UAE intercepts Iranian drone as US-Iran tensions flare across Middle East

Dubai,UPDATED: Aug 31, 2026 19:10 IST

Tensions rose again across the Middle East on Monday, with the United Arab Emirates saying it intercepted an Iranian drone over its territorial waters after a weekend exchange of fire between Iran and the United States. The developments marked the first significant military action in the war in more than a month and came amid continued violence in Gaza and a series of diplomatic and defence moves across the region.

Elsewhere, Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City killed at least five Palestinians, Israel signed a multibillion-euro defence deal with Greece, and Turkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia said other countries could join their new defence pact. Lebanon also sought Greece's help in implementing an agreement with Israel, while the USS Abraham Lincoln moved towards Thailand for an expected port call after its long deployment in the Middle East.

The UAE's Defence Ministry said the Iranian drone was intercepted early Monday over the country's territorial waters. The attack came after the US said it struck rocket launchers on an Iranian island on Sunday because they were preparing to launch mines into the Strait of Hormuz. Iran then launched missiles at US sites in Jordan, but all of them were intercepted.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said his country was not seeking war, but added that "we will respond decisively to aggressors". The UAE described the drone attack as a "dangerous escalation" by Iran. During the recent lull in fighting, the US had stepped up economic pressure on Iran in the hope of securing concessions from Tehran, including the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to shipping.

In Gaza, hospital officials said Israeli airstrikes on Monday killed at least five Palestinians in Gaza City. According to Shifa Hospital, one strike hit the entrance of a residential building near the city's municipal park, killing two people. The hospital said two other Palestinians were critically wounded in the same strike.

A second strike hit a vehicle in the Tal al-Hawa neighbourhood of Gaza City, killing three people, the hospital said. The Israeli military said it had attacked suspected militants in the vehicle, but did not provide evidence. It did not comment on the first strike.

The deaths were the latest reported in Gaza since a ceasefire deal reached in October tried to halt the war between Israel and Hamas, which has lasted for more than two years. Although the number of deaths has fallen since then, the Health Ministry says at least 1,320 people have been killed by Israeli fire in Gaza.

Israel also signed what it called its largest weapons deal with Greece on Monday. Israel's Defence Ministry said the 3 billion-euro defence export agreement, known as Achilles Shield, includes a multilayered air defence system for Greece using Israeli technology and is among the country's biggest such deals.

The agreement comes as Israeli defence exports have risen sharply. Official data showed exports crossed USD 19 billion last year, a 30 per cent increase from 2024. The growth has come despite widespread criticism of Israel's conduct in its wars in Gaza, with Hezbollah and with Iran. Israel and Greece have strengthened defence ties over the past decade, and Monday's agreement was described as the most significant between them so far.

In Ankara, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said other countries would be welcome to join the defence pact signed by Turkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. The three countries agreed to the alliance on August 7, under which an attack on one would be treated as an attack on all.

Fidan said the Mecca Defence Alliance would be open to new members after the first meeting of senior officials from the three countries. Egypt has been mentioned as a possible member, and Fidan promised close collaboration with "friendly countries". He was joined at Monday's meeting by his counterparts from Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, along with the three countries' defence ministers and chiefs of staff at the alliance's strategic, political and defence committee. Members have said the alliance is meant to strengthen collective defence in a manner similar to NATO's Article 5, but is not aimed at any specific foe.

In Greece, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun asked for Athens' help in implementing an agreement meant to end the war with Israel. During meetings in Athens with Greek President Constantine Tassoulas and Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Aoun said Lebanon had endured long wars and that "its people are tired".

In remarks carried by local television stations, Aoun referred to the US-brokered framework agreement signed in late June between Lebanon and Israel and said, "we ask Greece to do all it can to help Lebanon in implementing the agreement." In an apparent reference to daily Israeli airstrikes and shelling despite the June 20 ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, he said that "trying to solve the problem through military force will not succeed" and added that the agreement "should not be implemented by one side but both sides." Mitsotakis told Aoun that "the security of Lebanon and Israel are not conflicting goals".

Meanwhile, the USS Abraham Lincoln was nearing Thailand on Monday and was expected to make a port call near Pattaya after its long deployment in the Middle East. The aircraft carrier, which has about 5,000 sailors along with its battle group, was sailing towards the Gulf of Thailand. The Lincoln, one of the US Navy's biggest warships, had been supporting American operations in the Iran war, and its deployment included more than 250 days at sea without interruption.

The day's developments underlined how military, diplomatic and strategic activity continued across the wider Middle East and beyond, from the renewed US-Iran confrontation and deaths in Gaza to new defence partnerships, peace efforts involving Lebanon and Israel, and the movement of American naval forces after months in the region.

With PTI Inputs

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