(Reuters) – The attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities on Saturday that has threatened global oil supplies came from a direction indicating that Iran was behind it, and cruise missiles may have been the weapon of choice, according to a senior U.S. official. The comments added heft to Washington’s accusation that Iran launched the attacks that knocked out more than 5% of global oil supply, instead of the Yemeni Houthi group that claimed it. Tehran rejected the accusation but said it was ready for war. The strike on the heartland of Saudi Arabia’s oil industry,
which included damage to the world’s biggest petroleum-processing facility, was expected to send oil prices up to $5 to $10 per barrel on Monday and inflame tensions across the Middle East. The U.S. official, who asked not to be named, said on Sunday there were 19 points of impact in the attack on Saudi facilities and that evidence showed the launch area was west-northwest of the targets – the direction of Iraq and Iran – not south from Yemen. The official added that Saudi officials indicated they had seen signs that cruise missiles were used in the attack, which is inconsistent with the Iran-aligned Houthi group’s claim that it conducted the attack with 10 drones. READ MORE
