An Iranian missile struck the world-famous Fairmont hotel in Dubai on Saturday, setting the five-star hotel alight and injuring four people, as the war launched by the US and Israel on Iran rapidly spread across the Middle East. Social media videos showed fires breaking out near the entrance of the luxury hotel on Dubai's Palm Jumeirah, shocking residents.
Dubai authorities later said debris from an intercepted drone caused a fire at the Burj Al Arab hotel and Dubai's international airport, while an incident at Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi resulted in one fatality and seven injuries, according to a now-deleted post from Abu Dhabi Airports. The Dubai media office confirmed that part of the airport sustained minor damage, but no injuries were reported from the earlier incidents.
In Bahrain, an Iranian drone flew into a high-rise building in what appeared to be a targeted attack, engulfing the skyscraper in flames, and a missile struck the country's national security agency. Social media footage also showed a missile hitting the large US naval base in Bahrain. In Kuwait, a drone crashed into the main airport, wounding several employees and causing damage.
Iran's wide-ranging attack targeted more than six countries in response to US and Israeli bombings, pulling in places previously untouched by the crisis. Iran-backed groups joined the fray, with Kataib Hezbollah and Yemen's Houthis warning they would strike US military bases across the region. Meanwhile, bases of the Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq were struck by either the US or Israel, killing at least two members of the armed Iraqi group.
The escalation prompted anxiety across the region. In Lebanon, gas stations saw long queues, commercial flights at Beirut airport were cancelled, and people stocked up on essentials. In Jordan, fires blazed in the northern city of Irbid as shrapnel from intercepted missiles fell. Arab states condemned Iran's strikes as a violation of their sovereignty, with Qatar calling it a “direct assault on national security”.
