Drones Hit Fuel Tank at Oman’s Duqm Port

A view of the Port of Duqm, Oman. (Oman News Agency)
A view of the Port of Duqm, Oman. (Oman News Agency)
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Drones Hit Fuel Tank at Oman’s Duqm Port

A view of the Port of Duqm, Oman. (Oman News Agency)
A view of the Port of Duqm, Oman. (Oman News Agency)

Drones targeted an Omani port on Tuesday, hitting a fuel tank, state media said, as Iran presses its campaign against the Gulf in response to US and Israeli strikes.

"A security source reported that fuel tanks at the commercial port of Duqm were targeted by a number of drones, one of which hit a fuel tank. The resulting damage was contained without any human casualties," the Oman News Agency (ONA) said.

The attack is the second on the port in three days, as Iran broadens its targets in the Gulf.

Oman, which played a mediation role in talks between the US and Iran, has called for a ceasefire in the war.

On Sunday, a worker was injured when two drones struck the same port. One hit accommodation for workers, while debris from the other landed near fuel tanks, reported ONA.

They were the first attacks on the Sultanate since war broke out, with Oman facing strikes despite acting as a mediator between Iran and the United States just days prior to the conflict.

On Monday, one person was killed in an attack on an oil tanker off the coast of the capital Muscat that caused an explosion and fire, authorities said.

The blast in the vessel's main engine room killed one crew member, an Indian national.



Saudi Arabia Denies it Favors Prolonging the War

A view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on November 15, 2024. (Reuters)
A view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on November 15, 2024. (Reuters)
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Saudi Arabia Denies it Favors Prolonging the War

A view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on November 15, 2024. (Reuters)
A view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on November 15, 2024. (Reuters)

A senior official at the Saudi Foreign Ministry stressed to Asharq Al-Awsat that the Kingdom had previously denied claims that its leadership favors the prolongation of the US-Israeli war on Iran.

The official said that Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah had declared during a press conference following the meeting of Arab and Islamic foreign ministers in Riyadh last week that Iran must cease its attacks.

He added that the Kingdom’s patience “has limits” and that it reserves the right to repel the aggression through political and other means.

Iran continued to target Gulf countries with rockets and drones in the fourth week of the war as the United Nations Rights Council prepares to meet on Wednesday to discuss the attacks.

On Tuesday, Saudi defenses downed 44 drones in the Eastern Region, Bahrain downed six ballistic missiles and 19 drones, and the UAE destroyed five missiles and 17 drones. Kuwait also repelled several attacks.

The UAE defense ministry said that a Moroccan contractor with the Emirati military was killed in Bahrain in an Iranian attack, with Manama saying the man had been assisting the local armed forces.


UAE Defense Ministry Says Civilian Contractor Killed in Bahrain

 People sit along the corniche area on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in Abu Dhabi on March 20, 2026. (AFP)
People sit along the corniche area on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in Abu Dhabi on March 20, 2026. (AFP)
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UAE Defense Ministry Says Civilian Contractor Killed in Bahrain

 People sit along the corniche area on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in Abu Dhabi on March 20, 2026. (AFP)
People sit along the corniche area on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, in Abu Dhabi on March 20, 2026. (AFP)

The UAE defense ministry said on Tuesday that a Moroccan contractor with the Emirati military was killed in Bahrain in an Iranian attack, with Manama saying the man had been assisting the local armed forces.

"The Ministry of Defense mourns the loss of a Moroccan civilian contractor serving with the UAE Armed Forces, who was martyred during a routine mission in the Kingdom of Bahrain following an Iranian missile attack," the UAE ministry said in a statement on X.

Five UAE ministry of defense personnel were also injured in the attack, the statement added.

Bahrain's military had announced that a UAE army personnel was killed in its territory while helping Bahraini forces defend against Iranian attacks.

It said UAE and Bahraini army personnel had also been injured without specifying how many.

Gulf forces have reported coming under attack in Bahrain before.


Saudi Defense Minister, French Minister of Armed Forces Discuss Means to Bolster Cooperation

Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and French Minister of the Armed Forces Catherine Vautrin meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (Saudi Defense Ministry)
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and French Minister of the Armed Forces Catherine Vautrin meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (Saudi Defense Ministry)
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Saudi Defense Minister, French Minister of Armed Forces Discuss Means to Bolster Cooperation

Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and French Minister of the Armed Forces Catherine Vautrin meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (Saudi Defense Ministry)
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and French Minister of the Armed Forces Catherine Vautrin meet in Riyadh on Tuesday. (Saudi Defense Ministry)

Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman received in Riyadh on Tuesday French Minister of the Armed Forces Catherine Vautrin for talks on regional developments and their repercussions on various levels.

They discussed bilateral relations between Saudi Arabia and France in the defense field and means to bolster them.

Vautrin condemned the repeated Iranian attacks against the Kingdom.