
UAE condemns Iranian targeting of Al Udeid base in Qatar
UAE condemned in the strongest terms the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' targeting of Al Udeid Air Base in the sisterly State of Qatar, considering it a flagrant violation of Qatar's sovereignty and airspace, and a clear contravention of international law and the United Nations Charter.
The UAE affirmed its categorical rejection of any attack that threatens the security and safety of the State of Qatar and undermines the security and stability of the region.
In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed the UAE's full solidarity with Qatar and its unwavering support for all measures aimed at protecting the security and safety of its citizens and residents.
The Ministry also stressed the need for an immediate halt to military escalation, warning that the continuation of such escalatory actions would undermine regional security and drag the region down dangerous paths that would have disastrous repercussions for international peace and security.
The Ministry further called for diplomatic solutions and the principle of good neighbourliness, noting that serious dialogue is the only way to overcome current crises and preserve the security and stability of the region and the peace of its peoples.
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Khaleej Times
2 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
'I miss my house': Tehran residents welcome ceasefire, hope Israel honours it
After 12 days of Israeli airstrikes that echoed in cities around the country, killing hundreds and sending waves of people fleeing their homes, Iranians voiced relief on Tuesday at the surprise overnight announcement of a ceasefire. For those in the Iranian capital, it brought the prospect of a clean-up, a return to normal life and the soothing, for now at least, of anxiety about a further escalation and sustained warfare. Many Iranians who fled the strikes were also glad, able to return home after tiring, expensive stays outside the city in rented accommodation or with relatives. "I am overjoyed. It is over, and we can finally live in peace. It was an unnecessary war and we people paid the price for the authorities' war-mongering policies," said Shima, 40, from Shiraz, withholding her name for fear of reprisals. Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels. Just 24 hours earlier, plumes of smoke hung over parts of the capital as Israel targeted the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and its paramilitary Basij militia, as well as Evin prison at the foot of the Alborz Mountains. One man in a busy Tehran street, who also asked to remain anonymous, said, "It's the people who are paying the price - whether our people or theirs. Both sides are bearing the cost, so it's better that this happened sooner rather than later." Israel has repeatedly warned residents to leave large swathes of the city before it conducted airstrikes, clogging the highways out of Tehran with vast traffic jams. Exhausted and running out of cash, many of them had started to return home even before the ceasefire was announced. Arash, a 39-year-old government employee, had taken his family to Damavand, a mountain resort 35 miles east of Tehran that is popular for its clean air and bucolic setting. They returned to Tehran two days ago. "My wife and two children were terrified of the bombings but renting even a modest room in Damavand for any length of time is beyond my limited budget," he said. Noushin, 35, drove almost five hours with her husband and child to stay with her mother-in-law in Sari, near Iran's Caspian coast. But the house was already crowded with relatives seeking shelter and Noushin decided they were better off at home. "My child misses her room. I miss my house. How long can we live like this?" she asked. "Even if there's another attack, I'd rather die in my own home." No signs of protest Israel launched its surprise air war on June 13, hitting nuclear sites and killing military commanders in the worst blow to Iran since Iraq invaded in 1980, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strikes could result in regime change. However, there have been no signs of significant street protests against the Islamic Republic. Iranians contacted, including some who oppose the Islamic Republic and have protested against it in the past, said the airstrikes had brought people to rally around national feeling in the face of what they saw as foreign aggression. Still, for many Iranians, there is anger at the top ranks of the nation's leadership, and for those returning home, the reality of a sanctions-hit economy remains. "This is unacceptable. This is brutal. Why are we being attacked while the officials hide in safe places?' said Mohammad, 63, from Rasht. "I place the blame on this country's decision-makers. Their policies have brought war and destruction upon us," he said by phone. While Israel has repeatedly targeted both leaders and facilities of the internal security forces under the IRGC, state media have announced hundreds of arrests of people accused of spying. Black security vehicles were seen on the streets of Tehran on Tuesday, and dissidents expressed fear of a coming crackdown by the authorities to ward off any attempt at mass protests. Accusations of ceasefire violations on Tuesday also raised fears that the war could reignite. "I hope they (the Israelis) remain committed to the ceasefire. History has shown that they've never truly honoured it, but I still hope this time they do — because it's in our interest and theirs as well," said one man on a Tehran street.


