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Drone attacks spark fires at Saudi Arabia’s largest oil facilities
- No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks in Buqyaq and the Khurais oilfield
- The Saudi Interior Ministry said an investigation was under way
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Drones attacked the world’s largest oil processing facility in Saudi Arabia and an oilfield operated by Saudi Aramco early on Saturday, the kingdom’s Interior Ministry said, sparking a huge fire at a processor crucial to global energy supplies.
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No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks in Buqyaq and the Khurais oilfield, though Yemen’s Houthi rebels previously launched drone assaults deep inside of the kingdom.
It was not 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 United States and Iran over its unravelling nuclear deal with world powers.
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Online videos apparently shot in Buqyaq included the sound of gunfire in the background and flames shooting out of the Abqaiq oil processing facility. Smoke rose over the skyline and glowing flames could be seen a distance away.
The fires began after the sites were “targeted by drones”, the Interior Ministry said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency. It said an investigation into the attack was underway.
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