A neutral, factual summary for business continuity awareness. The situation is changing, so confirm current conditions with official sources before making decisions. Not legal or security advice.
- 28 Feb
Regional conflict begins. Strikes follow on targets in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and the UAE close their airspace; Kuwait airport is hit. Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz falls about 70%.
- 2 Mar
Ras Tanura refinery (Saudi Arabia). Drone attack; Aramco halts the refinery and reroutes product exports via Yanbu on the Red Sea.
- 2–4 Mar
QatarEnergy stops gas production and declares force majeure on its gas contracts.
- 3–6 Mar
Evacuations and flight chaos. The US orders non-emergency staff to leave several GCC states. Over 20,000 flights are cancelled across the region and Dubai is described as paralysed.
- 5–7 Mar
Shipping insurance withdrawn; force majeure. P&I cover is pulled and Hormuz becomes a high-risk zone. Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and Bapco (Bahrain) declare force majeure.
- 8 Mar
Oil above US$100 for the first time in four years. Gulf producers cut output sharply and the IEA releases 400 million barrels.
- 16–18 Mar
Dubai airspace closures. A drone strike near Dubai International triggers UAE-wide closures.
- 18 Mar
Ras Laffan (Qatar) hit. LNG capacity falls by about 17%; repairs are estimated at three to five years.
- 24 Mar
Cloud disruption. Amazon reports an AWS disruption in Bahrain linked to drone activity.
- 28 Feb–1 Apr
Kuwait airport struck repeatedly; commercial aviation halts until a partial reopening on 23 April. Kuwait Airways and Jazeera Airways report combined losses above US$450m.
- 30 Mar
Kuwaiti power and desalination plant struck; one worker killed.
- 8–13 Apr
Ceasefire, then a US naval blockade of Iranian ports. Hormuz reopens and closes again on 17–18 April.
- Q2
Jebel Ali container volume down 90% year on year (Dubai). IATA later projects a US$4.3bn net loss for Middle East airlines in 2026.
- 8–15 Jul
Truce collapses. Qatari, Saudi and UAE-owned tankers are struck and the US reinstates its blockade.
- Aug
Tanker attacks continue. ADNOC, Kuwaiti and Saudi vessels are hit; crew are killed or ships abandoned.
- Sep
Hormuz “prohibited zone” announced; by early September, large-ship transits have effectively stopped. The East–West crude pipeline shuts on 11 September.
- 10–27 Oct
Riyadh airport disrupted. About 94% of scheduled departures are cancelled after missile attacks; Dammam airport is targeted on 11 October.
- Early Nov
Saudi air, ocean and customs restrictions. Riyadh customs clearance suspended; Etihad, Qatar Airways and others suspend Riyadh and Dammam flights to 19–27 November; Jeddah port delays of 10–12 days.
