UAE conducted covert strikes on Iranian oil facilities hours before start of US-announced ceasefire - report

The United Arab Emirates secretly carried out military strikes inside Iran during the recent U.S. and Israeli military operations, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing people familiar with the matter. 

The report claims the UAE targeted an oil refinery on Iran’s Lavan Island in the Persian Gulf in early April, before the start of the ceasefire announced by U.S. President Donald Trump. 

While the UAE has not publicly acknowledged participation in any strikes on Iranian territory, the Islamic Republic reported a strike on the Lavan Island facility on April 8, 2026.

Hours later, the Islamic regime launched missile and drone attacks on the Fujairah Oil Facility in the UAE in apparent retaliation, with state broadcaster IRIB saying “missile and drone attacks on the Emirates and Kuwait have taken place a few hours after the targeting of Lavan island oil facilities.” 

Left: Iran says the Lavan Oil Refinery on Siri Island was bombed by the UAE.

Right: Missiles were launched at the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone in the UAE. Videos shows what appears to be Indian guest workers jogging away from the plant as smoke billows out. pic.twitter.com/xW8vEJa7ur

— National Conservative (@NatCon2022) April 8, 2026

The strike on the Lavan Island facilities reportedly sparked a large fire, disabling much of the infrastructure, and taking oil production offline for several months. 

The U.S. and Israel both denied carrying out the strike at the time, while the Asian news site Defence Security Asia reported the strike as probably having been carried out by UAE Mirage-2000-9 fighter jets. 

UAE Mirage-2000-9 Jets Accused of Striking Iran’s Lavan Island Refinery, Threatening Collapse of Strait of Hormuz Ceasefirehttps://t.co/JOoeQZLoDC

— Defence Security Asia (@defence_asia) April 9, 2026

According to the WSJ, the United States was not upset by the UAE strike, quietly welcoming Gulf involvement in the fight against Iran, which Washington had been seeking since the start of the conflict. 

During the conflict, several reports had claimed UAE involvement, although they were often denied by Emirati leadership. In early May, after the Iranian regime targeted the UAE with a series of missile and drone attacks despite the ceasefire, there were rumors that the Iranian government was planning to announce UAE participation in the U.S. and Israeli military operations. 

Iran is preparing the ground and the official media is releasing the following statement tonight: "The #UAE took an active part alongside the US and Israel during the fighting and attacked Iranian territory with its fighter jets." #IsraelIranWar #USA pic.twitter.com/qhENVWo0b6

— Eretz Israel (@EretzIsrael) May 3, 2026

The UAE was the target of more Iranian attacks than any other country during the conflict, despite not openly participating in the military operations. Even after the ceasefire, the UAE has been targeted several times by Iranian missiles and drones, as recently as May 10, 2026. 

الدفاعات الجوية الإماراتية تتعامل مع الصواريخ الباليستية والجوالة والمسيرات الإيرانية.

UAE Air Defences engaged Iranian
Ballistic and Cruise Missiles and UAVs Attacks#وزارة_الدفاع #وزارة_الدفاع_الإماراتية#MOD#UAEMinistryOfDefence pic.twitter.com/PvIDnRJw7R

— وزارة الدفاع |MOD UAE (@modgovae) May 10, 2026

Earlier in the war, the UAE had publicly denied being involved in a strike on a desalination plant in Iran, with National Defense Committee Chairman Ali al-Nuaimi saying, “The UAE will never place the Iranian people in the same basket as the Iranian regime. The Iranian people are the true victims of that regime, and they are the ones who suffer the most from its policies. As neighbors, we recognize this reality and care about their well-being.” 

Dina Esfandiary, a Middle East analyst and author of a book on the UAE told the WSJ, “It’s significant to have a Gulf Arab country as a warring party that struck Iran directly.” 

“Tehran will now aim to further drive a wedge between the U.A.E. and other Gulf Arabs who are trying to mediate an end to the war,” she added. 

In mid March, opposition-linked Iran International uploaded video of a fighter jet, reportedly flying over Shiraz, Iran. The jet resembled a Mirage-2000 fighter jet. However, the UAE has not publicly acknowledged any participation in the U.S. and Israeli operations against Iran. 

The WSJ report highlights an increasingly clear Israeli-Emirati security alignment and cooperation both before and during the war, and which included the reported deployment of Israeli Iron Dome batteries in the UAE, complete with supporting soldiers. 

That growing alignment was also seen in the the Israeli recognition of Somaliland in December 2025, where the UAE has been quietly investing and building up infrastructure for several years. 

If UAE participation in strikes on Iran is publicly confirmed, it will likely indicate a growing willingness by the UAE to openly align with Israeli interests in the region, and could lead to growing hostilities with Iran.