Senin, 16 September 2019
Saudi Arabia: 6 million barrels of oil lost in drone attacks - Al Jazeera English
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBjESLkh3Hg
2019-09-16 08:01:28Z
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Global oil prices surge after Saudi Arabia drone attacks - Al Jazeera English
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rwh1GBixYYg
2019-09-16 05:41:53Z
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Minggu, 15 September 2019
Iran Denies It Is Behind Drone Attacks On Oil Refineries In Saudi Arabia - NPR
This satellite image shows smoke rising from Saudi Aramco's Abqaiq oil processing facility in Saudi Arabia. Planet Labs Inc./AP hide caption
Updated at 3:53 p.m. ET
Iran says it is not behind Saturday's drone attacks on oil refineries in Saudi Arabia, denying accusations from Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that Tehran was responsible for "an unprecedented attack on the world's energy supply."
Javad Zarif, Iran's foreign minister, said in a tweet on Sunday that Pompeo was turning from "max pressure" to "max deceit."
Having failed at "max pressure", @SecPompeo's turning to "max deceit"
US & its clients are stuck in Yemen because of illusion that weapon superiority will lead to military victory.
Blaming Iran won't end disaster. Accepting our April '15 proposal to end war & begin talks may.
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) September 15, 2019
Houthi rebels in Yemen, who are allied with Iran, have claimed responsibility for the attacks, and said 10 drones had targeted oil installations in Abqaiq and Khurais. Both are owned by state-owned Saudi Aramco.
Despite the Houthi claim, Pompeo on Saturday placed blame on Iran, accusing Zarif, and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani of duplicity.
"Tehran is behind nearly 100 attacks on Saudi Arabia while Rouhani and Zarif pretend to engage in diplomacy. Amid all the calls for de-escalation, Iran has now launched an unprecedented attack on the world's energy supply."
Pompeo also said there was nothing to back the Houthi claim of responsibility. "There is no evidence the attacks came from Yemen," Pompeo said.
Tehran is behind nearly 100 attacks on Saudi Arabia while Rouhani and Zarif pretend to engage in diplomacy. Amid all the calls for de-escalation, Iran has now launched an unprecedented attack on the world’s energy supply. There is no evidence the attacks came from Yemen.
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) September 14, 2019
Pompeo's remarks came amid rising tensions between Washington and Tehran following President Trump's decision last year to pull the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear deal. Under the 2015 agreement, Iran promised to restrict its nuclear program, but after the U.S. withdrew, Iran stopped fulfilling some of its commitments under the accord.
Roger Diwan, an energy expert at the IHS Markit consulting firm, says the damage to the refineries is extensive and bigger than originally thought. Diwan says the two installations that came under attack account for about 5% of global oil supply.
Saudi Aramco says the attack has put production of half of the country's daily oil output on hold.
"It's a very large disruption now. It will take time to bring on the units that have not been hit, but we know also that a certain number of critical units have been hit," Diwan says.
In the near term, he says, this won't reduce the amount of oil available on the market, because there is large volume of oil in storage in Saudi Arabia and other countries.
In a statement on Sunday, the U.S. Department of Energy said it "stands ready to deploy resources from the Strategic Petroleum Oil Reserves (SPRO) if necessary to offset any disruptions to oil markets as a result of this act of aggression."
Diwan says while the amount of oil available on the market may remain plentiful now, the attacks will ultimately impact its price.
"I think the price will have to reflect the changed conditions, and to reflect first, that we're going to be drawing down strategic inventory, second, that we've lost the spare capacity that the system had in Saudi Arabia," Diwan said.
He added the attacks are forcing oil markets to rethink assumptions that oil supplies are abundant and safe, and "to price the risk that all Saudi, and actually all Middle Eastern oil facilities can be hit by third parties with these types of drones."
https://www.npr.org/2019/09/15/761012161/iran-denies-it-is-behind-drone-attacks-on-oil-refineries-in-saudi-arabia
2019-09-15 19:09:00Z
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Tunisians vote in unpredictable presidential contest - Al Jazeera English
Voting ended in Tunisia on Sunday in the country's presidential election with most seeking a leader who can curtail high unemployment and a surging cost of living.
