After months of restrictions and occasional flight chaos, the United Arab Emirates announced on Monday that air traffic had returned to normal. But just a few hours later, it was announced that the country's airspace had been partially closed due to new missile and drone attacks on targets in the country carried out by Iran.
In the coming week, air traffic in the country will only be allowed to operate via carefully specified corridors, Bloomberg reports, citing a so-called Notam, a notice within the aviation industry.
And on Tuesday, new attacks came. The Emirates' air defenses are fighting missiles and drones that, according to a Ministry of Defense statement on X, came from Iran.
“Must stop”
On Monday, accusations also erupted between the US and Iran over attacks at sea. The escalation is worrying several major powers. The Saudi Foreign Ministry expressed its concern and said that the country supports "diplomatic efforts to reach a political solution" to the conflict.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the attacks.
"This escalation must end. Iran must engage in negotiations in a meaningful way to ensure that the ceasefire in the Middle East lasts and a lasting diplomatic solution is reached," he wrote in a statement.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz also expressed his solidarity with the United Arab Emirates after the attacks and urges Iran to "return to the negotiating table and stop holding the region and the world hostage."
Blame the US
The Emirati Foreign Ministry states that the attacks against, among other things, the eastern emirate of Fujairah "constitute a dangerous escalation and an unacceptable violation" and emphasizes that it reserves the right to respond.
Iran has not denied responsibility, but a military official stated that the country did not "have any prior plans to attack the oil facilities" and placed the blame on the United States.
What happened is a result of the US military's recklessness in creating a route for ships to illegally pass through the Strait of Hormuz, an official said on Iranian state television.
