UAE intercepts Iranian drone as US-Iran fire revives regional tensions

The UAE said it intercepted an Iranian drone over its territorial waters early Monday. The incident underscored widening regional strain as diplomacy and military deployments gathered pace.Image used for representational purposes onlyAn Iranian drone was intercepted early Monday over United Arab Emirates territorial waters, the UAE's Defence Ministry said, in the latest sign of rising tensions in the Iran war after a weekend exchange of fire between Iran and the United States. The weekend action was the first significant military move in the war in more than a month.The wider region also saw diplomatic and military developments on Monday. Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun sought Greece's help in implementing an agreement to end the war with Israel, while the US aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln was nearing Thailand for a port call after a lengthy deployment in the Middle East.The UAE said Iran fired the drone towards the country and described the incident as a "dangerous escalation". The drone was intercepted over UAE territorial waters. The incident came a day after the US said it had struck rocket launchers on an Iranian island because they were preparing to launch mines into the Strait of Hormuz. Iran then launched missiles at US sites in Jordan, though all of them were intercepted.Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said his country was not seeking war, but added that "we will respond decisively to aggressors". During the lull in fighting over the past month, the US had increased economic pressure on Iran in the hope of forcing concessions from Tehran, including the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to shipping. In Athens, Aoun told Greek President Constantine Tassoulas and Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis that Lebanon had gone through long wars and that "its people are tired". He said Greece had good relations with both Lebanon and Israel and could help move efforts forward. Referring to the US-brokered framework agreement signed between Lebanon and Israel in late June, Aoun said, "we ask Greece to do all it can to help Lebanon in implementing the agreement."In an apparent reference to daily Israeli airstrikes and shelling despite the June 20 Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire, Aoun said that "trying to solve the problem through military force will not succeed". He added that the agreement "should not be implemented by one side but both sides". Mitsotakis said that "the security of Lebanon and Israel are not conflicting goals" and added, "Greece, as a traditional friend of both Lebanon and the Arab world, but also a strategic partner of Israel, stands ready to support every effort toward de-escalation and mutual understanding." Meanwhile, the USS Abraham Lincoln, carrying about 5,000 sailors and sailing with its battle group, was moving towards the Gulf of Thailand and was expected to make a port call near Pattaya. The carrier, one of the US Navy's largest warships, had been supporting the US war against Iran and had spent more than 250 days at sea without interruption.The day's developments brought together military action, diplomatic outreach and broader regional movement, with the interception of the Iranian drone, Lebanon's push for help in implementing its agreement with Israel, and the Abraham Lincoln's approach to Thailand marking the latest turns in the conflict and its wider fallout.With PTI Inputs- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Aug 31, 2026 17:14 IST