An Iranian drone strike hit a Kuwaiti oil tanker off Dubai, damaging the vessel and causing a fire, authorities said on Tuesday.
The tanker, Al-Salmi, was anchored in UAE waters when it was struck, according to the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC). The company said the impact damaged the hull and sparked a blaze onboard.
KPC described the incident as a “direct, heinous Iranian attack” and warned of a possible oil spill, Kuwait’s state news agency KUNA reported.
Dubai authorities said emergency teams quickly brought the situation under control. The Dubai Media Office confirmed the fire was extinguished and no injuries or oil leaks were reported.
“There was an incident involving a drone affecting a Kuwaiti oil tanker in Dubai waters (Anchorage ‘E’), with no injuries reported,” the office said.
“Dubai authorities have confirmed that response teams have successfully extinguished the fire involving a Kuwaiti oil tanker.”
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Al Jazeera’s Zein Basravi said explosions were heard across Dubai overnight.
“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.
The tanker was carrying about two million barrels of crude oil and was headed for Qingdao, China, according to shipping data.
The attack is the latest in a series of strikes on vessels in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, raising concerns over shipping and global oil supply.