Oil tanker ablaze after sea-drone attack off Russian Black Sea coast

"An oil tanker caught fire off Russia’s Black Sea coast after being attacked by unmanned boats near Sochi, the Russian Transport Ministry has said. Its 23-member crew of Indian nationals were all rescued and no injuries have been reported.

The Liberian-flagged Aframax Rio, which was carrying crude, was struck by sea drones on Tuesday, according to the ministry. The attack triggered an oil fire in the Black Sea, with emergency crews initially unable to approach the tanker because of the intensity of the blaze.
Russian Transport Minister Andrey Nikitin convened an emergency response headquarters, while the ministry said sufficient personnel and equipment had been deployed to deal with the consequences." RT

Trump Rejects Iran Hormuz Deal: ‘They’re Losing So Badly’ — ‘Greatest Blockade Ever in Military History

"President Donald Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, saying Tehran is “losing so badly” after the U.S. turned its attempt to close the waterway against it with what he called the “greatest blockade ever in military history” — while making clear he remains willing to reach an agreement on

terms he considers acceptable.
“They want to make a deal where they open the Strait immediately because they’re losing so badly,” Trump told reporters.
Trump contrasted Iran’s isolation with the growing commercial traffic moving through Hormuz under U.S. protection, saying Washington is “winning tremendously” and reiterating that the United States has “total control” of the strategic waterway.
“They outsmarted themselves,” Trump said. “They said, ‘Let’s close it and cause a problem for the world.’” Trump said the United States responded by effectively reversing Iran’s strategy.
“And then I came along, and we put up the greatest blockade ever in military history,” he said. “It’s a wall of steel.”
The result, Trump argued, is a strait increasingly open to international commerce under U.S. protection but effectively closed to the Iranian revenues Tehran depends on.
“They don’t have any money now, because they wanted to close the Strait,” Trump said. “And I said, that’s fine. We’re going to close it on you, but everybody else is able to use it.” 

Breitbart

France Sending Soldiers To Saudi, Stating "Not Getting Involved In Any Conflict"

"The Wall Street Journal reports France to Deploy Forces to Protect Saudi Red Sea Oil Port

"We are going to send military assets, that is, soldiers, radar systems, and defense systems to protect this site," Macron said in a TV interview on Thursday. However, he stressed that France was "not getting involved in any conflict," adding that the decision had been finalized with Saudi authorities." ZeroHedge

Ukrainian forces strike Russian oil refinery in Samara Oblast in overnight drone attack

"The Kuibyshev oil refinery in the Russian city of Samara was hit in an overnight drone attack by Ukrainian forces on Sept. 22.
Located along the Volga River in southwest Russia, around 765 kilometers (475 miles) from the Ukrainian border, the crude distillation plant can produce up to 10,000 metric tons (73,000 barrels) of oil per day, according to Reuters. The refinery processes around 3.7 million tons of oil annually and supplies fuel products used by Russia's military-industrial sector and armed forces." KI

Moscow Oil Refinery ablaze after massive Ukraine missile, drone blitz on Russia

"Ukraine launched a massive drone and missile attack across Russia overnight on Sept. 20,

sparking a huge blaze in Moscow on the final day of Russia's parliamentary elections.
President Volodymyr Zelensky and the General Staff confirmed the Gazpromneft-Moscow Oil Refinery had been targeted and set ablaze, and multiple videos posted on social media showed the Russian capital's morning skyline filled with smoke.
"Our long-range responses had a very significant impact in the Moscow region last night," Zelensky said." UN

Trump signs 'Graham sanctioning Russia act'

"U.S. President Donald Trump has signed into law sanctions legislation against Russia initiated by the late Senator Lindsey Graham.

The legislation gives the U.S. president the authority to impose tariffs of up to 100% on goods from countries that are among the largest buyers of Russian oil or gas. These primarily include China and India.
The law provides for new sanctions against Russian officials and oligarchs, banks, energy and defense companies, as well as "shadow fleet" vessels used to circumvent restrictions.
An exception will apply to countries where Russian gas imports over a 12-month period accounted for less than 15% of Russia's total gas exports, provided that those countries have taken significant steps to reduce their purchases of energy from Russia." Ukrin

Energy Truce In Shambles: Ukraine Strikes Russian Refinery Despite Trump's Warning Amid Global Diesel Crisis

"President Volodymyr Zelensky said on X that Ukrainian forces struck the Syzran refinery in Russia's Samara region, about 75 miles west of Samara and 466 miles southeast of Moscow. The strike comes days after President Trump urged Ukraine to halt attacks on Russian refineries, as average U.S. retail diesel prices jumped above $6 a gallon and alarming disruptions to global refining capacity threaten fuel supplies ahead of the Northern Hemisphere winter." ZeroHedge

Arab Spring 2.0? Fuel Riots Erupt In Syria As Instability Spreads Across Mideast

"New footage posted on X shows what appear to be protests, the anger is erupting because of skyrocketing fuel costs, reminiscent of the Arab Spring food riots 15 years ago.
i24NEWS reports that demonstrations have popped up in parts of Raqqa, Hasakah and Deir ez-Zor provinces, with protesters blocking roads and stopping oil tankers as rising energy costs intensify affordability pressures.
Syrian Energy Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said yesterday that Syria is producing about 102,000 barrels of oil per day, while it needs about 325,000 barrels per day for domestic consumption and is relying on imports to make up the difference." ZeroHedge

Trump calls on Ukraine to stop attacks on Russian oil refineries

"U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday called on Ukraine to stop carrying out strikes on Russian oil refineries amid a sharp rise in diesel fuel prices worldwide.

Trump said officials from his administration had asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to stop drone and missile attacks on any Russian sites that produce diesel.
"Mr. Zelensky has to do one thing. He has to stop knocking out diesel fuel in Russia. Let him go after targets but not diesel fuel, because he's causing a shortage of diesel fuel," Trump said." Ukrin

Drones halt Saudi pipeline carrying 5% of global oil supplies

"The East-West pipeline (1,200 km) transported 4-5 million barrels per day – 4-5% of global supply..

The Saudi ministry reported that the drones originated from Iraqi territory, where Iran-backed groups operate.

Satellite imagery showed black smoke over a section south of Medina; Iraq dismissed a military commander." MSN

Atesh says agent destroyed communications tower before Ukrainian strike on Perm refinery

"Agents of the Atesh partisan movement destroyed a communications tower near the Russian city of Perm shortly before Ukrainian forces struck the Lukoil-Permnefteorgsintez oil refinery, the group said." NV

Iran: Several Ballistic Missiles Fired At U.S. Aircraft Carrier, Navy Destroyer

"Iran state media is releasing footage of its own Saturday action against U.S. assets in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, as part of the fresh weekend tit-for-tat fighting with the United States. Per state PressTV and IRIB, it seems Tehran is saying it has targeted six vessels:

U.S. Central Command confirmed on X that U.S. forces struck three Iranian oil tankers after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched ballistic missiles toward two U.S. Navy warships.
CENTCOM provided details:
"Following Iran's failed attacks, CENTCOM permanently disabled the IRGC crude oil carriers M/T Downy off the coast of Kharg Island and M/T Stark 1 near Jask. American forces also completely destroyed the unladen crude oil carrier M/T Kylo (also known as the "Noxen") in the Gulf of Oman, striking the vessel in multiple critical locations to render it inoperable after the crew was directed to abandon ship.
The three Iranian crude oil tankers are part of a multibillion-dollar shadow network that funds the IRGC and its regional proxies. Iran has no means by which to defend them." ZeroHedge

Drones attack Kirishi: industrial zone near one of Russia's largest oil refineries on fire after strike

"In the night drones attacked the Leningrad Oblast of Russia. In the city of Kirishi, home to one of Russia’s largest oil refineries, a fire broke out in an industrial area following the attack." NI

