A drone strike on March 16th damaged a fuel tank at Dubai International Airport, the latest in a series of attacks targeting the United Arab Emirates as the conflict with Iran enters its third week, according to reports from Al Jazeera.
For Mohammad, a Dubai resident originally from Tehran, the escalating tensions have resurrected memories of the Iran-Iraq War. “I remember the sound,” he said, recalling the bombings of his childhood. Despite the renewed anxieties, Mohammad, who has lived in Dubai for decades, expresses a lingering attachment to the city. He speaks not of its famed luxury, but of the unique experience of witnessing its rapid construction and the sense of community he found there. “Most people ask me today, ‘Why are you staying? There is nothing here,’” he recounted. “I tell them, ‘There is a future.’”
That future, however, is increasingly clouded by the ongoing conflict. Iran has reportedly launched over nineteen hundred missiles and drones at the U.A.E. Since the war began. While Dubai has experienced less physical damage than other regional cities, the psychological impact of the attacks is palpable. The airport strike, though limited in scope, underscores the vulnerability of a city that has long cultivated an image of invulnerability.
Dubai’s carefully constructed persona – one of sprawling malls, futuristic architecture, and ambitious projects like the Dubai Loop, an underground high-speed transit system developed in partnership with Elon Musk’s Boring Company – often obscures the city’s foundations. The city is also heavily investing in artificial intelligence, integrating it into government services, healthcare, and finance. But beneath the veneer of innovation and luxury lies a history built on the labor of expatriates seeking economic opportunity, and stability.
As of 2026, Dubai’s population is estimated at around three million, with Emirati nationals comprising only ten to fifteen percent. The vast majority are expatriates from over two hundred countries, including significant communities from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. This influx began in the late 19th century, with Persian merchants drawn to Dubai’s favorable trade policies. Sheikh Maktoum bin Hasher Al Maktoum, then the ruler of Dubai, declared the city a tax-free port, attracting merchants who settled along Dubai Creek, establishing the historic Bastakiya district.
“They never lost their connections to their communities in Iran, speaking the same languages—mostly variants of Achomi or Larestani, which derive from Old Persian—and often funding the building of mosques and other public amenities in their villages,” explained Arash Azizi, an Iranian Canadian historian and author. Amwaj.media reports these networks remain strong, linking communities in Iran’s Hormozgan Province to Dubai, London, and South Asia.
The current conflict raises questions about the future of these long-standing connections and the stability of Dubai’s economic model, which relies heavily on international trade and investment. The UAE and Saudi Arabia may see this conflict as an opportunity to de-escalate tensions, as noted by Amwaj.media, but the immediate impact on Dubai’s residents and economy remains uncertain.
As the war escalates, with Israel striking Hezbollah in Lebanon, the question of whether Dubai can maintain its trajectory as a global hub remains unanswered.
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