The United Arab Emirates accused Iran of launching a drone attack that was intercepted by the UAE air defenses in territorial waters on Monday.
The attack comes as the United States and Iran engage in a diplomatic standoff over the assassination of a diplomat as well as America’s impending military action in Syria.
The UAE is accusing Iran of attacking Emirati and American positions on the ground and threatening the security of people and territory in the United Arab Emirates.
According to the ministry of foreign affairs the UAE has accused Iran for the attack which they have deemed as provocative but also a breach and violation of UAE sovereignty. They also state that it is a direct threat to UAE’s citizens and residents.
The ministry’s language was unusually forceful, describing the episode as unacceptable aggression that undermines national security, stability and territorial integrity, while violating core tenets of international law and the United Nations Charter.
Abu Dhabi warned that it would not accept any threat to its sovereignty under any circumstances and reserved the right to respond in whatever manner necessary to protect its people and borders, within the bounds of international law.
This is not an isolated incident. Two weeks earlier, on August 18, UAE defence systems had already tracked a pair of ballistic missiles fired from Iranian territory toward maritime shipping lanes.
Following Monday’s interception, UAE authorities moved quickly to knock down circulating claims that Al Minhad Air Base near Dubai had been struck, urging the public to rely only on official channels rather than unverified reports.
Abu Dhabi separately denounced missile strikes on Jordan the same day, describing them as a blatant violation of that country’s sovereignty.
The latest flashpoint followed a pre-dawn exchange between the United States and Iran, in which Washington said it had targeted Iranian rocket-launching positions on a small island inside the Strait of Hormuz.
Tehran responded by striking American military positions in Jordan — its first direct hit on US forces in roughly a month — deepening a confrontation that has now stretched on for six months with no resolution in sight.
