Middle East energy crisis looms as oil routes buckle by land and sea

Saudi Arabia's oil transport network is under threat by both sea and land, raising fears of a full-blown energy crisis originating in the Middle East.

Riyadh had been rerouting crude shipments to bypass a potential Iranian blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, but that workaround is now unraveling. Houthi rebels have been hammering the Bab el-Mandeb Strait leading to the Red Sea, and now the east-west pipeline — the kingdom's critical overland export route — has also come under attack.

International oil prices surged to as high as $110 a barrel at one point.

According to Reuters, drone strikes targeted the Riyadh and Medina regions of Saudi Arabia on Friday (local time). The east-west pipeline, a key oil artery, was shut down that day.

The east-west pipeline stretches roughly 1,200 kilometers across the Arabian Peninsula to the Red Sea port of Yanbu. After Iran blockaded the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia routed about 5 million barrels of crude per day through the pipeline — equivalent to 4 to 5 percent of global oil supply.

The drones used in the attack were launched from Iraqi territory. Iraq's prime minister's office announced after midnight Saturday that it had confirmed the drones originated from within its borders.

Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry said it would hold off on retaliation for now at the Iraqi government's request.

According to maritime intelligence firm Kpler, Saudi crude exports last month fell to just 3.2 million barrels per day — already the lowest level in 13 years and less than half the pre-war daily export volume of roughly 7 million barrels.

According to AP and AFP, the Houthis seized Perim Island — a strategic chokepoint in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait — just one day after capturing the key Red Sea port of Mocha. Perim Island sits in the middle of the strait, effectively dividing its shipping lanes.

Saudi Arabia has directly appealed to the United States for help, though the Trump administration reportedly turned down Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's request. The administration has been monitoring the escalating Houthi offensive and is in ongoing consultations with the Saudi and Yemeni governments.

Tensions between the United States and Iran continue to sharpen.

President Donald Trump, speaking at a ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks at the Pentagon near Washington, D.C., called Iran "the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism."

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian fired back, citing a Feb. 28 incident in which a US airstrike mistakenly hit an elementary school in southern Iran, killing 182 people — including children. "The very same devils" who carried out that attack, he said, were now pointing fingers at Iran.