The National
3 hours ago
- The National
Middle East pushes to preserve fragile peace between Israel and Iran
Middle East leaders were pushing to uphold a fragile peace on Tuesday, after Israel and Iran stepped back from their 12-day air war. US President Donald Trump told Israel to "bring your pilots home" after announcing a ceasefire deal assisted by Qatar and Oman. It followed a tumultuous 4 in which the US bombed Iran and an American base in Qatar was attacked in response. Both sides signalled they would pause attacks. But Israel accused Iran of breaching the truce and said it attacked a radar site in response. In an angry swipe at the alleged breaches, Mr Trump said Israel and Iran "don't know what they are doing". He told Israel: "Do not drop those bombs." Iran sought to repair relations with the Gulf after its attack on the Al Udeid base in Qatar sparked widespread condemnation. President Masoud Pezeshkian told Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim that the strike was "merely a reaction to the direct and overt involvement of the United States" in Israel's war. The missile strike "should not be interpreted as a confrontation between the Islamic Republic of Iran and its friendly, brotherly neighbour," Mr Pezeshkian said. Qatar said it had shot down almost all of Iran's missiles. In a call with Mr Pezeshkian on Tuesday, UAE President Sheikh Mohamed welcomed the announcement of a ceasefire, state news agency Wam reported. It said he expressed hope it would serve as a foundation for enhancing stability, security and peace across the Middle East. Qatar revealed it was asked by the US to approach Iran about a ceasefire. Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said Qatar was surprised to be attacked given it was trying to defuse the conflict. "We are looking forward to constructing a clear and solid understanding that guarantees that such incidents will not be repeated," he said. Oman also played a prominent role in a behind-the-scenes diplomatic drive involving Qatar, Egypt and Russia, sources told The National. They said messages relayed between Iran and the Trump administration included thinly veiled threats of using more destructive missiles against Israel or closing the Strait of Hormuz. Israel said it had entered the ceasefire having "met all the objectives" of its campaign, known as Operation Rising Lion. The war began with a surprise Israeli attack on June 13 that hit nuclear sites and killed senior Iranian commanders. It then escalated into attacks on government buildings and residential areas of Tehran. The Israeli military has been told to "maintain a high level of alert and readiness to deliver a powerful response to any violation of the ceasefire", said Brig Gen Effie Defrin. He said Israeli fighter jets hit dozens of military sites in Tehran in the hours before the ceasefire took effect. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired 14 ballistic missiles at Israel before the truce, Tasnim news agency reported. It said more than 600 Iranians had been killed in the war, including civilians and military commanders. Mr Pezeshkian said though that if "does not violate the ceasefire, Iran will not do so". The Iranian Supreme National Security Council boasted that a "determined and powerful response" had forced Israel to agree a truce. Hypersonic missile attacks have damaged buildings in Tel Aviv on a scale beyond what Israel is used to from fighting Hamas, Hezbollah and other militants. If the ceasefire holds, attention will return to Israel's next move in Gaza, where no peace has taken hold. More than 500 Palestinians have been killed at aid distribution points run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a UN human rights official said on Tuesday. They included 32 people killed on Tuesday morning, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa. 'We're still begging for aid to be allowed in, while Iran ended its war in a matter of days,' one Gaza resident, Rasha Abdel Rahman, told The National. "A nuclear-armed nation ended its war in days,' she told The National. 'But here we are in Gaza, stateless, unarmed, struggling for two years with no end in sight.' Israeli politicians almost universally rallied behind Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during the attacks on Iran, billed by the US and Israel as a decisive blow against a secret nuclear weapons programme that Tehran denies it is running. But the country is split on the next move in Gaza. Opposition leader Yair Lapid said it was time for Israel to 'start rebuilding'. Mr Lapid said it "is the time to complete the mission: return all the hostages, end the war in Gaza and stop once and for all the coup that threatens to make Israel weak, divided and vulnerable," referring to the policies of Mr Netanyahu's far-right government. The US intervened on Sunday with "bunker-buster" bombs dropped on underground Iranian nuclear sites, although it wasn't clear how much of Iran's uranium stockpile had been damage. Iran's retaliation against Qatar, although condemned across the Arab world, was billed by Tehran as a proportionate response that did not put civilian lives at risk. 'Everyone knew that Iran needed a face-saving hit and was allowed to strike Al Udeid, which resulted in nothing militarily – Doha intercepted all the missiles except one, which fell in an empty area," Ali Bakir, assistant professor at Qatar University and non-resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, told The National. He warned though that the strike "increases the regional distrust in Iran's policies". Oman and the other nations involved behind the scenes urged the Trump administration to act "quickly and decisively", warning that a prolonged war would have disastrous results for the Middle East and beyond, said the sources. "Oman was by far the most active party in these contacts," said one source. "It has orchestrated the contacts between the Iranians and the Americans, delivering messages from the pair to each other." Mr Netanyahu's office accused Iran of firing a missile just six minutes after the ceasefire took effect, followed by two more on Tuesday morning. Iran denied the claim. "In response to Iran's violations, the air force destroyed a radar array near Tehran," Mr Netanyahu's office said. "Following President Trump's conversation with Prime Minister Netanyahu, Israel refrained from further attacks." Iran meanwhile said it has arrested a European tourist for 'spying on sensitive and military areas'. Dozens of alleged foreign spies have been detained since Israel attacked Iran, where authorities claimed to have broken up more than a dozen Mossad-linked cells.


