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One man died and 11 were injured at airports in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, as Iran launches attacks across the Middle East in response to an ongoing major attack by the United States and Israel against it.
Abu Dhabi authorities say they intercepted a drone targeting Zayed International Airport (AUH), causing “falling debris” that killed one man and injured seven people.
Dubai International Airport (DXB) – the world's busiest in terms of passenger traffic – was hit by an “incident” which injured four staff members, according to authorities.
Authorities are suspending thousands of flights to and from the region, in one of the most serious disruptions to global travel since the Covid-19 pandemic.
All flights from Dubai International and Dubai Al Maktoum are suspended until further notice.
Emirates airline said it was suspending all operations from Dubai until at least 3:00 p.m. local time on Monday, and blamed the closure of airspace.
While Etihad is not suspending its flights from Abu Dhabi until 02:00 on Monday for the same reason.
British Airways is not canceling its flights to Tel Aviv and Bahrain until Wednesday and is also warning of impacts on services to Abu Dhabi, Amman, Doha and Dubai.
Virgin Atlantic is also not canceling flights between London and Dubai and London and Riyadh on Sunday and Monday.
Singapore Airlines and Air India are among those airlines that do not change their schedules based on events in the Middle East.
Revenge strikes from Iran continue on Sunday as explosions erupt in Doha, Dubai and Manama.
Iran is using ballistic missiles and drones to launch large-scale attacks on US allies and assets across the Gulf, after the supreme leader died as part of the ongoing US-Israeli air offensive they launched on Saturday morning.
Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait – all of which host US military bases – say they intercept missiles that Iran fires at them, but falling debris does not appear to cause significant damage.
Also in Dubai, debris from an “aerial interception ferry” caused a fire at a berth at the deep-water port of Jebel Ali, the ninth busiest port in the world.
Where did this photo come from? Reuters
A large explosion hit Palm Jumeirah, Dubai's luxury artificial archipelago, five-star Fairmont, Palm Hotel.
Video verified by the BBC shows a fire burning at a five-star hotel and black smoke rising into the sky.
Authorities also confirmed that debris from an intercepted drone caused a “minor fire” on the exterior facade of the five-star Burj Al Arab hotel.
For Bahrain, the Interior Ministry said the airport was damaged after a drone strike in the morning.
On Saturday, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced an attack on the headquarters of the US Navy's Fifth Fleet, located in Manama, the capital of Bahrain.
Pipo sees large black smoke rising from an area near the base.
Meanwhile, a report from the Oman State News Agency says two drones targeted the Duqm commercial port and injured a worker.
List of airlines that are not canceling flights to the Middle East
Where did this photo come from? Reuters
Airlines continue to cancel and divert flights serving the Middle East after the launch of US and Israeli strikes against Iran.
British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are among the carriers suspending flights, as they suspend flights to and from Dubai International Airport and Al Maktoum International Airport to Dubai.
- Qatar Airways has confirmed the temporary suspension of flights to and from the capital, Doha, due to the closure of Qatari airspace, and says operations will resume at 7:00 p.m. local time on Sunday (16:00 GMT).
- British Airways is not canceling its services to Tel Aviv and Bahrain until Wednesday. They say services between Heathrow and Abu Dhabi, Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai or Tel Aviv could be affected for several days.
- Aegean Airlines, Greece's largest airline, is not suspending flights to and from Tel Aviv, Beirut and Erbil until Monday
- Air Astana is not canceling all its flights to the Middle East until Tuesday evening
- Air Canada is not canceling its flights to Dubai until Tuesday and to Israel until next Sunday
- Spanish airline Air Europa cancels flights to Tel Aviv until at least Monday
- Air India is not canceling its flights from Delhi, Mumbai and Amritsar to a number of destinations including London, New York and Paris.
- Azerbaijan Airlines suspends flights to and from Dubai, Doha, Jeddah and Tel Aviv
- FlyDubai is not suspending flights to and from Dubai until 3:00 p.m. local time (11:00 GMT) on Sunday.
- Indian airline Indigo cancels dozens of flights until Tuesday due to airspace restrictions
- ITA Airways is not suspending flights to and from Tel Aviv and says it will avoid Israeli, Lebanese, Jordanian, Iraqi and Iranian airspace until next Saturday
- KLM is not canceling its services to Dubai, Dammam and Riyadh, they are already not suspending the Amsterdam-Tel Aviv service
- LOT suspends flights to Tel Aviv until March 15 and cancels flights to Dubai and Riyadh until Monday
- Lufthansa is not suspending its flights to and from Tel Aviv, Beirut and Oman until next Saturday, as well as its flights to and from Dubai on Sunday.
- Norwegian Air suspends all flights to Dubai until Wednesday
- Pegasus Airlines cancels all flights to Iran, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon on Sunday
- Turkish Airlines cancels flights to Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran and Jordan on Sunday
- Wizz Air is not suspending all flights to and from Israel, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Amman until next Saturday inclusive
- Virgin Atlantic announced the suspension of services between Heathrow and Riyadh on Sunday, after earlier canceling flights from Heathrow to Dubai on Saturday and Sunday. The airline warns that flights to India, Saudi Arabia and the Maldives will take longer so they can be rerouted around the affected region.
