A fuel tank at Dubai International Airport in the United Arab Emirates was struck by an Iranian drone attack on Monday morning, temporarily halting flights as plumes of smoke poured from the site.
Dramatic video shows thick black smoke emanating from an enormous fire following the attack on a fuel tank at the Middle Eastern transit hub.
The airport, which is one of the busiest in the world, was forced to suspend flights briefly.
Firefighters were able to contain the blaze, and there were no injuries reported as flights resumed a few hours later.
The attack is the third to hit Dubai’s airport since the start of the most recent conflict in the Middle East on Feb. 28, as Iran continues to strike civilian infrastructure in its Gulf neighbors and Israel.
A separate Iranian drone attack on Monday hit the Government Media Office in Umm Al Quwain, roughly 30 miles north of Dubai, triggering a fire.
The UAE’s Defense Ministry says it responded to six ballistic missiles and 21 drones on Monday.
Since the start of the conflict, seven people — including five civilians — have been killed in the UAE and 145 have been injured, according to official figures from the Defense Ministry.
Iran has sent 304 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles and 1,627 drones to the UAE since Feb. 28, the Defense Ministry said in an update Monday.
It comes as Israel said it would keep hitting Iran for “as long as needed,” as the conflict enters its 17th day.
Iran’s Foreign Minister said on Monday that the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial chokepoint in the Persian Gulf, was “closed to our enemies,” amid ongoing uncertainty over oil prices.
“After 15 days of war, they have resorted to others to ensure the security of the Strait of Hormuz, turning to those they considered enemies until yesterday,” said Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, referring to the US and Israel, as reported by Al Jazeera.
“They are asking other countries to come and help them so that the strait remains open. From our perspective, the strait is open, but it is closed to our enemies, closed to those who carried out this cowardly aggression against us and to their allies,” he said.
Araghchi previously boasted that Iran is receiving “military cooperation” from China and Russia.
Since the start of the war, Iran has effectively stopped shipping traffic in the Strait, through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported.
President Trump has called on the US’s allies to send warships to keep the Strait open.
