, "The Coming Period of Surprises," and which they may have used in a strike on Abha Airport in southern Saudi Arabia in June.
U.S. allies have been slow to accept the U.S. claims that Iran launched the attack. Japan's Defense Minister told reporters"we believe the Houthis carried out the attack based on the statement claiming responsibility." The United Arab Emirates(UAE) expressed frustration that the U.S. was so quick to point its finger at Iran.
Tragically, this is how U.S. administrations of both parties have responded to such incidents in recent years, seizing any pretext to demonize and threaten their enemies and keep the American public psychologically prepared for war.
If Iran provided the Houthis with weapons or logistical support for this attack, this would represent but a tiny fraction of the bottomless supply of weapons and logistical support that the U.S. and its European allies have provided to Saudi Arabia.
Under the laws of war, the Yemenis are perfectly entitled to defend themselves. That would include striking back at the oil facilities that produce the fuel for Saudi warplanes that have conducted over 17,000 air raids, dropping at least 50,000 mostly U.S.-made bombs and missiles, throughout more than four long years of war on Yemen.
The Houthis' newfound ability to strike back at the heart of Saudi Arabia could be a catalyst for peace, if the world can seize this opportunity to convince the Saudis and the Trump administration that their horrific, failed war is not worth the price they will have to pay to keep fighting it. But if we fail to seize this moment, it could instead be the prelude to a much wider war.
So, for the sake of the starving and dying people of Yemen and the people of Iran suffering under the "maximum pressure" of U.S. economic sanctions, as well as the future of our own country and the world, this is a pivotal moment.
Throughout his presidency, Trump has conducted U.S. foreign policy as a puppet of both Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, making a mockery of his "America First" political rhetoric.
If Americans fail to speak out now, we may discover too late that our failure to rein in our venal, warmongering ruling class has led us to the brink of World War III – by Medea Benjamin and Nicolas Davies
https://www.mintpressnews.com/will-americans-let-trump-start-war-iran-saudi-arabia-israel/261927/ = https://www.opednews.com/articles/Will-Americans-Let-Trump-S-by-Medea-Benjamin-Iran-War-190918-124.html
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Houthi rebels overturned the chessboard
The Yemeni Shiite group’s spectacular attack on Abqaiq raises the distinct possibility of a push to drive the House of Saud from power
We are the Houthis and we’re coming to town. With the spectacular attack on Abqaiq, Yemen’s Houthis have overturned the geopolitical chessboard in Southwest Asia – going as far as introducing a whole new dimension: the distinct possibility of investing in a push to drive the House of Saud out of power.
Blowback is a bitch. Houthis – Zaidi Shiites from northern Yemen – and Wahhabis have been at each other’s throats for ages.
Still, it’s always important to consider that Arab Shiites in the Eastern province – working in Saudi oil installations – have got to be natural allies of the Houthis fighting against Riyadh.
The situation has now reached a point where there’s plenty of chatter across the Persian Gulf about a spectacular scenario: the Houthis investing in a mad dash across the Arabian desert to capture Mecca and Medina in conjunction with a mass Shiite uprising in the Eastern oil belt.
Orientalism strikes again
The US intel refrain that the Houthis are incapable of such a sophisticated attack betrays the worst strands of orientalism and white man’s burden/superiority complex.
The only missile parts shown by the Saudis so far come from a Yemeni Quds 1 cruise missile. According to Brigadier General Yahya Saree, spokesman for the Sana’a-based Yemeni Armed Forces, “the Quds system proved its great ability to hit its targets and to bypass enemy interceptor systems.”
Notice the key concept: “cooperation” from inside Saudi Arabia – which could include the whole spectrum from Yemenis to that Eastern province Shiites.
Even more relevant is the fact that massive American hardware deployed in Saudi Arabia inside out and outside in – satellites, AWACS, Patriot missiles, drones, battleships, jet fighters – didn’t see a thing, or certainly not in time. The sighting of three “loitering” drones by a Kuwaiti bird hunter arguably heading towards Saudi Arabia is being invoked as “evidence”
UN officials openly admit that now everything that matters is within the 1,500 km range of the Houthis’ new UAV-X drone
My conversations with sources in Tehran over the past two years have ascertained that the Houthis’ new drones and missiles are essentially copies of Iranian designs assembled in Yemen itself with crucial help from Hezbollah engineers.
US intel insists that 17 drones and cruise missiles were launched in combination from southern Iran. In theory, Patriot radar would have picked that up and knocked the drones/missiles from the sky. So far, absolutely no record of this trajectory has been revealed. Military experts generally agree that the radar on the Patriot missile is good, but its success rate is “disputed” – to say the least. What’s important, once again, is that the Houthis do have advanced offensive missiles. And their pinpoint accuracy at Abqaiq was uncanny.
Blindly blaming Iran, with no evidence, does not cut it. Tehran can count on swarms of top strategic thinkers. They do not need or want to blow up Southwest Asia, which is something they could do, by the way: Revolutionary Guards generals have already said many times on the record that they are ready for war.
A soft – and unprotected – target: the US PAC-2 and PAC-3 systems in place are all oriented towards the east, in the direction of Iran. Neither Washington nor Riyadh knows for sure where the drone swarm/missiles really came from.
Readers should pay close attention to this groundbreaking interview with General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force. The interview, in Farsi (with English subtitles), was conducted by US-sanctioned Iranian intellectual Nader Talebzadeh and includes questions forwarded by my US analyst friends Phil Giraldi and Michael Maloof and myself.
Explaining Iranian self-sufficiency in its defense capabilities, Hajizadeh sounds like a very rational actor.
Hybrid war, reloaded
Now we are entering a whole new dimension in asymmetric hybrid war.
In the – horrendous – event that Washington would decide to attack Iran, egged on by the usual neocon suspects, the Pentagon could never hope to hit and disable all the Iranian and/or Yemeni drones. The US could expect, for sure, all-out war. And then no ships would sail through the Strait of Hormuz. We all know the consequences of that.
Which brings us to The Big Surprise. The real reason there would be no ships traversing the Strait of Hormuz is that there would be no oil in the Gulf left to pump. The oil fields, having been bombed, would be burning.
So we’re back to the realistic bottom line, which has been stressed by not only Moscow and Beijing but also Paris and Berlin: US President Donald Trump gambled big time, and he lost. Now he must find a face-saving way out. If the War Party allows it – by Pepe Escobar
https://www.asiatimes.com/2019/09/article/how-the-houthis-overturned-the-chessboard/
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‘You can start it, but how do you end it?’ Actual war in Gulf would be DEVASTATING and neither Iran nor Saudis really want one
For all the sound and fury coming from Saudi Arabia, a shooting war in the Gulf is not something Tehran or Riyadh want. Both US and its allies know that Iran is a much tougher nut to crack than Yemen, but can’t admit so publicly.
Saudi Arabia and the US have called Saturday’s attack on oil fields and refineries an “act of war” and accused Tehran of being behind it, even though the Houthi rebels in Yemen have taken responsibility and said it was retaliation for the Saudi-led invasion of their country.
That evidence is “nothing to go to war over,” former Pentagon official Michael Maloof told RT, noting that the Saudis did not present anything to show where the missiles may have originated.
Maloof noted that Iran has clearly warned both the US and the Saudis that any military action will be met with a disproportionate response, targeting not just the US bases in the region but also the oil infrastructure in Saudi Arabia and its ally the United Arab Emirates.
Professor Mohammed Marandi of the University of Tehran confirmed the warnings, saying that Iran has communicated them to the US twice already
“Saudi Arabia would not survive a war with Iran, and neither would the UAE. They would collapse almost immediately,” Marandi told RT America.
Marandi also pointed out that Saudi Arabia has demonstrated all its military might – or lack thereof – in Yemen, where it has been fighting since 2015 to subjugate the Houthis, without much success.
https://www.rt.com/news/469119-iran-saudi-gulf-no-war/
Interview in film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DD6ypZigxIg
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Oilfield attacks are a warning to Saudis over Yemen policy
The implication was that the House of Saud just had to give the word for its saviour-in-chief to launch retaliatory strikes, presumably against Iran.
It’s unclear whether last Saturday’s devastating attacks on key Saudi Aramco facilities will serve as a sobering reminder to the kingdom’s ruling family of the price it must pay for its appallingly misguided military mission in Yemen.
The implication was that the House of Saud just had to give the word for its saviour-in-chief to launch retaliatory strikes, presumably against Iran. Were that threat to be carried out, there’s a reasonable chance it would unleash the worst war the Middle East has witnessed in recent decades, in a region already convulsed in seemingly intractable conflicts.
The sites of the Saudi conflagrations are considerably closer to Iraq and Iran than to Yemen, but Pompeo is reported to have informed Iraq’s Prime Minister that the attacks did not emanate from Iraqi territory. And even if Iran was behind the drones and/or missiles that struck the Aramco sites, what are the chances it would launch them from its own terrain?
Meanwhile, Riyadh is being circumspect in its allegations, claiming that the weapons were of Iranian origin without directly blaming Tehran.
It’s hard to believe that the Saudi crown prince, Mohammad bin Salman (MBS), who was instrumental in unleashing fire and fury against Yemen, would personally be averse to an American attack on Iran, regardless of the consequences. It is possible, though, that he holds less sway than he did when recalcitrant journalist Jamal Khashoggi was literally butchered at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul almost a year ago.
Perhaps there’s some consolation to be gained from the impression that Trump, regardless of his sporadically belligerent rhetoric, is broadly averse to fresh hostilities in the run-up to an election year. Yet nothing can prevent him from being consistently erratic
Whatever the immediate future may entail, it can almost be guaranteed that the Middle East will remain on the boil for a long time to come.
(A E K P)
Saudi Press: the return of oil supplies confirms Saudi Aramco's reliability
Al Riyadh and Okaz newspapers wrote about the two Aramco oil plants, saying that Saudi Arabia's announcement of the return of oil supplies to the way they were before, confirms the reputation and reliability of Saudi Aramco which reach 100% in terms of meeting the demands of global energy customers.
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1971074
My comment: Of course, ivestors must be told: „No problem!“
(A K P)
Saudi ambassador to Germany says all options on the table against Iran: radio
Asked about the possibility of a military strike against Iran, he said: “Of course everything is on the table but you have to discuss that well,”
(A K P)
France: 'not very credible' that Yemenis attacked Saudi oil plants
“Yemen’s rebels have announced they have triggered this attack. That is not very credible, relatively speaking,” the minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, told C News television.
“There is an international investigation, let’s wait for its results. I don’t have a specific opinion before these results”, he said
(A K P)
BREAKING: According to @IndyArabia, Saudi Air Force fighters conducted airstrikes against #IRGC sites at #AlBukamal, Syria
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/1174368593011777536
My comment: LOL: They try it in Syria now.
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Film, Elisabeth Kendall: Here's my 2-minute take on Saturday's #DroneAttacks against #Saudi #oil infrastructure. (Obviously #Iran's responsibility, directly or indirectly, is not yet formally confirmed)
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/1173916048439042049
(B K P)
Was #Saudi Monarchy so embarrassed to admit that #Yemen is behind #Abqaiq attacks 4.5 years after it invaded Yemen with its Western, #Arab & #African allies & surrogates such as #ISIS & #AQAP, it had to blame #Iran a leading Saudi dissident thinks so.
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/1174385832603598849
referring to https://twitter.com/Abd_ulmalik711/status/1174201359526182912
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Pompeo Briefing on Saudi Attacks
On September 18, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called the attacks on Saudi Arabian oil facilities an “act of war.” Pompeo, who was traveling to the kingdom to discuss a response, told reporters the September 14 strikes had the "fingerprints of the Ayatollah." He denied claims that the attacks originated in Yemen. "As for how we know, the equipment used is unknown to be in the Houthi arsenal. These line attack cruise missiles we have never seen there and we think we’ve seen most everything,” Pompeo said. Pompeo said he would try to build an international coalition to deter Iran during his trip to the Middle East. He added that Washington would rally support for unified action against Tehran at the United Nations General Assembly later in September. The following are his remarks to reporters.
