Dubai news highlights: Explosions near Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi; one missile and 6 drones hit UAE

Dubai news; Smoke rises after reported Iranian missile attacks, following United States and Israel strikes on Iran, as seen from Doha, Qatar,

Dubai news highlights: The updates to this live blog have ended. Fresh explosions were reportedly heard in Qatar's Doha and Bahrain's Manama on Thursday, as tensions intensified between the US and Iran, further widening the conflict in the Middle East region. Situation between Tehran and Washington boiled over to another level after the sinking of an Iranian warship by a US submarine in the waters near Sri Lanka on Wednesday.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi warned that US "will bitterly regret the precedent it has set."

Earlier in the day, Qatar said that it evacuated residents from the vicinity of the US embassy amid intensifying tensions between the US, Israel and Iran, which have also spilled over to the Middle East region. The evacuation came after reports of Qatar shooting down Iranian bombers that targeted a US military base there.

Meanwhile, India, France and several other countries continue to operate relief flights to Gulf countries, including Dubai, Jeddah, and Oman, to repatriate their citizens from the conflict-ridden Middle East region.

On Wednesday, the US State Department vowed to help Americans evacuate from the Middle Eastern. In a post on X, it said, "Any American in the Middle East who wishes to leave: call the State Department, and we will get your home." The department also noted that 18,000 Americans had so far returned to the US.

Latest advisory in UAE, Qatar

Earlier, Washington also issued an advisory for its citizens stranded in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Israel.

According to the advisory, a Level 3 alert stays in place for the Gulf nations. The State Department's advisory asked Americans in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and other UAE cities to leave the country through land borders with Oman and Saudi Arabia, if flights are unavailable.

The Indian Embassy in Doha issued a fresh advisory for its nationals in Qatar on Wednesday, urging them to strictly follow the safety instructions issued by the local authorities. It asked Indian nationals to remain indoors and avoid unnecessary movement.

UAE intercepts drones, missiles

UAE's ministry of defence on Wednesday night gave an update on the statistics of the drones and missiles it has intercepted so far. It said that UAE Air Defences have so far detected 941 drones and intercepted 876 of them, with 65 UAVs impacting within state territory. The ministry added that 189 ballistic missiles have been detected so far, of which 175 were intercepted, 13 impacted in the sea, and just one impacted within state territory.

UAE Air Defences have also detected and intercepted eight cruise missiles so far.

Qatar ‘shot down’ Iranian bombers sent to strike US base

Qatar shot down Iranian bombers when they were just "two minutes" away from striking the largest military base of the US troops, CNN reported, citing two sources briefed on the operation.

The bomber planes were reportedly visually identified and photographed "carrying bombs and guided munitions".

Qatar issued a warning over the radio but received no response from the Iranian jets, which had to what the report said was a flying altitude of 80 feet to evade radar detection. Subsequently, the aircraft were "classified as hostile" by Qatar due to time constraints and on the basis of available evidence.

Qatar reportedly deployed its warplanes, and a Qatari F-15 fighter jet, in an "aerial combat" with the Iranian jets, before downing them, the CNN report stated.