ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A drone has reportedly crashed at a port in southern Iraq's Basra province for the second day in a row on Thursday, a day after a separate drone crash was recorded at another port in the province.
A drone crashed into an oil tanker at a terminal in Basra's Umm Qasr port, causing no damage or fire, Reuters reported, citing four Iraqi oil and security sources.
Crude oil flows have been suspended at all of Iraq's oil loading terminals following the incident, the agency added.
The reports come a day after a drone crashed at Iraq's Grand Faw Port, also in Basra.
"Local authorities were notified on Wednesday morning after a drone crashed into the port's container yard," Faw Mayor Waleed al-Sharifi told Rudaw on Wednesday, adding that the aircraft was "completely destroyed upon impact."
Sharifi added that the incident "caused no damage to the port's facilities and resulted in no casualties."
Umm Qasr port is Iraq's primary deep-water seaport, located along the Kuwaiti border near the Khor al-Zubair waterway. Grand Faw, meanwhile, sits at the tip of the al-Faw Peninsula, directly across a narrow marine channel from Kuwait's Bubiyan Island.
The drone crashes come as Kuwait has reported a surge of Iranian attacks over the past two days.
The Kuwaiti defense ministry on Wednesday reported that four cruise missiles and 21 drones were launched by Iran against its territories. A day prior, the ministry had reported that 33 Iranian drones, one ballistic missile, and five cruise missiles were fired at the Sheikhdom as well.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) confirmed Wednesday that it launched a new wave of attacks on what is said was a US military base in Kuwait, claiming to have hit its “satellite communications center, missile and air defense radar systems, Patriot air defense battery, a logistics depot, and HIMARS missile launchers.”
A day prior, the IRGC said its “navy and aerospace” units struck “weapons and equipment depots” for US vessels and aircraft at Sheikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain in a “coordinated missile and drone operation.” The Corps also claimed to have hit “the deployment ramp for MQ-9s at Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait,” reporting damage and destruction of several aircraft.
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Last updated at 1:18 pm
