Drone targets UAE nuclear power plant, straining Iran war ceasefire

The Barakah nuclear power plant went online in 2020 with the help of South Korea and is the first and only nuclear power plant on the Arabian Peninsula2-MIN READ2-MIN0ListenPublished: 8:05pm, 17 May 2026A drone strike targeted the United Arab Emirates’ Barakah nuclear power plant on Sunday, setting an electrical generator ablaze on its perimeter and again straining the shaky ceasefire in the Iran-war" class="entity-link entity-event" data-entity-id="38748" data-entity-type="event">Iran war.No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which caused no radiological release nor injuries, authorities in the UAE’s capital, Abu Dhabi, said. However, suspicion immediately fell on Iran, which has been increasingly threatening the UAE over recent days as the country hosted Israeli Iron Dome missile defences and troops during the war.The attack comes as Iran still has a chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway where a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas passed through before the war, disrupting global energy supplies.01:41Dubai-based influencers post videos praising leadership as Iranian strikes target cityMeanwhile, the US continues to block Iranian ports in response as negotiations to solidify the ceasefire have failed to advance. US President Donald Trump has suggested hostilities could resume, as fire exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon have been rising in recent days, threatening a separate ceasefire there.Nuclear plant provides a fifth of UAE’s energyThe US$20 billion Barakah nuclear power plant was built by the UAE with the help of South Korea and went online in 2020. It’s the first and only nuclear power plant on the Arabian Peninsula and can provide a quarter of all the energy needs in the UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms. It’s also the first commercial nuclear power plant in the Arab world.