Saudi halts oil shipments in Red-sea lane

Riyadh : Saudi Arabia has temporarily halted all oil shipments through a key waterway after Yemen’s Iran-aligned Huthi militia attacked two crude vessels, officials said .

“All oil shipments through Bab al-Mandab Strait have been suspended temporarily until... maritime transit through the area is safe,” Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said in a statement released by state media. Two oil tankers operated by the Saudi shipping group Bahri, each with a two million barrels capacity, were attacked by Huthi rebels in the Red Sea, state giant Aramco said in a statement.

“One of the ships sustained minimal damage. No injuries nor oil spill have been reported,” Aramco said. The oil giant said the decision to suspend shipments was “in the interest of the safety of ships and their crews and to avoid the risk of oil spill.” Earlier, the pro-Huthi Al-Masirah TV said that the militia had targeted a Saudi warship named Al-Dammam, without providing further details.

Condemned

Bahrain strongly condemned the Houthi militia’s attack on oil tankers belonging to the Saudi National Shipping Company while the vessels were crossing Bab Al-Mandab Strait in the Red Sea. “The cowardly attack is a flagrant violation of international laws and norms and poses a serious threat to the freedom of international trade and maritime navigation in Bab Al-Mandab Strait and the Red Sea,” the ministry of foreign affairs said in a statement.