Tag: saudi arabia

US soldiers ‘seriously’ wounded and planes damaged after Iranian missile attack on air base

Around a dozen US soldiers have reportedly been wounded and multiple planes damaged following an Iranian missile strike at a base in Saudi Arabia. 

The service members were on Prince Sultan Air Base when it was struck by at least one missile and several unmanned aerial vehicles on Friday, according to multiple US and Arab officials.

Twelve American soldiers were wounded in the attack, according to the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. 

Two service members are ‘very seriously injured’ while eight others are ‘seriously injured’, both a separate category under the military’s classification system, according to CBS News. The condition of others is unknown.

At least two KC-135 refueling planes suffered ‘significant damage’ in the combined missile and drone attack, according to the NYT. Satellite photos appeared to reveal the full extent of damage to the aircraft.

Friday’s strike represents one of the most serious breaches of US air defenses since the monthlong war with Iran began, as well as at least the second hit on Prince Sultan Air Base. 

An earlier March 1 strike on the base damaged five US refueling aircraft and claimed the life of 26-year-old Army Sgt. Benjamin N Pennington just days after he was wounded. 

Over 300 US troops have been wounded and at least 13 killed in the ongoing conflict, including about 225 with traumatic brain injuries from missile blasts, the US Central Command announced on Friday.

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‘Punish Iran’: Saudi Arabia & UAE Inch Closer To Joining US-Israeli War

Earlier this month, Elbridge Colby, a senior official in the US Department of War, held a call with Saudi Arabian Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman, who is also the brother and top adviser to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Iran’s attacks on US bases in the Gulf were heating up, and the US needed expanded access and overflight permissions. Saudi Arabia agreed to open King Fahd Air Base in Taif, in Western Saudi Arabia, to the Americans, multiple US and western officials familiar with the matter told Middle East Eye.

The base is important because it is farther from Iranian Shahed drones than Prince Sultan Air Base, which has come under repeated Iranian attacks. Taif is also close to Jeddah, the Red Sea port that has become a critical logistics hub since Iran effectively took control of the Strait of Hormuz. Current and former US officials tell MEE that if the Trump administration is preparing for a longer war on Iran, Jeddah may be critical for sustaining US armed forces. Thousands of US ground troops are en route to the region from East Asia. 

Saudi Arabia’s decision to expand base access, current and former officials say, underscores a shift in how the kingdom and some other Gulf states are responding to the US-Israeli war on Iran. “The attitude in Riyadh has shifted towards supporting the US war as a way to punish Iran for strikes,” a western official in the Gulf told MEE.

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Saudi oil giant warns of ‘catastrophic consequences’ from Iran war as three commercial ships are ‘attacked’ in Strait of Hormuz and Tehran tries to strangle world’s energy supplies

Saudi Arabia‘s state oil company has warned of ‘catastrophic consequences’ for the world’s oil markets if the Middle East war continues to choke exports, as three commercial ships were attacked in the Strait of Hormuz. 

The waterway is a chokepoint in the global oil trade, where roughly 20 per cent of the world’s oil would ordinarily pass through daily. 

But as a result of the roiling war, oil shipments have been largely blocked from using the shipping artery. And Iran said on Tuesday it would not allow ‘one litre of oil’ to be shipped from the Middle East if US and Israeli attacks continue.

Amin Nasser, the CEO of Aramco, said: ‘While we have faced disruptions in the past, this one by far is the biggest crisis the region’s oil and gas industry has faced.’

He admitted that while his firm, the world’s single biggest exporter of oil, was meeting most of its customers’ needs for now, this was only possible by tapping into storage facilities outside the Gulf. 

Nasser said that these stores cannot be used for ‘an extended period of time, but for the time being, we are capitalising on it.’ 

The CEO said: ‘There would be catastrophic consequences for the world’s oil markets, and the longer the disruption goes on … the more drastic the consequences for the global economy.’ 

The stark warning comes after three commercial ships were attacked in the Strait of Hormuz.

An attack on the Thailand-flagged bulk carrier Mayuree Naree from an ‘unknown projectile’, which was reported at 4.35am GMT, happened 11 nautical miles north of Oman and resulted in a fire onboard the ship. 

Iran today confirmed it had attacked the Mayuree Naree, adding: ‘The American aggressors and their partners have no right to pass.’

Authorities are searching for three missing crew members from the Mayuree Naree after 20 were rescued by the Omani navy. 

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Saudi Arabia Is Preparing to Strike Iran

Saudia Arabia is preparing to launch a counter-attack against Iran.

“Well-placed military and diplomatic sources in the region tell me Saudi Arabia is very close to allowing its air force to strike targets inside Iran after facing unprecedented missile and drone attacks on its civilians, including incoming missiles today targeting Daman, its fifth-largest city,” chief national security correspondent at Fox News, Jennifer Griffin revealed. “Quote, the next 24 hours is going to be intense, I’m told.”

