The Middle East is now in the midst of a renewed and wider military confrontation after the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran and targeted its military and naval forces, killing several Iranian leaders, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iran has responded to the US-Israeli attacks by launching drones and missiles at its Arab neighbors with the idea of targeting US military installations on their soil, but ended up also targeting their civilian and energy infrastructure, the BBC reported.
The report suggests that while targeting the civil and energy infrastructure of its Arab neighbors, Tehran is also targeting the Gulf’s image as a safe and prosperous region, known for travel, tourism and finance, along with disrupting the region’s oil and gas industry.
The question remains whether Iran’s Arab neighbors will be drawn into what they call “treacherous” Iranian attacks.
All red lines have already been crossed: Qatar spokesman
Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al Ansari told a news conference on Tuesday (local time), “All the red lines have already been crossed,” adding that attacks on the country’s sovereignty were constant. The official continued: “There are attacks on infrastructure. There are attacks on our residential areas. And the effects of these attacks are very clear. In terms of possible retaliation, all options are at our disposal. But we must be very clear that attacks like these will not go unanswered and cannot go unanswered.”
Are Iran’s Targets on Arab Neighbors Deliberate?
The report suggests that while most of the Iranian missiles were intercepted in the Persian Gulf region, the falling debris started fires and caused casualties. Drones, which are harder to detect and capture, often cause limited physical damage, but still create sufficient disruption to commerce and air traffic.
It appears to be an Iranian strategy to increase pressure on its Arab neighbors in the hope of pressuring the US to end the conflict. According to a Financial Times report, Tehran has launched almost as many drones and missiles at the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the region’s leading business and tourism hub, as at Israel.
While Tehran also has the capacity to target critical oil and gas infrastructure in the Persian Gulf, it could become just as risky for itself, as any escalation could draw the Gulf states closer to Washington and potentially draw them directly into the conflict.
The Gulf will deny the US access to airspace to attack Iran
The Gulf region has so far denied the US access to its airspace or territory to carry out strikes against Iran, but that stance could change if Tehran continues its hostility toward its Arab neighbors.
Iran appears to have strengthened unity among members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, which includes Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman, who met in an emergency meeting on March 1. The leaders expressed solidarity and vowed to “take all necessary measures to defend their security and stability and to protect their territories, citizens and populations, including the ability to respond to aggression.”
A senior diplomatic adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates, Anwar Gargash, called on Iran to reconsider its actions. In a post on X, he told Tehran that “this conflict is not with your neighbors” and urged it to deal sensibly and responsibly with them before tensions and isolation deepen.
