rationeel schreef op 16 september 2019 14:18:
Satellite images released by US officials on Sunday showed the extent of damage on >>>Saudi Arabia’s Abqaiq>>> oil processing facility and at>>> Khurais >>>oil field. The images published on Sunday evening clearly show>>> seventeen points>>> of impact on key infrastructure, the US says.
Of note are>>> four points of impact>>> on liquefied petroleum gas storage tanks. This shows >>>extreme precision>>> on the part of the drones or cruise missiles used to strike the oil facilities. >>>ABC News>>> reported on Monday morning that officials now believe a >>>dozen cruise missiles>>> and>>> 20 drones>>> were involved in the attack. This attack is now so sophisticated that the ability of >>>Yemen’s Houthis>>> to carry it out seems>>> unlikely>>>, despite their claim of responsibility. The Houthis are a key ally of>>> Iran.>>> The US has said there is no evidence the strike came from>>> Yemen>>>, which is more than>>> 1,200km>>> away. This means the strike was launched from much >>>closer>>> to the facilities.
Now US President>>>Donald Trump>>> says that Washington is awaiting word from>>> Saudi Arabia>>> and that the US is >>>“locked and loaded.” >>>But the tensions that are rising in the Persian Gulf must be weighed against fears by US allies and the international community that the >>>precision strikes>>> are only the>>> tip of the iceberg.>>> The>>> ability to launch>>> 20>>> drones and a>>> dozen>>> missiles>>> deep>>> into >>>Saudi territory,>>> within>>> 100km of US bases>>> in Bahrain>>> and elsewhere,>>> is not>>> only a massive escalation,>>> but also means>>> US forces could be>>> targeted.>>>
The developing >>>nightmare for US policymakers>>> and their allies>>> is trying to thread the needle on>>> how to respond>>>. If they say they are “locked and loaded” but once again do not respond, as Trump refrained from doing in June after a US drone was shot down, then the bluff would have been called. But if>>> they respond>>> they>>> risk a >>>regional war >>>stretching from the>>> Gulf of Oman>>> to Iraq>>> and the Persian Gulf.>>>
The US has blamed Iran for sabotaging six oil tankers, for mortars and rockets fired near US bases in Iraq and for the recent attack. In fact the US has now accused Iran of more than 100 attacks on Saudi Arabia. Now all eyes turn to the Kingdom to see how Riyadh will move.