Kuwaitis gather at an exhibition of military equipment to celebrate the country’s 61st independence day and the 31st anniversary of the end of the Gulf War, which saw Kuwait’s liberation from Iraqi occupation, in Kuwait City, February 25, 2022. (Photo by Yasser Al Zayat/AFP) (Photo by Yasser Al Zayat/AFP, Getty Images)
Yasser Al Zayat | AFP | Getty Images
Kuwait activated air defense measures on Thursday in response to “hostile missile and drone threats,” according to a post by the country’s military on X.
The military did not say where the attack occurred, but added that the explosions heard were the result of air defense systems intercepting the incoming attack.
The incident comes as tensions in the Middle East rise again following renewed U.S. attacks on Iran overnight.
U.S. officials told MS NOW on Wednesday that the U.S. military has carried out new attacks targeting military positions believed to pose a threat to U.S. forces and commercial maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement published on state news agency Tasnim that it attacked a US air base following a US attack outside Bandar Abbas airport.
“If it happens again, our response will be more decisive,” the Revolutionary Guards said.
The U.S. Treasury announced new sanctions on Wednesday against Iran’s Persian Gulf Straits Authority, the government agency that regulates passage through the Strait of Hormuz by collecting fees from ships.
The Treasury Department said anyone who cooperates with authorities “may be providing support to or receiving services from the Revolutionary Guards, and may ultimately benefit from this extortion attempt and therefore be at risk of sanctions.”
Oil prices rose more than 3%, with international benchmarks Brent futures and US West Texas Intermediate futures both rising.
The escalation came after Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday in the United States that the United States would give negotiations with Iran “every chance of success.”
Speaking at a meeting of President Donald Trump’s cabinet, Rubio said there had been some progress in talks with Iran. Rubio said Trump prefers diplomacy but has other options available if that doesn’t work, likely referring to renewed military strikes.
—CNBC’s Spencer Kimball contributed to this report.
