I'm LongbridgeAI, I can summarize articles.Satellite data indicates thermal anomalies near Saudi Arabia's East-West oil pipeline, raising unconfirmed reports that Yemen's Houthis struck the facility. The pipeline, a critical 7 million-barrel-per-day lifeline, is under threat as Houthi forces capture Mocha, expanding control over Red Sea shipping routes. This escalation coincides with heightened tensions between the U.S. and Iran, including mutual claims of military strikes on vessels.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis may have struck Saudi Arabia’s critical East-West oil pipeline, which runs roughly 746 miles from Abqaiq in the kingdom’s Eastern Province to Yanbu on the Red Sea, although the alleged attack has not been independently confirmed.
Satellite Data Shows Fire
According to satellite images from NASA’s Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS) on Thursday, the agency detected eight thermal anomalies in the area, including several classified with high detection confidence. The data does not establish what caused the anomalies or whether the pipeline itself was hit.
Source: NASA FIRMS
Unverified satellite imagery, as well as ground images shared on the social media platform X, purport to show fire incidents that took place in the region.
BREAKING: First ground-level image of the massive 100 km black smoke column rising from Saudi Arabia's East-West crude pipeline, captured ~6h ago, after Yemen's Houthis struck the pipeline on multiple points, the same plume seen on Sentinel-3 satellite imagery. https://t.co/1Hkq30TpHa pic.twitter.com/1p9S8ghXlx
— The Hormuz Letter (@HormuzLetter) September 10, 2026
The East-West pipeline was constructed in the 1980s as an alternative to the Strait of Hormuz after tensions between Iran and Iraq threatened the movement of oil through the waterway. The pipeline has a capacity of 7 million barrels per day, according to a report by S&P Global in March 2026.
Read Also:Oil Rises After Houthi Attack on Saudi Vessels in Red Sea
Houthis Take Control of Mocha
The Houthis captured the port city of Mocha, which could expand the group’s control over the critical Red Sea coast and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a critical chokepoint connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and a key route for Saudi oil shipments traveling toward global markets. This comes as tensions between the U.S. and Iran have escalated, with President Donald Trump saying that he intends to rename the Strait of Hormuz the “Trump Strait.”
Meanwhile, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it struck two U.S. vessels, as well as multiple oil tankers, following U.S. strikes on Iranian oil vessels. However, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) denied the claims. Trump, on the other hand, said that the U.S. had hit nine Iranian oil vessels during a press briefing, but did not provide additional details.
Notably, the President had also said that the war with Iran would immediately end following the midterm elections set to take place in November, but economist Peter Schiff criticized the comments, calling them Trump’s latest lie.
Read Also:Peter Schiff Warns Trump’s SPR Drawdown Could Send Oil Prices Surging: ‘Imagine How Much Higher’