Kuwait oil facilities, HQ damaged by Iran drone strikes
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Kuwait and other countries around the Persian Gulf have repeatedly come under attack from Iran since the US-Israeli war on the Islamic republic began in late February.
PHOTO: AFP
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KUWAIT OIL – Kuwait’s oil sector came under a fresh barrage of attacks overnight and into April 5 as drone strikes sparked fires at operational facilities at its refining arm and petrochemical plant, hours after the country’s energy headquarters were set ablaze by unmanned drones.
The renewed hits on Kuwait National Petroleum and Petrochemical Industries facilities caused significant damage as emergency and fire response teams worked to contain fires at several sites, Kuwait Petroleum Corp (KPC) said in a statement.
There were no reported injuries.
Those attacks followed hits on KPC’s headquarters, located in the Shuwaikh area of the country’s capital, which also houses the Oil Ministry. The ensuing fire has since been extinguished.
The KPC building attack followed multiple other aerial assaults on the Mina Al-Ahmadi and Mina Abdullah refineries, as well as repeated attacks on Kuwait International Airport.
The damage was being assessed, and all necessary measures had been taken to ensure the safety of personnel and secure the oil headquarters, KPC said overnight.
Hours before the KPC head office attack, Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency announced an updated “target list” that included electrical, water and steam infrastructure, in addition to oil, natural gas and chemical assets that already have been under fire.
The list, which included Kuwait’s PIC fertiliser and polymer manufacturer, was announced after an Israeli Air Force assault on Iran’s Mahshahr petrochemical complex earlier in the day.
Kuwait and other countries around the Persian Gulf have repeatedly come under attack from Iran since the US-Israeli war on the Islamic republic began in late February.
A huge petrochemicals plant at Ruwais in the United Arab Emirates was halted after an attack sparked multiple fires, Abu Dhabi’s government media office said on April 5.
The sprawling Ruwais industrial zone in the Al Dhafra region suffered an assault in March that shut down Abu Dhabi’s only oil refinery. BLOOMBERG
