Iran War Day 13: Drone attack in Dubai, fuel tankers hit in Bahrain and more

It’s been 13 days of the Iran war and now the fighting is no longer restricted to the ground and air. It has also spread to the seas with mounting attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, which carries around a fifth of the world’s oil.

Amid the fighting, US President Donald Trump has reiterated that the American strikes have already practically defeated Iran. “They are pretty much at the end of the line,” said Trump in Washington, after delivering a speech to supporters in which he declared: “We’ve won… We won — in the first hour it was over.”

But it doesn’t seem to be over as Iran continues to deploy missile and drones on Gulf countries.

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If you are struggling to keep abreast of what’s going on in the Iran war, here’s a simple guide of the biggest developments.

United Arab Emirates

Iran continues to attack the Gulf countries, including the United Arab Emirates.

On Wednesday (March 11), Dubai’s authorities rushed to an “incident involving a drone that fell on a building in the vicinity of Dubai Creek Harbour”. Dubai Creek Harbour is about eight kilometres from Dubai International Airport.

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Dubai authorities say they are investigating a drone that fell on a building near Dubai Creek Harbour, about 8km from Dubai International Airport.

Earlier today two drones also fell near the airport. pic.twitter.com/r5GmreOM4A

— BPI News (@BPINewsOrg) March 11, 2026

Following the drone attack, authorities confirmed that all residents were safe and uninjured. “Authorities have fully brought the fire under control, and all residents are safe. No injuries have been reported,” the city’s media office wrote on X.

On Wednesday, CitiBank also confirmed that it would close all its branches except one after a threat by Iran to target financial institutions in the region. CitiBank said it made the decision “given the evolving situation within the country,” without elaborating. Other financial institutions reportedly have urged their staff to work from home over the threat.

Bahrain

Bahrain’s Interior Ministry on early Thursday morning said that fuel storage tanks at a facility in Muharraq governorate were targeted in an attack attributed to Iran, adding that authorities have begun taking measures to handle the incident and secure the site.

📹🔥Plumes of smoke rose after fuel tanks near Bahrain International Airport in Muharraq Governorate were targeted.#Bahrain | #Iran #USA @qudsn pic.twitter.com/HM2NnZ6nWh https://t.co/w02nVjSooy

— ⚡️🌎 World News 🌐⚡️ (@ferozwala) March 12, 2026

Authorities have urged citizens and residents of Hidd, Arad, Qalali and Samaheej to “remain in their homes, close windows and ventilation openings” due to the fire in Muharraq Governorate, reported Al Jazeera. The ministry said the measure was a “precaution against potential effects of smoke” from the fire.

A major fire struck a neighbourhood in Bahrain’s capital home to the island kingdom’s international airport early Thursday after an Iranian attack, with authorities urging people in the surrounding area to close their windows due to the fumes.

Oman

On Wednesday, a series of drones took aim at oil storage tanks at Oman’s Salalah port, with videos showing plumes of smoke erupting from the site. Emergency crews rushed to the spot and have been engaged in dousing the flames, which they say “may take some time.”

In the wake of the strike, Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said contacted Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to voice his disapproval and condemnation of the ongoing attacks against Omani territory.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Iran’s central command centre for the war described Oman as a friendly country and called the incident “highly suspicious”. He said Iran is investigating.

Saudi Arabia

The country’s defence ministry said it downed drones in the kingdom’s east, including at least one trying to target its Shaybah oil field in the Empty Quarter desert.

According to the Saudi Press Agency, several drones have been destroyed over the last few days.

The Kingdom also announced that it is redirecting maritime trade to its western ports in the Red Sea to avoid the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran is attacking ships that try to cross. As per a CNN report, the new Saudi initiative will see that trade conducted via its Red Sea ports and adds logistics routes to receive containers and cargo being redirected from ports across the Gulf.

Iraq

Iranian drones struck two foreign oil tankers in Iraq’s territorial waters, killing at least one person. Another 38 were fortunately rescued. Iran claimed responsibility, saying an underwater drone attack blew up the tankers.

Moreover, in the wee hours of Thursday, smoke was seen rising from Irbil Airport following a suspected drone attack in the Iraqi Kurdistan region. Early reports suggest the strike may have been carried out by Iran-aligned groups, which have mounted multiple similar attacks in recent days.

Lebanon

Israel’s forces are also continuing their attacks in Lebanon. Seven people have been killed and another 21 injured in the coastal area of Ramlet al-Bayda, of Beirut. The deaths came amid a strike that hit a car along the seaside, where dozens of displaced families were sheltering in makeshift tents.

Elsewhere, the health ministry said that at least 17 people were injured in the strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, though more casualties were expected from other strikes throughout the country.

Israeli warplanes have been bombarding Beirut’s southern suburbs and southern Lebanon since the start of the Iran war.

Israel

Meanwhile, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it carried out a joint operation with Lebanon’s Hezbollah that involved five hours of sustained fire and struck more than 50 targets across Israel.

Hezbollah let off successive volleys of rockets and drone swarms at Israel on Wednesday night, injuring two people, with most of the projectiles either being intercepted or falling into open areas.

In a statement carried by the Fars and Tasnim news agencies, the Guards said the “joint and integrated operation” involved a missile attack by Iran carried out in conjunction with missile and drone fire from Hezbollah.

The operation focused on “more than 50 targets” on Israeli territory, the statement added, including Israeli military bases in Haifa, Tel Aviv, and Beersheba.

The attack by Hezbollah is the most intense launched by the pro-Iran group since it first fired rockets at Israel 10 days earlier, triggering a retaliatory military campaign by Israel. The rockets were launched in tandem with Iranian missiles, the first time the two coordinated their attacks against Israel since the Iran war started.

Ships attacked in Strait of Hormuz

Three cargo vessels came under attack in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday. Among the three cargo vessels that were hit in the strait was a Thai-flagged vessel, which was 11 nautical miles north of Oman. A fire broke out on board and the Royal Thai Navy said the 23 crew members were rescued. Iran has claimed responsibility, saying the ship’s crew ignored warnings.

The second vessel was a Japanese-flagged container ship that was struck 25 nautical miles off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, sustaining minor damage. A third cargo vessel was hit about 50 nautical miles north-west of Dubai, according to UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).

Concerns over rising oil prices

As Iran targets ships in the Strait of Hormuz and fighting continues on Day 13, the price of oil continues to rise. Amid this situation, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has agreed to release 400 million barrels of oil from its members’ strategic reserves, in an attempt to counter soaring global energy prices.

“The oil market challenges we are facing are unprecedented in scale, therefore I am very glad that IEA member countries have responded with an emergency collective action of unprecedented size,” said IEA executive director Fatih Birol in a statement on Wednesday.

As part of the 400 million barrels, the US has said that it will release 172 million barrels of oil from its strategic petroleum reserve. The US release will begin next week and be completed in approximately 120 days, the Energy Department said.

With inputs from agencies