Satellite images reported by multiple outlets show smoke and possible damage along Saudi Arabia’s East–West oil pipeline, which runs between major oil and refining areas and provides an alternative to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. CNBC reports Saudi Arabia temporarily shuts the roughly 750-mile pipeline as attacks threaten this route.
The imagery described by Newsweek, the Express Tribune, and NDTV shows a black plume or smoke above stretches of the pipeline in Saudi territory, including areas across the desert between Medina and Mahd adh Dhahab, and near Petroline. NDTV also cites NASA thermal data in addition to satellite visuals, characterizing the strike as possibly conducted by the Houthis.
While all accounts center on satellite evidence of smoke consistent with an attack, they differ in emphasis: some focus on the pipeline being a key bypass of the Strait of Hormuz, while others broaden to the potential impact on oil export routes as disruptions also affect other chokepoints such as Bab al-Mandeb.
