Iraqi Prime Minister dismisses Maysan police chief after drone strikes on Saudi pipeline

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi dismissed the police chief of the southeastern Maysan province Saturday and ordered investigations into the directors of its security agencies following drone strikes on a major pipeline in Saudi Arabia, Anadolu reports.

Military spokesman Sabah al-Numan said in a statement that al-Zaidi, in his capacity as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, had “ordered the dismissal of the Maysan provincial police chief.”

The prime minister also ordered the directors of the province’s security agencies to be transferred from their posts and referred for investigation, the statement added.

Al-Numan said the directives were issued “in light of the recent security breaches that occurred in the province,” without specifying their nature.

The measures came hours after al-Zaidi ordered the formation of an investigative committee to examine the conduct of the Maysan Operations Command and dismissed its commander.

Al-Numan said in an earlier statement that the decision was taken after it was established that attacks targeting Saudi Arabia had been launched from a location inside the province.

Baghdad has yet to announce the findings of its investigations or identify the perpetrators of the attacks or their affiliation.

Saudi Arabia said Friday that several drones launched from Iraq had struck the East-West oil pipeline in the Riyadh and Medina regions, causing injuries and material damage.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry said the kingdom had decided not to respond at this stage following a request from the Iraqi prime minister to allow his government to take measures to prevent Iraqi territory from being used to attack Saudi Arabia and neighboring countries.