Abqaiq and Khurais attack (2019)

On September 14, 2019, before dawn, drones and missiles strike two Saudi Aramco sites: the Abqaiq crude stabilization plant, the largest in the world, and the Khurais field. About 5.7 million barrels a day stop, more than half of Saudi production and about five percent of world supply. The following Monday, Brent jumps almost 20% intraday, its biggest intraday rise since January 1991, before falling back to close up 14.6%, its largest one-day gain since at least 1988. Yemen's Houthis claim the attack; the United States and Saudi Arabia attribute it to Iran, which denies it. Production is restored within weeks, thanks to stocks and very fast repair work. For insurers, the loss runs into a contract boundary. Property policies nearly all contain a war exclusion, and one for terrorism or hostile act depending on the market. An attack claimed by an armed movement and attributed to a state strains both: who is behind it, and under which cover does the loss fall? Political violence cover, sold separately in London, saw rates rise in the region, and capacity tightened. This is political risk inside a property contract, and the same question arises in cyber when an attack is attributed to a state. Not to be confused with the Nord Stream sabotage, which targeted subsea infrastructure.