One more finger in the gear. The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that the United Arab Emirates themselves conducted military operations against Iran in April, while only the United States and Israel had previously claimed to have participated in attacks against Tehran.
According to the American newspaper, which cites anonymous sources, these strikes by the Emirates had targeted Iranian oil facilities in the Lavan Strait in the Gulf at the beginning of April. After unattributed strikes on these installations, Iran had launched attacks on Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
The country was the main target of missiles and drones fired by Iran in response to the Israeli-American offensive against the Islamic Republic that began on February 28. From the start of the war until May 8, the Gulf country was targeted by over 551 ballistic missiles, 29 cruise missiles, and 2,263 drones, according to the Emirati Ministry of Defense.
Dubai vulnerable to Iranian response
These attacks targeted American bases, energy infrastructure, as well as buildings and hotels, resulting in 10 civilian deaths.
“In the early days of the conflict, it seemed to be only a matter of time before we witnessed an increased military involvement from various Gulf states in this war,” analyzed H.A. Hellyer, a researcher at the Royal United Services Institute for Defense and Security Studies in London, in the columns of the Wall Street Journal.
Despite the high interception rate by the air defense, these attacks shattered the aura of stability that Dubai, a hub of business, tourism, and investments in the region, was enjoying before the conflict. The Emirates, close allies of the United States, had taken a firmer tone towards Iran than other Gulf countries.
