ISTANBUL 

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has barred Israeli defense firms from participating in a defense conference set to be held in Dubai next month, Israeli media said on Wednesday.

According to the Yedioth Ahronoth daily, Israel’s Defense Ministry was notified that companies would not be permitted to attend the event, with the decision also communicated directly to industry executives.

While official explanations cited security concerns, senior Israeli officials claimed the move was in response to Tuesday’s Israeli strike targeting Hamas leadership in the Qatari capital, Doha.

There has been no official announcement from the UAE regarding the reported ban.

On Tuesday, Israel carried out its first-ever strike on Qatari territory, targeting the residences of Hamas political leaders in Doha while the Gulf state was hosting indirect ceasefire talks mediated together with Egypt and the US.

Qatar condemned the attack as a “cowardly act” and a blatant violation of international law, warning it would not tolerate Israel’s “reckless behavior.”

Hamas later confirmed that its political leadership survived the Israeli airstrike that had killed five group members.

Israel has killed more than 64,600 Palestinians in a brutal offensive in Gaza since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave and pushed the territory’s population into famine.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.