She went on to explain that Operation Epic fury wouldn’t currently be possible without moves made in the first Trump administration, namely the Abraham Accords.

“What’s truly extraordinary, about this development is that it would not have been possible if Israel had not been brought in under U.S. Central Command at the end of the first Trump administration,” she said. “Carrying out airstrikes takes tremendous deconfliction and coordination. Israel used to be attached to the European command due to sensitivities with the Arab states that did not recognize Israel. That changed with the Abraham Accords.”

Griffin also said that the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) and the U.S. military are operating with distinct objectives.

Israeli forces are concentrating on decapitating regime leadership and striking command nodes in western Iran, along with targeting military industries, surface-to-surface missile systems, and other “terror regime” assets directly tied to threats against Israel. 

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US Embassy in Saudi Arabia hit in suspected Iranian drone attack: reports

The US Embassy in Saudi Arabia’s capital city of Riyadh was damaged in a suspected Iranian drone attack Monday night.

The embassy was hit by two drones, “resulting in a limited fire and minor material damage to the building,” a spokesperson for the Saudi defense ministry wrote on X.

A loud blast was heard, and a small fire was seen at the embassy,  Reuters reported. 

“The U.S. Mission to Saudi Arabia has issued a shelter in place notification for Jeddah, Riyadh and Dhahran and are limiting non-essential travel to any military installations in the region,” a “security alert” posted by the Riyadh embassy on X read.

“We recommend American citizens in the Kingdom to shelter in place immediately.”

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Saudi Arabia Bombs Yemeni Port, Claims Attack Targeted Weapons Bound for UAE-Backed Forces

Saudi Arabia on Tuesday bombed the southern Yemeni port city of Mukalla, claiming to target a weapons shipment bound for the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC), which has taken territory from Saudi-backed forces in recent weeks. It’s unclear at this point if there were any casualties in the strikes.

Riyadh said it targeted an arms shipment after ships from the UAE arrived at the port. “The ships’ crew had disabled tracking devices aboard the vessels, and unloaded a large amount of weapons and combat vehicles in support of the Southern Transitional Council’s forces,” the Saudi military said in a statement, according to The Associated Press.

“Considering that the aforementioned weapons constitute an imminent threat, and an escalation that threatens peace and stability, the Coalition Air Force has conducted this morning a limited airstrike that targeted weapons and military vehicles offloaded from the two vessels in Mukalla,” the statement added.

The UAE’s Foreign Ministry denied the Saudi claims but said that it had shipped vehicles to its own forces in Yemen and that Riyadh was aware of the shipment. “The ministry confirms that the shipment concerned did not include any weapons, and that the vehicles unloaded were not intended for any Yemeni party, but were shipped for use by UAE forces operating in Yemen,” the ministry said.

The UAE’s Defense Ministry later announced that it was pulling troops out of Yemen. “The Ministry of Defense announces the termination of the remaining counterterrorism teams in Yemen,” the ministry said, according to The Cradle, adding that the move came “of its own volition, ensuring the safety of its personnel, and in coordination with relevant partners.”

The Saudi strikes demonstrate fractures among the Gulf powers and the anti-Houthi coalition in Yemen, which formed the Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) back in 2022 when the Saudis gave up on their goal of re-installing former Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi in Sanaa, which has been under Houthi control since 2014.

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WHOA! Dave Chappelle SLAMS Bill Maher and Israel in Defense of Saudi Arabia Comedy Show: “F*ck That Guy”

Comedian Dave Chappelle came out guns blazing against critics of his appearance at the Riyadh Comedy Festival, in late September and early October, explicitly calling out Bill Maher and taking a shot at Israel. 

The strongly worded set was featured during his Netflix comedy special, “The Unstoppable,” which premiered on December 19.

Maher had criticized Chapelle last month for claiming that he is freer to make jokes in Saudi Arabia. “It’s easier to talk here than it is in America,”  Chapelle told an audience during a late September appearance. It can be recalled that Chapelle was nearly murdered for his jokes about trans people.

“Dave Chapelle was in the press today, saying that you can speak more freely over here than in America,” to which Louis C.K. responded, “I don’t know if that’s true.”

“Oh, it’s not true. Do your honk on Mohammed, Dave.”

Chapelle responded during the show, saying, “I didn’t tell them to put this in the paper. I just said it on stage. I said, ‘It’s easier to talk in Saudi Arabia for me than it is in America,’”

“I’ve known Bill since I was like 18/19, years old, and I’ve never said this publicly, but f*ck that guy,” Chappelle said. “I’m so f*cking tired of his little smug cracker ass commentary. These motherf*ckers act like because I did a comedy festival in Saudi Arabia, I somehow betrayed my principles.”

“They said, well, Saudi Arabia killed a journalist. And rest in peace, Jamal Khashoggi. I’m sorry that he got murdered in such a heinous fashion,” he continued in a nod to Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed by Saudi agents in Istanbul.

