The weapons used to strike Saudi oil facilities were Iranian-made, the Riyadh-led coalition said on Monday, heightening fears of regional conflict after the US hinted at a military response to the assault.
The Saudi-led coalition, which is bogged down in a five-year war in neighbouring Yemen, reiterated the assessment that the Houthis were not behind it, pointing the finger at Iran for providing the weapons.
Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for the strikes but Washington has squarely blamed Iran, with President Donald Trump saying the US is “locked and loaded” to respond.
The head of the NATO military alliance said he is extremely concerned that tensions will escalate after an attack on Saudi oil facilities.
Jens Stoltenberg also said Iran was “destabilising the whole region”.
Iran denies involvement, with President Hassan Rouhani calling the attack a reciprocal act by the “Yemeni people”.
The weekend strikes on Abqaiq — the world’s largest oil processing facility — and the Khurais oil field in eastern Saudi Arabia have roiled global energy markets with prices spiking Monday to record highs.