DEPARTMENT OF STATE REMARKS TO TRAVELING PRESS
SECRETARY POMPEO: Yeah. It didn’t come from the Houthis. I would begin by this, and I’ll certainly address that. It doesn’t matter. This was an Iranian attack. It’s not the case that you can subcontract out the devastation of five percent of the world’s global energy supply and think that you can absolve yourself of responsibilities. So, I’d say that from the beginning. Were it the case that the Houthis’ fraudulent claim was accurate, were that true – 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. And Americans and Saudis who reside in Saudi Arabia too were at risk. We’re 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.
As for how we know, the equipment used is unknown to be in the Houthi arsenal. So we watched clearly and have a deep understanding of what the Iranians have transferred to the Houthis over – goodness, it’s been since I think 2011 since the Iranians began shipping significant weapon systems to the Houthis, 2011 – maybe it’s ’13. But it’s been going on for six or eight years, since long before the JCPOA was filed. And that money and wealth and weapon systems have been sitting there, but we’ve never seen these particular systems, these light attack cruise missiles we have never seen there. And we think we’ve seen most everything.
So the Intelligence Community has high confidence that these were not weapons that would have been in the possession of the Houthis. That’s probably the most important piece of information. The second piece is if you stare at the flight patterns that had to have taken place given the impact and what you can see when you see the pictures, you should – if you all go hire the best analysts to go look at the damage to these facilities, they didn’t come from the south. And Yemen is nearly due south of most of all of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. These attacks didn’t come from there.
QUESTION: If it didn’t come from there, did it come from Iran, or did it come from southern Iraq? Where is the view that it would come from there?
SECRETARY POMPEO: By the way, that makes the Houthis’ claims false, right. Just so we’re tracking back to your original question, that means these people lie. And so whatever you report about them, you say, “the Houthis said,” you should say, “the well-known, frequently lying Houthis have said the following.” This is important, because you ought not report them as if these are truth-tellers, as if these are people who aren’t completely under the boot of the Iranians, and who would not at the direction of the Iranians lay claim to attacks which they did not engage in, which clearly was the case here.
https://www.state.gov/remarks-to-the-traveling-press-6/ = http://iranprimer.usip.org/index.php/blog/2019/sep/18/pompeo-briefing-saudi-attacks
My comment: “you should say, “the well-known, frequently lying Houthis have said the following.” This is important, because you ought not report them as if these are truth-tellers“ this is Pompeo describing himself: https://www.antiwar.com/blog/2019/04/23/pompeo-finally-tells-the-truth-we-lie-we-cheat-we-steal/
(A K P)
Pompeo says U.S. supports Saudi Arabia's right to defend itself: tweet
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the United States supports Saudi Arabia’s “right to defend itself” and said Iran’s behavior would “not be tolerated” in a meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, according to a statement on his official Twitter account on Thursday.
Film: https://twitter.com/Cirincione/status/1174464481587617792
My comment: As the Saudis themselves had started their war in Yemen, it’s not about Saudi self-defense.
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Saudi says Iranian sponsorship of attack undeniable, displays arms
Saudi Arabia on Wednesday displayed remnants of what it described as Iranian drones and cruise missiles used in an attack on Saudi oil facilities, saying they were “undeniable” evidence of Iranian aggression.
A total of 25 drones and missiles were launched at two oil plants in last weekend’s strikes, including Iranian Delta Wing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and “Ya Ali” cruise missiles, Defense Ministry spokesman Colonel Turki al-Malki said.
“The attack was launched from the north and unquestionably sponsored by Iran,” he told a news conference. “The evidence ... that you have seen in front of you, makes this undeniable.”
Authorities were still working to determine the exact launch point, Malki said, repeatedly declining to answer reporters questions about whether Iran actually carried out the attack.
Iran has denied any involvement in the assault.
Malki reiterated that the attack could not have come from Yemen, south of Saudi Arabia, and that the Houthis were “covering up” for Iran.
“The precision impact of the cruise missile indicate advanced capability beyond Iran proxy capacity,” he said. “The targeting direction of the site indicate north to south direction of travel.”
Eighteen drones and three missiles were launched at Abqaiq, home to the world’s largest oil processing facility, but the missiles “fell short”, Malki said. He said four missiles targeted Khurais, adding that the Ya Ali missiles have a range of 700 km and have been used by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saria reiterated that the movement had carried out the strike, saying it possessed new drones, powered by normal and jet engines, that could reach targets deep inside the “enemy”.
The group had launched “Samad 3”, “Qassef 3”, jet-powered and other drones, including some carrying bombs, at the Saudi oil plants from three sites, he said in a televised speech.
and also https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-49746645
Films:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xq8S4WHKJCs&t=323s
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=521187565283560
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0uD_mbY_vQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwN_-O2V_0k
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJ--l2oTCtY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GccUTULMQI4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XMvggiQyeM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjSpFGb_5uE
and this by Saudi Press Agency:
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Spokesman of the Saudi Defense Ministry: The Kingdom is Able to Take all Measures to Defend Capabilities of the Homeland
Colonel Turki Al-Malki, Official Spokesman of the Ministry of Defense, affirmed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's ability to defend its infrastructure and to take all measures to defend the capabilities of the homeland, adding that the Kingdom deals with partners and allies in stabilizing the security of the region.
During a press conference held in Riyadh today, Colonel Al-Malki presented information confirming the Iranian role in the sabotage act which targeted the most important site in the world as it is the most important source of oil production, saying that "since the beginning of the Iranian coup in the region, we have seen a remarkable growth in the Iranian aggression against the Kingdom. This aggression is revealed throughout history."
"The recent attack against Saudi Aramco was not only against the Kingdom, but against the international community as a whole, and was a deliberate attempt to disrupt the global economy. This attack is against international law. Therefore, they should be held accountable. Iran's aggression and support for terrorist groups in maritime trade routes pose a common threat to us. We call on the international community to recognize Iran's sabotage practices in the region and its responsibility for the recent attacks on the world's most important energy site for the international community," Al-Malki said.
"I will focus on two main parts of our findings regarding the initial investigations with the partners. First, this attack was not carried out from Yemen as the Houthis claimed. Second, this attack is originated from the north and undoubtedly was supported by Iran. All the evidence, in our presentation before you, leaves no doubt about the Iranian role in the sabotage," he affirmed.
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970935
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970937
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970940
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Analysts: Weapons in Saudi attack similar to Iranian ones
A cruise missile and drone fragments that Saudi Arabia says it recovered from an attack on its oil industry bear similarities to Iranian-manufactured weapons, though more information is needed to make a definitive link, analysts told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Particularly striking was the cruise missile, which they said resembled a Quds-1 missile previously displayed by Yemen's Houthi rebels during a televised weapons exhibition in July.
However, the analysts uniformly agreed that missile, with its small, Czech-made TJ100 turbo engine, is limited to a range of 700 kilometers (435 miles). That means it could not have been fired from Yemen, which is over 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from the oil-processing facility and oil field that were targeted in Saturday's attack claimed by the Houthis.
"It did not come from Yemen," said Michael Elleman, a missile expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. "I think the intel reporting . seems to be pretty consistently saying that no, this did not come from Yemen, even though they claimed credit for it."
Saudi Arabia alleged Wednesday that the attack was "unquestionably sponsored by Iran." Iran denies being involved and has threatened the U.S. that it will retaliate "immediately" if Tehran is targeted in response.
The location where the cruise missile fell harmlessly to the ground, north of its intended target, also suggests it came from the north, said Sim Tack, an analyst at the Texas-based private intelligence firm Stratfor.
"I think the case is definitely becoming stronger for the argument that it wasn't launched from Yemen," he said.
Also, the Houthis are not known to have the capability to build cruise missiles locally.
"The idea that impoverished, war-torn Yemen would be able to develop a cruise missile without any outside assistance seems far-fetched," wrote Fabian Hinz, a researcher at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California.
Iran's previous efforts to supply missiles to the Houthis, and the fact that the country uses TJ100 engines in its drone program "do imply that Iran could be behind the Quds-1," Hinz added.
Iran long has denied arming the Houthis, though U.N. experts, Western nations and the Saudi-led coalition have pointed to weapons recovered on the battlefield that appear to have come from the Islamic Republic.
Saudi military spokesman Col. Turki al-Malki told journalists in Riyadh that the cruise missile was a "Ya Ali" variant. However, that missile is fired from the air by a fighter jet and has collapsible wings, Tack said. The one on display in Riyadh appeared to have fixed wings like a ground-fired missile, suggesting that it could be a newly made ground-fired variant – by Jon Gambrell
https://www.apnews.com/22d6918dfc874d5eb838be138e3c47e9 = https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article235227037.html
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Here's All The New Info You Need To Know In The Aftermath Of The Saudi Oil Facilities Attacks
Saudi Arabia described the cruise missiles they recovered pieces of as a variant of Iran's air-launched Ya Ali, though there is no evidence as yet that aircraft launched the weapons in question. Initial observations showed that these weapons were similar, if not identical to the Quds 1, a missile that the Houthis claimed to have first employed in June 2019 and revealed to the public a month later. That missile is ground-launched.
The exact range of these missiles is unknown, but experts have placed it at around 435 miles based on the limitations of its engine, which appears to be a Czech-made TJ100 turbojet. This would be the same general range as the Ya Ali.
We also don't know the maximum range of the triangle-shaped suicide drones, which Saudi Arabia has referred to as "delta wings," but they do appear relatively small.
It's also worth noting that Saudi Arabia has incorrectly identified wreckage from past Houthi attacks and it is possible that we have no yet seen the full extent of the Yemeni rebels' capabilities, which is at least the result of active Iranian support, if not direct shipments of completed weapons from Iran. After Malki's press briefing the group made a televised claim to have a new suicide drone, which they called the Qasef 3, with an improved jet engine, implying added range, though there is no proof yet that this unmanned aircraft exists or that it was involved in any previous attacks. United Nations investigators in the past have also noted the rebel's dubious past claims to have drones, which U.N. reports refer to as UAV-X, that can fly in excess of 900 miles.
The Houthis also claimed they had footage from one of their drones striking the Abqaiq facility to prove they had carried out the attack. However, they appear to have only shown manipulated and dated Google Earth imagery of the site. The rebel group also does not appear to have the beyond-line-of-sight data links that would be necessary to have recorded this footage during the attacks.
The evidence does seem to increasingly be pointing to a launch site somewhere other than Yemen, as well as Iran's support for whoever carried out the attacks, but it also remains largely circumstantial.
Whatever happens, we have now seen what is likely just the first tranche of evidence surrounding the attacks on Abqaiq and Khurais and more is almost certain to emerge in the coming days or weeks. In the meantime, tensions in the Middle East are escalating yet again and it's unclear what it may take to avoid a conflict of some kind following this "act of war." – by Joseph Trevithick
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More evidence points to Iranian cruise missiles, drones in attack on Saudi oilfield
Debris gathered from the drones and missiles used to attack an oil field and refinery in eastern Saudi Arabia increasingly lends credence to US and Saudi accusations that Iran was in some way behind the attacks. Other evidence presented thus far also suggests that the attacks may have been launched from Iran rather than Yemen, as the leadership of the Houthi militia fighting Saudi Arabia there has claimed.
A total of 25 drones and missiles were used in the attack. The missiles appear to have been identical to the Quds-1 cruise missile revealed by Ansar Allah (the Houthi militia) in a weapons display on July 7. The drones were delta-winged, propeller-driven unmanned aircrafts with stabilizer fins at the tips of each wing.
The Quds-1 is a smaller missile than the Soumar—Iran's clone of a Soviet-era cruise missile obtained from Ukraine in 2001—and its latest iteration, the Hoveyzeh. The Quds-1 uses what appears to be a Czech-built turbojet engine, the PBS Aerospace TJ100 (which PBS advertises as "especially suitable for unmanned aerial vehicles") stuck onto its upper fuselage for propulsion.
Based on analysis of photographs and other evidence, Fabian Hinz of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies and others have posited that the Quds-1 was used in the September 14attacks. A TJ100 engine was found in the wreckage, and the missile had a smaller diameter than the Soumar, with rounded control fins identical to those in photos of the Quds.
