Overview
- The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that the UAE carried out covert strikes inside Iran, casting the Gulf state as a secret combatant in the conflict.
- One strike hit Iran’s Lavan Island refinery in early April, sparking a large fire and disabling much of its 60,000-barrel-per-day capacity for months, according to the reporting and Iran’s broadcast about an “enemy attack.”
- Hours after the Lavan incident on April 8, Iran launched missiles and drones at the UAE and Kuwait, and has since fired more than 2,800 projectiles at Emirati targets that disrupted flights, tourism, and the property market.
- Abu Dhabi has not confirmed any role, while U.S. officials were described as quietly welcoming Gulf participation and outside verification remains limited to unnamed sources and suggestive open-source imagery.
- Analysts say the UAE’s advanced Mirage and F‑16 jets and Wing Loong drones could enable such raids, and the focus on refineries and shipping routes threatens oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz.