Ziggy Ojiegbe

Iran launched missile and drone attacks targeting Saudi Arabian air base that hosts U.S. forces, and an oil export facility in the United Arab Emirates, according to multiple media reports.

Ad >>>

The Prince Sultan Air Base was struck by Iranian missiles, damaging five U.S. aerial refueling tankers, the The Wall Street Journal reported on March 13. The aircraft were reportedly undergoing repairs and none were completely destroyed. No casualties were reported.

The tankers are believed to include models such as the Boeing KC‑135 Stratotanker, which are used to refuel military aircraft during long-range missions.

The strike comes amid an ongoing conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran that began late last month. Since the start of the war, at least seven U.S. aerial refueling aircraft have reportedly been damaged or destroyed in various incidents.

On March 12, two Boeing KC‑135 Stratotanker aircraft collided mid-air over western Iraq. One of the planes crashed, killing all six personnel on board.

United States Central Command said the cause of the collision remains under investigation but stated it was not the result of enemy action or friendly fire. The incident raised the number of U.S. military personnel killed since the conflict began to 13.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump posted on the social media platform Truth Social claiming that U.S. forces were “destroying Iran’s terrorist regime in all aspects—military, economic, and otherwise.” In the post, he said Iran’s naval and air forces had been effectively eliminated and that Iranian military assets were being destroyed.

In a separate development, Iranian drones targeted the Port of Fujairah, an important oil export hub in the Gulf of Oman.

According to the The Times of Israel and other outlets, one or two Iranian Shahed‑series drones struck near oil storage facilities at the port on March 14, sparking a fire after drone debris fell following interception attempts.

Authorities in Fujairah said emergency crews quickly contained the blaze and confirmed that no casualties were reported. However, the attack temporarily disrupted oil loading operations at the port.

The Port of Fujairah is a key export route that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz. It is connected to Abu Dhabi’s oil fields by the 400-kilometer Abu Dhabi Crude Oil Pipeline (ADCOP) and can export up to 1.8 million barrels of crude oil per day to markets in Asia and Europe.

The drone strike is widely seen as a retaliatory action following a U.S. bombing raid on Iran’s Kharg Island, the country’s largest crude oil export hub, the previous day. Iranian officials had warned that attacks on Iranian energy infrastructure would be met with strikes on oil facilities across the Gulf region.