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United Arab Emirates

March 12, 2026

Abu Dhabi 6:26 pm

26°C

An Emirates Airbus A380 passenger aircraft prepares for landing at Dubai International Airport in Dubai on March 8, 2026.

Airlines gradually restore Middle East flights, Gulf still heavily grounded

More than 43,000 of the 78,500 scheduled flights in and out of the Middle East have been canceled since the war began Feb. 28, according to flight data firm Cirium.

United Arab Emirates

Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

Oil swings steady as Aramco warns of 'catastrophic' Hormuz disruption

As investors appear to hedge their bets on persisting war risks, strikes on Gulf energy infrastructure continued on Tuesday, with a drone hitting the region’s largest single-site oil refinery.

Smoke and flames rise at the site of airstrikes on an oil depot in Tehran on March 7, 2026.

Analysis

Oil crisis stokes inflation risks for Mideast as Iran war exposes importers

With crude oil briefly nearing $120 per barrel on Monday before giving up gains, the conflict is poised to reignite inflationary pressures around the world, including for vulnerable economies such as Egypt and Turkey.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

In this photo illustration, a smartphone displays the crude oil price in USD after markets in the UK opened on March 9, 2026, in London, England.

G7 readies strategic reserves after oil nears $120 amid Iran war

It is the first time oil prices have passed $100 in nearly four years as the key producers in the energy-rich Middle East curb output amid the conflict.

Latest News

Analysis

Qatar gas shock roils Middle East energy risk profile amid Iran war

Yasin AKGUL / AFP via Getty Images

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

UAE to freeze billions in Iranian assets following strikes

Christopher Pike/Getty Images

United Arab Emirates

What we know about UAE blocking X accounts accused of misinformation

Attendees take a picture of French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe as he delivers a speech during a visit to the Louvre Abu Dhabi Museum on February 10, 2018, on Saadiyat island in the Emirati capital, to launch the French-Emirati "Year of Cultural Dialogue". (Photo by KARIM SAHIB / AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

United Arab Emirates

Middle East evacuations gather pace as explosions rattle Abu Dhabi airport

FRANKFURT AM MAIN, GERMANY - MARCH 03: Passengers disembark from an Emirates passenger plane arriving at Frankfurt Airport from Dubai International on March 03, 2026 in Frankfurt, Germany. The flight is among the first to begin ferrying the thousands of German tourists who have been stranded across the Middle East following the U.S.-Israeli air attacks against Iran and the ensuing Iranian missile and drone attacks against the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and other states in the region. (Photo by Andreas Rentz/Getty

United Arab Emirates

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

Mohammed Soliman

In Washington, DC, reporting on Gulf politics

Kuwait's Foreign Minister Sabah Al Khalid Al Sabah gestures during a news conference with Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, following the annual summit of GCC, in Kuwait City, Kuwait, December 5, 2017. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed - RC16BFA38D60

Is the GCC dead?

Although Saudi Arabia has invited Qatar to attend the Gulf Cooperation Council summit Dec. 9, a resolution to the dispute between Doha and its Gulf neighbors seems far off, threatening the entire council with irrelevancy.

Why is Israel forging secret ties with Sudan?

Hamas condemns the current normalization of ties between several Arab countries and Israel, at a time the Israeli media is talking about efforts to stop arms reaching the Gaza Strip through Libya and Sudan.

United Arab Emirates

UAE, Yemen’s Islah Party try to tolerate each other

The Islah Party in Yemen and the United Arab Emirates recognize they have a common enemy, but that doesn't make them friends.

A U.S. Army Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) weapon system is seen on Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, October 26, 2017. U.S. Army/Capt. Adan Cazarez/Handout via REUTERS. ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY - RC1F3FF590F0

Intel: Why the US and Saudi Arabia just inked $15 billion missile defense deal

Egypt sends mixed messages on possible thaw with Qatar

Though some officials in Cairo have stated the importance of a stable relationship with Qatar, so far there are no initiatives for reconciliation.

Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani in Doha is seen during his meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in Doha, Qatar November 1, 2018. REUTERS/Naseem Zeitoon - RC143AB93710

How Qatar is working to boost its influence in Yemen

Doha balances close relations with Houthi and Islah factions in the Yemen war in order to take advantage of political instability in the country and bolster its influence over the country’s internal affairs.

Abdullah al-Khawlani puts roses on the grave of his son, Waleed, who was killed by last month's Saudi-led air strike that killed dozens including children in Saada, Yemen September 4, 2018. His other son, Hafidh, who survived the strike, looks on. Picture taken September 4, 2018. REUTERS/Naif Rahma - RC164F27C730

Intel: Why cease-fire deal won’t stop Yemen’s suffering

A view of a part of the presidential compound after it was hit by air strikes in Sanaa, Yemen May 7, 2018. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah - RC1A54A70AE0

Intel: Why the US will stop supporting the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen

Russia sends its own signals on Libya by hosting Hifter

Russia's military embraces Khalifa Hifter ahead of intra-Libyan talks in Palermo that kick off today, but does it signal a shift in Moscow's attitude toward the Libyan crisis?

United Arab Emirates

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL, APRIL 26: Under 52kg bronze medallist, Gefen Primo of Israel happily poses with Israel's Sports Minister, Mrs Miri Regev and the President of the Israel Judo Federation, Moshe Ponte during day one of the 2018 Tel Aviv European Judo Championships (26-28 April) at the Tel Aviv Convention Centre, Tel Aviv, Israel, on April 26, 2018. (Photo by David Finch/Getty Images)

Israel’s unhealthy mix of sports and politics

Israeli politicians love to be seen alongside successful athletes and frequently use athletic success for patriotic-nationalist purposes.

Israeli celebration of ties with Gulf states premature

The visit of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Oman is Sultan Qaboos’ way of signaling to Israelis what peace could look like, should they end the occupation of the Palestinians.

United Arab Emirates

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani speaks to the country's consultative Shoura council in Doha, Qatar, November 6, 2018. Qatar News Agency/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC1FF5F57E20

What's behind Qatar’s Cabinet shuffle?

With a recent Cabinet shuffle, Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani appears to be positioning his country for long-term economic success by taking advantage of short-term realities.