Kuwait City — The Gulf’s fragile sense of safety has been shattered amid reports that the U.S. Embassy compound in Kuwait has been hit in a wave of suspected Iranian missile and drone strikes, thrusting the small but strategic nation onto the front line of the US–Iran war.

Residents in the high‑security embassy district describe a sudden series of blasts, followed by flames rising from inside the heavily fortified perimeter. Windows rattled for blocks as sirens wailed and thick smoke billowed over Kuwait City’s usually quiet diplomatic quarter. Footage posted online shows ambulances and fire trucks racing through military checkpoints as U.S. Marines and Kuwaiti security forces lock down surrounding streets…