Explosions Shake Dubai as Massive Smoke Cloud Rises Over Dubai International Financial Centre

Dubai : One day after the twin drone incidents, blasts were heard and smoke was observed rising in central Dubai on Friday. The authorities later verified that an airborne attack interception was successfully completed, and that the debris caused minimal damage to the exterior of a property in central Dubai. However, it did not specify if it was a missile or a drone that was intercepted.

The United Arab Emirates intercepted 10 ballistic missiles and 26 drones on Thursday in response to Iran’s ongoing attacks on US installations in the region, and a drone fell in Dubai’s Al Badaa district as well as on a building facade on Sheikh Zayed Road.

Meanwhile, air raid sirens sounded early Friday morning in Bahrain, hours after a large fire broke out near the airport following Iran drone strikes on gasoline tanks. As sirens blared across Bahrain, the interior ministry urged citizens to seek shelter and be calm. This comes amid simmering tensions in the region as the US-Iran war continues for nearly two weeks.

Qatar criticised Israeli air strikes in southern Lebanon on Friday, which killed 15 persons, five of them were children. On Thursday, nine people were murdered in an Israeli raid on a village in southern Lebanon, and six more were killed in two other Israeli strikes on other towns in southern Lebanon. “The State of Qatar strongly condemns the Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, considering them a blatant violation of international humanitarian law and UN Security Council Resolution 1701,” a statement from Qatar’s foreign ministry read.

Also reads : Drone Incidents Reported in Dubai, One Near Burj Khalifa; Loud Explosion Heard

Why is Iran planning an attack against Dubai?

Dubai and other regions of the Gulf region have come under threat from Iran since the US and Israel launched combined strikes on Tehran on February 28. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several members of his family were murdered in the strikes, prompting Iran to respond by targeting US bases in the region, including Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Kuwait. Iran also stated a few days earlier that it would target US financial enterprises in the region, prompting many financial institutions, like StanChart, to evacuate their Dubai offices and HSBC to close its Qatar locations.