Giant Oil Tanker off Dubai Hit by Iranian Strike

EPA

ran attacked a Kuwait-flagged crude oil tanker off Dubai.

Iran attacked and set ablaze a fully loaded crude oil tanker off Dubai on Monday, as US President Donald Trump warned that Washington would target Iran’s energy infrastructure if it fails to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The strike on the Kuwait-flagged Al-Salmi marks the latest in a series of attacks on merchant vessels using missiles and explosive drones in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz since US and Israeli strikes on Iran began on 28 February.

The month-long conflict has spread across the Middle East, resulting in thousands of deaths, disrupting energy supplies and raising fears of a severe global economic downturn. Oil prices briefly surged following the attack on the tanker, which can carry around two million barrels of crude valued at more than $200 million at current prices.

Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, the vessel’s owner, said the incident occurred early on Tuesday, causing a fire and damage to the hull, but no injuries were reported.

Authorities in Dubai later confirmed that the fire had been brought under control following what they described as a drone attack on the tanker, again reporting no casualties.

Rising oil and fuel prices have begun to weigh on US household finances, posing a political challenge for Trump and his Republican Party ahead of the November midterm elections, after pledges to lower energy costs and increase domestic oil and gas production.

The US national average price of petrol surpassed $4 per gallon on Monday for the first time in more than three years, according to GasBuddy, as tightening global supply pushed US crude prices above $101 per barrel.

Hostilities show no signs of easing, with fears growing of a wider regional conflict.

Iran-aligned Houthi forces have entered the conflict, launching missiles and drones at Israel in recent days, while Türkiye reported that a ballistic missile fired from Iran entered its airspace before being intercepted by NATO air defences.

Israel has carried out strikes on what it described as military infrastructure in Tehran, as well as facilities linked to Iran-backed Hezbollah in Beirut, sending plumes of smoke over the Lebanese capital.

Explosions were reported in eastern and western Tehran shortly after Israel issued warnings of imminent strikes, according to Iran’s Tasnim news agency. Residents in the Pirouzi district reported power outages, while officials from Iran’s Energy Ministry worked to restore electricity.

The Israeli military said early on Tuesday that four soldiers had been killed in southern Lebanon, the same area where three United Nations peacekeepers from Indonesia were killed in separate incidents in recent days.

Iran’s military spokesperson said targets in its latest wave of missile and drone attacks included locations described as “hideouts” of US personnel at five bases in the region, as well as sites in Israel.

Meanwhile, thousands of troops from the US Army’s 82nd Airborne Division have begun arriving in the Middle East, US officials told Reuters, as part of reinforcements that could expand Washington’s options, including the possibility of a ground offensive in Iran, even as diplomatic efforts continue.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Trump wanted to reach a deal with Iranian leaders before a second deadline, now 6 April, for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that normally carries about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.

Leavitt said talks with Iran were progressing, adding that what Tehran says publicly differs from what it tells U.S. officials in private.

Iran said earlier on Monday it had received U.S. peace proposals via intermediaries, following weekend talks between the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the proposals were "unrealistic, illogical and ⁠excessive".

"Our position is clear. We are under military aggression. Therefore, all our efforts and strength are focused on defending ourselves," he told a press conference.

Soon after Baghaei's remarks, President Trump said the U.S. was in talks with a "more reasonable regime" to end the war in Iran, but also issued a new warning over the Strait of Hormuz.

"Great progress has been made but, if for any reason a deal is not shortly reached, which it probably will be, and if the Hormuz Strait is not immediately 'Open for Business,' we will conclude ⁠our lovely 'stay' in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island," President Trump wrote in a social media post, also threatening to attack Iranian desalination plants.

Source: Reuters



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