Saudi Arabia tightens security at oil facilities after Bahrain pipeline attack

The Saudi Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources has tightened security at all its oil facilities following the Bahrain pipeline attack, it announce on Saturday.

It also suspended pumping oil to Bahrain after the attack on the crude oil pipeline.

The Energy Ministry also condemned this as a "cowardly act."

Saudi Aramco said no casualties were reported in the incident.

The area of incident was sealed, people were evacuated and valves connected to this pipeline were isolated, it said.

Investigations are in progress.

Meanwhile, an official source at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated the Kingdom’s strong condemnation of the blast that led to a fire in the oil pipeline near Buri area in Bahrain.

The Foreign Ministry said the statement of the Bahraini government confirmed that “the terrorist incidents Bahrain is witnessing recently are being carried out via contacts and directives directly from Iran.”

The official source reiterated Saudi Arabia’s condemnation of the acts of sabotage and terror being perpetrated by Iran in order to destabilize the region and its security and the safety of its citizens and expatriates.

Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Dr. Abdullateef Al-Zayani also strongly condemned the intentional blast that occurred on Friday near Buri Island in Bahrain that targeted an oil pipeline.

Al-Zayani described it as a dangerous terrorist crime that exposes the higher interests of Bahrain to danger and terrorizes the peaceful citizens of Bahrain and its expatriates.

He said that this is a serious development in the method of carrying out criminal acts by terrorist organizations receiving directives and support from Iran.

(With Reuters)