Saudi Arabia: East-West Pipeline Targeted, Temporarily Shut Down

A senior official at the Saudi Ministry of Energy announced that the East-West pipeline in the Riyadh and Medina regions was subjected to several attacks early Thursday, prompting authorities to shut it down precautionarily.

The official explained that emergency and specialized technical teams immediately began operations following the attacks, taking necessary measures to secure the pipeline and verify its integrity according to established safety protocols and emergency plans, in coordination with relevant parties, with any updates to be announced in due course.

He noted that the attacks resulted in some injuries, with affected individuals receiving appropriate medical care, though the nature or number of injuries was not specified.

One U.S. official told CNN that an initial analysis showed pumping stations adjacent to the pipeline itself had been bombed; satellite images taken Friday revealed significant damage from a fire at one pumping station, while another image captured Thursday showed a small fire emitting thick black smoke from a different pumping station.

It remains unclear who is behind the attacks or whether parts of the pipeline itself were damaged, but one official mentioned the pipeline was struck by drones launched from Iraq. Sources also indicated it is uncertain how long repairs will take.

This attack underscores growing threats to Saudi Arabia’s oil resources and its ability to export them amid the ongoing Iranian conflict. The pipeline strikes come days after Houthi forces seized a strategic coastal city on the Red Sea in Yemen, potentially increasing risks to regional energy shipping.

Oil prices surged sharply this week, surpassing the $100-per-barrel threshold amid strong volatility driven by events in the Middle East.

CNN sources reported that Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman met with U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance in Washington, D.C., late in July to convey Saudi Arabia’s assessment of the ongoing U.S.-Iran war; the assessment indicated Iran would seek to create leverage through escalation and attempt to exploit its remaining proxies—namely militias in Iraq and the Houthis—to achieve this goal.

Satellite imagery detected nine large fires burning near the Saudi East-West pipeline on Thursday, though at least six of these locations appeared consistent with gas flaring pits—facilities designed for burning off oil and gas during emergencies.

The pipeline has become a critical asset for Saudi Arabia since the outbreak of the U.S.-Iran war; the kingdom rerouted about 5 million barrels of oil daily—previously destined for tankers waiting in the Gulf—after Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, redirecting those volumes instead via the East-West pipeline to the Red Sea port of Yanbu.

With Houthi declarations of intent to target any Saudi vessels attempting to pass through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait exiting the Red Sea, this export route for Saudi oil may now also be at risk.

U.S. officials and experts said repairing the pumping stations might be less burdensome than addressing severe damage that could have occurred to the pipeline itself.

The strike targeting the pipeline network comes as Saudi Arabia informed OPEC last month that its crude oil production had plummeted to its lowest level since 1990.