The latest attack on Saudi Arabia's oil infrastructure came less than a week after King Salman swore in Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman as energy minister on September 9, 2019. AFP
The latest attack on Saudi Arabia's oil infrastructure came less than a week after King Salman swore in Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman as energy minister on September 9, 2019. AFP
The latest attack on Saudi Arabia's oil infrastructure came less than a week after King Salman swore in Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman as energy minister on September 9, 2019. AFP
The latest attack on Saudi Arabia's oil infrastructure came less than a week after King Salman swore in Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman as energy minister on September 9, 2019. AFP

New threat to Saudi Arabia comes from two fronts and one actor - Iran


Khaled Yacoub Oweis
  • English
  • Arabic

Saudi Arabia is facing a major Iran-backed escalation of violence aimed at disrupting its economy in a challenge not seen since the attacks by Al Qaeda on foreign workers more than a decade ago.

Between 2003 and 2006, the authorities fought off hundreds of mostly Saudi militants who had returned from Afghanistan and aimed to bankrupt the kingdom by terrorising the foreign labour force and later undermining morale in the state security apparatus.

The current threat comes from across the kingdom’s borders to the north and to the south – Iran’s militia allies in Iraq and in Yemen, the target of the Saudi-led intervention since 2015.

Both are suspected of attacking Saudi civilian targets, most notably oil infrastructure, tankers and an airport in southern Saudi Arabia, in the past four months.

Most materially damaging was the attack on Saturday on a crucial oil plant, halving Saudi Arabia’s production.

In the 2000s, advanced training and reconnaissance, a mix of tough action and leniency towards militants who handed themselves in, and an enhanced esprit de corps within the Saudi security forces, eventually contained Al Qaeda in the country.

A major state, Iran, stands behind the latest militant threat.

Tehran has been counting on its response to the US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal and Washington's "maximum pressure" policy on Iran, to outlast President Donald Trump, who is up for re-election in November 2020, or force him to back down.

Although the Houthi rebel militia in Yemen claimed Saturday’s attack, US officials said there was no evidence that it was them.

At the same time, there are Iraqi militias dominant in Baghdad’s circles of power willing to do Iran’s bidding.

Washington has opened channels with the Houthis to lure the group away from Tehran through a deal that would end the war in Yemen.

But past policies from the US and others with the Syrian regime, before the 2011 revolt, and with Iraqi militias, failed to dissuade proxies from their controllers in Tehran.

Saudi Arabia tried to woo Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada Al Sadr, who leads several militias and casts himself as anti-establishment.

But Mr Al Sadr appeared last week at a religious celebration in Tehran next to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, showing Iran’s widespread influence.

Iran’s rulers are unlikely to approve any Houthi compromise with Saudi Arabia without a major gain for Tehran.

They may be calculating that traditional US allies in the Middle East could become a casualty of Mr Trump’s eagerness to strike grand bargains before the elections.

But Saturday’s attack could also make it difficult for the US to soften its line, in the same way that the Afghan Taliban’s deadly bombing in Kabul this month scuttled talks with Washington.

Although the attacks in Saudi Arabia did not target American interests directly, or the hundreds of American soldiers in the country, they challenge a long-standing US policy of securing Middle East energy supplies.

Oil prices rose sharply at start of trading on Monday, the first day of business in the West since the attack, with Brent benchmark crude gaining 8.7 percent to $65.5 per barrell by mid morning.

But the attack was mainly designed for political purposes. Whatever extra capacity Iran has, it will struggle to put any of it on the market under US sanctions.

There are market worries about the extent of the latest damage to the Saudi oil infrastructure and whether the attack reflects enhanced capability by Iran’s proxies or is a statistical result of having hit Saudi Arabia so often.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says Saudi has been struck almost 100 times.

The immediate objective for Saudi policymakers would be to protect the kingdom’s major assets from further attacks.

In the 2000s, action against domestic militants was accompanied by political action that contributed to their division and eventual containment.

But among Saudi Arabia’s foes in Sanaa and Baghdad, Iran remains a unifying force.

The%20Letter%20Writer
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Layla%20Kaylif%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Eslam%20Al%20Kawarit%2C%20Rosy%20McEwen%2C%20Muhammad%20Amir%20Nawaz%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE%20SQUAD
%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EMen%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Saif%20Al%20Zaabi%2C%20Salem%20Al%20Marzooqi%2C%20Zayed%20Al%20Ansaari%2C%20Saud%20Abdulaziz%20Rahmatalla%2C%20Adel%20Shanbih%2C%20Ahmed%20Khamis%20Al%20Blooshi%2C%20Abdalla%20Al%20Naqbi%2C%20Khaled%20Al%20Hammadi%2C%20Mohammed%20Khamis%20Khalaf%2C%20Mohammad%20Fahad%2C%20Abdulla%20Al%20Arimi.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EWomen%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Mozah%20Al%20Zeyoudi%2C%20Haifa%20Al%20Naqbi%2C%20Ayesha%20Al%20Mutaiwei.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20JustClean%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%20with%20offices%20in%20other%20GCC%20countries%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELaunch%20year%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202016%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20160%2B%20with%2021%20nationalities%20in%20eight%20cities%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20online%20laundry%20and%20cleaning%20services%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2430m%20from%20Kuwait-based%20Faith%20Capital%20Holding%20and%20Gulf%20Investment%20Corporation%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
War and the virus
Key products and UAE prices

iPhone XS
With a 5.8-inch screen, it will be an advance version of the iPhone X. It will be dual sim and comes with better battery life, a faster processor and better camera. A new gold colour will be available.
Price: Dh4,229

iPhone XS Max
It is expected to be a grander version of the iPhone X with a 6.5-inch screen; an inch bigger than the screen of the iPhone 8 Plus.
Price: Dh4,649

iPhone XR
A low-cost version of the iPhone X with a 6.1-inch screen, it is expected to attract mass attention. According to industry experts, it is likely to have aluminium edges instead of stainless steel.
Price: Dh3,179

Apple Watch Series 4
More comprehensive health device with edge-to-edge displays that are more than 30 per cent bigger than displays on current models.

The specs

Engine: 3.8-litre V6

Power: 295hp at 6,000rpm

Torque: 355Nm at 5,200rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km

Price: Dh179,999-plus

On sale: now 

 

Company: Instabug

Founded: 2013

Based: Egypt, Cairo

Sector: IT

Employees: 100

Stage: Series A

Investors: Flat6Labs, Accel, Y Combinator and angel investors

Global Fungi Facts

• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid

When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid