UAE briefly closes airspace as Israel strikes Beirut, Tehran
A drone attack in the UAE’s Fujairah triggered a fire at an oil facility amid escalating Iran-linked regional tensions. Missile interceptions and airstrikes were reported across the Middle East, including Iran, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, raising fears of wider conflict
Dubai: A drone attack in the United Arab Emirates sparked a fire at an oil tank farm Tuesday in Fujairah, an emirate on the country’s east coast with the Gulf of Oman that has been repeatedly targeted, the state-run WAM news agency reported. It said no one had been injured in the blast.
This came after a brief closure of the UAE’s airspace when the military reported it was “responding to missile and drone threats from Iran.” Also on Tuesday, the Israeli military said it had launched new attacks across both Tehran and Beirut, with those on the Lebanese capital targeting Hezbollah militants.
On Monday, US President Donald Trump said “numerous countries” have told him “they’re on the way” to help police the Strait of Hormuz. But he also suggested some countries’ reluctance showed a lack of reciprocity in defence agreements with the United States.
The war has killed at least 1,300 people in Iran, at least 850 in Lebanon and 12 in Israel, according to officials in those countries. The US military says 13 US service members have been killed and about 200 wounded.
In Iran’s capital, Tehran, witnesses heard airstrikes in the night even as heavy rain and a thunderstorm swept across the area.
Saudi Arabia’s Defence Ministry says it’s intercepting a dozen drones on Tuesday morning over the country’s vast Eastern Province, home to oil infrastructure.
A fire broke out in an industrial area on Tuesday morning in Qatar after a missile was intercepted over the gas-rich country, the interior ministry said.
An Associated Press journalist in Qatar heard explosions as air defences near Doha worked to intercept incoming Iranian fire on Tuesday morning.
Qatar’s Defence Ministry said it intercepted a missile attack on the country a short time later.
In the United Arab Emirates, Dubai residents received a missile alert around the same time.
