Tarek Chouiref
02 March 2026•Update: 02 March 2026
ISTANBUL
The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain said early Monday that their air defenses had intercepted large numbers of Iranian drones and ballistic missiles since the onset of Iran’s attacks.
The UAE Defense Ministry said 541 drones had been detected, with 506 destroyed and 35 falling inside the country. It added that 165 Iranian ballistic missiles were tracked, 152 of which were intercepted, while 13 fell into the sea.
The Bahrain Defense Force said its air defense systems successfully countered 61 missiles and 34 drones targeting the kingdom.
Regional tensions escalated Saturday after the US and Israel launched an attack on Iran, killing several top Iranian leaders, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iran retaliated with a series of drone and missile attacks that targeted Israel, US assets and several Gulf countries.
