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| Saudi Arabia oil facilities ablaze after drone strikes | Saudi Arabia oil facilities ablaze after drone strikes |
| (44 minutes later) | |
| Drone attacks have set alight two major oil facilities run by the state-owned company Aramco in Saudi Arabia, state media say. | Drone attacks have set alight two major oil facilities run by the state-owned company Aramco in Saudi Arabia, state media say. |
| Footage showed flames and huge palls of smoke over Abqaiq, site of Aramco's largest oil processing plant. | |
| A second drone attack also started fires in the Khurais oilfield to the west. The fires are now under control at both facilities, state media said. | |
| Iran-aligned Houthi fighters in Yemen have been blamed for previous attacks. | Iran-aligned Houthi fighters in Yemen have been blamed for previous attacks. |
| However, the Saudi media reports did not say who could be behind the latest attacks. | However, the Saudi media reports did not say who could be behind the latest attacks. |
| "At 04:00 (0100 GMT), the industrial security teams of Aramco started dealing with fires at two of its facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais as a result of... drones," the official Saudi Press Agency reported. | "At 04:00 (0100 GMT), the industrial security teams of Aramco started dealing with fires at two of its facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais as a result of... drones," the official Saudi Press Agency reported. |
| "The two fires have been controlled." | "The two fires have been controlled." |
| Abqaiq is about 60km (37 miles) south-west of Dhahran in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, while Khurais, some 200km further south-west, has the country's second largest oilfield. | Abqaiq is about 60km (37 miles) south-west of Dhahran in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, while Khurais, some 200km further south-west, has the country's second largest oilfield. |
| Saudi security forces foiled an attempt by al-Qaeda to attack the Abqaiq facility with suicide bombers in 2006. | |
| Who could be behind the attacks? | Who could be behind the attacks? |
| Houthi fighters were blamed for drone attacks on the Shaybah natural gas liquefaction facility last month and on other oil facilities in May. | Houthi fighters were blamed for drone attacks on the Shaybah natural gas liquefaction facility last month and on other oil facilities in May. |
| The Iran-aligned rebel movement is fighting the Yemeni government and a Saudi-led coalition. | The Iran-aligned rebel movement is fighting the Yemeni government and a Saudi-led coalition. |
| Yemen has been at war since 2015, when President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi was forced to flee the capital Sanaa by the Houthis. Saudi Arabia backs President Hadi, and has led a coalition of regional countries against the rebels. | Yemen has been at war since 2015, when President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi was forced to flee the capital Sanaa by the Houthis. Saudi Arabia backs President Hadi, and has led a coalition of regional countries against the rebels. |
| The coalition launches air strikes almost every day, while the Houthis often fire missiles into Saudi Arabia. | The coalition launches air strikes almost every day, while the Houthis often fire missiles into Saudi Arabia. |
| However, there are other sources of tension in the region, often stemming from the rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran. | However, there are other sources of tension in the region, often stemming from the rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran. |
| Saudi Arabia and the US both blamed Iran for attacks in the Gulf on two oil tankers in June and July, allegations Tehran denied. | Saudi Arabia and the US both blamed Iran for attacks in the Gulf on two oil tankers in June and July, allegations Tehran denied. |
| In May, four tankers, two of them Saudi-flagged, were damaged by explosions within the UAE's territorial waters in the Gulf of Oman. | In May, four tankers, two of them Saudi-flagged, were damaged by explosions within the UAE's territorial waters in the Gulf of Oman. |
| Saudi Arabia and then US National Security Adviser John Bolton blamed Iran. Tehran said the accusations were "ridiculous". | Saudi Arabia and then US National Security Adviser John Bolton blamed Iran. Tehran said the accusations were "ridiculous". |
| Tension in the vital shipping lanes worsened when Iran shot down a US surveillance drone over the Strait of Hormuz in June, leading a month later to the Pentagon announcing the deployment of US troops to Saudi Arabia. |