A drone strike targeted the United Arab Emirates’ sole nuclear power plant on Sunday, sparking a hearth on its perimeter. There have been no reports of injuries or radiological release, but it surely highlighted the chance of renewed war because the Iran ceasefire stays tenuous.
Nobody immediately claimed responsibility, and the UAE didn’t blame anyone. It has nonetheless accused Iran of launching multiple drone and missile attacks in recent days as tensions have risen over the Strait of Hormuz, an important energy waterway that Iran still has in a chokehold.
The US is blockading Iranian ports and diplomatic efforts aimed toward a more durable peace have repeatedly faltered. The UAE has meanwhile hosted air defenses and personnel from Israel, which joined the U.S. within the Feb. 28 attack that sparked the war.
U.S. President Donald Trump has suggested hostilities could resume, and Iranian state television has repeatedly aired segments with anchors holding Kalashnikov-style rifles in an effort to arrange the general public for war. Fighting has also heated up between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon despite a nominal ceasefire there, further straining the broader truce.
Barakah plant provides can provide 1 / 4 of UAE’s energy
The $20 billion Barakah nuclear power plant was built by the UAE with the assistance of South Korea and went online in 2020. It’s the primary and only nuclear power plant within the Arab world and might provide 1 / 4 of all of the energy needs within the UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms.
The UAE’s nuclear regulator said the fireplace didn’t affect plant safety. “All units are operating as normal,” the organization wrote on X.
The UAE statement didn’t blame any party for the attack. The Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, said the strike caused a hearth in an electrical generator and that one reactor was being powered by emergency diesel generators.
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IAEA director-general Rafael Mariano Grossi expressed “grave concern” in regards to the incident and said military activity that threatens nuclear safety is unacceptable, the agency said in a press release.
Sunday’s strike marked the primary time the four-reactor Barakah plant has been targeted within the war. It’s near the border with Saudi Arabia, some 225 kilometers (140 miles) west of the UAE’s capital city, Abu Dhabi.
Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, whom the UAE have battled as a part of a Saudi-led coalition, claimed to have targeted the plant while it was under construction in 2017, something denied on the time by Abu Dhabi.
A distinct program than Iran’s or Israel’s
The UAE signed a strict take care of the U.S. over the facility plant, often called a “123 agreement,” through which it agreed to present up domestic uranium enrichment and reprocessing of spent fuel to halt any proliferation fears. Its uranium comes from abroad.
That’s very different from the nuclear program in Iran, which is at the center of its long-running conflict with america and Israel.
Iran insists its program is for peaceful purposes, but it surely has enriched its own uranium near weapons-grade levels and is widely suspected of getting had a military component to its program until no less than 2003. It has also often restricted the work of U.N. inspectors.
Israel is widely believed to be the one nuclear-armed country within the region, but has neither confirmed nor denied having atomic weapons. Iran struck near Israel’s Dimona nuclear facility throughout the war.
Nuclear plants have increasingly been targeted in wars in recent times, including during Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Through the Iran war, Tehran repeatedly claimed its Bushehr nuclear power plant got here under attack, though there was no direct damage to its Russian-run reactor or any radiological release.
Ceasefire appears increasingly shaky
There have been several instances of attacks across the Strait of Hormuz and Persian Gulf countries in recent weeks. Talks between Iran and the U.S. are at a standstill because the ceasefire threatens to collapse and tip the Middle East back into open warfare, prolonging the worldwide energy crisis sparked by the conflict.
Two people accustomed to the situation, including an Israeli military officer, said Israel is coordinating with the U.S. a few possible resumption of attacks. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because they were discussing confidential military preparations.
Talking to his Cabinet on Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “our eyes are also open” in terms of Iran. He said he planned a chat with Trump later within the day to debate the president’s trip to China and “perhaps” other things. “We’re prepared for any scenario,” he said.
On Iranian state TV, presenters on no less than two channels appeared armed during live programs.
In a single program, Hossein Hosseini received basic firearms training from a masked member of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard. After being shown easy methods to prepare the weapon, Hosseini mimed firing a shot on the flag of the UAE.
On one other channel, female presenter Mobina Nasiri said a weapon had been sent to her from a gathering in Tehran’s Vanak Square so she could appear armed on camera. She said: “From this platform, I declare that I’m able to sacrifice my life for this country.”
—Magdy reported from Cairo. Associated Press writers Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran, and Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed.
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