Drone attack sparks fire on Kuwaiti tanker in UAE amid Iran’s Gulf attacks 

An apparent Iranian attack on a fully loaded Kuwaiti crude oil tanker at Dubai Port sparked a fire that was later extinguished, authorities said.

Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) said early on Tuesday that the Al Salmi tanker was struck in an Iranian attack while anchored at the port in the United Arab Emirates, causing damage to the vessel and a fire on board.

KPC warned of ‌a possible oil spill in surrounding waters, Kuwaiti state news agency KUNA reported.

Authorities in Dubai said there was a drone attack on the Kuwaiti oil tanker overnight, and response teams had contained the incident.

They added that no oil leakage or injuries were reported, according to the Dubai Media Office.

Multiple loud explosions were heard in Dubai, starting at around 6 or 7pm local time on Monday until about 1 or 2am on Tuesday, said Al Jazeera’s Zein Basravi, reporting from Dubai.

“These attacks seem to be getting closer, they’re getting louder, and one of them hit that oil tanker off the coast of the waters of Dubai,” he said.

“People certainly seem on high alert here again … You can hear those military jets overhead patrolling the skies,” Basravi added.

Work is now under way to assess damage to the tanker, said KPC, which, according to Lloyd’s List Intelligence data, is the parent company of Al Salmi’s registered owner and commercial operator.

The tanker was loaded with ⁠two million barrels of oil from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, according to data from Lloyd’s and TankerTrackers. Lloyd’s listed the destination as Qingdao, China.

The strike on the Al Salmi is the latest in a string of assaults on merchant vessels ⁠by missiles or explosive air and sea drones in the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz since the United States and Israel’s war on Iran began on February 28.

Earlier on Monday, a Greek-owned container ship located off the coast of Saudi ⁠Arabia’s Ras Tanura reported two separate incidents where projectiles hit water near the vessel, maritime security experts said.

Meanwhile, the operator of a Thai cargo ship struck by a projectile near the Strait of Hormuz said a search team was able to board the vessel but did not locate its three missing crew members.

The Mayuree Naree was disabled after being hit just north of Oman earlier this month.

Al Jazeera’s Malik Traina, reporting from Kuwait City on Tuesday, said there have been “numerous attacks” across the Gulf in the last several of hours, including in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain.

“In the UAE, four people suffered minor injuries in Dubai’s Al Badaa area,” he said.

“And Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, all announced they’ve been attacked overnight and have intercepted missiles and drones.”

On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia said its air defences intercepted and destroyed 10 drones and eight ballistic missiles during a new wave of attacks.

“Ten drones were intercepted and destroyed over the past few hours,” the Saudi Defense Ministry said in a statement on X, citing a ministry spokesperson. It added that seven ballistic missiles targeting the Riyadh region and one aimed at the Eastern Province were also intercepted and destroyed.

Iran’s foreign minister on Tuesday insisted that Tehran’s attacks on the Gulf Arab states only target US forces, even after assaults have hit civilian targets throughout the region.

“Iran respects the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and considers it a brotherly nation,” Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on X, sharing a photo purportedly showing damage to a US aircraft at Prince Sultan Air Base in the kingdom.

“Our operations are aimed at enemy aggressors who have no respect for Arabs or Iranians, nor can provide any security … High time to eject US forces.”