PNN – With the escalation of conflicts in the Middle East, the price of oil surpassed the $100-per-barrel mark for the first time in two months.
According to the report of Pakistan News Network citing The Guardian, this price surge follows concerns regarding disruptions to Red Sea shipping routes—triggered by an attack on a Saudi oil tanker—coinciding with heightened tensions and aggressive U.S. strikes on Iranian positions in the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf.
The last time the price of Brent crude—the global benchmark for oil prices—crossed the $100 threshold was in March, following aggressive attacks by the U.S. and the Zionist regime against Iran’s territorial integrity. Those attacks had brought fossil fuel exports from the Persian Gulf region via the Strait of Hormuz to a near-total halt.
Oil prices reached $126 per barrel in April at the height of the conflict, but fell back below $100 in late May and dropped to $71 per barrel in early July, driven by hopes for a ceasefire in the region.
Early this morning, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) confirmed that a Saudi oil tanker had been targeted and caught fire in the Red Sea.
According to the report, although the fire broke out in the forward section of the vessel, the incident resulted in no casualties or injuries.
Saudi Arabia’s admission followed an official statement by Yahya Saree, spokesman for the Yemeni Armed Forces, announcing a major, high-impact military operation against the Saudi oil fleet in the Red Sea and the interception of several commercial vessels.
He stated: We carried out a high-precision military operation, targeting two Saudi oil tankers—the Enselia and the Layla—that had violated the maritime blockade in the Red Sea.
This marks Yemen’s first attack on Saudi oil tankers, and media reports indicate that flames are still engulfing the targeted vessels.
Yemeni armed forces added that the operation was conducted using ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones, forcing approximately ten other ships to retreat and turn back.