DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — Drones fell near Dubai airport, injuring four people, while ships were hit in or near the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday as Iran kept up its campaign disrupting oil markets and air and maritime traffic.

The oil-rich Gulf has borne the brunt of Iran’s attacks in response to United States-Israeli strikes that sparked the Middle East war, with Tehran targeting US assets but also civilian infrastructure.

Iran has also targeted Gulf energy infrastructure and choked shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries nearly 20 percent of global oil production, prompting wild swings in prices.

A container ship and a bulk carrier were hit off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, one off Dubai and the other off the northern Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah by unknown projectiles, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).

A third ship was also hit by a projectile off Oman, in the Strait of Hormuz, which caused a fire that was later extinguished according to the UKMTO.

Saudi Arabia intercepted drones targeting the Shaybah field, crucial to its production, while explosions rang out over Qatar and the UAE reported fresh attacks.

Saudi Arabia also said it intercepted seven ballistic missiles targeting its eastern region and the Prince Sultan Air Base, where an American service member was fatally wounded on 1 March.

In the past few days, Saudi Aramco’s sprawling Ras Tanura facility, home to one of the Middle East’s largest refineries, was targeted as well as the UAE’s Ruwais refinery — one of the largest in the world.

Iranian attacks have already forced state-owned QatarEnergy, one of the world’s largest producers of liquefied natural gas, to halt production last week and declare force majeure.

Energy producers in Kuwait made similar declarations, which are a warning that events beyond their control may lead them to miss export targets.

Banks to be target

In Tehran, Iran’s military vowed on Wednesday to launch strikes against US and Israeli economic targets in the region, including banks, after overnight attacks reportedly hit an Iranian bank.

“The enemy has given us free rein to target economic centres and banks belonging to the United States and the Zionist regime,” said the military’s central operational command, Khatam Al-Anbiya, in a statement carried by state TV.

Iranian media said US and Israeli strikes hit a bank in Tehran overnight, killing an unspecified number of employees.

In Lebanon, an Israeli air strike killed seven people and wounded 18 others in an east Lebanon town on Wednesday, the Lebanese health ministry said, as the war in Lebanon entered its 10th day.

“The Israeli enemy’s air strikes this morning on the Bekaa resulted in the following toll in Tamnin al-Tahta: seven martyrs and 18 wounded,” the ministry said.

State media reported that the raid targeted “a building... inhabited by a Syrian family.”

Minelayers destroyed

The US has launched an all-out assault on Iranian minelaying vessels, as President Donald Trump warned Tehran on Tuesday of unprecedented military consequences if it targets the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump’s comments came after Tehran vowed that no Gulf oil would pass through the key waterway, with oil prices remaining highly volatile over the virtual halt of shipping in the strait.

“I am pleased to report that within the last few hours, we have hit, and completely destroyed, 10 inactive mine laying boats and/or ships, with more to follow!” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.

Later, US Central Command (CENTCOM) wrote on X that the figure had risen to 16 destroyed minelayers “near the Strait of Hormuz.” CENTCOM’s post included unclassified video footage showing various boats being struck by missiles or other projectiles and exploding.

After several US media outlets said Iran had either started or was on the verge of mining the Strait of Hormuz, Trump said he had no reports that such action had begun.

But Trump warned: “If for any reason mines were placed, and they are not removed forthwith, the Military consequences to Iran will be at a level never seen before.”