But with only about 35 percent of eligible voters taking the time to cast ballots, it was a blemish on the second presidential vote since longtime ruler Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was removed during the revolution in 2011.
Hours before polls closed, electoral commission head Nabil Baffoun urged Tunisians to get out and vote as by 3pm turnout stood only at 27.8 percent. In the 2014 election, turnout was higher than 50 percent.
Sunday's election was brought forward by the death in July of 92-year-old president Beji Caid Essebsi, who had served as head of state since 2014.
Haifa Baccouche said she was angry at the list of available candidates but still went out "to choose the best of a bad lot".
The woman in her 30s said she had no confidence in Tunisia's "mediocre political class", but she still wanted to exercise her right to vote and advance the country's fledgling democracy.
She summed up the feelings of many Tunisians exasperated by power struggles between politicians and their inability to combat unemployment and a high cost of living.
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Young Tunisians sceptical ahead of presidential election |
Baccouche has a degree in biology but works in a call centre, having failed to find a job in her field.
'Very worst up'
More than seven million people were eligible to choose among 24 challengers, including some of Tunisia's most prominent politicians.
Tunisia's president has limited powers - in charge of foreign policy, defence and national security - and governs alongside a prime minister chosen by parliament who has authority over domestic affairs.
Candidates must secure 50 percent of the vote to win outright, but if none of the hopefuls obtains a majority the two with the most votes will advance to a second, decisive round.
Polls opened at 8am (07:00 GMT) and some will remain open until 6pm, while others will close two hours earlier for security reasons.
Leila Thabbi, a 40-year-old housewife, came to the polls with her toddler.
"I am voting for the future of Tunisia for my children," Thabbi told Al Jazeera. "I am worried for Tunisia. The situation gets worse and worse, there are no opportunities, especially for my children."
The crowded field of 26 was narrowed slightly by the last-minute withdrawal of two candidates in favour of Defence Minister Abdelkarim Zbidi just before Saturday's campaign blackout.
Zbidi has pledged he will change Tunisia's constitution to strengthen the presidency.
Prominent candidates
Among the key players are media mogul Nabil Karoui - behind bars due to an ongoing money-laundering probe - Abdelfattah Mourou, who heads a first-time bid on behalf of his Islamist-inspired Ennahdha party, and Prime Minister Youssef Chahed.
Chahed's popularity has been tarnished by a slow economy and he has found himself having to vehemently deny accusations that Karoui's detention in late August was politically inspired.
Last week, Karoui, 56, launched an open-ended hunger strike but on Friday, an appeal to have the Tunisian businessman released from jail was rejected, his party and lawyers said.
Some hopefuls have tried to burnish anti-establishment credentials in a bid to distance themselves from a political elite discredited by personal quarrels.
One key newcomer is Kais Said, a 61-year-old law professor and expert on constitutional affairs, who has avoided attaching his bid to a political party, going door-to-door instead to drum up support for his conservative platform.
Publication of opinion polls has officially been banned since July, but it is apparent the shifting political landscape has left many voters undecided.
Standing in a queue at a polling station in Tunis, Radhia, 65, told Al Jazeera she did not know who she would vote for, and would decide once her turn came.
Meanwhile, Monder Jouini, a 58-year-old bookshop owner, said he was considering two candidates but remained undecided.
"I'm not worried, even if it is someone that I hate [who wins], that is elections - you vote and something happens," Jouini said, adding the president is not as important as the parliament.
Reporting from Tunis, Al Jazeera's Stefanie Dekker said voters at one polling station expressed hopes their vote was going to make a difference.
That's because "jobs, the economy, unemployment … and the security situation is worse than it was before 2011", Dekker said.
"The question people are asking here: 'What is democracy really giving them?'
"They want change, they don't just want another person to come and sit on the chair, as they say," Dekker added.
Distrust of the political elite has been deepened by an unemployment rate of 15 percent and a rise in the cost of living by close to 30 percent since 2016.
