Satellite image reveals major damage that shut crucial oil pipeline
Satellite imagery confirms significant damage to a crucial Saudi Arabian oil pipeline, the East-West Pipeline, at a pumping station, which experts estimate could take over a month to repair. Saudi Arabia attributes the strike to Iranian-backed militias, following renewed attacks by Yemen's Houthi group. The pipeline's closure has already led to a surge in global oil prices and could reduce global supplies by 3.6 million barrels per day.
Why it matters
The damage to this vital oil pipeline, amidst escalating regional conflicts, threatens global oil supplies and is driving up prices, impacting economies worldwide. It underscores the vulnerability of energy infrastructure in conflict zones and highlights broader geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
By Thomas Copeland BBC Verify Published 9 minutes ago Satellite imagery shows a key oil pipeline in Saudi Arabia has been badly damaged after a strike last week, which experts have told BBC Verify could take more than a month to repair and force oil prices even higher.
The image shows the most significant damage is at a pumping station along the East-West Pipeline, which Saudi Arabia has increasingly relied on to export crude oil via the Red Sea rather than through the Strait of Hormuz, where ships have been attacked by Iran and the US during their six-month war.
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