Aramco clears Dhahran offices as Dammam airport toll rises to two

What changed since chapter seventeen

Since chapter seventeen, Saudi Arabia's aviation authority raised the Dammam airport toll to two dead on Thursday 22 October, and Aramco told staff to leave its Dhahran headquarters, Reuters reported. ^{[1, 6]}

Six people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters that Aramco staff were told to evacuate the building and work remotely. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment, Reuters reported. ^{[6, 15]}

Brent crude futures were $112.33 a barrel at 1:05 p.m. New York time on Thursday, on track for the highest close since 4 May, Reuters reported. The New York Times reported US and Israeli plans for renewed strikes on Iran after the 3 November midterms, Haaretz and ABC News reported. ^{[7, 10, 9]}

The record

The General Authority of Civil Aviation said a Saudi citizen and an Indian resident died in Wednesday's attack on King Fahd International Airport, Saudi Gazette reported. Eight people remain injured, and airport operations have resumed with air traffic back to normal, the authority said. ^{[1, 2, 3]}

The coalition fighting the Houthis said it intercepted nine drones on Thursday: five over the Riyadh and Madinah regions and four over the Eastern Province, its spokesman Turki Al-Maliki said, The Nation reported. ^{[4, 11]}

Aramco chief executive Amin Nasser told Al Arabiya Business that the East-West pipeline, which bypasses the Strait of Hormuz, has grown from 2 million to 7 million barrels a day, CBS News reported. ^[8]

Asked about the Times report, a White House official said the administration does not comment on 'sensitive military plans that may or may not exist,' ABC News reported. Spokesperson Anna Kelly said the United States 'will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to the midterm elections.' The Pentagon declined to comment. ^[9]

Who it reaches

Valero Energy (VLO) is adjacent: its third-quarter release, filed on Thursday, reported net income of $6.8 billion against $1.1 billion a year earlier. Reuters reported that the Middle East disruption sent refining margins soaring in the quarter. ^{[13, 7]}

DHT Holdings (DHT) is adjacent: it is an independent crude oil tanker company whose fleet consists of very large crude carriers, it said on Monday 12 October. Morgan Stanley estimated Middle East crude exports at around 17 million barrels a day last week, Reuters reported. ^{[14, 7]}

Egypt is reached through its parliament: the vote on letting President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi approve any Saudi request for defence help was adjourned to Monday 26 October, Al Jazeera reported. Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty urged a political solution on Thursday, CBS News reported. ^{[12, 8]}

Where the sources disagree

Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree claimed four operations in 48 hours, on the Defense Ministry in Riyadh, Dammam's airport, an Aramco site in Yanbu and Abha's airport, CBS News reported. Saudi authorities did not confirm the Yanbu and Riyadh attacks, Reuters reported, and GACA's statement assigned no blame. ^{[8, 6, 1]}

Iran's Revolutionary Guard said it hit four vessels and that three more struck mines, ABC News and the Associated Press reported. President Trump wrote that Iran was 'making up fake hits, mines,' CBS News reported. The IMO's confirmed list, 120 incidents and 24 seafarer deaths as at 22 October, has no entry dated after 20 October. ^{[11, 8, 5]}

Brent's figures differ by source and hour: a session high of $112.55 per Reuters, $112.27 per the Associated Press, and about $113 per CBS News. GACA's injury wording reads 'minor to critical' in Saudi Gazette and 'minor to serious' in Gulf News. ^{[6, 8, 1, 2]}

What settles it next

Egypt's parliament votes on Monday 26 October, needing a two-thirds majority, Al Jazeera reported. The US midterms fall on Tuesday 3 November, ABC News reported. GACA said its damage assessment at Dammam continues; the IMO's next update and any new US mission alert are undated. ^{[12, 9, 1, 5, 16]}