7 May 2020; MEMO: A panel of UN experts said Houthi fighters in Yemen could not have launched the missile attacks that targeted Saudi Aramco facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais on 14 September 2019.
In a report submitted to the United Nations Security Council, the panel of experts said: “The estimated range of the weapon systems used does not allow for a launch from Houthi-controlled territory.”
In September, Saudi Aramco’s facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais were attacked by 18 drones and three low-flying missiles causing fires and damage and shutting down more than five per cent of the global oil supply.
Saudi Arabia said Iran was behind the attacks, which temporarily knocked out half of the kingdom’s crude production.
But a leaked report by the UN’s secretary general says investigators could not corroborate that the drones and missiles were of Iranian origin.
Iran denied any role in the strikes.
