Report: US deploys troops to Saudi Arabia amid Houthi threat

Satellite imagery and thermal detection data have raised doubts that Yemen's Iranian-aligned Houthi movement has targeted Saudi Arabia's vital East-West oil pipeline. While a significant smoke plume was spotted over desert terrain southeast of Medina, along the pipeline's general trajectory toward Mahd adh-Dhahab, no definitive confirmation of pipeline damage has been established.

The thermal anomalies detected by NASA's FIRMS system do not pinpoint the cause of any fires. The reported fire comes amidst the rapidly intensifying Houthi-Saudi conflict, with Houthi forces carrying out a major campaign of missile and drone strikes against southern Saudi Arabia on September 8, targeting locations around Jazan, Abha, Najran, and Khamis Mushait.

In response, Saudi Arabia has retaliated with strikes in Yemen. The East-West pipeline, or Petroline, is one of Saudi Arabia's most critical strategic energy assets, stretching approximately 1,200 kilometers west from oil-producing and processing facilities near Abqaiq to Yanbu on the Red Sea. Its strategic significance has surged during the ongoing US-Iran war, enabling the country to transport crude toward the Red Sea without passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

Post an earlier attack in April, Saudi Arabia had restored the pipeline to its full pumping capacity of around 7 million barrels per day. A confirmed attack on the pipeline would likely have a far greater impact than a singular assault on an oil facility. Saudi crude exports via Yanbu have emerged as a crucial alternative to Gulf shipping, with Reuters reporting that crude and condensate loads at Yanbu had rebounded to approximately 3.7 million barrels per day in early September, as determined by Vortexa.

Saudi Arabia is increasingly relying on its Red Sea route amid continued restrictions on traffic in the Hormuz. The Mokha port, seized by Houthi forces, is situated near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, and their recent advance brings them closer to the crucial maritime chokepoint, potentially endangering Saudi Arabia's Red Sea export infrastructure.

Shipping through Bab al-Mandab has already dropped by around 60% due to prior Houthi attacks, while Hormuz traffic has also plummeted, with only seven vessel transits recorded on a specific day, compared to an average of 14 over a 10-day period. The convergence of these factors creates a precarious energy-security situation, with Saudi Arabia's alternative pathways around Hormuz potentially coming under simultaneous pressure.