Two people were killed and three others were wounded in Abu Dhabi on Thursday when shrapnel from an intercepted missile rained down on a road on the city’s outskirts, officials in the United Arab Emirates said.
The Emirati authorities did not release the names of the two people who were killed but said that they were a Pakistani man and an Indian man. Their deaths underscored the rising civilian toll from the missiles and drones Iran has launched into several Arab countries since the United States and Israel began attacking Iran on Feb. 28.
The United Arab Emirates intercepted 15 ballistic missiles and 11 drones fired by Iran on Thursday, according to the country’s defense ministry.
Other countries in the Persian Gulf also said they had been attacked on Thursday, but none of them reported casualties. Saudi Arabia said it had intercepted at least 36 drones aimed at its oil-rich Eastern Province, a day after downing 34 drones and a ballistic missile. Kuwait said its air defenses brought down multiple drones, while civil defense teams in Bahrain extinguished a fire in the northern city of Muharraq that it said was caused by an airstrike.
In a joint statement issued late on Wednesday, six Arab nations condemned “blatant Iranian attacks” and strikes carried out by Iran-backed militias in Iraq.
“While we value our fraternal relations with the Republic of Iraq, we call on the Iraqi government to take the necessary measures to immediately halt the attacks launched by factions, militias, and armed groups from Iraqi territory toward neighboring countries,” the statement read.
The authorities in Kuwait also said on Wednesday that they had foiled a terror plot involving 10 of its citizens. The Kuwaiti Interior Ministry accused them of being linked to Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant group backed by Iran, and said they “were planning to assassinate state figures and leaders and recruit individuals to carry out these missions.” Five of the 10 were arrested, but the other five, who were not in Kuwait, remained at large, the ministry said.
Ismaeel Naar is an international reporter for The Times, covering the Gulf states. He is based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
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