Iraq probes Saudi pipeline attack as regional tensions escalate

The move came as Baghdad faced pressure to rein in Iran-backed militias and prevent attacks from Iraqi territory.

Baghdad: Iraq’s government was racing Saturday to contain the fallout after local Iran-backed militias were accused of attacking and shuttering a key Saudi pipeline. Iraq’s government confirmed the attacks had originated from its territory, pledged to investigate and dismissed a military commander.

The country is under mounting pressure to prevent local militias from aiding other Iran proxy groups across the region. It’s especially acute as the Iran-backed Houthi rebels make an advance across Yemen’s west coast in a major setback to the Saudi-backed coalition that risks escalating the war in the region.

The Iraqi government has set a September 30 deadline for non-state groups to disarm, but several of the most powerful militias have said they will not comply.

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The Houthis on Friday seized an island in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a key shipping lane through which around 12 per cent of global trade passes.

Their virtual control of the strait could send global oil prices — already inflated by the six-month Iran-US war — spiralling. The strait has become a vital commercial lane for Saudi oil ever since the Iran war disrupted shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iraq to investigate attack on Saudi pipeline

Iraqi authorities determined that attacks targeting the east-west Saudi pipeline were launched from a site in the country’s Maysan province on the borders with Iran, the government said in a statement early Saturday.

Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi ordered an investigation into the province’s operations command and dismissed its commander, the Saturday statement said.

Saudi Arabia shut down the major, cross-country oil pipeline on Friday, saying it was a “precautionary measure” after the pipeline came under drone attack.

In a statement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry blamed the attacks on several drones that came from Iraq, but said the kingdom would not retaliate, to give the Iraqi government “an opportunity to take the necessary measures.”

Built in the 1980s, the East-West pipeline has played an important role in Saudi Arabia’s ability to export oil following the disruption of the Strait of Hormuz during the Iran war. By early June, Saudi Arabia had more than doubled oil exports from the Red Sea port at the pipeline’s end to more than 5 million barrels per day, according to the International Energy Agency.

Tehran-backed Iraqi militias have carried out strikes on US-linked targets both inside and outside of Iraq since the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, and have coordinated with Yemen’s Houthi rebels to attack Saudi Arabia.

Iraq closes border crossings with Iran

In a move possibly linked to the investigation, Iraq closed two key border crossings with Iran, halting all passenger and commercial traffic until further notice, Iran’s state-run media reported Saturday.

Valiollah Hayati, the deputy governor of Iran’s southwestern Khuzestan province, said Iraqi officials had announced the closure of the Shalamcheh and Chazabeh crossings. They are among the main official border crossings between Iran and Iraq.

Hayati urged traders, drivers and travellers not to approach the crossings until further notice. He said additional information would be released by the relevant authorities.

Saudi Arabia and the United States bombed Iranian-backed militias in Iraq in July after blaming them for drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities that had been claimed by the Houthis. Regional officials told The Associated Press that the Houthis helped the Iraqi militias plan and execute the attacks.

The fighting threatens to reignite Yemen’s civil war

The escalating fighting threatens to end a fragile truce that had largely halted Yemen’s civil war since 2022. At stake are 40 million people in the Arab world’s poorest country. The conflict killed 150,000 and brought many others to the brink of famine.

The surge in fighting in the past week has sent over 46,000 people fleeing, the UN migration agency said Friday.

The Houthis have been at war with Yemen’s government since 2014, when the rebels seized much of northern and central Yemen and the capital, Sanaa. Saudi Arabia entered the war the following year on behalf of the government.