Ministry of Defense: 18 drones, 7 cruise missiles from the north targeted Saudi Aramco oil facilities

Recent attacks on Saudi Aramco oil facilities came from the north and were sponsored by Iran, not Yemen, defense ministry spokesperson Colonel Turki Al-Maliki said in a press conference on Wednesday.

"This attack was not against the Kingdom. It was an assault on the international community — an elaborate attempt to disrupt the global economy and the energy industry," Al-Maliki said.

The ministry is continuing investigations into the attack to define the exact launch site.

Iran has tried to generate a false narrative around the strike, claiming the attack was launched by Houthi rebels.

However, the Saudi Ministry of Defense has evidence on Iran's involvement in the subversive acts, Al-Maliki added.

A total of 18 Iranian delta-wing drones and seven cruise missiles were used in the attack.

The ministry experts said the drone and missile debris recovered by investigators pointed to Iranian culpability.

Tehran used "Ya Ali" cruise missiles in the attack, Al-Maliki said, adding the missiles have been developed by Iran's Revolutionary Guards last February.

The drones targeted Aramco's plants in Abqaiq, while seven cruise missiles targeted Khurais facilities, with three missiles failing to make their targets, he concluded.

Saudi Arabia displayed Iranian drones and cruise missiles that it said were used in an attack against Aramco facilities at the weekend.

The attacks were “unquestionably” sponsored by Iran but investigations are still underway to pinpoint the exact launch location, defense ministry spokesperson Col. Turki Al-Maliki said at a news conference in Riyadh.

However he said that the strikes came from north of the targets and not from Yemen, where Houthi militants claimed they had been launched from on Saturday. 

Attacks on the plants of Saudi Aramco have posed a “real test” of the international will to confront subversive acts that threaten international stability and security, the Saudi Press Agency reported yesterday, citing Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Saudi Arabia’s oil supplies have returned to their levels prior to the terrorist attack that targeted two Aramco facilities on Saturday, Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said in a press conference Tuesday evening, Argaam reported earlier.