Updates throughout
Several drones attacked Omani ports on Tuesday, with one crashing near Salalah port and another hitting a fuel storage tank at Duqm. Air defences shot down two other drones over Dhofar governorate, according to officials, in the latest escalation since the conflict between Iran and the US broke out on 28 February
The damage from Tuesday's strikes at Duqm and near Salalah ports was contained and no casualties were reported, according to state-owned news agency Ona.
The strike near Salalah marked the first reported drone incident at the port, while Duqm was hit for the second time in the ongoing conflict between Iran and the US.
Two drones had hit Duqm in a separate incident on 1 March, one of them striking a mobile housing unit and injuring a worker, and the other falling near fuel storage tanks.
Today's incidents add to a series of drone attacks across the Mideast Gulf in recent days as Iran retaliates against a co-ordinated US-Israeli military operation that led to the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at the weekend.
Ports in the UAE and Kuwait have also been affected. A fire broke out at a fuel tank terminal in Mussafah in southwest Abu Dhabi today. In Dubai, debris from a drone interception caused a fire at Jebel Ali port and operations at Shuaiba port in Kuwait were suspended after similar incidents at the weekend.
Energy facilities were also targeted in Saudi Arabia and Qatar on Monday. Saudi Aramco shut its 550,000 b/d Ras Tanura refinery after it was struck by debris from intercepted Iranian drones, while QatarEnergy halted LNG production at Ras Laffan and Mesaieed Industrial City following drone strikes.
