DUBAI: A drone strike targeted the United States Consulate in Dubai, partially setting the building on fire, according to international media reports on Tuesday.
Emergency response teams rushed to the site and brought the blaze under control, officials said. The sound of the explosion was reportedly heard several kilometres away from the diplomatic compound.
The Dubai government confirmed that no casualties were reported and stated that the situation was fully under control.
The UAE Ministry of Defence said the country had faced more than 1,000 attacks from Iran since the escalation began, adding that no decision had been taken to alter its defensive strategy.
Meanwhile, a US newspaper reported that a drone strike was carried out on Monday at a CIA station in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia.
In a separate development, the Qatar Ministry of Defence said Iran fired two missiles toward Qatar, one of which targeted the US-operated Al Udeid Air Base. No casualties were reported in the incident.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Dubai drone strike hit a parking area adjacent to the consulate, adding that American diplomatic missions were directly under attack.
He stated that since the start of the conflict, around 9,000 Americans had departed the Middle East, while approximately 1,600 US citizens had requested assistance for evacuation.
At the United Nations, Israel’s Ambassador Danny Danon claimed that Israel and the United States had established near-complete control over Iranian airspace.
The incidents mark a further escalation in regional tensions, with diplomatic and military installations increasingly coming under threat amid the widening conflict.