This doesn't get Iran off the hook for the attack. Drones displayed by Iran have had TJ100 turbojets (or engines that are nearly identical knockoffs). And the Houthi Ansar Allah, while having some technical capabilities, would be hard-pressed to produce turbojet engines—let alone an entire cruise missile with terrain following systems and satellite navigation.
There's a possibility of an even more direct Iranian connection: while the Soumar would have plenty of range to be launched from Yemen and strike northeastern Saudi Arabia, the TJ100 has significantly less thrust and is less fuel efficient than the engine used in the bigger missile. In order to reach its target, it would more likely have had to been launched from southwestern Iran. While Iran has not publicly displayed the Quds-1 under any name, it is likely that it is a simplified weapon built specifically for Iran's proxies, just as Iran has done with some drone weapons.
The drone wreckage from the attack introduces another set of questions – by Sean Gallagher
(A K P)
Iranian official says Saudi Arabia proved that "it knows nothing": Twitter
Saudi Arabia proved that “it knows nothing”, an advisor to Iran’s president tweeted on Wednesday, after the kingdom displayed evidence it said proved the assault on its oil sites was “unquestionably sponsored” by Tehran.
“The press conference proved that Saudi Arabia knows nothing about where the missiles and drones were made or launched from and failed to explain why the country’s defense system failed to intercept them,” Hesameddin Ashena tweeted.
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What Iran’s hardliners stand to gain from the Abqaiq attack
If Tehran gave the green light to a strike in Saudi Arabia, why now, just as a Trump-Rouhani meeting seemed possible?
There is speculation that the strike on Abqaiq was a retaliation for the airstrikes on the Iraqi al-Hashd al-Sha’abi militia installations this month by Israelis, alleged to have been “coordinated and financed by Saudi Arabia”. An earlier Israeli strike targeted a border-control facility in Abu Kamal in eastern Syria, delaying its long-expected opening. Though this facility is strategically important for Iranians and gives them direct land access to Mediterranean shores, the attack on Abqaiq oil facilities seems too disproportionate a reaction.
A longer look back at the course of events over recent months leading to the Abqaiq attack provides helpful context
Yet just when everybody was eying a potential meeting of Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani at the upcoming UN General Assembly session, the attacks on Abqaiq happened. Why on earth would Iran permit such an attack with massive implications, right as a diplomatic opening presented itself?
One theory is that hardliners and IRGC want to curtail a potential thawing of relations between Iran and the US.
https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/what-iran-stands-gain-abqaiq-attack
My comment: And more free speculations on Iran.
(A K pH)
"You are Next," Yemeni Armed Forces Spokesman Warned UAE Regime
Armed Forces spokesman, Brigadier-General Yahya Sere'e, disclosed on Wednesday at a press conference new details of the 2nd Operation of Balanced Deterrence targeting Aramco's Abqaiq and Khurais plants. He said that "the Armed Forces reached, with the help of God, to a high level of efficiency and capacity at all levels," stressing that the Armed Forces today can manufacture and produce many drones in record time. He pointed out that the exhibition of military industries assured the level of manufacturing capabilities of the Armed Forces in the field of Air Force and Rocketry Force, in addition to various military industries.
Regarding the 2nd Operation of Balanced Deterrence, which targeted Saudi oil facilties, Brigadier Seree said that "this operation is a good example of the capabilities reached by the Armed Forces in the level of planning and implementation." He confirmed to the world that free Yemen will not hesitate to respond to this aggression and will use its legitimate right to target all legitimate targets.
Sare'e said, "We assure you today that the destruction of the targeted facilities is far greater than has been recognized, the Americans tried to escape a clear fact in the context of its underestimation of Yemeni capabilities."
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=8860
and
Saudi oil strikes perfect example of Yemeni forces’ military capabilities: Army spox
The spokesman for Yemeni Armed Forces has lauded the highly disruptive drone attacks on Saudi Aramco petroleum and gas processing plants at Abqaiq and Khurais in the kingdom's Eastern Province as an outstanding example of the military prowess of Yemeni army troops and allied fighters from Popular Committees.
“Our forces have reached a high level of efficiency and ability. They can manufacture various types of unmanned aerial vehicles in record time. The Second Deterrent Balance Operation, which targeted Saudi oil installations, is a perfect example of the capabilities of our forces in terms of planning and implementation,” Brigadier General Yahya Saree said a press conference in the capital Sana’a on Wednesday evening.
and also https://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13980628000154
Film: Spokesman of Yemeni armed forces holds press conference on Saudi attacks
https://www.facebook.com/PRESSTV/videos/2356734134541225/
(A K P)
Saudi Arabia thanks Trump for defending Gulf allies: minister
Saudi Arabia’s deputy defense minister on Wednesday thanked the United States for confronting Iran in an “unprecedented way” and for defending its regional allies against what he called unprovoked attacks.
“President (Donald) Trump’s Administration has confronted the Iranian regime’s and terrorist organizations aggression in an unprecedented way - we in KSA thank the President for his stance, we will continue to stand with the USA against the forces of evil and senseless aggression,” Saudi vice minister of defense, Prince Khalid bin Salman, tweeted.
(A K P)
Yemeni Ansarullah issued warning before drone attacks on Saudi Aramco
Special Assistant to the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament for International Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has said that Saudi Arabia ignored the prior waning by Yemeni Ansarullah before drone attacks on its oil facilities.
According to the news service of Iranian Parliament ‘ICANA,’ Hossein Amir-Abdollahian noted on Wednesday that the United States is behind the Saudi-led coalition’s aggression on Yemen, saying that the Saudis entered the Yemeni war equipped with the most advanced American weapons.
He pointed out while the Americans have given advanced warplanes to the Saudis, they have refused to sell them complementary reconnaissance drones to complete the mission of their fighter jets. He added that the advanced American drones could have helped the pilots of the fighter jets to identify their target accurately while noting that the Saudi fighter jets' daily bombardments have proven to be futile.
The Iranian parliamentary official also stressed that Iran has never supported a military approach in the region and does not believe in a military solution to the crisis in Yemen.
https://en.mehrnews.com/news/150215/Yemeni-Ansarullah-issued-warning-before-drone-attacks-on-Saudi
and also https://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13980628000288
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Audio: Ep 125 Yemen Drone Attacks on Saudi Oil Facilities feat Nasser Arrabyee
Guest: Nasser Arrabyee. Speaking to us from Yemen, Nasser describes the recent drone attacks by the Yemen armed forces (led by the Houthis) on the Saudi oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais. We discussed the fact that there have been numerous other, progressively advanced, retaliatory strikes by Yemen on Saudi Arabia in recent months and over the past few years. Further, we talk about the five year bombardment and blockade of Yemen by Saudi Arabia (with the critical assistance of the United States) and how the number of casualties has been grossly understated.
http://aroundtheempire.com/2019/09/18/ep125-yemen-drone-attacks-on-saudi-oil-nasser-arrabyee/
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Attack on Saudi a 'real test' of global will to act: crown prince
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said on Wednesday the attack on the kingdom’s oil infrastructure posed a “real test of the global will” to confront subversive acts that threaten international stability, state media reported.
His remarks were made in a telephone call with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who called on the global community to “take a firm stand and resolute action” towards such assaults, Saudi state news agency SPA said in an Arabic-language statement.
My comment: A „'real test' of global will to act“ had been the Yemen war and the Khashoggi murder. Saudi oil really is not worth it.
(A K P)
Saudi crown prince requests help from South Korea to strengthen air defenses: Yonhap
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DRONE ATTACK" ON SAUDI OIL - WHO BENEFITS?
The BBC in its article, "Saudi Arabia oil facilities ablaze after drone strikes," would inject toward the top of its article:
Iran-aligned Houthi fighters in Yemen have been blamed for previous attacks.
Following an ambiguous and evidence-free description of the supposed attacks, the BBC even included an entire section titled, "Who could be behind the attacks?" dedicated to politically expedient speculation aimed ultimately at Tehran.
Deliberately missing from the BBC's history lesson are several key facts, leaving readers to draw conclusions that conveniently propel the West's agenda versus Iran forward.
The US and Saudi Arabia vs. MENA
The war in Yemen was a result of US-backed regime change operations aimed at Yemen - along with Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Syria, and Egypt - starting in 2011.
Major hostilities began when the client regime installed by the US was ousted from power in 2015. Since then, the US and its Saudi allies have brutalized and ravaged Yemen triggering one of the worst humanitarian crises of the 21st century.
Saudi Arabia the Victim?
The BBC's recent article attempting to portray Saudi-Yemeni hostilities as a tit-for-tat conflict rather than Yemen's desperate struggle for survival is yet another illustration of not only the West's hypocrisy in terms of upholding or in any way underwriting human rights, but also the Western media' complicity in advancing this hypocrisy.
Saudi Arabia is no victim.
If the US can predicate the invasion of Iraq and the overthrow of its government on deliberately false claims of possessing "weapons of mass destruction," wouldn't Yemen and its allies be justified in using any means possible to attack and undermine Saudi Arabia's fighting capacity as it and its US allies openly carry out a war of aggression unequivocally condemned by the UN itself?
Houthi fighters or Iran would both be well within their rights to strike at the economic engine driving what even the UN has repeatedly declared as an illegal war of aggression waged by Saudi Arabia and its Western sponsors against the nation and people of Yemen.
Unfortunately, provoking such attacks - however justified - is key to US machinations toward igniting an even wider and more destructive regional conflict.
Two Possibilities
The alleged attacks on Saudi oil facilities mean one of two things.
Either it is indeed retaliation against Saudi Arabia for its criminal activities across the region - showcasing new military capabilities raising the costs for Riyadh to continue down its current foreign policy path - or it was a staged provocation that will be used by the US to station yet more military forces in Saudi Arabia and to ratchet up tensions with both Iran to the east and Yemen's Houthis to the south.
With a growing number of US troops in Saudi Arabia, the US will be well positioned to launch offensive attacks against Iran in any future war, as well as carry out defensive operations to protect Saudi Arabia and essential infrastructure from retaliation.
This most recent alleged attack, along with a series of questionable incidents in the Persian Gulf have afforded the US justification - however tenuous - to further build up its military presence along Iran's peripheries it otherwise would have had to carry out in an openly provocative and unjustified manner.
It was just these sort of provocations that were described for years by US policymakers who sought to "goad" Iran into war with the West.
However beneficial this campaign of provocations may be for US foreign policy objectives, neither possibility - a provoked reaction from the Houthis or Iran or a staged attack organized by the US - bodes well for those ruling in Riyadh – by Tony Cartalucci
https://www.blacklistednews.com/article/74771/drone-attack-on-saudi-oil--who.html = https://www.opednews.com/articles/Drone-Attack-on-Saudi-Oil-by-Tony-Cartalucci-Drone_Drone-Attack_Iran_Oil-190919-375.html
(** B K P)
Are the Houthi rebels capable of launching the Saudi strikes?
No surprise there. The way things are at the moment, if an incoming asteroid were about to strike the Earth, the United States would blame Iran. But there’s “no evidence” that the drones came from Iran either. Pompeo is simply trading on the assumption that Yemenis are too ignorant to manage that sort of technology, so it must be Iran.
Saudi Arabia and the alliance of other autocratic Arab States that have been bombing Yemen since 2015 push the same line all the time. It goes down fairly well in the kingdom, where most people look down on Yemenis for being poor and less well educated, but it isn’t actually true.
Within a year of the war’s start, the Yemenis began launching a few small ballistic missiles (with conventional warheads) back at Saudi Arabia, but the Saudis refused to believe they were doing it themselves. The Houthis, they implied, were too backward to upgrade the Yemeni air force’s old Soviet-made Scud missiles themselves. Iran must have helped them.
In fact, the Yemeni Air Force had Scud missiles for decades before the government collapsed in 2015, and technicians to service them.
But was it really the Houthis? At this point there is no clear evidence either way, but it could have been. They certainly have the motive, and they may have the technology. They have used small drones in previous air strikes, and there are bigger drones available commercially that could do the damage seen at the Saudi facilities.
