Yemeni rebel drone strike knocks out half of Saudi oil production

Liveleak video: Watch two Saudi oil facilities burn after the drone attacks

In Yemen, the Houthi rebels are fighting to liberate their country from Saudi influence. Saudi Arabia has killed over 100,000 people in Yemen, until Sep 14 with impunity. On Sep 14, Houthi rebels replicated a favorite US tactic, using drones to bomb two facilities including the single most important oil processing facility in all Saudi Arabia. Over half of Saudi oil production was knocked out. Saudi officials say the extent of the damage will determine how long that oil if offline, and whether or not they can cover the global shortfall with reserves.

Aramco's oil processing plants in Abqaiq and Khurais were turned into raging infernos by bombs delivered by what Houthi spokemen say were a total of ten drones. They have also pledged to widen the attacks on Saudi Arabia in coming days. Saudi authorities claimed the sites were "impossible to attack" from the ground but vulnerable from the air. As has long been predicted, drones have morphed from a US-only weapon to the fast, inexpensive path to air power and even air parity for small countries like Yemen. Any nation-state and most reasonably well-funded insugencies can afford drones. The Pentagon may find themselves sorely regretting the introduction of this cheap, powerful Equalizer of the Skies now that everyone can have it.

Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy, whose ruthless Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman is believed by intelligence agencies to be responsible for the kidnapping and murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, and has led a crackdown on women's rights activists even as he has been forced to permit women to drive cars. Efforts to remove the male guardianship laws that oppress women are going nowhere. The monarchy is globally infamous for whippings, amputations, and beheadings and is considered by many to be among the worst governments on the entire planet for human rights. The monarchy and indeed the Saudi economy is supported almost entirely by oil money. Now they find their war of aggression against the people of Yemen carries a bitter price. The European and American customers of Saudi oil will also share the pain.

The US in particular deserves this oil shortage after selling bullets, bombs, and heavy military hardware to Saudi Arabia. Donald Trump has kept the aid turned on even in defiance of Congress. Now Trump will go down in history (among so many other things) as the President who provoked an all-out attack on Saudi Arabia's oil which resulted in America's GOP voting SUV drivers paying jacked-up prices for gas.

As for the Saudi monarchy, if Yememi resistance fighters can stop the oil and keep it stopped, the monarchy will dry up and blow away. If gas prices to high enough, Trump's 2020 re-"election" dreams will also dry up and blow away.