Iran Escalates Attacks on American Bases in Gulf Countries

SadaNews - Tensions in the Arabian Gulf region escalated on Monday morning, as American and Saudi sites were subjected to numerous Iranian attacks, while the Kuwaiti and Qatari air defenses intercepted several missiles and drones.

Kuwait witnessed smoke rising around the US embassy, where the embassy asked American citizens to stay indoors and exercise utmost caution, following a continuous threat of missile and drone attacks.

The Kuwaiti Ministry of Defense also announced the downing of several American fighter jets with their crews surviving, as joint investigations continue to determine the causes of the incidents.

Kuwaiti authorities confirmed the interception of several drones that were reportedly targeting the country, with Mohammed Al-Mansouri, Director of the General Administration of Civil Defense at the Ministry of Interior, stating that the air defense forces effectively repelled hostile aerial targets near the areas of Al-Rumaithiya and Salwa early this morning, with no injuries reported, and the situation remained stable.

In Saudi Arabia, a refinery belonging to Aramco in Ras Tanura was shut down as a precaution after it was attacked by a drone, while shrapnel from a missile injured workers at the Al-Ahmadi port refinery in Kuwait without halting production.

The Ras Tanura refinery on the Gulf coast was targeted on Monday, a source familiar with the matter told AFP, while Iran launched a series of new attacks targeting Gulf countries.

The source reported that the targeting caused a fire, but it was extinguished.

The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) quoted the spokesman of the Saudi army as saying that "two drones attempting to attack the Ras Tanura refinery this morning were intercepted and destroyed," noting the outbreak of a "limited fire due to the falling debris during the interception, without any civilian casualties."

The spokesman for the Khatam al-Anbiya Command announced attacks on the American base in Ali Al-Salem, with the American aircraft carrier Lincoln hit by four cruise missiles, along with attacks on the American naval base in Bahrain by four drones, injuring three American and British oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran's attacks resulted in at least one death in Kuwait and 32 injuries among foreign nationals, while an Asian worker was killed and two others were injured following a fire on a ship in the Salman Industrial City in Bahrain caused by intercepted missile debris.

Meanwhile, the Foreign Ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council stressed that the option of responding to Iranian aggression is officially on the table, emphasizing that the attacks represent a serious violation of the sovereignty of the countries, rejecting any use of their lands to launch attacks on Iran, at a time when Gulf countries are experiencing a critical moment in the course of regional conflict.