One apparent flaw in the Houthi theory is that there are no civilian drones capable of flying the almost 800 km from Yemen to the Saudi targets, but that’s not really necessary. Most of the land around the Abqaiq and Khurais oil facilities is open desert, and launching the drones for 25 to 50 km away would escape detection unless the Saudis were actively anticipating such an attack.
Who would launch them? There are a million Yemenis resident in Saudi Arabia, plus 2 million to 3 million Saudi citizens who suffer severe discrimination because they follow the Shiite version of Islam.
That’s a pretty large pool to fish in if you’re looking for local collaborators to smuggle the drones in and launch them — which is what the Houthis themselves say happened. In their statement claiming credit for the attacks, they express thanks for “co-operation with the honorable people inside the kingdom.”
None of this proves that it was the Houthis or that it wasn’t the Iranians. It does leave the identity of the attackers up in the air, where it will remain until conclusive proof emerges one way or another (if it ever does). Pompeo’s confident attribution of blame to Iran, later echoed by U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry, is just politics, not proof – by Gwynne Dyer
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2019/09/17/commentary/world-commentary/houthi-rebels-capable-launching-saudi-strikes = http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/opinion/2019/09/197_275710.html
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Who was responsible for the Saudi Aramco Attack?
Any evidence produced by the US or the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will be politicised and seek to implicate Iran, and the public will have to treat such “intelligence” with scepticism. Yet at the same time, the question remains as to whether the Houthis have the technological means to strike targets at such a far distance, a good 1,300 kilometres away?
An analysis of the Houthis’ past strikes against Riyadh versus Iran’s missile arsenal can offer some insight into this debate, yet a definitive answer is still elusive.
The attacks in the Eastern Province
The attacks struck facilities in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern province and if the Houthis were responsible, it would represent the furthest range of their weapons arsenal. The distance serves as the reason why sceptics and Iran war hawks believe the attack originated in Iran or Iraq via Shia militias.
Photographic evidence of the latest strike against the Aramco facility demonstrates the pinpoint precision of the weapons strikes, hitting crude oil processing containers, indicating the planners of the attack knew where to strike for maximum effect.
The US sought to blame Iran or Iranian allied Iraqi Shia militias, arguing that the impact point indicated that the weapons had approached from the north or northwest, the direction of Iraq or Iran. Nonetheless, drones and cruise missiles are manoeuvrable, and thus does not automatically preclude a Yemeni attack from the south. A drone can be steered to their target by a remote pilot, while a cruise missile follows a predetermined path programmed prior to its launch.
Houthi drones or Iranian cruise missiles?
After enduring a crippling Saudi air campaign since 2015, the Houthis definitely have a motive. The Iranian link to the Houthis is exaggerated and the group has its own agency. Occam’s Razor points to the Houthis as past precedent indicates the group, even with outside help, has had success in launching drones over longer distances.
The Houthis had struck Saudi Arabia before with a ballistic missile in November 2017 outside of Riyadh, yet it did little damage as it was intercepted by air defences, while drones have proved more successful.
The other argument in light of the latest attack focuses on cruise missiles opposed to drones, or a combination of both. The question is whether they were launched from Iran or Yemen?
The Houthi version of the missile does not have the range to target the Eastern Province, which leaves the possibility of the cruise missiles originating in Iran, or an even more unlikely scenario of the Soumars being launched from YemenNonetheless, neither US nor UK naval vessels in the Gulf seemed to have picked up these missile launches over the Gulf. Missiles or drones launched from Yemen could have evaded Saudi radar.
Ending Yemen’s civil war
While there is no clear answer in regards to who was responsible for the attack, the recent events demonstrate the need to mediate an end to the Yemeni civil war, as Martin Griffins, UN envoy to Yemen, argued after the attack.
Regardless of who was responsible for the recent attacks, the events serve as a reminder to the international community to end Yemen’s civil war, not start a new war with Iran. Since the latest attacks have affected the oil market, maybe now they will act – by Ibrahim Al Marashi
https://www.trtworld.com/opinion/who-was-responsible-for-the-saudi-aramco-attack-29903
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Minister of Energy confirms return of oil supplies following blatant sabotage act against oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais
Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, the Minister of Energy, conveyed the Saudi leadership's announcement to the citizens and people who love this country about the return of oil supplies to what they were before 3:43 am on Saturday as a result the blatant sabotage act against the two oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais of Saudi Aramco.
During a press conference held today in Jeddah, he explained the efforts exerted to enable the Saudi oil industry to overcome the impact of this sabotage.
He added that this interruption represents about half of the Kingdom's production of crude oil, equivalent to about 6% of global production. He stated that in the past two days, the damage has been contained and more than half of the production which disrupted as a result of this blatant sabotage has been recovered. So Saudi Aramco will meet its full obligations to its customers this month, by withdrawing from its crude oil stocks and adjusting the mix of some oils.
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970495
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970508#1970508
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970519#1970519
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970520
For his part, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Saudi Aramco, Yasser bin Othman Al-Rumayyan, in his statement during the press conference that the attacks on the Aramco plants in Abqaiq and Khurais "will not delay the initial public offering (IPO) of Aramco and will not delay its preparations."
The planned IPO of the national oil giant will be ready in the next 12 months and the kingdom is committed to the listing, he added.
Meanwhile, Saudi Aramco President and Chief Executive Officer Eng. Amin Al-Nasser talked about the restoration of Saudi Aramco full production capacity.
He said that many of the company's retired employees, Saudis and non-Saudis, in an exceptional loyalty, communicated with the company and expressed their desire to join the support teams on a voluntary basis to express their continued love and belonging to the company.
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970521
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The Latest: Saudi minister: 50% of crude reduction restored
7:40 p.m.
Egypt’s foreign minister says his country is standing by Saudi Arabia following the weekend attack on major oil sites in the kingdom.
Sameh Shoukry is calling on the international community to collectively back Saudi Arabia and identify who was responsible for the attacks on a Saudi oil field and the world’s largest crude oil processing plant.
6:45 p.m.
Saudi Arabia has instructed clerics across the country to focus their upcoming Friday sermons on the recent attacks that struck key oil installations in the kingdom’s east.
The Islamic Affairs Ministry says the sermons should “emphasize the blessing of security and stability that God has bestowed upon the kingdom of Saudi Arabia” and the “need to rally around its wise leadership,” as well as to ask for God’s protection of the country and to respond to enemies where they are.
5:30 p.m.
France’s foreign minister says his county does not have evidence on the source of the drones used in the weekend attack on major oil sites in Saudi Arabia.
4:55 p.m.
French President Emmanuel Macron’s office says France is not giving up its diplomatic efforts in the Persian Gulf crisis.
4:35 p.m.
Saudi Arabia is calling on the international community “to shoulder its responsibility in condemning the perpetrators” and “clearly confronting” those behind an attack on the country’s oil facilities over the weekend.
https://apnews.com/7a0673f278ee44829dc77db25675e5d5
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One of the examples of anti-Arab bigotry is the rush today by some to “condemn” #Yemen attack on #Abqaiq oil plant in response to 4 years of bombing, but the silence on Saudi killing 130,000 Arab children
Go ahead & list all those who condemned #Yemeni attack #Abqaiq& see if they have condemned a single #Saudi atrocity
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/1172887764548956160
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So RICH that #Saudi wants a UN investigation of a drone strike w no casualties while it has tried to BLOCK and refused to cooperate w UN investigation into attacks on civilians - thousands killed, hundreds of children, majority by Saudis
https://twitter.com/sarahleah1/status/1173825052912975872
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Film: #Putin is trolling both the #US & #Saudi Monarchy over the failed @Raytheon #Patriots system
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/1173935412781428737
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Photo: The images released by the #US of the #Abqaiq attacks show the strikes came from the South West, constant with #Yemen direction. Most likely, the @NSAGov are ill trained.
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/1174068608261140480
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Japan defense minister: Not aware of any Iran involvement in Saudi attacks
Japan has not seen any intelligence that shows Iran was involved in the recent attacks on Saudi Arabian oil facilities, Japan’s new defense chief said on Wednesday.
“We are not aware of any information that points to Iran,” Defense Minister Taro Kono told reporters at a briefing. “We believe the Houthis carried out the attack based on the statement claiming responsibility,” he added.
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Saudi Arabia promises 'material evidence' linking Iran to oil attack
Saudi Arabia said it would show evidence on Wednesday linking regional rival Tehran to an unprecedented attack on its oil industry that Washington believes originated from Iran in a dangerous escalation of Middle East frictions.
Concrete evidence showing Iranian responsible, if made public, could pressure Riyadh and Washington into a response, though U.S. President Donald Trump said he does not want war.
The Saudi Defense Ministry said it will hold a news conference on Wednesday at 1430 GMT to present “material evidence and Iranian weapons proving the Iranian regime’s involvement in the terrorist attack”.
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A Major Attack on Saudi Aramco Leaves the U.S. in a Difficult Spot
Details released in the aftermath of the attacks seem to corroborate at least the U.S. claim that they were launched from outside Yemen.
The Iranian Calculation
If this was indeed Iran directly attacking targets in Saudi Arabia, it marks a brazen escalation in its efforts to maintain and strengthen its political and military standing in the Middle East and Persian Gulf. It would also track with Iranian efforts to seek relief from increasing U.S. pressure.
Given the facilities' geographic location, the Saudi air defense focus on Yemen, the angles of impact, the overflight reports over Kuwait and debris recovered from a failed cruise missile, it is quite likely that the attacks came from Iraqi or Iranian territory — or both. It is also possible that some of the drones could have been sea-launched. Regardless, the attack vector these details indicate more directly implicates Iran and/or its direct proxies in Iraq, increasing the danger of escalation.
An attack of that magnitude, however, will decrease the likelihood that the United States would be able to hold meaningful talks with Iran in the short term. The White House has already taken a generally hard-line stance on Iran, and the United States will be loath to back off in the aftermath of this major assault.
The United States now faces a difficult decision.
Saudi hesitance to embroil itself in a major conflict is clear already. Saudi and U.S. intelligence so far agree that cruise missiles were used in the attack, but Saudi Arabia has stopped short of concurring with the U.S. assessment that Iran provided the staging ground for the attack. Riyadh's cautious response reflects Saudi Arabia's general course of risk avoidance and its desire to avoid the disruption of a major Gulf conflict.
My comment: US media parroting the Iran story again and again. And more:
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Saudi oil attack part of dangerous new pattern
Attack blamed on Iran that halved kingdom’s oil production is latest in a series of unclaimed acts of sabotage in the Gulf, which experts say could be a new tactic by Tehran
The assault on the beating heart of Saudi Arabia’s vast oil empire follows a new and dangerous pattern that’s emerged across the Persian Gulf this summer of precise attacks that leave few obvious clues as to who launched them.
Beginning in May with the still-unclaimed explosions that damaged oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, the region has seen its energy infrastructure repeatedly targeted. Those attacks culminated with Saturday’s assault on the world’s biggest oil processor in eastern Saudi Arabia, which halved the oil-rich kingdom’s production and caused energy prices to spike.
Some strikes have been claimed by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who have been battling a Saudi-led coalition in the Arab world’s poorest country since 2015. Their rapidly increasing sophistication fuels suspicion among experts and analysts however that Iran may be orchestrating them — or perhaps even carrying them out itself as the US alleges in the case of Saturday’s attack.
“Iran can count on public skepticism to afford it some deniability under any circumstances, but an attack of this magnitude stands a much greater chance of provoking very severe diplomatic and military consequences,” warned Michael Knights, a senior fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/saudi-oil-attack-part-of-dangerous-new-pattern/
and more:
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Iran's strategic use of drones and missiles rattles Middle East rivals
The assault on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia this weekend has highlighted what analysts say is a rapidly evolving threat from Iranian-made weapons in the region, marking a potentially alarming shift toward precision strikes on critical infrastructure.
US officials believe that both cruise missiles and drones were used in the assault and that part of the operation, which was claimed by Yemen's Houthi rebels, was launched from Iranian territory, according to a US official. Tehran has denied involvement in the attack.
Iran maintains advanced missile and drone programs as part of its national defense strategy and has transferred some of those weapons and technology to allied forces in the region, including Houthi fighters in Yemen, US officials and weapons experts say. Tehran's drone and missile arsenals allow it to deter adversaries and support regional proxies, who can strike on Iran's behalf, analysts say.
