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RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (September 11, 2026) — Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Energy said Friday it has shut down the kingdom’s East-West crude oil pipeline as a precautionary measure after the line was targeted in multiple attacks in the Riyadh and Madinah regions on Thursday morning, in an escalation that threatens one of the few crude export routes bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.
The ministry said the attacks caused a number of injuries, with those affected receiving medical treatment, and that emergency and specialized technical teams were deployed immediately to secure the pipeline and assess its safety in coordination with relevant authorities. The Saudi Foreign Ministry separately condemned what it described as an attack carried out by “several drones coming from Iraq,” which it said resulted in injuries and damage that is currently being addressed. A U.S. official told CNN that pump stations located along the pipeline were struck, triggering fires. Saudi authorities have not identified who was responsible for the attacks, and Riyadh has said it will refrain from retaliating for now to give the Iraqi government time to act against attacks launched from its territory.
The extent of the physical damage to the pipeline remains officially unclear. Satellite data reviewed by multiple outlets, including imagery from Planet Labs PBC, showed fires burning at at least one site southeast of Medina along the pipeline’s general route, with a visible plume of black smoke, and NASA’s FIRMS satellite system detected several large fire signatures near the pipeline on Thursday. Some social media reports have circulated more specific figures — including claims of “catastrophic” damage across as many as eight locations and a smoke plume stretching some 115 kilometers — but these more granular details have not been confirmed by the Saudi government, U.S. officials, or the outlets that have reviewed the satellite imagery, and should be treated as unverified pending further confirmation.
Why the Pipeline Matters
The East-West Pipeline, also known as Petroline, has a capacity of roughly 7 million barrels per day and is Saudi Arabia’s only major crude export route that does not pass through the Strait of Hormuz, running from the kingdom’s Eastern Province oil fields to export terminals at Yanbu on the Red Sea coast. Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said last month that the pipeline has played a larger role than the release of emergency crude reserves in cushioning the impact of the ongoing US-Iran war on oil supply. Its disruption is particularly significant given that Iran has separately sought to restrict shipping through the Strait of Hormuz amid its war with the United States, leaving Saudi Arabia with fewer alternative routes to move crude if the pipeline remains offline.
Iran-allied militant groups have escalated attacks on Saudi Arabia in recent days, and CNN cited an analyst suggesting the strike fits a broader pattern of Iran using regional proxies to pressure Arab states into rejecting American military presence.
Market Reaction
Oil prices broke above $100 a barrel this week for the first time in months as fighting escalated across the region, with rumors of the pipeline strike circulating Thursday contributing to the rally; prices closed out the week more than 8 percent higher before easing somewhat on Friday. Industry analysts have warned that benchmark prices — with ICE Brent around $105 a barrel and Middle Eastern grades such as Murban and Oman trading near $120 — could climb further if the pipeline remains shut for an extended period, given that the line normally carries an estimated 3 to 4 million barrels per day of Saudi exports.
The Ministry of Energy has not provided a timeline for restoring the pipeline’s operations, saying only that further developments will be announced as they arise.
This is a developing story.
