Fresh Attack Report in Strait of Hormuz Raises Concerns Over Oil Supplies

By Mohammed Ghobari, Eman Abouhassira and Yasmine Ghania

ADEN/DUBAI, Sept. 13 (Reuters) – Maritime tracking services received new reports Sunday of an attack on a vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, intensifying concerns about threats to energy supplies following Saudi Arabia’s temporary shutdown of a crucial oil pipeline.

The British navy-affiliated UKMTO said it had received a report that a projectile had struck a ship transiting the strait. The extent of the damage and the crew’s condition were unknown early Sunday, the agency said.

The report came a day after Saudi Arabia temporarily closed its East-West pipeline as a precaution following a drone attack that both Iraq and Saudi Arabia said had originated in Iraq, where Iranian-backed militias operate.

Attacks across the widening Middle East conflict could push energy prices even higher after Brent crude climbed back above $100 a barrel this week.

The 1,200-kilometre (745-mile) pipeline, which runs across the Arabian Peninsula, has served as the primary export route for Middle Eastern oil for the past six months while war has largely closed the Strait of Hormuz.

It has been carrying 4 million to 5 million barrels a day, equal to 4% to 5% of global supply, sparing Saudi Arabia the full impact of disruptions that have crippled other Gulf oil and gas exporters.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the pipeline strikes. Satellite images showed black smoke rising from an area south of Medina. The Saudi Foreign Ministry said the attack caused injuries and damage that were still being assessed, but did not detail its effect on exports.

U.S. President Donald Trump, who was visiting Ireland to play at one of his golf resorts, said Iran was probably responsible.

On Saturday, the Saudi Civil Defence said a projectile fired by the Houthis had injured two people in the Jazan region and damaged several buildings, including a mosque.

SAUDI LEADER REQUESTS U.S. MILITARY AID

Oil prices have surged over the past week, while the retail price of diesel in the United States rose above a record $6 a gallon. The United States and Iran have both attacked tankers, while Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen have advanced along the Red Sea, potentially extending disruptions to another major oil route.

Washington now faces a difficult choice over whether to help Saudi Arabia combat the Houthis, an move that could further widen the war.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the country’s de facto ruler, called Trump on Thursday to request U.S. military assistance against the Houthis, three sources told Reuters. They said Washington had not agreed to intervene directly for the moment but would provide intelligence support.

Trump confirmed Saturday that he had spoken with the crown prince. He said the Houthis had also contacted his administration and asked Washington not to become directly involved in the conflict.

Four Yemeni government sources told Reuters that the Houthis had seized the strategically located Perim island on Friday in the Bab el-Mandeb strait, known as the “Gate of Tears” at the Red Sea’s entrance.

IRANIAN OFFICIAL CASTS DOUBT ON OMAN MEETING

No talks between the United States and Iran to end the conflict have taken place since a June agreement collapsed within weeks.

In a Saturday post on X, Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee, said: “As long as the American side does not accept all of Iran’s conditions, dialogue and negotiation are of no use.”

Iran’s Foreign Ministry announced Friday that the country would attend a meeting with Gulf Arab states in Oman on Monday, where the future of the Strait of Hormuz was expected to be discussed.

However, a senior Iranian official, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, downplayed the prospects for a breakthrough. The official said the Oman-initiated meeting was intended to address issues including the strait but was not expected to produce a signed agreement.

An agreement governing routes through the strait between Iran and Oman was scheduled to be presented at Monday’s meeting, which Iraq would also attend. However, the strait would not reopen unless seven conditions conveyed by Iran to the United States were met, according to a source familiar with the matter who spoke to Tasnim news agency without elaborating.

Iran seeks international recognition of its control over the Strait of Hormuz, including the right to charge fees to vessels using it, a position rejected by Washington. Oman, which controls the opposite shore of the strait, says it is negotiating with the approval of other regional states.

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