UAE Urges Restraint After Iran Hits Israel

The UAE has called for restraint to avoid further escalation in the region after Iran's missile and drone attack on Israel.

In a statement issued Sunday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) expressed its "deep concern over the developments that the region has witnessed over the past few days," and called for a "halt to the escalation and to avoid exacerbating tensions and instability in the region."

It called for "exercising the utmost restraint in order to avoid serious repercussions, and the region being pulled into new levels of instability," as per the official website.

Furthermore, the ministry urged "resolving conflicts through dialogue and diplomatic channels, and for adhering to the rule of law and respecting the United Nations Charter," asking the United Nations and the UN Security Council to fulfill their responsibilities.

The MoFA stressed that the UN and UN Security Council should enhance international peace and security by resolving long-standing issues and conflicts in the region that threaten global security and stability.

Iran said its Sunday attack on Israel was in response to a suspected Israeli strike on its consulate in Syria on April 1 that killed top Revolutionary Guards commanders.

Following the attack, Israel Defense Forces shared a post on X (formerly Twitter), saying, "Iran heavily funds, supports and trains terrorist groups around the world—expanding its influence all across the globe. Iran has revealed its true face as the biggest sponsor of global terrorism."

Amid tension between Israel and Iran, people who planned to travel back to the UAE after the Eid al-Fitr holidays were stranded due to cancellations of flights. The UAE-based travel agencies had a busy weekend as they rescheduled the flights, ensuring the passengers returned safely.

Dubai-based Smart Travels' general manager Safeer Mahamood explained the trouble passengers faced due to the cancellation of flights. "We had a passenger who was due to fly from Doha to Amman late yesterday. His flight was diverted and landed back in Doha so he was unable to travel," he said, according to Khaleej Times.

"We have a group of 25 people traveling to Amman later this month... We have been getting frantic calls since morning about the status of that trip. Since this is a developing situation, we are still monitoring it and waiting for updates," he added.

Fardan Hanif, director of another travel agency, Deira Travel, also reported similar problems. "We had a corporate group travelling on a company holiday. They were en route to their destination when their plane landed at Istanbul airport. They had to cancel their trip and are now on their way back to Dubai," he said.