"The same strategic logic that animates Iran's missile program is evident in its drone program: it enables Iran to operate from range, keep its territory safe and strike at far away targets," said Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. "Drones, missiles and rockets all feature into Iran's asymmetric security strategy and are relatively cheaper to produce."
The sophisticated nature of Saturday's assault, which targeted sensitive oil installations and took roughly half of Saudi Arabia's oil production offline, suggests that Iran's strategy has paid off, analysts say.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12268256
My comment: This is by Washington Post. It’s simply taken for granted that this is an „Iran story“, as it is already stated in the headline. Not even a discussion, a pro and contra put against each other. There not even should be a „contra“.
and also the BBC does not want to miss:
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Saudi oil attacks: Drones and missiles launched from Iran - US
[Overview article]
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-49733558
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Cartoon: As the US and Western corporate media cry over burning oil in Saudi Arabia, millions of dying Yemenis, including at least 85,000 children, and 23 million starving civilians, and thousands of young children who are victims to human trafficking -- continue to be ignored.
These innocent civilians only see death and destruction on a daily basis because of the US-Saudi led coalition's bombing campaign against #Yemen #Priorities by Carlos Latuff for MintPress News
https://www.facebook.com/MintpressNewsMPN/photos/a.767902609919943/2585629944813858/?type=3&theater
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Film by Press TV Iran: Pourquoi Aramco a été visé ?
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2544431918953737
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The Balance Of Power Has Changed In Yemen
The attack could be another example of the changing balance of power in Yemen. At the start of this war in 2015, it was unthinkable that the Houthis could have developed the ability to carry out attacks on the scale of those they’ve recently conducted. At this point, however, it has become apparent that not only has the Saudi-led coalition collapsed, but the Houthis have also improved their capabilities.
The timing of this attack should not be surprising. There has been a trend in the conflict that whenever the coalition conducts major strikes, the Houthis, on their side, fire back. For example, the attack on Saturday comes only two weeks after the Saudi-led coalition attacked a facility run by the Houthis, which resulted in 100 people being killed.
Even when the Houthis were still building up their military capabilities, they still managed to launch revenge attacks.
“U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s tweet stating that Iran has carried out 100 strikes on Saudi Arabia includes Houthi drone strikes against Saudi infrastructure and oil facilities. Although the Houthis are Iran-aligned, tying every Houthi strike to Iran reinforces the proxy war narrative on Yemen that is all-too prevalent in DC,” Samuel Ramani, who is a political commentator and a Ph.D. candidate in International Relations at St Antony’s College in the University of Oxford, told LobeLog. “It overlooks the fact that Houthi drone strikes are often conducted as a form of retaliation against Saudi airstrikes, rather than at Iran’s behest.”
Trump, who has made reducing the U.S. presence in the Middle East a priority, toned down his administration’s rhetoric on Monday. Although he said that Iran may be responsible for the attack, he noted that he does not want a war and seemed to put the onus for responding on the Saudis
On Monday, the Houthis renewed their claim of responsibility. The attacks on Aramco plants in Abqaiq and Khurais in the kingdom’s eastern region were carried out by drones with normal and jet engines, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in a tweet, according to Reuters. He also said that the plants were still a target and could be attacked at “any moment.”
The Houthis have been more successful in reaching targets inside Saudi Arabia, including airports, over the past few months.
Despite these huge expenditures and their apparent failure to turn the tide in Yemen, Riyadh is prolonging the war rather than acknowledging its failure to meet its military goals. It has become apparent that only a political solution can end the Yemeni conflict.
Ibrahim Jalal, a Yemeni security, conflict, and defense researcher told LobeLog. “The question should rather be: what would a nationwide, inclusive negotiated political settlement (that would put an end to war and pave the way for national reconciliation and sustainable peace-building) look like?” – by Abdulaziz Kilani
https://lobelog.com/the-balance-of-power-has-changed-in-yemen/
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Saudi, allies must pay the price for spilling Yemenis' blood: Ansarullah
Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement has censured support for the Saudi-led coalition of aggressors in the wake of Yemeni retaliatory drone attacks on Aramco oil facilities in eastern Saudi Arabia, stressing that those who have no reservations at all about the bloodletting in the war-ravaged country must bear the consequences of their actions.
“Peace in the region can be restored only through dialogue and understanding, and away from the clatter of weapons. Yemeni people hope to see security and peace prevail across the Arabian Peninsula. They will never surrender to oppression and others’ domination,” Mohammed Abdul-Salam, spokesman for the Houthi movement, said in a string of tweets on Tuesday.
He added, “Those condemning the September 14 operation have indeed denounced themselves as they have exposed their blatant bias in favor of the aggressor. In fact, their condemnation would embolden the criminal regime to continue its criminal acts against our people.”
The senior Houthi official noted that “Saudi oil is not more precious than Yemeni blood,” emphasizing that those who have no respect whatsoever for the Yemeni people's lives must embrace all consequences of their actions.
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Defense Minister dismissed Iran’s involvement in Yemeni raids
Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami dismissed accusations of Iran’s involvement in recent Yemeni attacks at oil facilities of Saudi Arabia.
“The issue is very clear; there has erupted a conflict between two countries. One side of this conflict is Yemenis who clearly announced that they have carried out this operation,” he said Wednesday on the sideline of a cabinet meeting in Tehran.
“The logic of their action is also clear; a country has been under severe attacks for many years, suffering significant damages,” he said, hinting that Yemenis’ attacks were a response to Saudi-led coalition aggression in the past 4 years.
“As far as military capability is concerned, Yemenis had carried out a similar operation some two years ago when attacking an airport in the United Arab Emirates by missiles which had a range of 1200 km,” Hatami said.
The response to any aggression against Iran is ‘clear’, he said, adding, “With the same decisiveness that we answered to a minor aggression of an American drone, we will respond to any other form of aggression.”
https://en.mehrnews.com/news/150199/Defense-Minister-dismissed-Iran-s-involvement-in-Yemeni-raids
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Senior Advisor Describes KSA as Sick Man of Middle East
A senior adviser to Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, in a tweet on Wednesday, said that Saudi Arabia cannot blame other countries for the troubles of war on Yemen, describing the kingdom as the sick man of the region.
Behzad Saberi, who is a senior advisor to the Iranian Foreign Minister, in a post on his Twitter page today, referred to Saudi kingdom as the “sick man” of the region, in an allusion to the term first used in the mid-19th century Nicholas I of Russia describing the fall of the Ottoman Empire.
“After years of bloodbath in Yemen, David threw a mighty stone at Goliath, and seems to be 'locked and loaded' for more,” he lauded Saturday drone attack of Yemeni on Saudi oil sites.
Riyadh “cannot blame others for the mess it created itself,” he added, dismissing the blame game of Saudi Arabia and the US which are trying to implicate Iran.
“Cure is still possible, only if the patient accepts the diagnosis,” the senior diplomat concluded, implying that the only solution for Saudi Arabia is to immediately stop its 4.5-year war on Yemen.
https://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13980627000862
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Iran's Zarif rejects as 'distraction' U.S. accusations over Saudi attacks: ISNA
“The United States should seek to look at the realities in the region, rather than simply using distractions. We feel that the U.S. government is trying to somehow forget the realities in the region,” Zarif said.
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Iran Calls for Halt to War on Yemen
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif condemned the US-Saudi blame game against Tehran, underlining that the only way to change the situation is stopping war on Yemen as the sole solution to the crisis in the Middle East.
Zarif, in a post on his Twitter account on Tuesday, lashed out at the United States for playing a blame game over the recent Yemeni drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities, saying this will never stop Yemeni victims from giving a response.
The US "is in denial if it thinks that Yemeni victims of 4.5 years of the worst war crimes wouldn’t do all to strike back. Perhaps it’s embarrassed that $100s of billions of its arms didn’t intercept Yemeni fire,” the top diplomat added.
He went on saying, “But blaming Iran won’t change that.”
Zarif reiterated Iran’s stance that ending the deadly war on Yemen is the “only solution for all.”
In another tweet, Zarif denounced Washington for remaining silent on the Saudi-led coalition’s massacre of Yemeni children with US-made weapons.
“Just imagine: The US isn’t upset when its allies mercilessly BOMB babies in Yemen for over 4 years—with its arms and its military assistance,” the Iranian foreign minister said. “But it is terribly upset when the victims react the only way they can—against the aggressor’s OIL refineries,” he added.
https://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13980627000143
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2019/09/17/606452/Zarif-US-Saudi-oil-refineries-Yemen-tweet
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Infographic: Graphic Truth: Droning On, The Yemen Case
While the United States has long used unmanned aircrafts in that theater of conflict, the Houthi rebels have recently gotten into the drone game too, with striking consequences. Here's a look at the data
https://www.gzeromedia.com/graphic-truth-droning-on-the-yemen-case
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SAUDI ARABIA SAYS 'WE DON'T KNOW' WHO ATTACKED OIL SITES AFTER U.S. ACCUSES IRAN
Saudi Arabia said it still has not identified the perpetrator of an attack on its oil sites, despite it being claimed by a Yemeni rebel group and blamed on Iran by the United States.
Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman told a press conference Tuesday that "we do not know at this moment who caused the attacks on Aramco," the kingdom's state-run oil company tasked with running the Abqaiq oil-processing site and nearby Khurais oil field targeted in attacks Saturday. The royal vowed to identify the culprits, however, and hold them responsible.
Since then, various outlets have cited unnamed U.S. officials suggesting Iran was behind a combined cruise missile and drone strike on the facilities, though no evidence has been presented beyond satellite imagery of the attack sites. In the latest development, CBS News cited a U.S. official Tuesday pinpointing the supposed exact launch site as being in the south of Iran, despite Tehran's repeated denials.
Riyadh itself has so far held off on stating an official opinion, though the Saudi-led coalition battling the Houthis suggested the attack appeared to have utilized Iranian weapons and to have originated from outside of Yemen,
https://www.newsweek.com/saudi-dont-know-us-blame-iran-1459806?piano_t=1
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Saudi oil attacks came from southwest Iran, U.S. official says, raising tensions
The United States believes the attacks that crippled Saudi Arabian oil facilities last weekend originated in southwestern Iran, a U.S. official told Reuters, an assessment that further increases tension in the Middle East.
Three officials, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said the attacks involved cruise missiles and drones, indicating that they involved a higher degree of complexity and sophistication than initially thought.
The officials did not provide evidence or explain what U.S. intelligence they were using for the evaluations. Such intelligence, if shared publicly, could further pressure Washington, Riyadh and others to respond, perhaps militarily.
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Trump says it looks like Iran was behind Saudi oil field attack
President Donald Trump told reporters Monday that "it's looking like" Iran was behind this weekend's attack on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia but suggested it was too early to say for sure. He also said he was "not looking to get into new conflict, but sometimes you have to."
"Well, it's looking that way," Trump said in the Oval Office when asked if Iran was responsible. "We'll let you know definitively. ... That's being checked out right now."
Trump also insisted that he does not want war with Iran, but he noted the US has the best weapons systems, namely fighter jets and missiles.
"The United States is more prepared" for a conflict than any country in history, he said. "With all that being said, we'd certainly like to avoid it."
Trump indicated that the Saudis may have to pay if the US launches military action.
"The Saudis are going to have a lot of involvement in this if we decide to do something. They'll be very much involved, and that includes payment," he said.
The President also left the door open for diplomacy with Iran, saying that path has not yet been exhausted.
"No, it's never exhausted. ... You never know what's going to happen. ... I know they want to make a deal. ... At some point it will work out," he said.
Asked if he has promised the Saudis he will protect them, Trump said: "No, I haven't promised the Saudis that."
"We have to sit down with the Saudis and work something out," he added.
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/09/16/politics/trump-saudi-oil-facility-attack-iran/index.html
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U.S., Saudi Military Forces Failed to Detect Attack on Oil Facilities
Drones and missiles—which officials increasingly believe were launched from Iran—appeared to have flown low to the ground so that they weren’t detected by radar or defense systems (paywalled)
Comment: #SaudiArabia ashamed to admit that the Ansar Allah (Houthis) are they launched the oil attack by drones, because it would reveal the extent of its weakness despite having a military arsenal and modern defense means.
