Iran launches drone strike on Kuwait oil refinery as oil prices soar
Iran have attacked a Kuwaiti oil refinery with drones early on Friday.The attack comes at the same time that sirens sounded in Israel warning of incoming fire, while explosions boomed over Tehran as Israel hit Iran as the country marked the Persian New Year.The drone attack on Kuwait's Mina Al-Ahmadi oil refinery sparked a fire and crews were working to control the blaze.Want to see more of the stories you love from the Irish Mirror? Making us your preferred source on Google means you’ll get more of our exclusives... To add Irish Mirror as a preferred source, simply click here.It comes as the war has rocked the global economy near the end of its third week, with the event showing that Iran are not letting up on its attacks on the Gulf region energy structure.The refinery, which processes 730,000 barrels of oil per day, was already damaged after being attacked by Iran on Thursday.It is one of three oil refineries in Kuwait, the tiny, oil-rich nation on the Persian Gulf.Iran levelled up its attacks on energy sites in Gulf Arab states after Israel on Wednesday bombed Iran’s massive South Pars offshore natural gas field in the Persian Gulf.Air defences in Dubai were intercepted after heavy explosions shook the city where people were observing Eid al-Fitr, the end of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, and mosques made the day’s first call to prayers.Israel’s army said on Friday it struck infrastructure belonging to Syria in response to attacks on the Druze population in Sweida in southern Syria.This marks the first Israeli attack on the country during the war, but Syria’s state-run SANA news agency did not immediately acknowledge the attack.The fresh attacks followed an intense day that saw Iran hit energy infrastructure around the region and launch more than a dozen missile salvos at Israel following the attack on South Pars.South Pars is the world's largest gas field, located in the Persian Gulf and is owned jointly with Qatar.The attack posed a direct threat to the country’s electricity supplies.In Israel, people were sent scrambling for shelter on Friday morning after sirens warned of attacks on Jerusalem and in the north of the country.Not long after Israel announced that it had begun new strikes on Iran, the sound of explosions were heard in Tehran as Iranians marked Nowruz, the Persian New Year.The death toll in Iran has reached more than 1,300 people during the war.Israeli strikes against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon have displaced more than 1 million people, according to the Lebanese government, which says more than 1,000 people have been killed.Israel says it has killed more than 500 Hezbollah militants. In Israel, 15 people have been killed by Iranian missile fire.Four people were also killed in the occupied West Bank by an Iranian missile strike. At least 13 US military members have been killed.Following attacks on Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the country would hold off on any further attacks on the gas field at the request of US President Donald Trump after the Iranian response saw oil prices skyrocket.Beyond Iran’s attacks on its Gulf Arab neighbours, its stranglehold on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world’s oil and other critical goods are transported, has caused rising concerns of a global energy crisis.Brent crude oil, the international standard, which spiked to more than 119 dollars (£88.79) a barrel during Iran’s attacks on Thursday, was around 107 dollars (£79.83) in morning trading on Friday, up more than 47 per cent since Israel and the United States attacked Iran on February 28 to start the conflict.
