BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s government raced Saturday to contain the fallout after Iran -backed militias were accused of attacking a key Saudi oil pipeline, shutting down the top global oil producer's alternative to the Iranian-threatened Strait of Hormuz.
Though an umbrella group of Iran-backed militias in Iraq denied their involvement, Iraq's government confirmed the attacks had originated from its territory, pledged to investigate and dismissed two senior officials.
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The attack on the East-West pipeline came as Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen put further pressure on neighboring Saudi Arabia and its shipping, reaching the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea, through which around 12% of global trade passes.
Regional officials have told The Associated Press that the Houthis and the Iraqi militias recently coordinated attacks on Saudi oil facilities, which led Saudi Arabia and the United States to bomb Iranian-backed militias in Iraq in July.
As the latest events threaten even higher global oil prices after six months of war, U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran was “probably” responsible for the pipeline attack, but tried to calm concerns.
“The Houthis called us, and they don’t want to fight with us,” Trump said. “They would much prefer not having us involved, and they’re letting most ships go through.” He said his administration has had "discussions” with the Houthis, but the White House didn't say when. His administration engaged in at least one round of talks in May 2025.
“We are not in war with Saudi Arabia, and the Houthis have their own problems," Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told India Today TV on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in India.
Saudi Arabia shut down the cross-country oil pipeline on Friday as a “precautionary measure” after it came under drone attack the day before. It said several drones came from Iraq but the kingdom would not retaliate, to give the Iraqi government “an opportunity to take the necessary measures.”
The group of Iran-backed militias in Iraq denied they were responsible, while praising the Houthis for their “ongoing battlefield victories against Saudi forces.” The statement said they would cooperate with the Iraqi government’s investigation.
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi said he had ordered the investigation into the operations command of Maysan province, along the border with Iran, and dismissed the province’s commander. His office later said the provincial police chief also was dismissed.
Iraq, under mounting pressure, had earlier set a Sept. 30 deadline for non-state groups to disarm, but several of the most powerful militias have said they will not comply, including the Iran-backed ones. Iran-backed Iraqi militias have struck U.S.-linked targets inside and outside Iraq since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28.
Meanwhile, in a decision possibly linked to the investigation, Iraq closed two key border crossings with Iran, Iraq’s state-run news agency reported. Valiollah Hayati, deputy governor of Iran’s southwestern Khuzestan province, said Shalamcheh and Chazabeh crossings were closed.
Several regional countries including Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Egypt, Lebanon and Turkey condemned the pipeline attack.
By early June, Saudi Arabia had more than doubled oil exports from the Red Sea port at the East-West pipeline’s end to more than 5 million barrels per day, according to the International Energy Agency.
The pipeline's closure means Saudi Arabia can't send out its oil via the Suez Canal to the north, which had become an increasingly popular option with Iran threatening the Strait of Hormuz and the Houthis now positioned at the Bab el-Mandeb.
While the Houthis have said they are only targeting Saudi shipping after their swift advance down Yemen's Red Sea coast to the strait, markets remain wary.
“There’s actually not necessarily all that much that the Houthis need to actually do. Having the threat there is very powerful because you get insurance companies becoming nervous about putting ships through that area,” said Sarah Phillips, a fellow with the Sanaa Center for Strategic Studies.
Iran has said a regional meeting is planned Monday between the foreign ministers of Iran and other Gulf countries about talks between Tehran and Oman — located on the other side of the Strait of Hormuz — on managing shipping there.
Commercial ship traffic remains low on what had been considered an international waterway before the war. Iran has expressed interest in having ships pay fees for transit. It has said traffic into the Persian Gulf from the Gulf of Oman would pass entirely through Iranian waters, while the outbound route would pass partly through Iranian waters and partly through Oman’s territorial waters.
“The waterway would be opened up on the condition that the U.S. will terminate its blockade,” Iran's president said in his interview with the Indian broadcaster. The U.S. military on Saturday said its forces had redirected 100 commercial vessels over the past 60 days.
Bahrain, however, said it will not attend any group meeting including Iran before the restoration of diplomatic relations between the countries.
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Anna reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Jill Lawless and Darlene Superville in Dublin and Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.
