L'armée saoudienne en état d'alerte maximale après des attaques
The Saudi army has raised its alert level to its maximum after Iranian strikes on the country, and could retaliate in the event of a "concerted" attack on oil infrastructure, two sources close to the army and the government told AFP on Monday.
These sources were speaking after an attack targeted the gigantic Ras Tanura refinery, operated by the Saudi state-owned oil giant Aramco, according to the Saudi Ministry of Energy, which announced the interruption of some operations at the site.
Iranian missiles targeting an airbase near the Saudi capital Riyadh were also intercepted on Monday, a Gulf source told AFP.
"The Saudi Arabian army has raised its alert level to the maximum," said the source close to the army.
Saudi Arabia is the world's leading oil exporter, with most of its oil fields and infrastructure located along its eastern coast on the Gulf, opposite Iran.
According to the Saudi Ministry of Defense, the Ras Tanura refinery - a key component of the kingdom's energy sector - was targeted by two drones, which were intercepted.
"It all depends on whether this is perceived as a direct attack on Aramco by the Iranian leadership or as an isolated drone that simply approached," a source close to the Saudi government told AFP on Monday.
"At this stage, I think Saudi Arabia will observe and wait," but it could target "Iranian oil facilities if Iran launches a concerted attack against Aramco," she added.
"Some operational units of the refinery have been shut down as a precaution," an official source from the ministry told the Saudi Press Agency SPA.
For Torbjorn Soltvedt, an analyst at Verisk Maplecroft, this attack constitutes "a significant escalation".
It could "bring Saudi Arabia and neighboring Gulf states closer to participating in military operations led by the United States and Israel against Iran," he said in a note on the conflict.
Saudi Arabia sharply criticized Iran this weekend after the Islamic Republic targeted Riyadh and its eastern region in retaliation for the Israeli-American attack launched on Saturday.
The kingdom warned that it reserved the right to defend itself.
Saudi oil infrastructure has been targeted in the past by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.
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