From Amazon data centre to Palm Jumeirah: Major gulf landmarks hit as Iran strikes rattle UAE, Saudi Arabia

Saudi aramco attack

Key commercial and civilian landmarks across the Gulf were impacted after Iran launched a fresh wave of missile and drone strikes amid escalating tensions with the United States and Israel.

From critical digital infrastructure in the UAE to one of the world’s largest oil export hubs in Saudi Arabia, the strikes caused fires, service disruptions and emergency responses across multiple cities.

UAE: Amazon Web Services data centre disrupted

Amazon Web Services confirmed that “objects struck” its UAE data centre facility in availability zone mec1-az2 at around 4:30 AM PST on March 1. The impact sparked a fire, prompting the UAE fire department to cut power to the building.

The affected zone went offline temporarily. AWS said other zones remain operational, but restoration may take several hours. The AWS Health Dashboard listed services as “Disrupted,” including Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud and Amazon Relational Database Service.

Saudi Arabia: Ras Tanura refinery

A drone strike was reported at Saudi Aramco’s Ras Tanura refining facility, one of the world’s largest oil export hubs and a critical node in global crude supply.

Multiple media outlets reported the incident, while The Jerusalem Post, quoting a reporter, said a small and isolated fire broke out but was later brought under control.

JUST IN: 🇸🇦 Iran strikes Saudi Arabia's Aramco Ras Tanura oil refinery. pic.twitter.com/eTmPGRFAY5

— BRICS News (@BRICSinfo) March 2, 2026

Operations at the refinery were reportedly halted after the suspected drone strike.

UAE: Palm Jumeirah hotel

Debris from intercepted missiles or drones reportedly struck a property on Dubai’s iconic man-made island, Palm Jumeirah.

Two witnesses told AFP they heard a powerful explosion and saw thick black smoke rising from a hotel on the palm. One witness said ambulances rushed toward the scene shortly after the blast.

The affected property is reported to be Fairmont The Palm, a prominent luxury hotel on the island.

UAE: Burj Al Arab

Dubai residents reported loud explosions as debris from aerial interceptions fell across parts of the city.

The sail-shaped Burj Al Arab was reportedly struck by debris, causing a minor fire and facade damage. Emergency teams brought the situation under control.

Iran-Israel War

The strikes come as the conflict between the United States-Israel alliance and Iran intensifies. Tehran has launched successive rounds of missiles and drones following US and Israeli strikes on Iranian targets.

While air defence systems intercepted many of the incoming threats, falling debris appears to have caused damage to civilian infrastructure, energy facilities and high-profile commercial buildings across the Gulf.