The Mideast has its own variety of crazy humor. The Saudis have been blasting and bombing wretched Yemen, one of this world’s poorest nations, since 2015.
These US-supported attacks and a naval blockade of Yemen imposed by Saudi Arabia and its sidekick ally, the United Arab Emirates, have caused mass starvation. No one knows how many Yemenis have died or are currently starving. Estimates run from 250,000 to one million.
The black humor? The Saudis just claimed they were victims of Iranian `aggression’ this past week after the kingdom’s leading oil treatment facility at Abqaiq was hit by a flight of armed drones or cruise missiles. The usual American militarists, now led by State Secretary Mike Pompeo after the demented warmonger, John Bolton, was finally fired, are calling for military retaliation against Iran even though the attack was claimed by Yemen’s Shia Houthi movement.
This drama came at roughly the same time that Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, a close ally of US president Donald Trump, vowed to annex Palestine’s entire Jordan Valley if elected. Not a peep of protest came from the US, which recently blessed Netanyahu’s annexation of Syria’s Golan Heights while scourging Russia’s leader, Vladimir Putin, for annexing Crimea – a Russian possession for over 300 years.
I studied US photos of the damaged Saudi oil installations. Its oil tanks appear to be precisely hit at the same place. After the attack, the Saudis claimed half of their oil production was knocked out; but a day later, they vowed production would be resumed within a week. Parts of so-called drones were shown that appeared way beyond the technological capabilities of Yemen or even Iran. The missiles may have been supplied by Ukraine.
The Saudis, like their patron in Washington, have a poor record for truthfulness. Remember the Saudi denials about the murder of journalist and Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi? More important, we have been waiting for more false flag attacks in the Gulf designed to justify a US attack on Iran.
The pattern of so-called drone attacks against the Saudi oil installations is just too neat and symmetrical. The Israelis have a strong interest in promoting a US-Saudi War. The attacks in Saudi came ironically right after the anniversary of 9/11 that plunged the US into war against large parts of the Muslim world.
As a long-time military observer, I find it very hard to believe that drones could be guided over such long distances and so accurately without aircraft or satellites to guide them. In Yemen, which is just creeping into the 12th century, changing a flat tire is a major technological achievement. To date, Iran’s missile arsenal has poor reliability and major guidance problems.
Adding to the questions, the Saudis have spent billions on US-made air defense systems. They failed to protect the oil installations. The Saudis would have been better off buying air defenses from the Russians, at a quarter of the US selling price.
Trump at least showed some wisdom by so far rejecting demands from the neocons that surround him to launch major attacks on Iran. Blasting Iran would not serve much purpose and would expose US forces in Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Somalia, and Syria to Iranian guerrilla attacks. Saudi oil installations – after what we saw last week – are vulnerable.
Attacking Iran, even if just from the air, risks a much wider Mideast war just as the Trump administration – which originally campaigned against ‘stupid’ Mideast wars – faces next year’s elections. But the administration is under intense pressure from its pro-Israel base to go after Iran.
Bombing Iran’s oil infrastructure would be relatively easy and has been intensively planned since early 2002. But what next? So-called ‘regime change’ (Washington’s favorite euphemism for overthrowing disobedient foreign governments) rarely works as planned and can get the US into horribly messy situations. The CIA overthrew Iran’s democratic government in 1953 and look where we are today.
Perhaps the attacks on Abqaiq may cause the reckless Saudi leaders to stop devastating Yemen and throttle back on their proxy war against Iran which has gone on since 1979. But don’t count on it.
Source: the author’s blog
From Ukraine? Which part? The breakaway provinces, which include military industrial factories? I don’t think the Kiev government would want to antagonize the US.
Some serious chicanery here. The subject area is covered by radars galore. The operators of same know where the attack weapons came from. Precisely who launched them is the issue.
The US shadow state has an interest in chaos and meme control. Imagine this: these shades launch weapons to ensure that more US troops are sent to S. Arabia, where they will be fodder for a false flag that will lead to a desired conflagration. Qui bono? The one state whose plans for supremacy from the Nile to the Euphrates have been utterly frustrated: Israel. The Israelis are desperate. The catch: The Houthis claimed responsibility. Why would they do that if they aren’t responsible? And why wouldn’t the radar operators confirm that?
You get to choose. The game is afoot or the major players have been wrong-footed–in spite of their “advanced technology”– by the guys in sandals.
There’s a need to revisit and re-investigate the assassination of JFK, USS Liberty sinking, and the way 9/11 happened. On all those occasions investigation was diverted to identify wrong enemies. The attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais is one of those instances in which wrong perpetrator has been identified — the one they like to attack anyway.
Those with good memory may remember what US General Wesley Clark told us? That the warmongers in Washington had planned to take out seven Middle Eastern oil rich countries including Iran?
Now go back to your smart phone.
Using the author’s logic or lack of it.
It is very possible that Russia was behind the Saudi attack.
Iran wants to establish an Islamic Defence Union….making them the caliphate for Islam which appearantly they are…ironic.
What about the role of Israel in the attack? The main argument is dual: fighting Iran, and helping US in its oil and LNG policy.
Iran has been hitting the Gulf, through terror and other means….money and Shia strongholds setting up ….
Trump won’t do anything until after the election, so Iran would take advantage of this.
Were the drones made in Switzerland and moved through Finland to Iran?
The forensic evidence is available to solve this non mystery mystery….
It will remain unsolved…..thou intel is everywhere.
Was it a Blue Eyed Triangle?