‘External Source’ Causes Oil Tanker Blast Off Saudi Arabia

‘External Source’ Causes Oil Tanker Blast Off Saudi Arabia
The Singapore-flagged oil tanker BW Rhine is seen in this file photo. Tommy Chia/Aerial Photographer SG via AP
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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates—An oil tanker off Saudi Arabia’s port city of Jiddah suffered an explosion early Monday after being hit by “an external source,” a shipping company said, suggesting another vessel has come under attack off the kingdom amid its yearslong war in Yemen.

The apparent attack on the Singapore-flagged BW Rhine, which had been contracted by the trading arm of the kingdom’s massive Saudi Arabian Oil Co., marks the fourth assault targeting Saudi energy infrastructure in a month. It also apparently shut down Jiddah port, the most important shipping point for the kingdom.