RIYADH - Saudi forces intercepted more than two dozen drones on Friday after Iran vowed to attack oil resources in the Middle East and said it would maintain a chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz that has sent crude prices soaring.
Israel also came under attack early Friday from missiles launched by Iran, with the Israeli military saying its air defences were working to intercept them.
The International Energy Agency has warned that the Middle East war could lead to "the largest supply disruption" in the industry's history, but US President Donald Trump wrote on social media that defeating Iran's "evil empire" was more important than crude prices.
Trump has faced intense political pressure as the global economic fallout of the crisis has mounted, and he has given mixed messages as to when the US campaign might end.
Iran has unleashed waves of drone and missile strikes against neighbouring states hosting US military assets, including Saudi Arabia, whose defence ministry said Friday that its forces had intercepted a total of 28 drones.
Gulf states have borne the brunt of retaliatory attacks from Iran, which said Thursday that it would "set the region's oil and gas on fire" if its own energy infrastructure and ports were attacked.
With Gulf states slashing production and oil tankers stuck in the Gulf, benchmark oil prices have risen 40 to 50 percent since the US and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, threatening to crimp growth and stoke inflation.
Images from Bahrain showed thick smoke rising after a strike on fuel tanks in Muharraq, with residents told to stay inside and close their windows, while drones caused damage again at Kuwait's international airport and in downtown Dubai.