UAE Intercepts Iranian Drone
The United Arab Emirates’ air force intercepted an Iranian drone over its territorial waters on Monday, the Defense Ministry said, an attack that comes after the S. and Iran exchanged fire over the weekend, the first significant military action in a month.
In a short statement, the Defense Ministry said it “dealt with” an Iranian drone that was detected over its waters approaching from Iran. There were no immediate claims of responsibility from Tehran nor any reports of damage.
The UAE Defense Ministry later issued a second statement denying that the Al Menhad Air Base in Dubai had been targeted by Iranian missiles, as had been reported by Iranian media outlets.
Weekend Escalation
The incident came after S. forces on Sunday struck Iranian rocket launchers on an Iranian island, breaking a lull in fighting in the war that has lasted more than six months. Iran responded by launching missiles at S. sites in Jordan, which were intercepted.
S. Central Command said it had struck Iranian launchers after observing forces with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz. The S. military said last week it had completed clearing sea mines from the Strait of Hormuz’s international shipping routes.
Iranian state television later showed what it said were ballistic missiles being fired at American bases in Jordan, and Jordan’s military said it had intercepted eight that had entered its airspace. Semiofficial news outlets in Iran reported sounds of explosions near Larak island on the Strait of Hormuz, and the Revolutionary Guard said there had been casualties.
S. military officials disputed Iran’s claim that the latest American strikes were an act of aggression, calling them a “limited, precise action” against what they said were minelaying forces.
Iranian Response
Early Monday, Iran's Foreign Ministry said that Iran would “not hesitate to exercise the inherent right of legitimate defense and will respond decisively to any military aggression.”
Before heading to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization's summit in Kyrgyzstan with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who has favored a negotiated end to the conflict, stressed that Iran was not seeking war. “But,” he said, “we will respond decisively to aggressors.”
Diplomatic Context
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit brings together a group billed as a counterweight to S. global influence, and includes Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Pezeshkian was scheduled to meet with Putin on the sidelines on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was set to host meetings of the Group of 20 finance ministers in North Carolina on Monday and Tuesday, which come as Washington pressures other countries to help the S. economically isolate Iran to try to exact concessions out of its leaders.
The war between the S. and Iran began on Feb. 28. The last time the S. military confirmed targeting Iran was on July 29, when it announced a “heavy wave of strikes” on dozens of Revolutionary Guard targets including coastal surveillance and defense sites. S. President Donald Trump said on Aug. 1 he would order the military to hold off on new strikes at the urging of Gulf allies Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.