On 15 September, Badr Organization member Mahmoud al-Hayani denied that resistance factions struck Saudi Arabia and said Israel or another outside actor might have sought to disrupt faction-government understandings. Awafiya Movement member Ali al-Fatlawi instead accused Ukraine of involvement and portrayed the attack as an attempt to provoke confrontation between Baghdad and Riyadh. Three faction commanders had earlier attributed the drone attack to a small armed network operating under a senior IRGC commander.
- The New Region13 Sept, 20:25
“A small armed network operating under the command of a senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander carried out Thursday’s drone attack on Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline.”
- Alsumaria15 Sept, 10:34
“Iraqi officials and politicians excluded the involvement of Yemen, Iran or the known Iraqi factions, suggesting a third party was behind the operation, amid direct accusations against Ukraine and other theories pointing to possible US and Israeli involvement.”
استبعد مسؤولون وسياسيون عراقيون تورط اليمن أو إيران أو الفصائل العراقية المعروفة بالهجوم، مرجحين وقوف جهة ثالثة وراء العملية، وسط اتهامات مباشرة لأوكرانيا بالضلوع فيها، وفرضيات أخرى تشير إلى احتمال تورط الولايات المتحدة وإسرائيل.
- Ultra Iraq15 Sept, 20:29
“There is no truth to claims that the resistance factions were involved in striking Saudi Arabia. A third party may be seeking to confuse matters and spoil understandings between the government and the factions, and that party may be Israel or other outside actors.”