DUBAI, March 21– The United Arab Emirates (UAE) said on Friday its air defense systems intercepted four ballistic missiles and 26 drones launched from Iran, while its security department dismantled a network related to Hezbollah and Iran.
The Ministry of Defense said its air defense systems had dealt with 338 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles and 1,740 drones targeting the UAE, since Feb. 28, when the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran.
Earlier on Friday, the UAE State Security Department said it had dismantled a network “funded and directed” by Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Iran, with its members arrested.
Authorities alleged the group had operated under the cover of a fictitious commercial front, and sought to infiltrate the country’s economy and carry out external agendas that threatened financial stability.
Hezbollah has rejected the UAE accusation, calling the claims “fabricated” and baseless. Egypt, for its part, condemned the “terrorist schemes” targeting the security and stability of the Gulf states, the most recent of which targeted Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Meanwhile, UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Friday met with visiting Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.
Both sides discussed the ongoing military escalation in the region and its serious implications for regional and international security and stability, underscoring the need to halt the escalation and prioritize dialogue and diplomacy to prevent further tensions and crises, the Emirates News Agency reported.
On Feb. 28, Israel and the United States launched joint attacks on Iran. Tehran responded by launching waves of missile and drone strikes targeting Israel and U.S. bases and assets in the Middle East. (Namibia Daily News / Xinhua)
