The UAE’s National Emergency, Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) has affirmed that the situation in the country remains under control, with authorities maintaining continuous monitoring following coordinated military strikes on Iran by Israel and the United States.

According to the Emirates News Agency (WAM), NCEMA said competent authorities are closely tracking developments around the clock and have implemented all necessary precautionary measures to safeguard public safety.

“We reassure everyone that the situation is currently under control. The competent authorities are closely and continuously monitoring the situation at all times and around the clock, and all necessary precautionary measures have been taken to ensure the safety of everyone,” the Authority said in a statement carried by WAM.

The reassurance comes after Israel and the US announced they had launched pre-emptive strikes against Iran early on Saturday, February 28.

In response to rapidly escalating developments, the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) announced the temporary and partial closure of the UAE’s airspace as an exceptional precautionary measure.

The aviation regulator said the move was aimed at ensuring the safety of flights and aircrews, as well as safeguarding the UAE’s territory amid evolving regional security conditions.

In a separate statement, the Ministry of Defence confirmed that the UAE was subjected to a ballistic missile attack, adding that national air defence systems intercepted multiple projectiles. Authorities also managed falling debris in a residential area, which caused limited material damage and resulted in the death of one civilian of Asian nationality.

The Ministry said the overall security situation in the UAE remains stable, with all concerned entities maintaining round-the-clock monitoring. It strongly condemned the targeting of civilian areas and facilities, describing the incident as a violation of national sovereignty and international law, and affirmed that the UAE reserves the right to respond while prioritising the safety of citizens, residents and visitors.

The MoD also urged the public to rely exclusively on official sources for information and avoid circulating unverified reports.

With Israel and the US launching coordinated strikes on Iran early Saturday, the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has announced the temporary and partial closure of the UAE’s airspace as an exceptional precautionary measure, aimed at ensuring the safety of flights and aircrews and safeguarding the territory of the UAE, amid rapidly escalating security developments in the region.

Read: US and Israel launch “pre-emptive” attack against Iran

According to the state news agency WAM, the authority stated that the decision was taken following a comprehensive assessment of security and operational risks, and in full coordination with relevant national and international authorities, stressing that airspace safety and the protection of the UAE’s air sovereignty remain absolute priorities.

The GCAA confirmed that it will continue to keep the relevant authorities and the public informed of any developments as they occur. It also renewed its call on passengers to contact their respective airlines for the latest flight schedule updates, noting that airlines, in coordination with local authorities, will provide necessary accommodation and assistance to affected passengers.

Security and safety of citizens remain a top priority, says the UAE Ministry of Interior

WAM also reported that the UAE Ministry of Interior affirmed is closely monitoring regional developments and remains at the highest level of readiness to take all necessary precautionary measures, in full coordination with relevant authorities.

The ministry stressed that the security and safety of citizens, residents, and visitors across the country remain its top priority, underscoring its unwavering commitment to maintaining public safety and stability.

Flights halted at Dubai Airports, disruptions reported at Zayed International Airport

Dubai Airports announced the suspension of all flight operations at Dubai International Airport and Al Maktoum International Airport until further notice, citing ongoing developments. The operator advised passengers not to travel to the airports and to contact their airlines directly for the latest flight information.

The advisory was reiterated across official channels, reinforcing guidance for travelers to check with carriers before departing for the airport.

Separately, Abu Dhabi Airports said some inbound and outbound services at Zayed International Airport may face delays, diversions or cancellations due to the temporary closure of UAE airspace. The operator said it is coordinating with airlines and authorities to minimise disruption, adding that further updates will be issued as the situation develops.

Israel said it launched a pre-emptive strikes against Iran on Saturday. The New York Times, citing a US official, reported that US strikes on Iran were underway.

A source told Reuters that Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was not in Tehran and had been transferred to a secure location.

The attack, coming after Israel and Iran engaged in a 12-day air war in June, follows repeated US-Israeli warnings that they would strike again if Iran pressed ahead with its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.

“The State of Israel launched a pre-emptive attack against Iran to remove threats to the State of Israel,” defence minister Israel Katz said.

An Israeli defence official said the operation had been planned for months in coordination with Washington, and that the launch date was decided weeks ago.

Explosions were heard in Tehran on Saturday, Iranian media reported, and sirens sounded across Israel around 08:15 local time in what the military said was a proactive alert to prepare the public for the possibility of an incoming missile strike.

The Israeli military announced the closure of schools and workplaces, with exceptions for essential sectors, and a ban on public airspace.

Israel closed its airspace to civilian flights, and the airports authority asked the public not to go to any of the country’s airports.

Iran said it was prepared to discuss curbs on its nuclear programme in exchange for lifting sanctions but ruled out linking the issue to missiles.

Tehran also said it would defend itself against any strike.

