BP foreign staff evacuate from Iraq oil field due to drones: Report

(NewsNation) — Foreign staff working at an oil field in Iraq, run by British Petroleum (BP), were evacuated Thursday, three Iraqi oil industry sources told Reuters.

The foreign staff at Iraq’s Rumaila oilfield, one of the country’s largest, was evacuated after two unidentified drones landed in the field, the sources told the news outlet.

“We are taking all necessary steps to ⁠support our partners and ensure the safety of our people,” a BP spokesperson told the wire.

“We are continuously assessing the situation, have been communicating with those people under our duty of care and will address them directly should there be a need for any change,” they added.

Iraq forced to cut oil production

Due to the ongoing conflict in Iran, Iraq has been forced to cut oil production by nearly 1.5 million barrels per day as the country runs out of storage and can’t export crude oil, two Iraqi officials told Reuters earlier this week.

They added that the cuts to production could expand to 3 million in the coming days if its oil tankers cannot move freely through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which about a fifth of the world’s oil passes, and reach its loading ports.

President Trump announced Tuesday that the U.S. Navy would begin escorting tankers through the strait if necessary.

“No matter what, the United States will ensure the FREE FLOW of ENERGY to the WORLD,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.