Tuesday briefing: How the conflict in Iran shattered the Gulf state image of peace and luxury

<p>In today’s newsletter: As drones and missiles hit Dubai, Doha and other sites across the Gulf, Hannah Ellis Peterson explains what happens next for the region</p><p></p><p>Morning everyone, I’m Patrick Greenfield – you may recognise the name from my environment reporting over the years (or perhaps you read my piece about the possible rebirth of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jul/11/de-extinction-extinct-giant-moa-bird-colossal-bioscience-aoe">a long-extinct 12ft bird</a>). I’ll be joining you on First Edition for the next few months, where I will inevitably be turning my attention to some rather more worrisome news than the Jurassic Park-adjacent ambitions of a US startup.</p><p>On that note: no Gulf state wanted war with Iran. But, as fighting in the Middle East enters its third week, the region finds itself on the frontline of an increasingly intractable conflict. After the US-Israeli attack on Iran in late February, drones and missiles have showered the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia – bringing the region’s oil and gas industries to a near standstill, and prompting an exodus of tourists and expats.</p><p><em><strong>UK news</strong></em> | Keir Starmer <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/16/uk-will-not-be-drawn-into-wider-war-in-middle-east-says-keir-starmer">has said</a> the UK will not be drawn into the wider war in the Middle East, after Donald Trump called for allies to send warships to the strait of Hormuz to help unblock global oil supplies from the region. Starmer also announced that households reliant on heating oil to warm their homes would receive £53m of government support to help with their bills.</p><p><em><strong>Health</strong></em> | A sixth-form student at Queen Elizabeth’s grammar school in Faversham <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/mar/16/school-student-second-person-die-kent-meningitis-outbreak-says-mp">has been confirmed</a> as the second person to have died after an outbreak of meningitis in Kent.</p><p><em><strong>Environment</strong></em> | Realtime pollution alerts <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/mar/16/realtime-pollution-alerts-windermere-campaigners-say-boy-nearly-dies">are urgently needed</a> across Windermere, campaigners have said, as the mother of a seven-year-old boy who kayaked on the lake described how he nearly died after contracting a dangerous strain of <em>E coli</em> from contaminated water.</p><p><em><strong>Media</strong></em> | The BBC <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/mar/16/bbc-us-court-throw-out-donald-trump-10bn-lawsuit-chilling-effect">has asked a US court</a> to throw out Donald Trump’s $10bn (£7.5bn) lawsuit over the way a documentary edited one of his speeches, warning that proceeding with the case would have a “chilling effect” on its reporting on the president.</p><p><em><strong>Energy</strong></em> | Belgium’s prime minister, Bart De Wever, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/16/belgian-pm-bart-de-wever-call-repair-relations-russia-energy-costs-condemned">has been criticised</a> for calling for the normalisation of relations with Russia to re-establish cheap energy supplies.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/17/first-edition-iran-dubai-uae-qatar">Continue reading...</a>

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