UK’s InterContinental Hotels Group expects India to become one of its top-five global markets within years, a senior executive said on Friday, as international hospitality brands accelerate expansion across the world’s most populous country.

“It (India) is like a game-changer. It’s an infinite market in a sense,” Sudeep Jain, MD for South West Asia at IHG, told Reuters on the sidelines of the Hospitality Overview Presentation & Exchange conference in Goa.

IHG, whose brands include Holiday Inn and Avid Hotels, currently operates around 50 hotels in India with roughly 80 in development.

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The British group said in January it aimed to grow its combined open and pipeline portfolio within the country to more than 400 properties within five years. Globally, IHG operates over 6,900 hotels, with about two-thirds in the Americas.

India’s hospitality sector is forecast to nearly double to $55.7bn by 2031 from $23.5bn in 2025, according to consultancy Mordor Intelligence, driven by population growth, rapid urbanisation and rising travel demand from both affluent and budget consumers.

IHG is not alone in its ambitions.

Hyatt Hotels chief executive Mark Hoplamazian said the chain expects to quintuple its India footprint over five years. Hilton Worldwide has separately announced plans to quadruple its pipeline of hotel rooms in the country.

Executives from Accor and Wyndham Hotels also flagged India as a priority market at the Goa conference.

Jain ruled out an Indian stock market listing for IHG’s local operations, at least in the near term, even as local subsidiaries of South Korea’s LG Electronics and Hyundai Motor have recently completed Indian initial public offerings.

OpenAI’s latest funding round valued the ChatGPT maker at $840bn as Big Tech piled into the $110bn blockbuster round, signaling the AI investment race is alive and well despite recent fears of a valuation bubble.

The funding round, one of the largest private capital raises on record, includes a $30bn investment from SoftBank, $30bn from Nvidia, and $50bn from Amazon. It comes ahead of the AI startup’s expected mega-IPO this year, and Wall Street expects more funding rounds before the debut.

More investors are expected to join the round as it progresses, OpenAI said in a statement on Friday.

Funding boost as competition heats up

The infusion will help OpenAI secure advanced AI chips and the computing capacity it needs to maintain its lead position in the AI industry, especially as competition heats up from Anthropic and Alphabet’s Google.

Read more-Tata and OpenAI to build 1GW AI infrastructure in India

It also exacerbates Wall Street concerns about “circular” financing agreements, where firms invest in and sign supply deals with each other, inflating demand and revenue.

After years of outsized gains, tech stocks have suffered sharp declines in 2026 as investors question whether AI investments will generate sufficient returns to justify lofty valuations.

Nvidia was punished by shareholders this week after the chipmaker said it would pour money into the AI ecosystem, instead of returning cash to shareholders. Nvidia’s investment in OpenAI gives the chip company a financial stake in one of its largest customers, tightening their already intertwined relationship.

OpenAI said on Friday it would use Nvidia’s latest Rubin systems, representing five gigawatts of computing capacity, enough energy to power millions of US households.

It was not immediately clear whether Nvidia’s $30bn investment replaced its earlier commitment announced in September under which Nvidia was set to invest up to $100bn in the startup.

OpenAI and Nvidia did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for clarification.

With the latest injection, SoftBank’s investment in OpenAI is set to be $64.6bn, representing an ownership interest of about 13 per cent, the Japanese conglomerate said.

Amazon partnership

The new investment is crucial for OpenAI.

The launch of Google’s Gemini 3 in November has given the Alphabet-owned company a stronger footing, while Anthropic has cemented its lead in the enterprise AI market with its specialized coding tool.

OpenAI, which is yet to turn a profit, is targeting roughly $600bn in total compute spend through 2030, a source told Reuters last week.

Along with the $50bn investment, OpenAI and Amazon have also struck a deal in which OpenAI will utilize two gigawatts of computing capacity powered by Amazon’s in-house Trainium AI chips.

The companies are also expanding their $38bn cloud deal signed last year, with OpenAI saying it would spend an additional $100bn on Amazon Web Services over the next eight years. As well, OpenAI will work with Amazon to develop customized models for the e-commerce company’s engineering teams.

Amazon will start with an initial $15bn investment, followed by another $35 billion in the coming months when certain conditions are met, the companies said.

AWS will be the exclusive third-party cloud provider for OpenAI Frontier, the ChatGPT maker’s enterprise platform for building and running AI agents.

The partnership does not change OpenAI’s relationship with Microsoft, with Microsoft Azure still the exclusive cloud provider for OpenAI’s APIs that provide access to OpenAI’s models, the companies said.

ChatGPT serves more than 900 million weekly active users, OpenAI said, adding that it has surpassed 50 million consumer subscribers. January and February are on track to become the largest months for new subscriber additions, it said.