UAE, Qatar war news highlights: Kuwait says it is dealing with drone attack, civilian buildings damaged

Bystanders watch as a plume of black smoke rises from the port of Fujairah in the gulf emirate of Fujairah, UAE on March 4

Dubai, UAE war news: The updates to this live blog have ended. One person was killed in Dubai on Saturday when interception debris fell on a car. While the identity of the person is yet not know, the Dubai Media Office said the person was a Pakistani citizen and worked as a driver.

The UAE on Saturday confirmed that the country was responding to incoming missile and drone threats from Iran. In an X post, the Ministry of Defence said that the sounds heard are the result of the Air Defence Systems intercepting missiles and drones.

Loud explosions were also heard across Dubai. Apart from the UAE, sirens were also active in Bahrain, where AFP reported loud explosions, numbering at least five, in the capital city of Manama.

A fresh missile threat was reported in Dubai and loud bangs were heard in Abu Dhabi, earlier on Saturday as the raging conflict between the US and Iran continued to impact other countries in the Middle East. A “minor" incident was also dealt with in Dubai, authorities said, adding that some debris fell off a missile intercepted today.

Even as airlines slowly resumed operations to the Middle East, some planes were seen hovering over the Dubai airport for a while and some flight delays were seen.

A day before, residents in Dubai and Qatar received alerts on their phones, warning of a possible missile threat. However, Qatar re-notified its residents that the security threat had been eliminated.

Latest updates on the situation in the UAE:

UAE President's first comments since war

Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who is also ruler of Abu Dhabi, said the UAE was no easy prey, in his first public comments since Iran launched missiles at its Gulf neighbour amid US-Israeli strikes.

The United Arab Emirates will emerge "stronger" after the Middle East war, the president told Abu Dhabi TV in a rare address on Saturday, as Iran continued its retaliatory strikes across the Gulf.

The UAE "is in a period of war", Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan told the TV channel, but "we will emerge stronger".

UAE intercept 15 ballistic missiles, 119 drones: UAE air defences detected 16 ballistic missiles on March 7; 15 were intercepted and one fell into the sea.

• Air defence systems also detected 121 UAVs, of which 119 were intercepted while two fell within UAE territory.
• Since the start of the Iranian attacks, UAE has detected 221 ballistic missiles — 205 destroyed, 14 fell into the sea and two landed in UAE territory, defence ministry said in a post on X.
• Eight cruise missiles were also detected and destroyed by air defence systems.
• The attacks resulted in three deaths — Pakistani, Nepali and Bangladeshi nationals — and 112 minor injuries among people of multiple nationalities.

India's advisory for tourists in Qatar: Amid the ongoing conflict, the Indian embassy in Qatar has released an advisory for tourists with the Hayya A1 Visa, asking them to fill out a form. “Please note that this is only for the purpose of ascertaining the exact number and details of stranded Indian Nationals who are not residents of Qatar,” the advisory read.

Security alert to Dubai residents: A security alert warning of “potential missile threats” was received by residents in Dubai on their mobile phones on Thursday. "Due to the current situation, potential missile threats, seek immediate shelter in the closest secure building and steer away from windows, doors and open areas," the alert read, according to news agency AFP. A similar alert was received by residents in Qatar later in the day.

Countries plan flights to evacuate nationals: With the Middle East conflict sparking a worry, countries across the globe have planned repatriation flights to evacuate nationals stranded in the Gulf. Poland, France, Hungary, Italy, Germany, Bulgaria and Netherlands are among countries that have engaged in such operations.

India to operate 96 flights today: To evacuate nationals from the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and other parts of West India, domestic airlines from India will be running 96 flights on Friday, the government has said.