A fuel transport ship, anchored in the fuel terminal in Jeddah, was attacked by an explosive-laden boat on Monday morning, an official spokesman at the Saudi Ministry of Energy has confirmed. In a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency, the ministry's spokesman said that the attack resulted in a small fire, which emergency units successfully extinguished. The incident did not result in any casualties, and there was no damage caused to the unloading facilities, nor any effect on supplies, the statement added. The spokesman condemned the terrorist attack, which came shortly after other attacks on another ship in Al-Shuqaiq, on the petroleum products distribution station in north Jeddah, and on the floating unloading platform of the petroleum products distribution station in Jizan. "These acts of terrorism and vandalism, directed against vital installations, go beyond the Kingdom and its vital facilities, to the security and stability of energy supplies to the world and the global economy," the spokesman warned. The spokesman emphasized the seriousness of such criminal acts and their destructive impact on maritime traffic, the security of petroleum exports, and the freedom of global trade. In addition, the spokesman highlighted the threat to coastal and regional waters and the risk of major environmental disasters that could result from the leakage of petroleum or petroleum products. The spokesman urged the world, more than ever before, to stand together against such subversive terrorist acts, and take practical deterrent measures against all terrorist perpetrators that implement and enable them. — SG