Ukraine hits Russia's Afipsky oil refinery and Astrakhan gas processing plant

"Ukraine's defence forces attacked the Afipsky oil refinery in Russia's Krasnodar Krai in the night and struck gas separation units at the Astrakhan gas processing plant in the night. Both facilities are involved in supplying the Russian military." msn

"Iran Is Losing Its Grip On Hormuz": Strait Traffic Explodes Nearly 400%

"Nearly 200 Ships Navigated Strait Last Week, Up From 150 the Previous Week.
Trump Views Hormuz As "an American Territory".
Axios: 40 Tankers Transited Hormuz Friday Night, But Real Crisis Is Diesel.
Hormuz Commercial Traffic Surges
Shortly after President Trump declared the Strait of Hormuz "anAmerican territory" on Friday evening, the New York Post published a new report citing UK Maritime Trade Operations data showing that commercial traffic through the critical waterway has rebounded sharply as more vessels use a US-backed route along Oman's coast. This suggests that the US military presence and offensive operations in the region have degraded Tehran's ability to fully control the waterway." 

ZeroHedge

Drones strike oil refinery in Samara Oblast and Ozon logistics hub in Russia for first time

"Russian social media channels also reported an attack on an Ozon facility in Samara. It was

the first reported strike on an Ozon logistics hub in Russia.
The Novokuibyshevsk oil refinery is located in Samara Oblast and is owned by Rosneft. The facility has a design capacity of about 8.8 million metric tons of crude oil per year.
The refinery has been targeted by drones several times. It temporarily suspended operations following previous attacks.
Other Russian oil refineries, including facilities in Perm and Nizhnekamsk, have also come under attack recently." msn

Drone attack reported on oil refinery in Russia's Perm

"A drone attack was reported at an oil refinery in Russia's Perm Krai, according to Telegram media channels.
Videos shared by Ukrainian Telegram channel Exilenova+ purportedly show explosions and a fire in Perm, a city roughly 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) from Ukraine.
Exilenova+ said local residents reported a series of explosions at the refinery. OSINT analysts from ASTRA, an independent Russian Telegram channel, geolocated footage showing smoke rising near the Lukoil-Permnefteorgsintez oil refinery." KI

Attack on Taman energy bridge sparks blackouts across occupied Crimea

"Strike drones attacked the 500 kV Taman electrical substation and the Tamanneftegas oil

terminal in Russia’s Krasnodar Krai.
The targeted 500 kV substation serves as one of the primary electrical hubs for the energy bridge supplying power to the temporarily occupied Crimean peninsula.
A series of powerful explosions shook occupied Sevastopol, after which widespread electricity disruptions were recorded in Simferopol and Dzhankoi. The ATESH partisan movement also reported explosions near a local thermal power plant in Simferopol." NI

Port infrastructure damaged in Ukrainian drone strike on Russia's Leningrad Oblast

"Ukraine's military reportedly launched a drone attack on Russia's Leningrad Oblast overnight on Aug. 13, damaging "port infrastructure" in Ust-Luga, regional Governor Alexander

Drozdenko said.
Ust-Luga is one of Russia's largest ports on the Baltic Sea and home to an oil terminal that serves as a major hub for the export of crude oil and petroleum products. Located west of St Petersburg, far from Ukraine's border, the port plays an important role in generating revenue for the state budget.
Drozdenko said that a fire was burning at the port amid a wide-ranging drone attack on the region. Officials claimed that 51 Ukrainian drones were downed over Leningrad Oblast." KI

Drone attack ignites massive fire at major oil refinery in Orsk, deep inside Russia

"A long-range drone attack targeted an oil refinery in Orsk, deep inside Russia’s Orenburg Oblast, igniting a massive industrial blaze. The resulting explosion ignited a massive fire at the facility, with early damage assessments suggesting the strike may have hit its core crude distillation or hydrocracking units." NV