By Maha El Dahan and Andrew Mills
DUBAI, March 1 (Reuters) – Loud blasts were heard in Dubai and Qatari capital Doha for a second day on Sunday and Oman was hit for the first time as retaliatory strikes on neighbouring Gulf states in response to U.S. and Israeli strikes on the Islamic Republic widened.
Iran had said it would target U.S. bases in the region but it has hit a range of other targets across Gulf cities.
Two people were injured in Dubai after shrapnel from drones fell over two houses when they were intercepted, a Dubai media office statement said.
Dubai’s international airport, its landmark Burj Al Arab hotel and man-made Palm Jumeirah Island all suffered damage.
Thick black plumes of smoke continued to rise from the Jebel Ali port area, where one of the berths caught fire on Sunday because of debris from an intercepted missile.
In neighbouring Oman, which was spared retaliation on Saturday, Duqm commercial port was targeted by two drones, wounding one worker, the state news agency said.
Dubai is the biggest tourism and trade hub in the Middle East and its airport is one of the world’s busiest travel hubs.
Qatar’s interior ministry said on Sunday that it was responding to a limited fire in an industrial zone after debris fell from an intercepted missile.
(Reporting by Maha El Dahan in Dubai and Andrew Mills in DohaEditing by Edmund Blair, Christian Schmollinger and David Goodman)
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