Regional tensions and military escalation: Iraq investigates an attack on a Saudi oil pipeline and Trump comments on the Houthis

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein discussed, with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, the attack that targeted the East-West oil pipeline in Saudi Arabia, the measures taken in this regard, and the joint committee formed to investigate the circumstances of the attack, according to a statement issued by the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

During their phone call, the two ministers also discussed "the procedures related to closing a number of border crossings, the reasons for taking them, and ways to address them."

This comes after Iraq agreed to an Iranian request to conduct a joint investigation regarding the discovery of platforms for launching drones near the border with Iran, at a time when US President Donald Trump said that Iran was likely responsible for the attack that targeted Saudi Arabia.

In this context, a security source told the BBC that the Iraqi security forces found a missile launching pad in the Badia region, southeast of Maysan Governorate, which is believed to have been recently used to carry out unofficial military operations.

The source did not specify the nature of the operations in which the platform was believed to have been used or the party behind them.

Meanwhile, the French news agency quoted two security sources on Saturday as saying that drone launching pads were found in the Al-Tayeb area in Maysan Governorate in southern Iraq, near the border with Iran, after the attack on the Saudi oil pipeline.

"Precautionary" suspension of the East-West pipeline

On Friday, Saudi Arabia announced the suspension of work on the East-West pipeline to transport oil “precautionarily” from the eastern region to the western coasts, after it was targeted on Thursday by drones originating from Iraq, noting that there were casualties.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement: “Based on the request of the Iraqi Prime Minister to provide the sister government of Iraq with the opportunity to take measures to prevent attacks launched from Iraqi territory towards the Kingdom and neighboring countries, the Kingdom has chosen not to respond at this stage, and to support the efforts of the Iraqi government.”

Riyadh affirmed that it "reserves its right to take all measures necessary to protect its sovereignty, security, facilities, citizens, and residents."

On the other hand, the spokesman for the Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces, Sabah al-Numan, confirmed that “tight security measures have been taken to prosecute those involved in the recent security violations,” noting also the formation of “a higher investigative committee, and the dismissal of the police chief of Maysan Governorate and the directors of the security services in the governorate and referring them to investigation...”

Al-Numan stressed, "taking all necessary measures to prevent any activity emanating from within Iraq that threatens the security of the provinces or neighboring countries."

In a related context, Iraqi armed factions, known as the "Islamic Resistance in Iraq", on Saturday refused to hold them responsible for attacks that targeted vital Saudi facilities, and declared their readiness to participate in any government investigation committee, to identify the party responsible for these attacks.

These Iraqi armed factions also confirmed their support for the Ansar Allah Houthi movement in Yemen, and described the accusations against them of launching recent attacks in Saudi Arabia as an attempt to divert attention from field developments in Yemeni territory.

The Saudi East-West Pipeline has gained additional importance since the outbreak of war in the Middle East and Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz, as Saudi Arabia, the world's largest crude exporter, uses it to transport oil from production fields in the East to the coast of the Red Sea for export.

Saudi Arabia has repeatedly announced over the past months that its territory, especially energy facilities, has been subjected to strikes that it said came from groups linked to Tehran in Iraq, as a result of the war launched by Israel and the United States against Iran.

The attack on this line was met with Arab and Western condemnation.

Trump: The Houthis asked us "not to interfere"

In developments in Yemen, US President Donald Trump said that the Houthis asked the United States “not to interfere” in Yemen. He added during his visit to Ireland, on Saturday: “We had discussions. The Houthis contacted us, and they do not want to fight us... They do not want us to attack them... Everything will go well and wonderfully (in the region).”

Trump also indicated that he spoke with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whom he described as a "friend."

The US President's statement comes in conjunction with reports indicating that Saudi Arabia has requested American assistance to fight the Ansar Allah Houthi group. Two informed sources told Reuters on Friday that the Saudi Crown Prince made at least two phone calls with Trump on Thursday to request American military assistance in fighting the Houthis, confirming a previous report by Axios.

The two sources said that Washington ultimately informed Riyadh that it did not intend to take direct military action at the present time, but would provide assistance by sharing intelligence information and identifying targets.

A senior US administration official, who requested to remain anonymous, said that Washington is conducting an ongoing dialogue with Saudi Arabia and the Yemeni government.

Last July, Saudi officials reassured the Trump administration that the Kingdom was capable of containing the Houthis without the need for American assistance, according to reports.

Recently, Saudi Arabia signed a joint defense agreement with Turkey and Pakistan, whose warplanes are stationed in the Kingdom.

It was reported that Pakistan asked Iran on Wednesday to put pressure on the Houthis, but it is unclear whether it will participate in attacks on the Yemeni armed group.

The exchange of blows continues

On the ground, the Yemeni government said, on Saturday morning, that it targeted Houthi fighters in the strategic city of Mokha, after the Houthis took control of the entire Red Sea coast on Friday.

The Yemeni government news agency said that its attack resulted in the killing of Houthi militants and the destruction of weapons and vehicles.

On the other hand, the military spokesman for the Houthis, Yahya Saree, reported that Saudi aircraft launched “within 48 hours, 129 air strikes” on areas under the group’s control.

Later, Saree said that the Houthis carried out what he described as “a qualitative military operation through which they targeted weapons stores and the command and control rooms that manage the aggression against our country and our people at the military base in the Sharurah region of Saudi Arabia,” noting the use of “a large batch of ballistic missiles and drones, and the hit was accurate and direct,” as he put it.

Meanwhile, the Saudi Civil Defense stated in a statement on Saturday that a projectile fired by the Houthis injured two people in the Jazan region and damaged several buildings, including a mosque.

On Friday, the Houthis completed their control of the Bab al-Mandab region and the western coast of Yemen overlooking the Red Sea, in a move that raises concerns about the fate of maritime traffic near this strategic corridor linking Asia to Europe.

Thus, the Houthis now control the vital waterway for oil exports from Saudi Arabia, whose importance has increased for Riyadh since Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz after the outbreak of war between it and Washington.

Before the recent ground attack, the Houthis - who control large parts of northern Yemen, including the capital, Sanaa, and the city of Hodeidah - did not directly control any areas overlooking the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

The Houthi advance, after the attack that has been ongoing for nearly a week, threatens to block a vital artery for Saudi oil exporting tankers (Bab al-Mandab).

An upcoming meeting regarding Hormuz

An Iranian commercial ship was struck off the southern coast of Iran early Sunday, killing one person and wounding three others, Iranian state media reported, citing the governor of Qeshm Province.

The British Maritime Trade Operations Authority reported early on Sunday that a ship was hit by an unknown projectile while passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

Meanwhile, the Iranian Foreign Ministry announced that Tehran will attend a meeting with Arab Gulf states in Oman on Monday to discuss the future of the Strait of Hormuz.

But Reuters quoted what it described as a senior Iranian official, who refused to reveal his identity, downplaying the chances of reaching a “detente,” saying that the meeting called for by Oman aims to discuss issues including the Strait of Hormuz, but he ruled out signing an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz.

Oman did not officially announce the meeting, while other Gulf countries remained silent. Bahrain said that it will not attend any meetings with Iran, before diplomatic relations between the two countries are restored.

In this context, on Saturday, Iran and the UAE signed a joint statement issued by the BRICS group calling for restraint in the ongoing war in the Middle East, in a move that was considered an indication of diplomatic progress between the two countries whose positions diverged due to the war, according to Reuters.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian met with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, on the sidelines of the first day of the BRICS summit in New Delhi, in the first meeting at this level between the two countries since the outbreak of war.