Drone strikes hit Saudi, Kuwait refineries

2026-03-19 - 09:10

Shafaq News- Kuwait/ Riyadh An aerial attack targeted Saudi Aramco’s SAMREF refinery in ‌the Red Sea port of Yanbu on Thursday, causing minimal impact, an industry source told Reuters, as attacks targeted energy facilities in multiple Gulf countries. The Yanbu refinery has become a key export outlet after Tehran effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz following the outbreak of the US-Israeli war against Iran late last month. The strait, between Iran and Oman, normally carries about one-fifth of global oil supplies. In Kuwait, a drone struck an operational unit at the Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery, triggering a limited fire without causing casualties, according to the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC). The developments follow strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure, including parts of the South Pars gas field in Bushehr province. The field, shared with Qatar, is Iran’s largest gas reserve and part of the world’s biggest offshore gas reserve. In response, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched missile strikes on Qatar’s Ras Laffan Industrial City, damaging key energy facilities and igniting fires, after previously warning it would retaliate against attacks on its energy sector. The IRGC had also issued evacuation warnings for several oil installations across Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, including the SAMREF refinery, a joint venture involving Saudi Aramco and ExxonMobil.