Some 70,000 security agents were deployed for the election, including 50,000 focused solely on polling stations, according to the interior ministry.
Exit polls are to be released overnight Sunday into Monday, but preliminary results were not expected from the electoral commission until Tuesday.
The date of the second and final round has not been announced, but it must happen by October 23 at the latest and may even take place on the same day as legislative polls, slated for October 6.
Additional reporting by Layli Foroudi in Tunis
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/09/tunisians-voting-unpredictable-presidential-contest-190915065803007.html
2019-09-15 18:58:00Z
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Attack on Saudi oil field a game-changer in Gulf confrontation - CNN
Several projectiles struck the Abiqaiq plant, starting a series of fires that quickly took out nearly half Saudi's oil production -- 5% of the global daily output -- and sparking fears about the security of the world's oil supplies.
It's unclear when Abiqaiq, which is operated by Saudi giant Aramco, will be fully operational again.
Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed the attack, saying that 10 drones had targeted Abiqaiq, as well as the Khurais oilfield. But attacks of this scale and accuracy would represent a sudden and remarkable increase in Houthi capabilities, and neither the United States nor Saudi Arabia is buying the claim.
The United States swiftly discounted the Houthi claim. Late Saturday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted: "Iran has now launched an unprecedented attack on the world's energy supply." And he added: "There is no evidence the attacks came from Yemen."
In response Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif accused Pompeo of engaging in deception. He wrote on Twitter: "Having failed at 'max pressure', @SecPompeo's turning to 'max deceit' US & its clients are stuck in Yemen because of illusion that weapon superiority will lead to military victory. Blaming Iran won't end disaster."
But where did this attack originate and who was behind it?
The Houthis have sent dozens of drones and short-range ballistic missiles against Saudi Arabia in the past two years. Many have been intercepted by Saudi air defenses; others have fallen harmlessly. A very few have caused limited damage and casualties.
Houthi drones are based on Iranian models, themselves often developed from North Korean technology. They are mostly short-range, up to 186 miles (300 km). However, a UN experts' panel reported in January on the deployment of longer-range drones "that would allow the Houthi forces to strike targets deep into Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates."
The UN panel said it had information that one had crashed within 18 miles (30 km) of Riyadh.
Even so, the maximum range of this system, dubbed the UAV-X, would be between 740 and 930 miles (1,200 and 1,500 km), depending on wind conditions. The distance from Houthi-held parts of Yemen to Abqaiq is about 800 miles (1,300 km).
A source with knowledge of the incident told CNN National Security Analyst Peter Bergen late Saturday that preliminary indications were the drones/missiles "did not originate from Yemen and likely originated from Iraq." A second source in the Gulf region told CNN that while there was no proof yet, the indications were that the attack originated in southern Iraq.
Pro-Iranian militia are well-entrenched in southern Iraq, and the Quds Force, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards unit in charge of foreign operations, has a presence there. Earlier this year, some regional analysts assessed that a drone attack on a pumping station at Afif in northern Saudi Arabia originated in Iraq. But no hard evidence was produced.
The Iraqi government Sunday issued a statement rejecting reports "about its land being used to attack Saudi oil facilities."
The Houthis themselves have suggested, without providing any evidence, that they had help from inside the kingdom for these latest attacks. Their spokesman Yahya Saree said the operation followed "an accurate intelligence operation and advance monitoring and cooperation of honorable people inside the kingdom."
Analysts take that to mean elements of the restive Shia population in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province. Abqaiq lies between the predominantly Shia area of Qatif and Ahsa, which has a substantial minority Shia population. But they caution that it's in the Houthis' interests to try to stir internal tensions and it seems far-fetched that local people could have assisted such an attack.
Wherever the attack originated and whoever pulled the trigger, these attacks are a step-change in what has already become a dangerous confrontation, with the sabotage of merchant shipping in the Gulf and the acute deterioration of the situation in Yemen, as well as several aerial attacks on Shia militia camps in Iraq in recent months.
While not confirming it was behind the attacks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel is prepared to strike at pro-Iranian actors wherever they are considered a threat, including in Iraq.
