Israel asks citizens to avoid travelling to UAE amid threats of Iranian attack

As tensions between UAE and Iran escalated, Israel warned its citizens to avoid travelling to UAE citing safety issues. Israel’s National Security Agency on Monday revised tourist guidelines for UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain among or Gulf nations stating a threat of attack from Iran. warning included both Dubai and Abu Dhabi, as well as Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, and Kurdish region of Iraq. “We estimate that Iran will continue to operate in near future to harm Israeli targets,” Israel’s INSA’s anti-terrorism office said in a statement in local language, cited by Associated Press. 

Israel’s visory against threat to its citizens in Gulf nations comes even after ties were normalized between UAE and Israel by former Trump ministration’s senior viser Jared Kushner and US National Security viser Robert O’Brien, both of whom brokered peace deal. Kingdom and Israel signed Abraham Accords, and as of February 2021,  at least 130,000 Israeli tourists have alrey visited UAE after air travel resumed between Jewish state and Arab world in a historic first,  He of Israel’s embassy in Abu Dhabi, Eitan Naeh told UAE’s state news agency WAM. In fact, UAE has remained one of popular tourist places for Israelis since normalization of ties. 

Iranian attack plot on UAE embassy hatched

Iran and UAE have engaged in a bitter spat since US announced that it was ending military support for Saudi-led coalition in years-long war against Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis rebel. Last month, Ethiopia claimed that it hatched an Iranian plot of attack on UAE embassy after it arrested at least 15 people and seized weapons and explosives from rebel group planning an attack on UAE embassies. operation was a part of Iran’s motive to seek revenge for killings of Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani by US and Iran’s main nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizeh, Ethiopian Press Agency (EPA) reported. “ group took mission from a foreign terrorist group and was preparing to inflict significant damage on properties and human lives,” Ethiopia’s state-run agency said in a statement. 

Iran’s supreme leer Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also took aim at UAE saying, “ ' How miserable y [Saudi] are that y trust you [US], as Biden announced that he was ending Saudi-led military offensive in conflict-ridden Yemen to put an end to country's civil wars. 

(Image Credit: AP)