Overview
- The Wall Street Journal published a May 29 report saying the United Arab Emirates secretly executed dozens of airstrikes inside Iran in close coordination with the United States and Israel.
- Those strikes focused on Iranian military and energy sites, including the Lavan Island refinery, the Asaluyeh petrochemical complex, Qeshm and Abu Musa islands, and the port of Bandar Abbas.
- The report says some Emirati operations continued after a U.S.-brokered ceasefire was announced in April, widening the window of active hostilities.
- Iran responded with sustained missile and drone barrages that heavily targeted the UAE, and the country reported intercepting hundreds of projectiles and thousands of unmanned aircraft during the campaign.
- The disclosures have deepened diplomatic rifts in the Gulf, prompted private Saudi warnings to Washington, and contributed to sharp economic and human costs including major stock losses, flight disruptions, infrastructure damage, and civilian casualties.