No previous attack, since the Yemen conflict began four years ago, has interrupted oil supplies. This one has taken 5.7 million barrels a day off the market and demonstrated the vulnerability of the pumping heart of Saudi Arabia's oil industry.
Saudi Arabia has invested heavily in advanced air defense systems. Ayham Kamal at the Eurasia Group says that the "critical problem for the kingdom is structural; most of Saudi Arabia's air defense systems are designed to defend against traditional threats and are ill-equipped to tackle asymmetrical aerial threats such as drones."
That vulnerability is enhanced when so many essential parts of the infrastructure -- "storage, processing, and compressor trains -- are located within a small area," he adds.
The attacks have drawn in the international community, with the US declaring that it is ready to open its Strategic Petroleum Reserve if necessary, and President Donald Trump calling Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
At present, there is plentiful oil on the market. OPEC and its producing ally Russia have cut production this year to support prices. But Saudi Arabia is normally the organization's "swing producer" with the ability to reduce or increase the flow as required. That ability is crimped for now.
Much depends on the damage reports, and what "work-arounds" might be possible to restore full production and soothe markets' nerves. "The most critical elements of Saudi Arabia's oil infrastructure include several redundancies," Kamal says.
How Saudi Arabia will respond in other ways -- such as redoubling its military campaign against the Houthis in Yemen -- is yet to be seen.
https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/15/middleeast/saudi-oil-attack-lister-analysis-intl/index.html
2019-09-15 12:11:00Z
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UK's Johnson draws comparison to Hulk, promises Brexit | TheHill - The Hill
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson drew comparisons between himself and a comic book hero in a recent interview in which he vowed to take the United Kingdom out of the European Union at the end of October, as planned.
“The madder Hulk gets, the stronger Hulk gets,” Johnson said in an interview with local media, according to Reuters. “Hulk always escaped, no matter how tightly bound in he seemed to be - and that is the case for this country. We will come out on October 31."
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“Banner might be bound in manacles, but when provoked he would explode out of them,” Johnson went on, referring to Bruce Banner, the character who transforms into the Hulk.
In the interview, Johnson reportedly also said he was “very confident” about his planned meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker next week.
“There’s a very, very good conversation going on about how to address the issues of the Northern Irish border. A huge amount of progress is being made,” Johnson said.
His comments come as his efforts to take U.K. out of the European Union without a deal on Oct. 31 continue to face opposition from lawmakers in Parliament, including members of his own party.
Johnson moved to suspend Parliament amid negotiations over his Brexit plan, and effort that is being challenged in court.
He also moved to request a snap election in recent weeks as a response to a bill passed by British lawmakers that sought to block his efforts take U.K. out of the European Union without a deal, but his push was defeated in the House of Commons earlier this month.
https://thehill.com/policy/international/461443-uks-johnson-draws-comparison-to-hulk-promises-brexit
2019-09-15 12:03:48Z
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Hong Kong police fire tear gas, water cannon after protesters hurl petrol bombs: Live updates - CNN
When Hong Kong’s ongoing mass demonstrations began on June 9, the streets were flooded by a peaceful sea of protesters, the majority of whom were dressed in white.
But in the 15 weeks since that day, the movement has transformed into something altogether bigger -- and more violent.
It's no longer about the withdrawal of an extradition bill, protesters are now calling for the "Liberation of Hong Kong."
Although today's demonstration started peacefully, it quickly turned into an aggressive face-off between police and protesters.
Earlier, black-clad protesters threw objects and smashed glass, tore bricks from the pavement and tossed petrol bombs. Riot police responded by firing water cannons with blue water and tear gas.
Now, the streets are left in disarray. Harcourt Road -- the street that leads to the city's Legislative Council -- is dyed blue and is marred with graffiti. There’s the faint smell of tear gas in the air.
With both protesters and police moving east, it seems likely that another face-off is on the cards.
https://www.cnn.com/asia/live-news/hong-kong-protests-sept-15-intl-hnk/index.html
2019-09-15 11:32:00Z
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