Several multinational companies in Dubai closed offices or asked employees to evacuate on Wednesday after Iran threatened to target U.S. and Israeli-linked economic assets across the Middle East.
U.S. banking giant Citi and consulting firms Deloitte and PwC were among the companies that took precautionary measures amid rising tensions following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran.
Employees were asked to evacuate Citi offices located in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and in the Oud Metha district, according to a source familiar with the situation.
PwC also decided to close its offices in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait for the rest of the week as a precaution, another source said. Deloitte instructed staff to leave its DIFC offices on Wednesday afternoon.
Employees at two other companies in the DIFC financial district said their offices were also evacuated as a safety measure. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation.
The evacuations came after Iran’s central operational command, Khatam Al-Anbiya, warned that U.S. and Israeli economic targets in the region, including banks, could be attacked.
“The enemy has given us free rein to target economic centres and banks belonging to the United States and the Zionist regime,” the command said in a statement. It also urged people in the region to stay at least one kilometre away from banks.
The warning followed reports that overnight attacks had struck an Iranian bank.
Meanwhile, security concerns increased in Dubai after drones fell near Dubai International Airport earlier on Wednesday. According to the Dubai Media Office, the incident injured four people.
Two Ghanaian nationals and one Bangladeshi national suffered minor injuries, while an Indian national was moderately injured.
Iran has also targeted infrastructure across the Gulf region, including airports, ports, hotels and other civilian facilities. Attacks were reported on three ships in or near the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important shipping routes.
The strait normally carries nearly 20 percent of global oil supplies, and disruptions have caused sharp swings in energy prices as fears of a wider regional conflict grow.