The Dubai incident follows a drone strike on the US Embassy in Riyadh, where two drones caused minor damage inside the diplomatic quarter. Saudi officials reported no casualties,
BY PC Bureau
March 2, 2026: A suspected Iranian drone strike hit an area near the US Consulate in Dubai late Tuesday night, igniting a fire in a nearby parking lot and sending thick plumes of smoke into the sky over the emirate. The incident comes less than 24 hours after a similar drone attack targeted the US Embassy in Riyadh, underscoring a sharp escalation in regional tensions.
Dubai’s Media Office confirmed what it described as a “drone-related incident” near the consulate, saying emergency teams responded immediately and contained the blaze. Authorities said there were no injuries among diplomatic staff or civilians and no structural damage to the consulate building itself.
Video clips circulating on social media showed flames erupting near the perimeter of the diplomatic compound, followed by thick black smoke rising against the city’s skyline. Emergency vehicles were seen rushing to the scene as security forces cordoned off the surrounding area.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that a drone had struck a parking lot adjacent to the chancery building. “The last update I had was that a drone unfortunately struck a parking lot adjacent to the chancery building and set off a fire in that place,” Rubio told reporters, adding that all US personnel were accounted for and safe.
The strike in Dubai followed a similar incident earlier in the day at the US Embassy compound in Riyadh. Saudi authorities said two drones struck the diplomatic quarter, causing a limited fire and minor material damage. No casualties were reported. The embassy subsequently issued shelter-in-place alerts for American citizens in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dhahran, and temporarily suspended public operations.
While no group has claimed responsibility for either attack, both incidents are being viewed as part of Iran’s broader retaliatory campaign across the Gulf. The strikes come amid intensifying US and Israeli military operations against Iranian targets, which have triggered waves of missile and drone launches targeting American-linked facilities in the region.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said all personnel were accounted for after a drone struck a parking lot adjacent to the US consulate in Dubai https://t.co/Evqc7cR90H pic.twitter.com/iXSnrORtWy
— Reuters (@Reuters) March 4, 2026
The US State Department has ordered the evacuation of non-essential personnel from several Middle Eastern countries, including the United Arab Emirates, and urged American citizens to consider departing the region due to closed airspace and heightened security risks.
The back-to-back attacks on US diplomatic missions in two key Gulf allies have raised concerns about further escalation and the risk of a wider regional conflict. Authorities in Dubai said security around diplomatic sites and critical infrastructure has been tightened as investigations into the incident continue.
Earlier, fresh explosions rocked parts of the Gulf late Tuesday as the widening conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran entered its fourth day, sending shockwaves across the Middle East and forcing multiple nations to shut their airspace.
Blasts were reported in Doha and Dubai, while residents also reported hearing explosions in Abu Dhabi, according to AFP. The strikes came as Iran escalated its drone and missile attacks on countries in the region that host US military bases.
The latest barrage followed renewed US and Israeli strikes on Iranian targets earlier in the day, including sites across Tehran. The conflict intensified after weekend attacks by the US and Israel triggered retaliatory Iranian strikes on Gulf states and Israel.
US President Donald Trump said it was now “too late” for Iran to seek talks to halt the fighting. “Their air defence, air force, navy, and leadership is gone. They want to talk. I said: ‘Too late!'” he wrote on social media.
Drones and missiles reportedly struck oil facilities and US diplomatic missions in parts of the Gulf. Meanwhile, Israel announced a new “large-scale wave” of strikes targeting infrastructure in Tehran, with local media showing plumes of smoke rising from central areas of the city. Reports also indicated an attack on one of Tehran’s airports.
Iranian media said a building in the religious city of Qom belonging to the committee responsible for electing a new supreme leader was hit. The Tasnim news agency reported that the committee’s main headquarters in Tehran had been targeted earlier.
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Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva denied that Tehran had approached Washington for negotiations. At the same time, Iranian officials warned of wider retaliation. A spokesperson for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps cautioned that “the gates of hell will open more and more” if attacks continue.
Guard General Ebrahim Jabbari warned that if Iran’s “main centres” were targeted, Tehran would respond by striking “all economic centres in the region.” He also claimed Iran had closed the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global oil transit route, as Brent crude prices surged above $85 a barrel for the first time since July 2024.
The escalating conflict has severely disrupted regional aviation. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, at least 12,903 flights were cancelled between Saturday and Monday — nearly 40 percent of all scheduled flights — as several countries closed their airspace over security concerns.
Strikes Inside Iran
Israel’s military said it struck Iranian industrial facilities used in weapons production, particularly ballistic missiles. Tehran’s Mehrabad airport, which primarily handles domestic flights, was also reportedly targeted.
The Israeli military described the latest assault as a new “large-scale” wave of strikes aimed at what it called the Iranian regime’s infrastructure in the capital.
Iranian media reported additional strikes in central Tehran and in Qom, underscoring the growing geographic spread and intensity of the conflict.
