Saudi crown prince condemns Iran attacks in call with UAE president

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reaffirmed support for the United Arab Emirates and condemned retaliatory attacks by Iran targeting the country.

During a phone call Monday with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, he expressed Saudi Arabia’s “strong condemnation and denunciation of the unjustified Iranian attacks targeting the United Arab Emirates,” according to the state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

He also reiterated Riyadh’s backing for the UAE “in its defense of its security and stability.”

The renewed Iranian missile and drone attacks on the UAE marked the first such incidents since a ceasefire between Iran and the US took effect last month.

The UAE earlier reported a fourth wave of missiles and drones launched from Iran, saying its air defense systems intercepted 15 missiles and four drones.

A fire also broke out at the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone, a key energy hub on the UAE’s eastern coast, after it was hit by a drone launched from Iran.

Officials in Fujairah said three Indian nationals were injured and taken to the hospital for treatment.

Regional tensions have escalated since the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Feb. 28, triggering retaliation from Tehran against Israel as well as US allies in the Gulf, along with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

A ceasefire took effect on April 8 through Pakistani mediation, but talks in Islamabad failed to produce a lasting agreement. The truce was later extended by US President Donald Trump without a set deadline.