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/2492356014150747
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Arabic press review: Why can't Saudi Arabia stop Houthi strikes?
Saudi Arabia is unable to counter attacks on its cities due to a string of failures in its defence strategies and assets, says a report published by the Arabian Gulf newspaper Al-Khaleej Online.
Despite its involvement in a four-and-half-year war in Yemen, Saudi leaders have dismissed and ignored the threat of Houthi-fired missiles, nor have they held held any emergency meetings, according to the Arabian Gulf-oriented newspaper.
The news outlet said on Tuesday that Riyadh's official response to the recurring strikes from Yemen's Houthi militia have been statements of condemnation and the use of its air force to target military and civilian targets in Yemen to blow off steam.
"Airports and sites, which are targeted often by Houthi drones, were not suspended nor completely stopped. [Saudi Arabia] also ignored the economic crisis resulting from attacks on its oil installations, until the recent targeting of Aramco shook the kingdom," the report said.
The report quotes political commentator Essam al-Zayat as saying that Saudi Arabia's inability to intercept Houthi attacks lies in the US air defence systems it deploys, including the Patriot, which can intercept an intercontinental missile, but stand useless in the face of nearby-launched ones.
Al-Zayat told Al-Khaleej Online that the Houthis use drones because they're difficult to spot, even at close range. In addition, radars cannot detect these drones because they are designed to detect large and fast aircraft, he explained.
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/arabic-press-review-saudi-defence-attacks
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Costly Saudi defenses prove no match for drones, cruise missiles
Billions of dollars spent by Saudi Arabia on cutting edge Western military hardware mainly designed to deter high altitude attacks has proved no match for low-cost drones and cruise missiles used in a strike that crippled its giant oil industry.
Saturday’s assault on Saudi oil facilities that halved production has exposed how ill-prepared the Gulf state is to defend itself despite repeated attacks on vital assets during its four-and-a-half year foray into the war in neighboring Yemen.
A Gulf source familiar with Aramco operations said the security system in place at Abqaiq is imperfect against drones. Authorities are investigating whether radar picked up the drones which struck in pre-dawn darkness, the source added.
An executive at a Western defense firm dealing with Saudi Arabia said that as of a year ago there were Patriots protecting Abqaiq.
Asked why Saudi defenses did not intercept Saturday’s attack, coalition spokesman Col. Turki al-Malki told reporters: “More than 230 ballistic missiles were intercepted by coalition forces...we have the operational capacity to counter all the threats and protect the national security of Saudi Arabia.”
It is unclear if U.S.-built short-range Avengers and medium-range I-Hawks and Swiss short-range Orelikons which the kingdom owns are currently operational.
The Saudi security source and two industry sources said Riyadh has been aware of the drone threat for several years and has been in discussions with consultants and vendors for possible solutions but has not installed anything new.
The security source said authorities moved a Patriot battery to the Shaybah oilfield after it was hit last month. There are Patriots at Aramco’s Ras Tanura refinery.
“Most conventional air defense radar is designed for high- altitude threats like missiles,” said Dave DesRoches at the National Defense University in Washington.
“Cruise missiles and drones operate close to the earth, so they aren’t seen because of the earth’s curvature. Drones are too small and don’t have heat signature for most radar.”
Intercepting drones possibly worth several hundred dollars with Patriots is also extremely expensive, with each missile costing around $3 million.
Jorg Lamprecht, CEO and co-founder of U.S. airspace security firm Dedrone, said there are more effective ways of dealing with drones, especially in swarms.
A combination of radio frequency detectors and radar detect them, high-powered cameras verify payloads and technologies like jamming demobilize them, he said.
But the latest technology presents its own challenges: frequency jamming could disrupt industrial activities and have negative health effects on people.
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Red Sea redlines and Yemen’s inflection point
These game-changing attacks not only mark a dramatic escalation of the conflict but also showcase the efficacy of an asymmetric warfare. With most hydrocarbon assets in the Gulf region currently defenceless against such attacks, this vulnerability is a foretaste of any future conflict in this tension-prone region.
The second development has been the growing rift within the Saudi-led coalition
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French President Macron calls Saudi crown prince on Aramco attacks: press
The French president stressed that it is necessary for the world not to show weakness toward these attacks. Macron also expressed his country’s readiness to participate with international experts investigating the source of the attacks
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Saudi Arabia to restore oil output fully by end of September: energy minister
Saudi Arabia will restore its lost oil production by the end of September and has managed to recover supplies to customers to the levels they were at prior to weekend attacks on its facilities by drawing from its huge oil inventories.
Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Tuesday that average oil production in September and October would be 9.89 million barrels per day and that the world’s top oil exporter would ensure full oil supply commitments to its customers this month.
“Over the past two days we have contained the damage and restored more than half of the production that was down as a result of the terrorist attack,” Prince Abdulaziz told a news conference in the Red Sea city of Jeddah.
He said the kingdom would achieve 11 million bpd capacity by end of September and 12 million bpd by end of November.
and
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Oil plummets 6% as Saudi minister says supplies fully restored
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Yemen Houthi drones, missiles defy years of Saudi air strikes
At a weapons exhibition in July in Yemen’s Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa, military officials whipped silken sheets off what they said were newly-developed drones and missiles.
The theatrical gesture revealed the proud slogan “Made in Yemen” spray-painted onto the weapons’ bodywork.
The moment was a celebration of sorts for Yemen’s Houthi fighters. Despite years of air strikes against them, the militia now boast drones and missiles able to reach deep into Saudi Arabia, the result of an armament campaign pursued and expanded energetically since Yemen’s war began four years ago.
Whether or not the Iran-aligned group carried out Saturday’s crippling raid on a Saudi oil plant — as it asserts — its capabilities mean it can feasibly claim responsibility for the strike, a humiliating blow against its top adversary.
Much remains unclear about the attack: Some Western officials believe responsibility lies with Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, or Iran itself.
What is certain is that Houthi weapon capabilities have evolved rapidly in the past couple of years in accuracy and distance, analysts, U.N. data and Houthi media indicate.
Their growing abilities also exemplify the threat Iran’s other regional allies - be they in Iraq, Syria or Lebanon - pose to their foes and the global powers that seek to contain them.
ACCURACY
“They are getting better on accuracy,” a Saudi-based security source said. “The message they’re sending is: We are getting through and we are hitting the right locations.”
“As these technologies - long range drones or cruise missiles - spread, it really adds to the distance of warfare. It also adds to the deniability of the perpetrator,” said James Rogers, assistant professor in War Studies at University of Southern Denmark.
The Houthis’ growing military clout has checked Saudi ambitions in Yemen.
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Saudi oil strikes: Will Gulf 'powder-keg' detonate?
As questions swirl over the Saudi oil attacks, all eyes are on the Middle East to see if tensions finally boil over.
Many questions remain unanswered about the predawn attacks on Saudi Arabian oil facilities that sent crude prices skyrocketing, but perhaps the most pressing is whether the trigger will be pulled on a military response.
The rapid developments have revived fears of fighting between Iranian and American forces in the Gulf - and perhaps an even larger conflagration.
Whodunnit?
For Justin Bronk, the author of a report on drone use by the Houthis and others in the Middle East for the Royal United Services Institute, a UK military think-tank, the size of some of the blast holes on supplied photos of the smouldering plants may suggest cruise missile attacks, which would indicate Iranian involvement.
He hypothesised about a joint Houthi-Iran combined drone and missile assault launched from Yemen.
Other military analysts have speculated about launch sites by Iran-linked militias in Iraq.
Eckart Woertz, an expert on Gulf security and energy markets at the Barcelona Centre for International Affairs, a think-tank, said the attacks appeared to deviate from Iran's playbook.
"This was not just a proxy group bombing a pipeline that could be quickly repaired, this was a very central piece of Saudi infrastructure," Woertz told Al Jazeera.
"Until now, the Iranians had played their escalation adroitly. But this was such an extraordinary escalation that Trump would have little choice but to retaliate. What is Iran's calculation here, and do they have a Plan B?"
Bronk, however, pointed to Trump's stated unwillingness to go to war, his recent decision to sack his hawkish, anti-Iran national security adviser, John Bolton, and the president's bid to win re-election in 2020 from voters who are still weary from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"The Iranian calculation is that the West doesn't want to go to war in Iran. That Europe and the US are divided on Iran, that Trump is conflict-averse, and the Iranians need to keep the issue on the boil," Bronk told Al Jazeera.
"Continuing to ratchet up the pressure is in Iran's interests as long as it doesn't lead to war, especially if the attack is de facto tied to Iran but cannot or will not be specifically attributed to the Islamic Republic."
For Jim Krane, author of Energy Kingdoms and a research analyst on the Gulf at Rice University, the attacks should serve as a wake-up call for world powers to broker an end to Yemen's civil war.
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International Outrage over Two Bombed Oil Facilities, Media Silence over Saudi-Led Genocide in Yemen
Elsewhere in the Western-political sphere there has been extensive media coverage on what the knock-on effect of the attacks will be on the international oil market, with Riyadh being the world’s number one petroleum exporter, and one of the bombed facilities, Abqaiq, being the world’s largest oil refinery; media coverage which is in stark contrast to that of the West’s coverage of the humanitarian crisis in Yemen as a result of the now four-year long US-Anglo backed Saudi air campaign.
Despite this being regarded by the UN as the world’s most foremost humanitarian crisis, one which has already seen the estimated deaths of 85,000 children through starvation, the situation in Yemen has so far gained the bare minimum of media coverage in the West.
Key to this media whitewashing are several military, financial and geopolitical reasons pertaining to Saudi Arabia’s role in the region and its relationship with Western powers.
Therefore, in the eyes of the Western corporate media, the bombing of two oil refineries in Saudi Arabia, which led to no civilian casualties, is a far more pressing issue than a modern-day Saudi-led genocide in Yemen – by Gavin O’Reilly
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Trump Awaits Orders From Saudis; and Why the Houthis Could Have Done It
We all kept saying it is dangerous to have an erratic person like Trump in the White House in case there was a major global crisis. This might be it, folks.
Trump’s bizarre infatuation with strongmen and dictators was on full display in his response to Saturday’s drone attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities. As our foremost Gulf expert, Kristian Ulrichsen, noted „The way you phrase it sounds like you are waiting for the Saudis to tell you what to do.“
Trump actually said that he was waiting on the Saudis to determine the guilty party and to tell him what to do!
We all kept saying it is dangerous to have an erratic person like Trump in the White House in case there was a major global crisis. This might be it, folks.
The responsibility for the ten drone strikes on the Abqaiq and Khurais facilities is in dispute, with the Israelis and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo fingering Shiite militias in Iraq, whereas the Houthi rebels of north Yemen claimed they sent the drones.
One of the arguments for the Iraqi or Iranian provenance of the drones is that the Houthis were not known to have this capability before now. This allegation is not true. As I discussed in May, the Houthis used drones to hit Aramco pumping stations in al-Duwadimi (853 miles from Sana’a) and Afif (764 miles from Sana’a). The Houthis only had to go another hundred miles or so to reach Abqaiq from their stronghold at Saada (about 1,000 miles).
In murder mysteries we look at means, motive and opportunity. The Houthis have the most motive of any of these actors, since the Saudis have dropped thousands of bombs on them for nearly four and a half years. Moreover, the Houthis have nothing to lose. They are already being hit as hard by the Saudis as they can be hit, and they have no resources that the Saudis can destroy.
For the same reason, Iran would have been foolish to plan or direct this attack, since its own oil facilities are vulnerable to a counter-attack. Neither Iran nor Iraq did this kind of damage to one another’s oil facilities in the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-88, operating under a constraint of mutual assured destruction.
Finally, I think we should be suspicious of Israeli and Neoconservative intelligence on this matter.
In the meantime, we Americans apparently must wait patiently for our marching orders from Riyadh. Or maybe, you know, the Saudis will bankrupt Trump by ceasing to rent all those rooms in the Trump Tower from him – by Juan Cole
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MP: U.S. ballyhoo against Iran is intended to dishearten Arabs
“This was a response to Saudi crimes in Yemen and the massacre of civilians and inattention to the requests of the Yemeni people,” Assadollah Gharekhani told ISNA in an interview published on Wednesday.
