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The UAE had been considering it ought to react after Abu Dhabi, together with a bunch of Gulf nations, got here below assault by Iran after the US-Israeli strikes on February 28.
The UAE, together with different Gulf states, got here below assault by Iran after the US-Israeli strikes on February 28. (Reuters)
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has denied reviews of launching its first retaliatory assault on Iran on Sunday, after reviews surfaced that it struck a desalination facility. The UAE had lengthy been considering a response to waves of Iranian missile and drone assaults.
Dr Ali Rashid Ali Nuaimi, a member of the United Arab Emirates Federal Nationwide Council and Chairman of the Defence Affairs, Inside and International Affairs Committee, has denied reviews of an UAE retaliatory assault on Iran as “faux information.”
“That is faux information. Once we do one thing, we’ve the braveness to announce it,” he mentioned on X, in response to reviews of an UAE assault on an Iranian desalination facility in retaliation for Tehran’s missile and drone assaults over the past week.
“The UAE won’t ever place the Iranian folks in the identical basket because the Iranian regime. The Iranian individuals are the actual victims of that regime and those that suffer probably the most from its insurance policies. As neighbours, we acknowledge this actuality and we care about their wellbeing,” he mentioned in one other put up.
UAE Criticises ‘Inappropriate’ Israeli Experiences
Individually, an Emirati supply tells The Occasions of Israel: “We categorically deny this nonsense. If the UAE does one thing or takes an motion, it is going to announce it and make it public.”
“It’s inappropriate for so-called ‘Israeli senior officers’ to speak on our behalf and/or unfold rumors about UAE actions or intentions. The UAE doesn’t make statements on different international locations’ actions nor their intentions, so we count on our pleasant international locations’ officers to chorus from doing so,” the supply mentioned.
Earlier, a supply acquainted with the matter advised the Jerusalem Submit that the UAE struck a desalination plant, which is used to take away salt and different minerals from seawater or salty groundwater to provide recent ingesting water, in its first retaliatory strike on Iran.
Israeli outlet Ynet additionally reported that the UAE strike would characterize a major escalation within the ongoing battle by bringing one other Gulf state immediately into army operations in opposition to Iran.
Observe Dwell Updates Of The US-Israel-Iran Warfare
Iranian Assaults On UAE
The UAE had been considering it ought to react after Abu Dhabi, together with a bunch of Gulf nations, got here below assault by Iran since Israel and the US launched strikes on February 28. Final week, authorities within the UAE’s Fujairah extinguished a hearth brought on by particles after the interception of a drone by air defences within the Fujairah oil trade zone.
On Sunday, the UAE’s Defence Ministry mentioned the loss of life toll from Iran’s assaults had risen to 4. It additionally intercepted 16 missiles launched by Iran, whereas a seventeenth fell into the ocean. The UAE says it additionally intercepted most of Iran’s 117 drones, however 4 fell in UAE territory.
A Wall Road Journal report from Friday mentioned that the UAE is contemplating freezing billions of {dollars}’ price of belongings belonging to Iran, a transfer which might cripple the nation’s connection to the worldwide financial system.
Together with the UAE, the governments of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Bahrain reported Iranian drone assaults of their international locations on Saturday and early Sunday, with an enormous fireplace engulfing a authorities workplace block in Kuwait.
‘We Are No Straightforward Prey’
On Saturday, UAE president Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan issued a warning to the nation’s enemies, saying that whereas it was “in a time of warfare”, it was not an “straightforward prey”.
“The UAE is enticing, however don’t be misled by the UAE’s look. The UAE has thick pores and skin and bitter flesh – we are not any straightforward prey,” Al Nahyan, who can also be ruler of Abu Dhabi, mentioned in feedback aired on Abu Dhabi TV on Saturday.
The UAE president’s remarks got here after Iran made an uncommon apology to neighbouring states for its latest assaults, apparently in search of to calm regional anger at Iranian strikes on Gulf civilian targets. Nevertheless, the Iranian prime management later asserted that it will not cease assaults on neighbouring international locations allegedly colluding with the US and Israel.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE)
March 08, 2026, 17:11 IST
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