The National
4 hours ago
- The National
How Oman, Qatar, Egypt and Russia helped to achieve Israel-Iran ceasefire
Oman took the lead in a behind-the-scenes diplomatic drive involving Qatar, Egypt and Russia that contributed significantly to the Israel-Iran ceasefire announced by US President Donald Trump late on Monday, sources told The National. The talks, which intensified in the 72 hours before the ceasefire announcement, involved creating a channel of communication between Iran and the Trump administration by relaying messages between them, the sources said. Iran's messages, they said, included thinly veiled threats of using more destructive missiles against Israel and closing the Strait of Hormuz, the world's busiest waterway for oil cargo, at the mouth of the Gulf. The aerial war between Israel and Iran, which began on June 13 with Israeli air strikes on Iranian nuclear and missile sites, had raised fears of a wider regional conflict. Those fears increased after the US bombed Iran's nuclear sites at the weekend, with Tehran vowing to retaliate by hitting American interests across the region. Oman and the three other nations urged the Trump administration to act "quickly and decisively", warning that a prolonged war would have disastrous results for the Middle East and beyond, said the sources. "Oman was by far the most active party in these contacts," said one source. "It has orchestrated the contacts between the Iranians and the Americans, delivering messages from the pair to each other." Oman, a close US ally that has traditionally maintained good relations with Iran, is a secretive Gulf nation that has over the years mediated between Tehran and Washington, as well as in various regional conflicts. It has not publicly commented on its role in bringing about the ceasefire and is unlikely to do so. Qatar, however, acknowledged its role in the process. The Gulf state's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman said on Tuesday that Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim had spoken to Mr Trump to chart a path towards a ceasefire. "Our friends in the United States proposed that the state of Qatar will initiate communication with the Iranians in order to examine their preparedness," he said. "We initiated communication with the Iranians and then it was followed by the announcement made by the US President." The ceasefire announcement came hours after Iran launched missiles at the US Al Udeid airbase in Qatar. The attack caused no damage, with all but one of the missiles intercepted. It has, however, sparked condemnation from Qatar and Arab states across the region. Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian spoke to Sheikh Tamim on Tuesday, the Qatari Prime Minister said. Link Oman, Egypt has said nothing publicly about its role in a ceasefire, but its leader, President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, held phone calls on Sunday with Mr Pezeshkian and the ruler of Oman, Sultan Haitham, Egyptian president's office said. Egypt's relations with Iran have improved rapidly in recent months after decades of tension dating back to the 1979 Islamic Revolution that toppled the Shah. Similarly, Russia has not said anything about its part, but the Kremlin on Tuesday rejected criticism that it had not done enough to back Iran in its war with Israel, saying it had taken a "clear position" by condemning the US and Israeli strikes. Iran's indirect messages to the Americans in the run-up to Mr Trump's ceasefire announcement included implicit threats that it could hurt Israel much more effectively if it were to use the full range of its arsenal of ballistic missiles and drones, said the sources. Another message sent by the Iranians said Tehran had potential to withstand a long, drawn-out war, citing its ruinous, eight-year conflict with Iraq in the 1980s. The Iranians also claimed a prolonged war would invariably leave Tehran little or no choice but to target western and US interests across the world, using its "brigades of martyrs" to carry out attacks. On a separate track, major west European nations also played a part in the ceasefire effort, the sources said, with most motivated by fear of the effect on their economies if Iran were to make good on its threat to close the Strait of Hormuz. They said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been reluctant to accept the ceasefire, arguing with the Trump administration that his government's war goals – destroying Iran's nuclear and ballistic capabilities – were not fully met. However, Mr Netanyahu issued a statement on Tuesday night saying Israel had agreed to Mr Trump's proposal for a ceasefire "in light of the achievement of the operation's goals".