Gharekhani, who sits on the Majlis Energy Committee, said, “The United States is seeking to dishearten the Arab sheikhs and introduce Iran as a threat so that under the excuse of providing security for them to get more money from them.”
https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/440307/MP-U-S-ballyhoo-against-Iran-is-intended-to-dishearten-Arabs
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Senior MP Says S. Arabia Requests Iran for Gasoline Supplies
Saudi Arabia, the world's largest crude exporter, has filed a request to supply gasoline from Iran after a sudden cut of domestic supplies due to the recent Yemeni drone attacks on its major oil facilities, a senior member of the Iranian parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission said Tuesday.
"Saudi Arabia is facing problem because production of gasoline and oil products has sorely decreased in the country and therefore, it has extended its hand and informed Iran of its need to import gasoline from Iran," Abolfazl Hassanbeigi told Mehr News Agency's Persian website on Tuesday.
"Iran produces nearly 20mln liters of excess gasoline supplies which could be sold to Saudi Arabia," he added.
https://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13980626000653
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Houthis change rules of engagement with devastating attack on Saudi Arabia
Houthi spokesman Yahya Sarie’ said the operation was carried out after a “careful process of intelligence surveillance” of the sites. He did not elaborate about how and by whom this surveillance was carried out, nor did he comment on this apparent breakthrough in the Houthis’ intelligence capabilities.
Neither did he explain how, if the drones were launched from Yemeni territory, they managed to make the 1,000 km-plus journey without refuelling or being detected.
He did, however, make a point of praising “honourable and freedom-loving people” inside Saudi Arabia for their contribution to the operation. This sounded like a reference to the participation of members of Saudi Arabia’s persecuted Shia minority, who are concentrated in the Eastern Province in the attack, or at least in the intelligence/surveillance process that preceded it.
The drones seem unlikely to have been launched from within Saudi Arabia itself. It would have been very difficult to smuggle such large devices into the Kingdom or assemble them there. They were probably fired from a neighbouring country: Iraq is increasingly being identified as the most likely source (the drones that struck the east-west pipeline were also widely reported to have come from there).
There has also been speculation they may have been clandestinely launched from Bahrain, or from a ship sailing off the Saudi Gulf coast.
But the precise source of the missiles is immaterial. Since the start of the Saudi-led war on Yemen, the Houthis have become increasingly closely aligned with the regional “Resistance Axis” comprising Iran and Syria and their allies in Iraq, Lebanon and other Arab countries.
The Houthis have changed the rules of engagement. The message they delivered with the latest attacks is, in their own words, that they will continue striking targets deep inside Saudi Arabia until the country’s leadership realises that “killing more Yemenis will not force them to their knees.”
In the meantime, a question is worth asking: Who is going to buy a stake in Saudi Aramco now? The Saudi government is desperate to offer shares in the giant corporation for sale. But even if they ever go on the market, how much will they fetch? Is it as coincidence that the attacks were launched just as Riyadh was stepping up efforts to proceed with a share offering?
Those unsophisticated mountain-dwelling Yemenis are clearly not as stupid as their enemies think.
(* B K P)
Could this missile wreckage prove Iran was behind oil plant attack? Rocket COULD NOT have been launched from Yemen, experts claim, as Saudi Arabia warns it will 'forcefully respond' to strike
Image has been circulating on Saudi social media which show the wreckage of a missile in the middle of the desert
Experts say the missile appears to be a Quds-1, which likely does not have the range to hit the oil facilities if fired from Yemen
Saudi has also blamed Iran, and says it is ready to 'forcefully respond' to attack
An image that shows the blown-up wreckage of a missile, allegedly in a desert in Saudi Arabia, is being studied by weapons experts after the kingdom's oil supplies were attacked at the weekend leading to suggestions it could be linked and could rule out Yemen as the launch site.
Analysts said it is not possible to identify where or when precisely the image was taken, but that it appears to be new and does not appear to be edited.
Fabian Hinz, of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, writes that the weapon shown is likely a short-range Quds-1 cruise missile, meaning it is unlikely to have been fired from Yemen and is far more likely to have come from Iraq or Iran.
The image - retrieved from Saudi social media and published by the New York Times - appears to tally with Washington and Saudi's account of the attack, analysts said, because it shows the wreckage of a missile rather than the type of drone the Houthis have used in past attacks.
Mr Hinz writes that the weapon shown in the image appears to be a Quds-1 - a Houthi cruise missile based on an Iranian design.
While the exact specifications of the Quds-1 are not known, Mr Hinz notes the type of engine it uses and its relatively small fuel capacity means that it is unlikely to be able to range the Abqiaiq and Khurais facilities - in northwest Saudi - from Yemen.
'If the pictures showing the Quds-1 wreckage in Saudi Arabia are indeed connected to the recent Abqaiq attack, it would seem more likely that the attack originated from a place closer to Eastern Saudi Arabia than Northern Yemen – potentially Iraq, Iran or perhaps even from ships,' he says.
However, he stresses that information around the attack is currently unclear and this is purely speculation (photo)
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US Intel Shared With Saudis Claims Strikes on Oil Facilities Launched From Iranian Soil – Report
US intelligence agencies have handed over a secret report to their Saudi counterparts which has implicated Iran directly for the weekend’s attacks on two major Saudi Aramco oil facilities, the Wall Street Journal has reported, citing unnamed sources said to be familiar with the situation.
According to the report, which has yet to be shared publicly, the strikes were staged from Iran, and involved some 20 drones and at least a dozen missiles.
A Saudi official speaking to WSJ said the report was not conclusive, adding that the US side hadn’t provided sufficient evidence that Tehran was ‘definitely’ behind the attacks.
On Monday, a coalition spokesman announced that Saudi authorities were still looking to figure out “from where” the projectiles used in the strikes were fired, saying the drones used were not launched from Yemen, as claimed by the Houthis.
(* B K P)
The drone attack on the Saudi refinery is no game-changer. But is there a new ‘axis of evil’ in the Middle East?
The Saudi-led destruction of Yemen - and the inevitable Houthi response - is part and parcel of the usual geopolitical games. Israel re-shaping the West Bank under the radar is where the rules are changing
Even if we condemn the Houthi’s alleged act, should we really be surprised to see them, cornered and in a desperate situation, striking back in whatever way they could? Far from changing the game, could the attack have been its logical culmination? They might have finally found the way to grab Saudi Arabia where it really hurts.
The media attention grabbed by the “game-changing” attack also conveniently distracted us from other truly game-changing projects like the Israeli plan to annex large, fertile chunks of the West Bank.
In all these cases, from Yemen to China, one should thus learn to distinguish between the conflicts which are part of the game and the true game-changers.
(* B K P)
Iran Falsely Blamed for Yemeni Houthis’ Retaliation Against Saudi Aggression
Establishment media march in lockstep, featuring state-approved propaganda over truth-telling on major issues.
Despite no evidence suggesting Iranian involvement in striking Saudi oil facilities on Saturday, likely causing significant damage, establishment media headlines read like Trump regime/Pentagon press releases:
China's Foreign Ministry called false US accusations against Iran "irresponsible," adding: "China's position is that we oppose any moves that expand or intensify conflict."
Russia's Foreign Ministry sent mixed messages. It "resolutely condemn(ed)" Saturday's attack that disrupted world energy markets with potentially negative consequences for the global economy.
While noting that striking Saudi oil facilities is a "direct consequence of the continuing crisis in Yemen," the Ministry failed to explain that Yemeni Houthis responded to Saudi aggression in self-defense, their legal right under the UN Charter and other international law– by Stephen Lendman
http://www.pravdareport.com/opinion/142750-iran_falsely_blamed/
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Fuel blitzkrieg
The Houthis have promptly claimed responsibility without keeping the world guessing on so furious an offensive.
The outlook is grim if the threat advanced by the rebels is any indication. Their operations “will expand and would be more painful as long as the Saudi regime continues its aggression and blockade” on Yemen. Ergo, the Saudi war against Yemen has acquired a new dimension.
Saudi Arabia’s oil fields and pipeline have been the target of rebel attacks over the past year, and often with the use of single drones. With the use of multiple drones, Saturday’s blitz was the biggest and most successful to date. Almost inevitably, the offensive has stoked tensions in the Gulf.
The risk of tit-for-tat regional escalation is dangerously real.
https://www.thestatesman.com/opinion/fuel-blitzkrieg-1502801083.html
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Reuters scraping the barrel implicating Iran in Yemeni drone attacks
It appears the western MSM have found a new pretext to further their pro-war line on Iran, this time using a Yemeni drone attack into key Saudi oil installations to bolster the case for confrontation with Iran.
Change of tack
The Yemeni movement has admitted to launching similar drone and rocket attacks against Riyadh and its allies, some of which have targeted oil pumping stations.
These attacks have so far been widely under-reported by the Saudi-led coalition and the western MSM, perhaps as part of a strategy to save their face and reduce the psychological effect of the attacks.
Notably, several MSM outlets reported as unchallenged facts the UAE denial of the Houthi attacks against Abu Dhabi airport last year.
The same outlets preferred to ignore videos published by Houthis late May documenting the airport attack.
However, the coalition and its western backers have been blaming some of the attacks on Iran in recent months, as Yemeni strikes against Saudi facilities became more frequent and lethal.
And the latest attack on Saudi oil facilities is no exception, despite all the evidence suggesting it was a Yemeni job.
Was it really Iran?
The UN investigators have reported some Houthi drones are likely to have a range of up to 930 miles.
Technically speaking, that puts most of Saudi Arabia in their range, including the Abqaiq plant, which is located some 500 miles from Yemeni soil and has been targeted by Houthis several times in the past.
Yemeni people have every reason to retaliate against Saudi Arabia, as the Saudi-led coalition has been waging a devastating aerial bombing operation in Yemen for over four years as part of a “democracy-promotion” campaign.
The western world has kept mum on the plight of the Yemeni people, and the western media outlets have done their best to veil the truth in Yemen.
Iran has vehemently rejected the accusations, while Iraq has denied media reports claiming its soil was used to launch the drones.
Strikes or Yemeni Strikes?
Yet, U.S. State Secretary Michael Pompeo, who is famous for his hawkish stance on Iran, pointed the finger squarely at Tehran, and for the first time.
The Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom tweeted on Sunday that the incident will have a number of positives for President Donald Trump, as “Saudi will have to increase security supplied by the U.S.” and the “oil prices will rise and the U.S. is now a large exporter of oil”.
According to Dotcom, blaming Iran will allow the U.S. to then “go to war, take control of Iran’s oil which pays for the war.”
Linguistic gymnastics
But on Sunday Reuters scraped the very bottom of the barrel trying to implicate Iran in the case, resorting to linguistic gymnastics to portray the country as the main culprit.
The title of a major Reuters piece reads, “Iran dismisses U.S. claim it was behind Saudi oil attacks, says ready for war”.
The agency has mixed two separate accounts by Iranian officials and commanders to show Iran is, as the official US narrative says, a “rogue state” bent on world domination that must be stopped.
Dozens of references to Iran as well as several references to possible threats against “global energy supplies” could be found in the article, pushing the reader to believe Iran has certainly had something to do with the attacks that endanger global prosperity.
Reuters also describes Houthi forces as “Iran-backed” or “Iran-aligned”. Can’t one argue the Saudi forces are also “U.S.-backed”, considering the vast U.S. support offered to the kingdom’s expensive war machine?
The agency also frames the Yemen conflict as “a proxy war between rivals Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia and Shi’ite Iran”. It is unclear to me how Reuters has reached the conclusion this is a proxy war, considering the quite long history of fights between Yemenis and Saudis. It is also unclear how the agency verdicts the conflict has religious dimensions.
And last but not least, Reuters claims Houthis are “thwarting UN peace efforts” by stepping up missile and drone attacks on Saudi cities. There is no basis for this insinuation, since Yemenis have been calling for a ceasefire since the Saudi intervention started. Framing the problem this way hides the Saudi government’s responsibility for one of the worst kinds of humanitarian catastrophes in recent times.
