Nigerian among victims as UAE intercepts Iranian missiles

At least one Nigerian has been identified among dozens of people affected during the interception of Iranian ballistic missiles in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The UAE Ministry of Defence said the attacks were part of retaliatory strikes launched by Iran after accusing the Gulf nation of allowing the United States to use its military bases to conduct operations against Tehran.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the ministry said its air defence systems had detected 262 ballistic missiles launched from Iran since the conflict began on February 28.

According to the statement, 241 of the missiles were intercepted and destroyed, 19 fell into the sea, while two landed within UAE territory.

“Since the onset of the blatant Iranian attacks, 262 ballistic missiles have been detected. Of these, 241 were destroyed, 19 fell into the sea, and two struck within the state territory,” the ministry said.

The UAE also reported detecting 1,475 Iranian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), of which 1,385 were intercepted, while 90 fell within the country’s territory. Additionally, eight cruise missiles were detected and destroyed.

Authorities said the attacks resulted in six deaths involving Emirati, Pakistani, Nepalese and Bangladeshi nationals.

A total of 122 people sustained moderate to minor injuries, including citizens of several countries such as the UAE, Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, the Philippines, Pakistan, Iran, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Azerbaijan, Yemen, Uganda, Eritrea, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Bahrain, the Comoros, Türkiye, Iraq, Nepal, Nigeria, Oman, Jordan and Palestine.

However, officials did not specify how many individuals from each nationality were among the casualties.

Meanwhile, the UAE confirmed on Wednesday that its air defence systems were again responding to incoming missiles and drones launched from Iran.

“UAE air defences are currently responding to incoming missile and drone threats from Iran,” the ministry said in a post on X.

It added that the explosions heard in some parts of the country were caused by air defence systems intercepting the incoming missiles and drones.