“I mean, look, bro, Israel’s killed 240 journalists in the last three months, so I didn’t know y’all was still counting.”

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Trump Stuns Press In Defending MbS Over Khashoggi Murder, As Saudis Float $1 Trillion Investment

Things were a bit rough during a Q&A with the White House press pool as Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) was at the White House Tuesday. One ABC reporter asked MbS point blank what he’s for many years tried to avoid being asked – about the murder of  journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Trump was none too happy about the question, and said it sought to ’embarrass’ a guest of the White House. 

“Who are you with? ABC? One of the worst in the business,” Trump had initially reacted, also after the journalist said that 9/11 families are not happy at MbS’ red carpet treatment in Washington. Despite US intelligence previously pointing to bin Salman’s role in overseeing the 2018 murder at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Trump brushed it off. The US president also went so far as to say of the victim, “You’re mentioning somebody that was extremely controversial.” And then he claimed MbS knew nothing about it. “A lot of people didn’t like that gentleman that you’re talking about, whether you like him or didn’t like him, things happen,” Trump also said in reference to Khashoggi.

But for this ‘positive PR’ and with the sitting US president running defense on behalf of the crown prince – which apparently has even resulted in Trump asking for ABC’s FCC license and right to broadcast to be revoked – bin Salman ‘must pay’. 

Indeed, MbS came bearing gifts. He committed the kingdom to increasing his planned investment into the U.S. economy to nearly $1 trillion. After this, the NY Times commented, “The new number the prince floated today, $1 trillion, is roughly the size of Saudi Arabia’s entire annual economic output.” 

Town Hall has broken this down as follows:

  • $750M+ already flowing into American manufacturing
  • $300M new gas-turbine investment in Greenville, SC
  • Tripling production at the SC plant
  • 500+ pieces NEW equipment installed
  • 1,800 real American manufacturing jobs created
  • Building skilled workforce pipeline with local communities
  • Supporting BOTH U.S. energy needs & Saudi demand
  • “REAL JOBS in the manufacturing space.”

“You’ve agreed to invest $600 billion into the United States and because he’s my friend, he might make it a trillion, but I’m going to have to work on him. But it’s 600. We can count on 600 billion. But, that number could go up a little bit higher,” Trump said Tuesday while speaking to MbS.

“That means investments in plants, in companies, money on Wall Street. And what it really means for everybody, what really counts is jobs. A lot of jobs. We have a lot of jobs,” Trump added.

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Is Saudi Arabia The Most Technocratic Nation On Earth?

Behold, the “Sky Stadium” announced by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as the latest jazzy edition to their utopian “smart city” project known as The Line or NEOM — an $8-trillion, 105-mile-long megastructure composed of two 1640-foot-high mirrored slabs that enclose a creamy nougat center of jungly foliage and water features integrated with apartments, offices, schools, and (of course) shopping. It’s completely insane, you understand. The Line was first featured on this site in August 2022. Three years on, the project is buckling under the weight of its psychotic grandiosity.

The 46,000-seat Sky Stadium will be perched 1,150-feet up and is slated to be completed in time for the 2034 Fifa football (soccer) World Cup. The initial A-I generated renderings at the top of the page show it suspended on a skyscraper above a sprawling city, but it is actually designed to be “nested” somewhere between the two slabs of The Line.

First announced in 2017 as part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030 diversification push, The Line was envisioned as a futuristic “cognitive city” with vertical urbanism, AI integration, 100-percent renewable energy (solar power), and 95-percent land preservation of its barren surroundings in the Tabuk province, “for nature.”

Dunno about you, but I’d be a little nervous about watching a soccer game 1,150-feet above the desert floor. Sounds like a super-gigantic version of one of those Sky Bridge” failures of the 1990s, where a mere hundred drunken people swilling margaritas collapse a hanging architectural folly in a Shopping Mall. We’ll stand by for the halftime show there.

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Virginia Democrat gubernatorial nominee worked at Saudi school known for Hamas links, jihadi grads

he Democratic gubernatorial nominee in Virginia worked for a Saudi government-controlled school just after 9/11, at a time when the Islamic academy was already controversial for being controlled by the Saudi royal family and for its extremist textbooks which taught hatred of non-Muslims.

Abigail Spanberger, a former Democratic congresswoman from Virginia, is currently the favorite to be the state’s next governor, according to polling averages. When it was revealed during her first congressional run in 2018 that she had worked for the Islamic Saudi Academy in northern Virginia during the 2002-2003 school year, Spanberger said that she was “proud” and “not ashamed” of her work history, despite the fact that, when she chose to work at the school, it was also already well known for its links to the terrorist group Hamas and for its recent graduates who had seemingly considered carrying out a jihad-inspired suicide attack in Israel.

The problematic nature of the Saudi academy — known as the ISA in shorthand — would be revealed even further in the years which followed.

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