Fresh blasts rattled Dubai, Doha and Manama on Sunday morning, and air raid sirens wailed over Jerusalem, a day after Iran launched widespread strikes across the Gulf in retaliation for U.S. and Israeli attacks, officials and witnesses said.
Thick black smoke rose on the southern horizon of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, where two people were injured after shrapnel from intercepted drones fell onto two houses, according to a Dubai Media Office statement. Similar blasts were reported in Bahrain’s capital, Manama, and in Doha, Qatar.
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“Sirens were sounded in several areas across the country, following the identification of missiles launched from Iran toward the State of Israel,” the Israeli military said. “At this time, the Israeli Air Force is operating to intercept and strike threats where necessary to remove the threat.”
The latest explosions followed a deadly day of strikes that hit military facilities and civilian infrastructure across the Gulf, sparing only mediator Oman. The attacks have raised fears of a wider conflict across a region that long marketed itself as a haven of stability and investment in the Middle East.
In the United Arab Emirates, Iran fired 137 missiles and 209 drones across the territory on Saturday, the UAE defense ministry said, with fires and smoke seen near landmarks the Palm and the Burj Al Arab in Dubai. At Abu Dhabi International Airport, at least one person was killed and seven were wounded in what the airport authority called an “incident.” Dubai International, the world’s busiest for international traffic, and Kuwait’s main airport also reported impacts.
Qatari officials said Iran launched 65 missiles and 12 drones toward the Gulf state, most of which were intercepted. Eight people were injured, including one critically. The barrage also targeted Al Udeid Air Base, the largest U.S. military installation in the region.
Smoke poured from U.S. facilities in Abu Dhabi and Manama, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, witnesses said, and bases in Kuwait were also targeted. In Manama, drones and shrapnel slammed into residential buildings, with videos on social media showing smoke and flames rising from high-rises.
Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, and parts of the country’s oil-producing east were also targeted on Saturday, regional officials said.
The strikes reverberated through global travel networks. Dublin Airport said Qatar Airways canceled its full Sunday schedule of flights between Dublin and Doha. Emirates and Etihad Airways canceled early-morning services as carriers assessed airspace risks and airport operations.
Unrest flared alongside the military escalation. In Pakistan’s largest city, Karachi, at least nine protesters were killed after crowds breached the outer wall of the U.S. Consulate, a local government spokesman said. Protesters set a vehicle ablaze outside the main gate and clashed with police. It was not immediately clear how the deaths occurred. The U.S. Consulate in Karachi and the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad did not respond to requests for comment. A diplomat inside the Karachi compound said, “We’re safe.”
Authorities in Iraq fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse hundreds of pro-Iranian demonstrators gathered outside Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone, which houses the U.S. Embassy. “Death to Israel, death to America,” some chanted. Iraq and Pakistan have the world’s largest Shiite Muslim populations outside Iran.
The Karachi protest followed news reports of U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran that allegedly killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — a claim that could not be independently verified.
As regional capitals assessed damage and defense systems remained on high alert, the scope of the Iranian salvos — and the potential for further retaliation — left the Gulf’s trade routes, energy markets and aviation corridors on edge.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
