Egypt says fire on ships at Damietta port caused by drone

Two ships used for the processing and storage of gas – including one owned and operated by the United States – have caught fire in the Egyptian port of Damietta after a drone strike, Egypt has confirmed.

Egypt’s oil ministry said no one was injured in the fires.

“The situation was handled immediately in accordance with emergency and rapid response plans,” the ministry said on Wednesday.

The Egyptian Cabinet, in a statement on Thursday morning, confirmed that a drone had caused the fire on board the two vessels.

“After the fire that affected two vessels at Damietta Port on July 29, 2026, was brought under control, preliminary investigations by the relevant authorities found that the incident was caused by a drone,” the cabinet said in a statement.

The authorities will continue to investigate to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident and take the measures necessary “to protect Egypt’s interests and national security,” the statement said.

It added that no party had claimed responsibility for the incident.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi warned on Thursday of the “danger of regional escalation” following the attack.

Iran also moved on Thursday to distance itself from the attack, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi calling Egypt “an important friend”, whose “security is of utmost importance to us”, and warning of Israeli “false-flag operations”.

Yemen’s pro-Iranian Houthi rebels have also denied any link to the incident, after suspicion fell on the Iran-backed group.

“There is no truth to the rumors” of Houthi involvement, the Houthi-run Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by the group-affiliated Saba news agency.

The statement added that the Houthis only target Saudi Arabia and that the group’s position is “clear, declared, and explicit”.

“Navigation is safe in the Red Sea, and there is no justification for any concerns,” it added.

British maritime security company Ambrey reported on Wednesday that an explosion struck a US-owned and operated, Marshall Islands-flagged floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage facility at Damietta port.

Crew members were evacuated and the fire was brought under control, the report said.

Maritime shipping service Inchcape, in a separate statement on Wednesday, also said a blast had occurred at the LNG terminal. Port operations were expected to resume overnight at other berths and terminals, it added.

The incident came hours before the US military resumed strikes on Iran after a five-night pause.

Before that, US President Donald Trump promised to hit Iran “hard” following a wave of Iranian missile attacks targeting US bases in the region and joint US-Saudi Arabia attacks on a Tehran-backed armed group in Iraq, which killed at least 20 fighters.

The attacks on multiple fronts mark a resumption of hostilities after a few days of relative calm.

Earlier this week, Trump had abruptly stopped bombing Iran after 13 days in what US officials claimed was an attempt to give diplomacy a chance.