One dead as Iranian missiles strike wealthy Gulf
Iran fired missiles at the capital cities of several Gulf nations in retaliation for a US and Israeli attack.
A smoke plume rises over Abu Dhabi from the site of an Iranian missile strike on Feb 28, 2026. (Photo: AFP)
RIYADH: Iranian missiles hit capital cities around the wealthy Gulf on Saturday (Feb 28), killing at least one, in retaliation for a US and Israeli attack that threatened to spark a wider conflict.
Blasts echoed over Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Doha and Manama, where plumes of smoke were seen pouring from the Juffair area, which houses a major US naval base.
One civilian died in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates, after being struck by falling debris, according to the ministry of defence.
The oil-and-gas-rich Arab monarchies across the Gulf sea from Iran are long-term American allies and host several US military facilities.
Several blasts rattled Qatar, home to Al Udeid, the region's biggest US military base. Qatar's defence ministry said it had "repelled a number of attacks".
An AFP journalist saw an interceptor destroy one missile in a puff of white smoke.
Al Udeid includes the forward elements of CENTCOM, the regional US military command, as well as its air forces and special operations forces.
Iran fired missiles at Al Udeid last June after US strikes targeted Iranian nuclear facilities during a brief war with Israel.
The UAE said it reserved the right to respond to the Iranian attacks, slamming them as a "dangerous escalation". Several missiles were intercepted, it said.
"The United Arab Emirates was subjected today to a blatant attack by Iranian ballistic missiles," the UAE defence ministry said.
"The UAE's air defences responded with high efficiency and successfully intercepted a number of the missiles."
Abu Dhabi also hosts US forces at the Al Dhafra base. Meanwhile, witnesses in Dubai also heard an explosion and saw missiles streak across the sky.
"It was a big explosion and it made the windows shake," one witness told AFP, requesting anonymity, echoing a similar account from another Dubai resident.
In Kuwait, an Iranian missile attack caused "significant damage" to the runway at an air base hosting Italian air force personnel, Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani was quoted by the ANSA news agency as saying.
"The Italian air force members at the Kuwait base that was attacked with missiles from Iran are all safe. They were all in the bunker," Tajani told reporters.
Kuwait's Ali Al Salem base hosts Italian air force personnel taking part in the Task Force Air Kuwait since 2019 for surveillance operations against the Islamic State group in Iraq.
Saudi Arabia also condemned "brutal Iranian aggression", official media said. AFP journalists heard several explosions in Riyadh.
"I heard the explosions, I don't know what I felt," one Lebanese resident of Riyadh told AFP.
"We came to the Gulf because it's known to be safer than Lebanon. Now I don't know what to do or how to think really."
