oil facility
US condemns Houthi drone attack on UAE oil facility
Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com. The White House said it "strongly condemns" a deadly attack from Yemen's Houthi rebels on an Abu Dhabi oil facility on Monday that killed three people and sparked a fire at a nearby airport. "Our commitment to the security of the UAE is unwavering and we stand beside our Emirati partners against all threats to their territory," National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said in a statement Monday afternoon. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Houthi drone attacks expose UAE vulnerabilities, say analysts
A deadly drone attack by Yemen's Houthis on the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has exposed the country's vulnerability while jeopardising its reputation as a tourism and business hub and pushing it towards rapprochement with neighbouring Tehran, say analysts. The Iran-backed Houthi rebel group targeted a key oil facility in Abu Dhabi, killing three people. The suspected drone attack also caused a fire at Abu Dhabi's international airport, attracting condemnation and a pledge for retaliation from the UAE. Hailing the attack as "a successful military operation", the Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree warned they could target more facilities in the UAE, which has been part of the Saudi-led war on Yemen that has killed tens of thousands of people and pushed the country towards humanitarian catastrophe. On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia launched air raids in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, killing more than a dozen people.
Deadly drone strikes on UAE raise Gulf tensions and roil oil market
Iran-backed Yemeni fighters launched drone strikes on the United Arab Emirates that caused explosions and a deadly fire outside the capital, Abu Dhabi, ratcheting up security risks in the major oil-exporting region at a critical time. One of the biggest attacks to date on UAE soil ignited a fire at Abu Dhabi's main international airport on Monday and set fuel tanker trucks ablaze in a nearby industrial area. It took place days after Yemen's Houthi fighters warned Abu Dhabi against intensifying its air campaign against them. Crude extended gains to the highest level in seven years on Tuesday after the assaults in the UAE, OPEC's third biggest oil producer. Iran's longtime support of the Houthis means the incidents could roil regional diplomatic efforts to ease frictions and separate talks to restore Tehran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
Tulsi Gabbard says U.S. should re-enter Iran nuclear deal, end sanctions in response to Saudi Arabia drone attack
Democratic presidential hopeful Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, said Thursday that she would re-enter the Iran nuclear deal and end sanctions in response to Iran's involvement in drone attack against Saudi Arabia oil facilities if she was president. "What I would do is, I would re-enter the Iran nuclear deal to prevent Iran from continuing to move forward in building a nuclear weapon that puts us and the world further at risk," Gabbard said on "The Story with Martha MacCallum." Every day that we don't do this, every day we continue down this failed strategy Iran gets closer and closer to a nuclear weapon. U.S. officials told Fox News on Tuesday that Iranian cruise missiles and drones were both used in the attack on the two Saudi Arabian oil facilities, and that they were fired from inside southwest Iran this past weekend. Gabbard called the attack a "retaliation" against "extreme sanctions."
Precision attack on Saudi oil facility seen as part of dangerous new pattern
DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES โ 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 U.S. alleges in the case of Saturday's attack.
Saudi Arabia oil facility attack launched from Iranian soil, US officials say
President Trump says the U.S. is'locked and loaded' against the attackers of a key Saudi oil facility'depending on verification'; Mark Meredith reports. Cruise missiles and drones used in the weekend assault on Saudi Arabia's oil installations were launched from Iranian soil, U.S. officials told Fox News on Monday. The early morning strikes Saturday that hit Aramco's main crude processing facility knocked out 5.7 million barrels of daily oil production for Saudi Arabia -- or more than 5 percent of the world's daily crude production. Defense Secretary Mark Esper attended an emergency National Security Council meeting on Sunday at the White House along with Vice President Pence, where military options were discussed, officials told Fox News. Earlier Monday in Austria, Energy Secretary Rick Perry placed the blame for the attack squarely on Iran.
Trump: US 'locked and loaded' against attackers of Saudi oil facility 'depending on verification'
The attack, which knocked out more than half of the Saudi oil output, may force the U.S. to tap into its own oil reserves to keep the markets well supplied. President Trump on Sunday suggested U.S. investigators had "reason to believe" they knew who launched crippling attacks against a key Saudi oil facility, and vowed that America was "locked and loaded depending on verification." While he did not specify who he believed was responsible for Saturday's drone attacks, U.S. investigators previously have pointed the finger at Iran. "Saudi Arabia oil supply was attacked. There is reason to believe that we know the culprit, are locked and loaded depending on verification, but are waiting to hear from the Kingdom as to who they believe was the cause of this attack, and under what terms we would proceed!" the president tweeted. Earlier Sunday, Trump authorized the use of emergency oil reserves in Texas and other states after Saudi oil processing facilities were attacked, sparking fears of a spike in oil prices when markets reopen Monday.
Damage from Iran-linked drone attack on Saudi oil facility captured in satellite images
Hudson Institute senior fellow Michael Pregent says he believes without a doubt that Iran was involved in the attacks on Saudi oil facilities. Saudi oil sites attacked on Saturday -- in a drone assault linked to Iran -- were seen to have sustained damage after satellite images released Sunday captured char marks and smoke billowing from the world's largest oil processing facility. The weekend attack ignited huge fires at Saudi Aramco's Abqaiq oil processing facility and interrupted about 5.7 million barrels of crude oil production -- over 5 percent of the world's daily supply. U.S. satellite images appeared to show approximately 17 points of impact on key infrastructure at the site after the attack. While Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels have since claimed responsibility for the attack, the U.S. has accused Iran of launching the assault.
Drones strike major Saudi Aramco oil facilities; attacker unknown
DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES โ Drones attacked the world's largest oil processing facility in Saudi Arabia and a major oil field operated by Saudi Aramco early Saturday, the kingdom's Interior Ministry said, sparking a huge fire at a processor crucial to global energy supplies. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks in Buqyaq and the Khurais oil field, though Yemen's Houthi rebels previously launched drone assaults deep inside of the kingdom. It wasn't clear if there were any injuries in the attacks, nor what effect it would have on oil production in the kingdom. The attack also likely will heighten tensions further across the wider Persian Gulf amid a confrontation between the U.S. and Iran over its unraveling nuclear deal with world powers. Online videos apparently shot in Buqyaq included the sound of gunfire in the background.
Texas bill could mean jail time for flying a drone over oil facilities
The ebb and flow of legal rules when it comes to flying a drone, whether it's a cheap mainstream model or something a little more intense, is confusing. It also differs depending on country, and even state. When it comes to Texas, both the House and the Senate are pushing a bill that could attach jail sentences to any pilot found guilty of flying something over oil and gas drilling facilities, as well as telecomms infrastructure and concentrated animal feeding operations -- factory farms. Politicians want these structures added to a "critical infrastructure" list, where flying a drone lower than 400 feet aboveit would be a Class B misdemeanor and could even mean up to 180 days in jail. The facilities would join a list that includes power plants, dams and other refineries, but critics say the additions would affect the public's First Amendment rights.