Explosion of US tanker at Egyptian port caused by drones launched from Iran - report

An explosion that occurred on a US-owned gas storage tanker at Egypt's Damietta port on Wednesday was the result of an Iranian drone attack, the New York Times reported Thursday. The Times cited two Iranian sources who requested anonymity and indicated the drone was launched from Iran, though they did not specify which group was responsible.

The maritime security firm Ambrey had previously reported that a drone struck the tanker, identified as Energos Winter. The impact caused a fire that subsequently spread to another vessel, Gaslog Salem, according to three trading sources familiar with the incident. This event follows a period of heightened regional tension, including an Iranian missile attack on US forces in Jordan and subsequent retaliatory strikes by Washington and Saudi Arabia against Iran-backed paramilitary groups in Iraq.

Egypt's petroleum ministry confirmed a fire had broken out at the port. However, their statement made no mention of a drone attack or any specific cause for the incident. The ministry did report that there were no injuries or deaths resulting from the fire, and that emergency and technical teams were actively working on the response and assessing the impact.

US President Donald Trump was briefed on the incident. Speaking to reporters, he described the explosion as "more of the same" and stated that the US would retaliate forcefully, indicating "it's our turn to hit them." The New York Times noted that Trump did not elaborate further on the specifics of the event.

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The explosion was "more of the same," and that the US would be "hitting them very hard, because it's our turn to hit them."