Iran hits Kuwaiti oil refinery and explosions boom over Tehran from Israeli attack
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — An oil refinery in Kuwait was attacked by Iranian drones early Friday, sending sirens blaring warning of incoming fire in Israel and explosions over Tehran as Israel struck Iran as Iran celebrated the Persian New Year.
Aspect war As we approach the end of the third week that shook the global economy, Iran showed no signs of giving up its attacks on the energy structure of the Gulf region, while Kuwait said that drone attacks on the Mina Al-Ahmadi oil refinery caused a fire and teams were trying to control the fire.
The refinery, which can process about 730,000 barrels of oil per day, had already been damaged in another Iranian attack on Thursday. It is one of three oil refineries in Kuwait, a small, oil-rich country on the Persian Gulf.
Iran on Wednesday stepped up attacks on energy facilities in Gulf Arab countries after Israel bombed Iran’s large South Pars offshore natural gas field in the Persian Gulf.
Explosions shook Dubai and a warehouse in Bahrain was set on fire
The violent explosions shook Dubai as air defenses responded to early fire in the city, where people were celebrating Eid al-Fitr and mosques were making the first call to prayer of the day.
Bahrain’s Interior Ministry said a fire broke out when shrapnel from an intercepted bullet fell into a warehouse, and Saudi Arabia reported that several drones targeting the oil-rich Eastern Province were shot down.
The renewed attacks come after a busy day in which Iran hit energy infrastructure in the region and launched more than a dozen missile salvos at Israel following the attack on South Pars.
South Pars, the Iranian part of the world’s largest gas field, is located offshore in the Persian Gulf and is jointly owned by Qatar. Since approximately 80% of the electricity produced in Iran comes from natural gas, the attack posed a direct threat to the country’s electricity supplies.
Fears rise about global energy crisis
Late Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would postpone any attack on the country’s gas field at the request of US President Donald Trump after Iran’s response caused oil prices to soar.
Beyond Iran’s attacks on its Arab neighbors in the Gulf, there is also its stranglehold on shipping through Iran. Strait of HormuzTürkiye, a strategic waterway through which one fifth of the world’s oil and other critical goods are transported, has caused increased concerns about the global energy crisis.
Brent crude oilThe international standard, which rose above $119 a barrel during Iran’s attacks on Thursday, was around $107 in morning trade on Friday; That’s up more than 47% since Israel and the United States attacked Iran on Feb. 28 to spark the conflict.
Sirens in Israel and explosions in Tehran
Warning sirens blared in Israel early Friday about attacks on Jerusalem and the north of the country, sending people rushing to shelter again. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
Not long after Israel announced that it had started new attacks against Iran, explosions were heard in Tehran while Iranians were celebrating Nowruz, the Persian New Year. Further details were not immediately available.
More than 1,300 people were killed in Iran during the war. Israeli attacks on the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon have displaced more than 1 million people, according to the Lebanese government, which says more than 1,000 have been killed. Israel says it has killed more than 500 Hezbollah militants.
15 people lost their lives in an Iranian missile attack in Israel. Four people also died in Iran’s missile attack in the occupied West Bank.
At least 13 US soldiers were killed.
UAE arrests five people accused of trying to undermine the country’s financial stability
The UAE said Friday it had disrupted what it called “a terrorist network funded and operated by Lebanese Hezbollah and Iran.”
The court arrested five people accused of money laundering for allegedly “operating under a fictitious commercial cover within the country” trying to carry out plans that would threaten the country’s financial stability.
He published pictures of the five prisoners on the state-run WAM news agency, without identifying them.
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The rises were reported from Bangkok. Giovanna Dell’Orto in Miami, Florida, contributed to this report.