Selling the Iran war
Other MSM outlets took similar approach to the case, regurgitating the same anti-Iran voices used to try to justify an attack on the country. This is while no Western or Saudi practice is severely condemned in a comparable way.
Years ago, Noam Chomsky explained that American news coverage operates on the premise that the U.S. “owns the world”.
The MSM treatment of the Saudi oil attacks was yet another manifestation of this claim.
The western governments have long wished to absorb independent countries like Iran, and the MSM have been for years busy selling the Iran war to the public opinion, just like previous western wars in Iraq and Libya.
https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/440224/Reuters-scraping-the-barrel-implicating-Iran-in-Yemeni-drone
My comment: From Iran. When they are right, they just are.
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Statement from the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs
In an unprecedented act of aggression and sabotage, petroleum facilities in the Kingdom that are vital for global energy supplies were subjected to an attack on Saturday, September 14, 2019, which resulted in the suspension of approximately 50% of Saudi Aramco's production, as noted by the Ministry of Energy's statement.
Initial investigations have indicated that the weapons used in the attack were Iranian weapons. Investigations are still ongoing to determine the source of the attack.
The Kingdom condemns this egregious crime, which threatens international peace and security, and affirms that the primary target of this attack are global energy supplies, as this attack is in line with the previous attacks against Saudi Aramco pumping stations using Iranian weapons.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia expresses its appreciation for the positions taken by the international community that have condemned and denounced this act. The Kingdom calls upon the international community to assume its responsibility in condemning those that stand behind this act, and to take a firm and clear position against this reckless behavior that threatens the global economy.
As the investigations are ongoing, the Kingdom will invite UN and international experts to view the situation on the ground and to participate in the investigations. The Kingdom will take the appropriate measures based on the results of the investigation, to ensure its security and stability. The Kingdom affirms that it has the capability and resolve to defend its land and people, and to forcefully respond to these aggressions.
(* A K P)
Anwar Gargash: Saudi Aramco attacks a 'dangerous escalation'
UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs calls Iranian comments 'unacceptable'
The UAE's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Anwar Gargash hit back at Iranian claims that Yemen's Houthi rebels were acting in self-defence, after strikes on Saudi Arabia's oil facilities.
"The justification for the unprecedented terrorist attack on Aramco's facilities in view of the developments in the Yemen war is completely unacceptable," Dr Gargash said on Tuesday morning.
The minister also urged the international community to stand behind the kingdom.
"The attack on Saudi Arabia is a dangerous escalation in itself, and the right position of every Arab country and every responsible state in the international community must be with Saudi Arabia and with the stability and security of the region," he wrote.
Shortly after the attack, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation denounced the attack as a "terrorist and subversive act", calling it new evidence of terrorist groups looking to undermine security and stability in the region.
"The security of the UAE and Saudi Arabia is inseparable. Any threat to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is seen as a threat to the stability and security of the UAE," the ministry said.
My comment: It’s war, no „terrorist attack“. Evidently it’s retaliatory, if you would not forget that there had been more than 20,000 Saudi coalition air raids against Yemen.
(A K P)
[India] Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on drone attacks in Saudi Arabia: We condemn the attacks of September 14, 2019 targeting Abqaiq oil processing facility and Khurais oil field in Saudi Arabia. We reiterate our resolve to oppose terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1173609105656692737
My comment: It’s war, not “terrorism”.
(A K P)
Saudi Press : The world rejects the crimes of oil terrorism
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970125
Singapore Condemns Attacks on Aramco Facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970364
Austria Condemns Attacks against Oil Facilities in Saudi Arabia
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970363
Japan Condemns Sabotage Attack on Saudi Aramco Plants
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970354
Russia Denounces Sabotage Attack on Oil Facilities in the Kingdom
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970334
Morocco strongly condemns the terrorist attack on two Aramco plants
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970200
Nigeria condemns the terrorist attack on two Aramco plants in KSA
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970161
Muslim World League: Islamic organizations affirm their support for Kingdom against terrorist attack on Aramco facilities
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1970031
Portugal Condemns Terrorist Attacks on Two Aramco Facilities
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1969942
Eritrea Condemns Terrorist Attacks on Two Aramco Facilities
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1969927
Comment by Ali AlAhmed: One of the examples of anti-Arab bigotry is the rush today by some to “condemn” #Yemen attack on #Abqaiq oil plant in response to 4 years of bombing, but the silence on Saudi killing 130,000 Arab children
Go ahead & list all those who condemned #Yemeni attack #Abqaiq& see if they have condemned a single #Saudi atrocity
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/1172887764548956160
(A K P)
Hook told staffers that the Saudis view this attack as “their 9/11,” two sources said.
One source said Hook noted the attack hasn’t changed Trump's openness re engagement with the Iranians & also rejected the notion that the attack could be the work of an IRGC rogue element.
https://twitter.com/ZcohenCNN/status/1173730775918886915
A ridiculous and offensive thing to say about an attack in which there have been no reported casualties.
https://twitter.com/mattduss/status/1173744297994346497
(A K pH)
Will Saudi Arabia Stand 3rd Operation of Balanced Deterrence?
With this weak and confused response by the Saudis, it is a fair question to ask; will the Saudi regime stand another operation of Balanced Deterrence. The Yemeni side has promised of more painful strikes and regardless on the play taking place in the media, accusing Iran, Iraq and other countries of these operations, they Yemeni Army will hit again if the aggression and siege against its people is not over.
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=8819
(A K pH)
Yahya Sare’e: Drones used in Aramco attack are brand new models
Yemeni army spokesman warns for future retaliation strikes
The second strike of “Deterrent Balance”, on Saudi Aramco facilities at Abqaiq and Khurais plants has been carried out by a number of drones that have a normal and jet engines,” the spokesman of the Yemeni army spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Sare’e said on Twitter on Monday.
https://www.uprising.today/yahya-saree-drones-used-in-aramco-attack-are-brand-new-models/
(* A B K pH)
Strike on Aramco oil facility marks turning point in Saudi war against Yemen
Consequences are felt worldwide as proof of Saudi failure
The military equations between Yemen and the coalition countries will undergo a radical transformation, as a result of the strike on the Saudi Gulf field, which produced five million barrels per day equivalent to 5 percent of the world’s oil production.
Yemen has been sending several warnings to the international community to take precautions against the attacks that could have been controlled, such as the attack on the Shaybah field and refinery on August 17, and the attack on oil conversion stations in Dodami and Afif in May.
Before launching strikes that would shake the world economy, in a political move that prevented the Saudi regime from exploiting any global discontent as a result of high oil prices and directing that discontent against Yemen.
According to a number of observers, Riyadh has become a huge backlog of failures in its war on Yemen, after the US air defense systems failed to protect the kingdom from escalated Yemeni attacks.
(A K pH)
Film by Hassan Al-Haifi: Yemen Update and Developments by Hassan Al-Haifi 16 9 2019
The perspective of the Yemeni people on the successful long awaited airraid attacks by 10 sophisticated drones on ARAMCO Oil Complexes at Baquiq and Khasif in Northeast Saudi Arabia. By all legal and humanitarian considerations the attacks are 100% legitimate and justified
https://www.facebook.com/hassan.alhaifi/videos/2482658805114406/
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Initial Operational Evidences and Indications of the Terrorist Targeting of Oil Facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais Confirm that the Weapons Used are Iranian, Reports Spokesman for Coalition Forces
Spokesman of Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen Colonel Turki Al-Malki, confirmed that all operational evidences and indication as well as the weapons used in the large terrorist attacks that targeted the global energy supplies and global economic security at the oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais, confirm that the weapons used in the attacks are Iranian weapons, indicating that his department is working to complete these investigations, with all the results to be announced later.
Colonel Al-Maliki said during the regular press conference of the Joint Coalition Forces Command in Riyadh today that "the terrorist attack was not launched from Yemeni territory as the Houthi militias claimed, whereas these militias are mere tools to implement the agenda of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and its terrorist regime."
The spokesman for the coalition forces said that the Iranian-backed terrorist Houthi militias are still trying to use qualitative weapons, be them ballistic missiles or drones as was witnessed in the recent attacks.
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1969975
My comment: Saudi claims. The last sentence quoted here contradicts to what Maliki had claimed before.
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Saudi Arabia to invite U.N. experts to investigate oil attack: statement
Saudi Arabia will invite international experts including from the United Nations to participate in investigating an attack on its oil facilities and called on the world to condemn those behind it, its foreign ministry said on Monday.
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‘Smart’ Yemenis used their ‘right to self-defense’: MP
Yemeni forces’ attack on Saudi oil facilities was a response to the coalition’s war crimes and illegal measures against Yemen during the past years, said Iranian lawmaker Alaeddin Boroujerdi.
“Despite lack of facilities, Yemen has smart people. They adopted a clever retaliatory measure in recent days and used their right to self-defense,” Alaeddin Boroujerdi, a member of Parliament National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said on Wednesday.
https://en.mehrnews.com/news/150189/Smart-Yemenis-used-their-right-to-self-defense-MP
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Iran's Rouhani says Aramco attacks were a reciprocal response by Yemen
An attack on Saudi Arabia’s Aramco oil facilities was a reciprocal measure by “Yemeni people” to assaults on this country, said Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Monday, hours after a Saudi-led coalition said the attacks were carried out with Iranian weapons.
“Yemeni people are exercising their legitimate right of defense ... the attacks were a reciprocal response to aggression against Yemen for years,”
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Saudi-style drone attacks not seen as major U.S. risk, experts say
The style of attack used against oil plants in Saudi Arabia that knocked out half of the country’s production on Saturday is unlikely to be a risk in the United States, energy and security experts say.
“The U.S. oil industry has a lot of redundancy,” said Amy Myers Jaffe, senior fellow for energy at the Council on Foreign Relations.
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Wall Street indexes fall while energy sector soars
Energy stocks spiked while Wall Street’s three major indexes lost ground on Monday after weekend attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities added to investors’ concerns about geopolitical risk and a slowing global economy.
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Oil falls but prices still elevated after attacks on Saudi facilities
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Oil jumps nearly 15% in record trading after attack on Saudi facilities
Oil ended nearly 15% higher on Monday, with Brent logging its biggest jump in over 30 years and a record trading volumes, after an attack on Saudi Arabian crude facilities cut the kingdom’s production in half and intensified concerns of retaliation in the Middle East.
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U.S. crude export demand surges after attack on Saudi facilities
U.S. crude export demand at the Gulf Coast surged on Monday, traders said
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Saudi Oilfield Attack: By Yemen, Iraq, Or Iran? Israel?
Despite growing pressure from hawks to attack Iran, huge questions go unanswered.
From the North (Iraq or Iran) or the South (Yemen)?
Saudi, U.S. officials are investigating possibility that cruise missiles fired from Iraq or Iran hit the Saudi petroleum facilities.
What about Israel or Lebanon?
Cruise Missiles or Drones?
As the rush to judgement unfolds, a huge number of questions go unanswered.
No one knows yet if the attack came from the North or the South or whether it was by drone or by cruise missile.
Suspicions Rise That Saudi Oil Attack Came From Outside Yemen
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Evidence points to Iran involvement in attack, says Saudi alliance, as oil prices soar
My comment: Overview article, as normally, Western biased.
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Saudi Aramco attacks: What we know so far
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Attacks On Major Saudi Oil Installations Show Urgent Need For Peace With Yemen
[Overview]
Vorige / Previous:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-575-yemen-war-mosaic-575
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-575a-yemen-war-mosaic-575a
Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-575 / Yemen War Mosaic 1-575:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose oder / or http://poorworld.net/YemenWar.htm
Der saudische Luftkrieg im Bild / Saudi aerial war images:
(18 +, Nichts für Sensible!) / (18 +; Graphic!)
http://poorworld.net/YemenWar.htm
http://yemenwarcrimes.blogspot.de/
Liste aller Luftangriffe / and list of all air raids:
http://yemendataproject.org/data/
Untersuchung ausgewählter Luftangriffe durch Bellingcat / Bellingcat investigations of selected aur raids:
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