Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates stepped up their criticism of Iran's strikes across the Gulf.
“Return to your senses, to your surroundings, and deal with your neighbors with reason and responsibility before the circle of isolation and escalation widens,” Anwar Gargash, a senior foreign policy advisor to the UAE's president, Mohammed bin Zayed, said on X.
“Your war is not with your neighbors, and through this escalation, you confirm the narrative of those who see Iran as the region's primary source of danger,” Gargash said.
Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry said Iran's attacks — a response to US-Israeli strikes that started on Saturday — needed a “firm” international response. Qatar described an Iranian attack on the port of Duqm in Oman as “cowardly.”
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The statements on Sunday signal Iran's growing isolation as it retaliates against the American and Israeli bombardment by striking targets in Israel and neighboring Arab states.
Oman was the main mediator in nuclear talks between Iran and the US over recent weeks and had publicly urged Washington to continue diplomacy. Tehran's attack on the sultanate shows how widely it's lashing out.
The Gulf Cooperation Council, which includes countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE and Bahrain, condemned the “the treacherous military operations launched by Iran.”
The GCC added that its members had previously assured Iran the US would not be allowed to use their territories or airspace for any military operations against the Islamic Republic.
The UAE's main cities of Dubai and Abu Dhabi have faced hundreds of missiles and drone attacks from Iran since Saturday morning. Most have been intercepted. But there have been several casualties. The strikes are causing panic among residents and pose a huge threat to the UAE's economy and status as a stable financial, logistics and tourism hub.
READ MORE: Iran-Israel Conflict: Strait Of Hormuz In Focus Again — Why Is It So Significant?
DP World suspended operations at Jebel Ali port in Dubai — the world's busiest container hub outside of Asia — while MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co. said it was halting all bookings for cargo to the Middle East until further notice.
There was little sign of a let up from either Iran or the US and Israel on Sunday. After Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was confirmed dead in a strike, Iran vowed to step up its retaliation. US President Donald Trump said “heavy and pinpoint bombing” will continue “uninterrupted throughout the week or as long as necessary.”
Sunni Arab states in the Gulf have long had tense relations with Iran, a Shia-majority country. Still, in recent years the likes of Saudi Arabia and the UAE had sought to improve relations and were keen for Iran to agree a diplomatic deal with the US to avert the conflict now raging.
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