Incident Code
Incident Date
Location
Airwars Assessment
On March 2, 2026, a man named Abul Mohsin Tareq was killed and two other people were injured in an alleged Iranian drone strike hit the U.S.-flagged oil tanker, Stena Imperitive, which was docked at the Port of Bahrain at the time of the incident, making the strike within territorial waters.
At 2:57 a.m. UTC on March 2, UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) “received a report of an incident in the Port of Bahrain….[that a] vessel had been struck by two unknown projectiles causing a fire. The fire has been extinguished and the vessel remains in port. All members of the ships crew are safe and have evacuated the vessel.”
The same day, The Maritime Executive reported a “U.S.-Flagged Stena Tanker Hit by Iranian Missiles During Attack on Bahrain.” According to the outlet, the “tanker supplying fuel to the U.S. military was damaged early on Monday morning, March 2, as Iran continued its retaliatory strikes on neighboring countries. The crew of the tanker Stena Imperative was safely evacuated, but reports indicate one shipyard worker was killed and two others seriously injured.” Website ‘gCaptain’ noted that “the Stena Imperative has previously encountered Iranian forces in the area. In February 2026, the tanker was harassed by Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fast boats and a drone while transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian forces reportedly ordered the vessel to stop engines and threatened to board.”
On March 4, GDN Online reported that “the expatriate worker who died on Monday, after debris from an intercepted missile fell at Salman Industrial City, has been identified as Abul Mohsin Tareq.” According to the news outlet, “Mr. Tareq was reportedly doing maintenance work on the Stena Imperative ship at the Arab Shipbuilding and Repair Yard when he was killed in an incident that also seriously injured two others. Mr Tareq had worked abroad for more than 32 years and his family, including daughter Tasnim Tamanna, were looking forward to having him home this Eid for an extended stay.”
The article from GDN Online also included a photo of Abul surrounded by his family. According to TBS News, Abul “left Bangladesh in 1993 after completing his SSC to support his household. Over three decades, he rose from an ordinary worker to a senior supervisor.” It explained that “after 32 years of migrant work abroad, he planned to spend Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Azha with his family for a longer, unhurried stay – trading decades of exhausting labour overseas for quiet evenings at home.” The article also noted that “Tareq’s longtime roommate, Solaiman Nowab, remembered him as a generous and hardworking man.”
TBS News also provided further details about the nature of Abul’s death. When interviewed by the agency, Nur Hossain Belal, Tareq’s cousin and co-worker, recalled, “I was nearby when the blast shook the area. Fragments of a drone or missile hit him directly on the head while he worked on the upper section. He died there instantly.”
Where sources identified the belligerent, all sources attributed the airstrike to the Iranian military.
Maritime
| Vessel Name | Type | IMO | Flag at incident |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stena Imperitive | Oil Tanker | 966077 | U.S. |