The United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) biggest port and oil storage facility, Fujairah, and Dubai’s international airport have come under further drone attacks as Iran continues to target Gulf transport and oil infrastructure.

Flights were temporarily suspended on Monday after a fire broke out near the airport after a “drone-related incident”.

A fire also raged after a drone attack on the strategically important port and industrial zone at Fujairah, one of the largest oil storage facilities in the region.

And a rocket attack on a car killed a Palestinian national on the outskirts of the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi, the city’s Media Office reported.

The attack occurred in the Al Bahia area, it said.

UAE air defense systems intercepted six ballistic missiles and 21 drones on Monday, the Defence Ministry said. Iran has launched over 1,900 missiles and drones at the UAE since the war between the US and Israel, and Iran, began.

Monday’s drone strike was the third incident since the start of the war near Dubai’s airport, which is the world’s busiest for international passengers.

Some flights were delayed, while others were cancelled altogether, in another hit to the UAE’s image of safety and stability.

The country’s energy sector came under attack as a drone hit an oil storage tanker on Saturday, and another drone hit the oil facilities on Monday, causing a fire.

Oil loading activities at the port were halted for a time while damage assessments were carried out.

Fujairah sits on the UAE’s eastern coast, on the Gulf of Oman – rather than the Persian Gulf – and so vessels do not need to navigate the Strait of Hormuz to reach it.

The location means the port plays a “crucial” role in “helping keep global supplies moving” when the Strait of Hormuz is blocked by Iran, sources said

“If tensions with Iran disrupt the chokepoint, the UAE can still export oil through Fujairah via pipelines from the oilfields in Abu Dhabi,” he said.

The port city is “ideally placed to bypass the Strait of Hormuz”, said Dubai-based oil analyst Matt Stanley, who works for commodities data provider Kpler.

“The UAE’s state oil company Adnoc have their oil tankers there, it is crude grade oil which is what the Asian buyers want.”

Iran hitting a storage tanker and oil facilities at Fujairah “shows the vulnerability of Gulf infrastructure”, Stanley said.

“Iran wants to disrupt the flow of energy”.

The port city is close to India and the “first stop out of the Middle East on the way to Singapore and China”, Stanley said.

“Fujairah is on the old Silk Road, the maritime route, and it picked up a lot of business bunkering – that is providing fuel, food, and water – for container ships that have been at sea for 25 or 30 days.”

Fujairah is like a “huge vending machine” for ships, Stanley added.

Despite the attacks on Dubai, Harper says the business community there is “resilient”. Restaurants have been offering deals to get people back into restaurants and “the malls still seem to be busy”. People “underestimate Dubai and its ability to survive a downturn”, he added.

Last week the UAE’s Minister of State Lana Nusseibeh that her country would “bounce back” from the conflict, insisting that its economy was “resilient”

Iran has called for justice and lasting peace for Palestinians as the world marks Quds Day, observed annually on the last Friday of Ramadan.

Iran’s Ambassador to Nigeria, Mahdavi Raja, made the call on Friday in Abuja during an event organised by Iran’s embassy with the Al-Huda Foundation.

Raja expressed condolences over the loss of Iranian citizens, including military personnel and civilians, in what he described as recent acts of aggression against Iran.

He said the victims sacrificed their lives in defence of the nation’s independence, dignity and security.

Speaking on Quds Day’s significance, the envoy said the event reminded the world of the need for justice and solidarity with Palestinians.

According to him, the Palestinian question has remained unresolved for decades due to occupation, violence and persistent humanitarian challenges.

He noted that developments in Gaza, the West Bank and Jerusalem reflected the wider humanitarian consequences of the conflict.

Raja described Quds Day as an opportunity for the international community to renew commitment to justice, human rights and peaceful conflict resolution.

“The Palestinian people should determine their future and live in their land with freedom, dignity and security,” he said.

The ambassador also stressed that Iran supported regional security based on cooperation, mutual respect and non-interference in internal affairs.

He, however, added that every nation had the right under international law to defend its sovereignty and protect its citizens from aggression.

Also speaking, a public policy analyst, Ebenezer Oyetakin, urged nations and individuals to continue speaking out against injustice and supporting humanitarian causes.

Oyetakin cited the example of Nelson Mandela, noting the late leader was once labelled a terrorist before gaining global recognition for ending apartheid.

He urged people of conscience worldwide to continue raising their voices in defence of justice and human dignity.

Chairman of the Al-Huda Foundation, Mohammad Zubair, said Quds Day highlighted the importance of solidarity with Palestinians.

Zubair called for unity among people of different faiths and backgrounds in advocating peace, justice and respect for human rights.

He added that sustained global engagement and dialogue remained essential to achieving a just and lasting resolution to the conflict.

The Vice Mayor of China’s Yiwu city, Gao Jin, said the municipality is committed to helping foreign companies to benefit from the rapid and steady growth of China’s economy.

Gao, also a Member of the Standing Committee of Yiwu Municipal Party, said this while addressing foreign journalists on the margins of their field visit to Yiwu Municipality in Zhejiang Province.

The visiting journalists witnessed the 4th Session of the 14th Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the 4th Session of the National Committee of the 14th National People’s Congress (NPC).

The conferences focused on China’s five-year development plan.

Gao said, “We are committed to making our market a gateway for foreign products to enter the Chinese market, to help foreign companies benefit from the rapid and steady growth of the Chinese economy.

“The just-concluded two sessions in Beijing approved China’s 15th Five-Year Plan, outlining the country’s development blueprint and policy directions for the next five years.

“Guided by those plans, Yiwu will continue to promote high-quality development, strengthen economic and trade ties with foreign partners, and try our best to contribute to the friendship between China and other countries.”

According to him, 2026 marks the 20th anniversary of the Yiwu Development Experience proposed by the then-Zhejiang Provincial Party-Secretary Xi Jinping in 2006.

He described Yiwu as a city that has grown and prospered with China’s reform and opening-up process, and also benefited from the trend of economic globalisation.

Gao explained that this was due to the importance that Chinese President Xi Jinping attached to such development.

He said it contributed to Yiwu’s market becoming the world’s largest wholesale market for daily necessities and business area of eight million square meters, 80,000 booths, and two million individual products.

The Vice-Mayor added that the market also enhanced the two-way flows of Chinese and foreign products.

He further said that high quality Chinese products, which are sold to foreign destinations, served millions of households and businesses worldwide.

“I encourage you to make the most of your stay in the city, to take time to look around, visit our market operators, and chat with them.

“I believe you will be inspired by the open, inclusive, warm, and enterprising spirit of the Yiwu people.

We hope through you, more exchanges and cooperation between Yiwu, and your country will be enhanced.

“We can learn from each other, do something together to promote sustainable development for each of our cities, deal with the difficulties we all face, and realise prosperity for all our citizens,” he said.

Speaking on behalf of the journalists, Fortune Abang said their field visit was to enable them to know about the municipality.

“Our duty as journalists is to ensure that information about anything is factual and credible before reporting.

 “By doing so, we promote correctness in reporting, contribute our quota professionally toward deepening trade relations between our countries of origin and various countries of the world, like China.

 “This can enable various business investors to partner with not just Yiwu Municipality, but China at large, in terms of economic and trade cooperation through information dissemination,” he said.