Some Western diplomats in Riyadh were told to shelter in place, diplomatic sources told AFP on Thursday, with drone debris injuring six people in Abu Dhabi as Iran pressed attacks across the Gulf.The unprecedented air campaign by the Islamic republic, targeting US military assets but also American embassies and civilian infrastructure across the Gulf, continued into its sixth day after US-Israeli air strikes that devastated Iran's leadership.
At least 13 people have been killed in the Gulf, including seven civilians, since Iran began its attacks on Saturday. Washington said six US servicemen were killed, including four in Kuwait.
In addition to the shelter-in-place order to diplomats, in Riyadh a witness said the diplomatic quarter in the Saudi capital, home to many foreign missions and diplomatic residences, had been closed off.
The witness and diplomats spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive security matter.
Authorities in Abu Dhabi responded to falling debris at two sites in an industrial zone after air defences intercepted a drone, the emirate's media office said.
Six Pakistani and Nepalese nationals were injured, while the UAE later said its air defences detected seven ballistic missiles, intercepting six as one fell inside the country.
Fresh waves of explosions, most from interceptions, also rocked Dubai, Doha and Manama on Thursday.
In Doha, AFP journalists saw a plume of smoke rising from the Qatari capital and reported loud blasts across the city and Qatar's defence ministry said its military was working to intercept incoming missiles.
Earlier, Qatari authorities said they were evacuating residents living near Doha's US embassy.
The fresh salvos came hours after Qatari premier Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani lambasted his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, during a call.
The conversation was the first high-level contact between Tehran and a Gulf leader since the start of the attacks.
The Qatari premier accused Iran of seeking to "harm its neighbours and drag them into a war that is not theirs", according to a statement from Qatar's foreign ministry.
In Saudi Arabia, officials said they had intercepted three cruise missiles and several drones.
"Three cruise missiles were intercepted and destroyed outside the city of Al-Kharj," the Saudi defence ministry posted on X.
Elsewhere, a tanker was hit by a "large explosion" in waters off Kuwait, causing an oil spill, British maritime security agency UKMTO reported.
Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards have said they had "complete control" of the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial chokepoint connecting the Gulf to the Indian Ocean and one of the world's most vital shipping routes for energy.
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