# Why the UAE was targeted > **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou. > > Cite as: "Why the UAE was targeted," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/why-the-uae-was-targeted/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia. *John Kiriakou's explanation for the disproportionate weight of Iranian fire falling on the United Arab Emirates in 2026: not the American presence but the Emirati role at the forefront of the war against the Houthis — and a wish to bloody Emirati noses despite the thousands of Iranians living in Dubai.* - **Observation:** The Emirates disproportionately targeted by count of missiles intercepted - **Kiriakou's explanation:** The UAE "has been at the forefront of the attacks against the Houthis" - **Complicating fact:** Dubai is home to thousands of Iranians and Iranian businesses - **Iranian motive given:** To "bloody the Emiratis' noses as best they can" **Why the UAE was targeted** is the question a viewer put to [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou) during the 2026 war, having noticed that the Emirates and Dubai were being hit disproportionately compared with the other Gulf states by the count of missiles intercepted. ## The explanation Kiriakou's answer looks past the current war to the previous one. *"I think that the reason why the UAE has been so disproportionately targeted is that the UAE has been at the forefront of the attacks against the Houthis."*[1] The implication is that Iranian target selection is settling an older account. The Emirates are not being struck as a proxy for the United States but on their own record.[1] ## The complication he acknowledges Kiriakou immediately notes what makes the choice costly for Iran. *"And um you know, despite the fact that Dubai is is home to thousands of Iranians and Iranian businesses, I think the Iranian government just wants to bloody the Emiratis' noses as best they can."*[1] That concession is important to his wider account, because elsewhere he argues that Iran has strong reasons *not* to damage Dubai: the city is [Iran's outlet to the Western world](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/dubai-as-irans-window) and the mechanism by which it evades sanctions. The resolution he offers is one of degree — enough fire to injure the Emirates, not enough to close the window.[2] ## The pattern of the strikes The form the attacks took is consistent with that reading. Kiriakou describes drones and missiles hitting hotels *"especially in Abu Dhabi and Dubai"*, chosen because striking a famous hotel damages the tourist economy in a way that striking a military installation does not.[3][4] ## The cost to Iran Kiriakou's overall verdict on the Gulf campaign is that it made enemies Iran did not need. The Gulf states, he says, *"would have very nervously just sat the whole thing out"* — until the hotels, the airports and finally [the Omanis](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/bombing-the-omanis) were hit.[5][6] ## See also - [Dubai as Iran's window](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/dubai-as-irans-window) - [Bombing The Omanis](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/bombing-the-omanis) - [THAAD stocks in the Gulf](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/thaad-stocks-in-the-gulf) - [Iranian strikes on Gulf hotels](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/iranian-strikes-on-gulf-hotels) ## Sources 1. Ted Rall & John Kiriakou Iran War Viewer Q&A / DeProgram Show (2026-03-04), at 05:17. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNGeaQ5ZA28&t=317s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-04-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-ted-rall-john-kiriakou-iran-war-viewer-q-a-de/ 2. John Kiriakou & Ted Rall's Live IRAN WAR Q&A / DeProgram Show (2026-03-01), at 03:06. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swDJSeo-Et0&t=186s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-01-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-john-kiriakou-ted-rall-s-live-iran-war-q-a-de/ 3. Iran Escalation, Captured Spies: What Really Happens? And More I Going Deeper w/JK - DEEP FOCUS (2026-03-03), at 04:13. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4_p0sXfdMU&t=253s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-03-the-deep-focus-iran-escalation-captured-spies-what-really-happens/ 4. Iran Escalation, Captured Spies: What Really Happens? And More I Going Deeper w/JK - DEEP FOCUS (2026-03-03), at 04:45. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4_p0sXfdMU&t=285s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-03-the-deep-focus-iran-escalation-captured-spies-what-really-happens/ 5. Ted Rall & John Kiriakou Iran War Viewer Q&A / DeProgram Show (2026-03-04), at 10:28. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNGeaQ5ZA28&t=628s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-04-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-ted-rall-john-kiriakou-iran-war-viewer-q-a-de/ 6. Ted Rall & John Kiriakou Iran War Viewer Q&A / DeProgram Show (2026-03-04), at 10:58. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNGeaQ5ZA28&t=658s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-04-deprogram-show-with-ted-ra-ted-rall-john-kiriakou-iran-war-viewer-q-a-de/ --- From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/why-the-uae-was-targeted/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt