Oil Tanker Hit Off Kuwait Coast Amid Escalating Iran-Israel War, Major Spill Reported

New Delhi: A large explosion reportedly struck an oil tanker in waters off the coast of Kuwait on thursday, triggering a major oil spill in the ocean and raising concerns over potential environmental damage.

The incident comes at a time of heightened tensions across West Asia amid the ongoing conflict involving Iran, Israel and the United States.

Incident occurred outside Kuwait’s territorial waters

However, as reported by Reuters, Kuwait’s Interior Ministry later confirmed that the explosion occurred outside the country’s territorial waters.

In a statement, the ministry said the tanker was at least 60 kilometres (37 miles) from Mubarak Al Kabeer port when the explosion took place.

Iran Threatens Dimona Nuclear Site 

Iran has issued fresh warnings to the United States and Israel, saying it would target Israel’s nuclear facility in Dimona if attempts were made to pursue regime change in Iran.

The warning was reported by Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency, citing an Iranian military official.

Iran also launched a new wave of missile attacks early Thursday at Israeli and American bases and threatened that the United States would “bitterly regret” torpedoing an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean while Israel said it had begun a “large-scale” attack on Tehran. 

Iranian state television reported that strikes also targeted American bases in the region. In response, Israel announced multiple incoming missile attacks, and air sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

The Israeli military also reported launching targeted strikes against Hezbollah positions in Beirut’s southern suburbs and against infrastructure in Iran’s capital.

Earlier, the US Navy sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the strike, calling it “an atrocity at sea”.

The incident reportedly resulted in the deaths of dozens of Iranian sailors and has further intensified tensions between the two sides.

Threats Expanding Across The Middle East

Neighboring countries braced for potential dangers. Thursday, a day after Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard threatened “the complete destruction of the region’s military and economic infrastructure.”

Qatar’s Interior Ministry said authorities were evacuating residents near the U.S. Embassy in Doha as a temporary precaution, without providing further details.

Fighter jets could be heard overhead Thursday morning in the United Arab Emirates city of Dubai.

And a new attack off the coast of Kuwait appeared to expand the area where commercial shipping was in danger.

An explosion rocked the area early Thursday, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center run by the British military. It said a tanker apparently came under attack, but the agency did not offer a cause. Iran in the past has attacked ships by attaching limpet mines to them.

Prior attacks since fighting began Saturday have happened in the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which about a fifth of the world’s oil is shipped.

Oil prices have soared as Iranian attacks have disrupted traffic through the strait, and global stock markets have been hammered over worries that the spike in oil prices may grind down the world economy.

Iran’s Clerics Are Choosing A New Supreme Leader

Iran’s leaders are scrambling to replace Khamenei, who ruled the country for 37 years. It’s only the second time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that a new supreme leader is being chosen.

Potential candidates range from hard-liners committed to confrontation with the West to reformists who seek diplomatic engagement. Mojtaba Khamenei, Khamenei’s son, has long been considered among them — though he has never held a government position.

The head of the judiciary warned that "those who cooperate with the enemy in any way will be considered an enemy," indicating that Iran's leadership will only seek to consolidate its power.

Israel's defence minister, Katz, said on X that Iran's next supreme leader—if he continues to threaten Israel, the U.S. and others—"will be a target for elimination.”

(With inputs from AP)