Workers sit on a wall against the backdrop of the city skyline as they take a break in Dubai on March 11, 2026. File
| Photo Credit:
AFP
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) early Tuesday (March 17, 2026) closed its airspace as an “extraordinary precautionary measure” amid fresh wave of incoming missile and drone threats from Iran, its defence ministry said. The slew of attacks continue after Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had said that rockets had been launched from the UAE to attack Kharg Island. UAE officials have denied the claim.
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A wave of drone and rocket attacks targeted the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad on Tuesday (March 17, 2026), Iraqi security sources said, describing it as the most intense assault since the attacks began, with at least five drones used.
With the war in its third week, Israel said on Monday (March 16, 2026) it had drawn up detailed plans for at least three more weeks of war as it pounded sites across Iran overnight. Iran also vowed at the United Nations that it would not submit to “lawless aggression”, and said its citizens were in “grave danger” from U.S. and Israeli strikes.
