The President of the United Arab Emirates Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan has declared that his country is in a state of war. The country has been under Iranian shelling since February 28, amid attacks by the United States and Israel.
Reuters reports this.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan made his first public appearance since Iran began attacking UAE territory, visiting a hospital treating victims of airstrikes.
The UAE president said the country was at war but was not “easy prey”. The sheikh added that the Emirates would “fulfill its duty to all citizens” and “protect everyone”.
Explosions continued to rock the UAE after Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian promised not to attack neighbouring countries unless they were attacked from their territories. Dubai airport was suspended this morning after an Iranian drone attack.
Whatʼs happening in the Middle East?
On the morning of February 28, the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran. The Israelis called the operation “Lion’s Roar”, the United States called it “Epic Fury”. The attacks killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and nearly 40 other senior Iranian officials.
Iran responded by launching ballistic missile attacks on Israel and US bases in the Gulf states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE. Some Iranian drones and missiles have targeted infrastructure and residential areas in Arab countries.
The UAE Ministry of Defense reported that three people were killed in Iranian attacks on February 28. Dozens more were injured. On the first day of the attacks, Iran launched a total of 541 drones, of which 506 were intercepted and 35 fell on the countryʼs territory.
On March 5, Iran attacked Azerbaijan for the first time — a drone crashed into the terminal building of the Nakhichevan airport. There were injuries. A ballistic missile launched from Iran was also shot down over Turkish territory.
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