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Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris is speaking out about Iran's ongoing missile and drone campaign against the United Arab Emirates, calling the attacks something far bigger than a military operation.
Sawiris, the 71-year-old chairman of Orascom Investment Holding and one of Africa's wealthiest individuals with a fortune estimated at $9.25 billion, posted his reaction on X after Iran launched a sweeping wave of ballistic missiles and drones against the UAE beginning Feb. 28, following a coordinated U.S.-Israeli strike on Iran.
"The missile and drone attacks are targeting the UAE," he wrote. "A war against a way of life built on freedom, progress, and success, to cover up their failure."
The post drew immediate attention online, with thousands of users engaging with the comment as explosions rattled Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
The scale of Iran's assault on the UAE has been staggering. The Emirati Defense Ministry said Iran launched 186 ballistic missiles at the UAE, with 172 intercepted, 13 falling into the sea and one landing on Emirati territory. An additional 812 drones were detected, of which 755 were intercepted and 57 made impact within the country.
Three people were killed in the attacks, all foreign nationals. Dozens were injured. Debris from intercepted projectiles started fires and caused damage across populated areas in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, including the Palm Jumeirah area and Jebel Ali port.
Analysts described the situation as a nightmare scenario for Gulf states. For the first time in history, all the GCC states were targeted by the same actor within 24 hours, said Sinem Cengiz, a researcher at Qatar University's Gulf Studies Center.
Sawiris is not the only voice pushing back. Anwar Gargash, foreign policy adviser to the UAE president, wrote on X that Iran's attacks against Gulf states were a miscalculation that had isolated Tehran at a critical moment.
The UAE, along with Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and the United States, issued a joint statement condemning Iran's strikes as unjustified attacks that violated the sovereignty of multiple states and endangered civilian populations.
Iran's foreign minister, meanwhile, stressed that Tehran was not seeking confrontation with its Gulf neighbours and described the campaign as an act of self-defense in response to U.S. aggression.
The UAE said it has not participated in any offensive operations against Iran and has retained the right to self-defense, though it has not taken any decision to alter its defensive posture.
Sawiris has long been one of the Arab world's most outspoken business figures, known for using social media to weigh in on regional politics. His comments land at a moment when the conflict is still unfolding, with air defenses across the Gulf continuing to intercept incoming projectiles day after day.
