Drone Strike Ignites Fire at Kuwait’s Mina Abdullah Oil Refinery in Latest Gulf Escalation

Kuwait: A drone attack targeted an operational unit at the Mina Abdullah oil refinery, sparking a fire at the facility, according to the Kuwait News Agency and the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation. No injuries have been reported, and emergency teams quickly contained the blaze in accordance with established safety protocols.

This marks the second refinery strike in Kuwait within hours on Thursday. An earlier drone hit the nearby Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery, one of the largest in the Middle East with a capacity of around 730,000 barrels per day, also causing a limited fire but no casualties.

The Mina Abdullah refinery, with a processing capacity of approximately 454,000 barrels per day, is operated by the Kuwait National Petroleum Company.

Kuwaiti authorities confirmed the incidents but provided no immediate details on operational disruptions or repair timelines. The attacks are widely attributed to Iranian retaliation following an Israeli strike on Iranian energy infrastructure, including elements tied to the South Pars gas field.

The strikes form part of a broader wave of Iranian operations targeting Gulf energy assets, with reports of similar incidents affecting facilities in Qatar (Ras Laffan LNG terminal), the UAE (Habshan gas facility and Bab field), and Saudi Arabia. These developments have heightened concerns over potential supply disruptions in a region responsible for a substantial share of global oil production.

Oil markets responded sharply to the news, with Brent crude climbing nearly 5% and approaching $114 per barrel as traders priced in risks of wider energy infrastructure threats.

Authorities continue to monitor the situation closely amid rising tensions across the Middle East.