UAE denounces Iranian missile strike on Jordan

The United Arab Emirates has strongly condemned Iran’s missile attack on Jordan, declaring it a flagrant violation of the kingdom’s sovereignty and a threat to its security and stability.

The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Wednesday that Abu Dhabi stood in full solidarity with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and supported all measures taken to safeguard its security and stability. The statement followed a major Iranian ballistic missile barrage directed towards Jordanian territory during an escalation involving Tehran and United States forces based in the kingdom.

Jordan’s armed forces said its air defence systems engaged 20 ballistic missiles launched from Iranian territory and successfully intercepted and destroyed 18. The remaining two missiles fell in unpopulated areas, while field assessments found no casualties from the attack.

The Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army said it dealt with the threat under established operational procedures intended to protect the country’s airspace and public safety. Surveillance, tracking and assessment operations remained under way after the interceptions, while specialist teams were deployed to secure areas where debris and shrapnel had fallen.

Jordanian authorities warned residents not to approach, touch or move unidentified fragments and urged the public to rely on official information. The military said its surveillance, early-warning and air-defence systems remained at the highest level of readiness, with units deployed around the clock to protect sovereign airspace.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had targeted a United States military base at Al-Azraq in Jordan as retaliation for American attacks on Iranian oil tankers. Tehran described the operation as a response to US military action against its vessels and claimed its missiles struck aircraft shelters and maintenance facilities at the base.

The extent of damage claimed by Iran was not independently established. United States personnel were reported to have escaped injury, although several American military aircraft sustained damage at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base. About eight F-15 fighter jets suffered minor damage and were later returned to service, while an A-10 aircraft sustained more substantial damage.

The Iranian strike came amid a sharp escalation between Tehran and Washington across the Gulf and neighbouring states. United States forces had struck five Iranian oil tankers after accusing the Revolutionary Guards of launching ballistic missiles at a US Navy warship. Iran subsequently announced retaliatory attacks against American military interests and shipping in the region.

Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, near the town of Azraq, hosts United States military operations and has been a recurring focus of Iranian attacks during the conflict. Jordan has sought to distinguish its defence of national territory from the confrontation, insisting that its land and airspace must not be used as an arena for exchanges between outside powers. That position has accompanied repeated interceptions of missiles and drones entering or threatening Jordanian airspace.

Jordan has repeatedly said attacks crossing or targeting its territory violate its sovereignty regardless of their stated objective. Its authorities have maintained that the kingdom will act to protect its airspace, population and infrastructure from missiles and drones associated with the widening confrontation.

The UAE’s statement placed the latest attack within that sovereignty framework rather than the competing military claims of Iran and the United States. Abu Dhabi described the missile assault itself as hostile and reiterated support for Jordan’s measures to preserve national security.

The position is consistent with a series of UAE statements issued during earlier Iranian attacks on Jordan and other Arab states during the conflict. The UAE has condemned missile and drone strikes against Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Jordan and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, while stressing support for the sovereignty and stability of affected states.

Jordan’s Lower House also condemned Wednesday’s attack. Speaker Mazen Qadi said targeting Jordanian territory or airspace could only be regarded as an attack on the country and said the security of Jordan and Arab Gulf states was interconnected.