After Strikes Reportedly Kill Iran’s Supreme Leader, Here’s Why Tehran’s Drones Targeted Dubai’s Airport, Burj Al Arab Hotel

by Gary Leff

U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran have reportedly taken out Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei; Defense Minister Amir Nasirzadeh; Islamic Revolutionary Guard Commander Mohammad Pakpour; and former Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani among others. Top leaders were taken out by Israeli strikes in June 2025 as well.

Iran’s retaliation has included civilian targets in throughout the Mideast including Kuwait International Airport. In Dubai, they hit the Fairmont The Palm Hotel, the Burj Al Arab hotel, and the Dubai International Airport. They tried to hit the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa.

The Dubai airport sustained damage. Four staff members were injured. “Most of the terminals were previously cleared of passengers.”

Airspace is closed throughout the region. Flights have been cancelled; aircraft held at their origin. Here’s the message sent by Emirates operations to all of theri planes:

There is no military value to the Burj Al Arab or the Fairmont. People are now leaving Google Reviews of the Fairmont though.

Iran is expressly retaliating against civilians and civilian infrastructure, including in countries uninvolved in the attack.

  • They are lashing out
  • And they’re amoral
  • But they’re also plausibly being strategic.


Burj Al Arab

Iran’s intelligence service created a special “unit to target Mossad agents within Iran,” according to former Iranian President Ahmadinejad. However the unit was led by a Mossad operative, and staffed by Mossad agents. The infiltration was so deep that not only were they able to hit Khamenei, but Israeli agents were able to photograph his body before the country even announced his death.

They’ve been very vulnerable, much of their leadership is decapitated, and they’re not in a position to fight a war against the United States.

If you want to put the most logical gloss on abhorent actions like targeting civilian airports and hotels, it’s this: attacking Israel doesn’t get them anything. Israel’s defenses are good and civilians go to bunkers. What damage they do inflict isn’t going to weaken Israel’s resolve.

On the other hand, attacks on Dubai and Kuwait City are highly unusual. If they can create panic there, those countries might prevail upon the U.S. to end hostilities. Their best shot at preserving what remains of the status quo is to make things difficult enough for countries like the U.A.E., Kuwait and Bahrain, in hopes they can manage to bring things to an end now rather than moving towards regime change. Of course it might not have that effect, but it seems like Iran’s actual best strategy.


Burj Al Arab


Burj Al Arab

The U.S. action is obviously illegal and unconstitutional. The President himself calls it a war, and the constution gives Congress exclusive power to declare wars. Even executive branch memos acknowledge this, and set unreasonably permissive standards for what is allowed by a President short of war. But courts do not intervene in such matters. It’s also incredibly reckless and it’s difficult to predict the long-term outcome of such actions. I wouldn’t have pushed the button on these events.

I hope deeply for the best, and am not at all sad to see Iran’s dictator go. He slaughtered his own people, and the conditions in Iran for women are deplorable. Thoughts and prayers for Rashida Tlaib, and for the students and faculty of Columbia University.

About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

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Comments

  2. What happened to no new wars? Trump ripped up the Iran Nuclear Deal because – horrors- it was negotiated by Obama. It was working, of course. Then in June, Trump claimed he “obliterated ” Iran’s nuclear program. Of course he didn’t. Now they’re saying Iran was a week away from a nuclear attack? And we wonder how he managed to bankrupt 4 casinos? Is it great that Khamenei is gone? Sure. But what’s next? I dont think there’s a real plan.

  3. @Doug – my exact sentiment. I find it hard to offer thoughts for terrorist-sympathizers, not to mention those who insist on impeaching a POTUS for no reason other than being bitter in a loss of political power. I don’t mind offering prayers that she’ll see the error of her ways and perhaps even find Jesus, but that’s about all that I have to offer. Not a fan of anti-American individuals in our government.

  5. Better late than never. Carter should have done this after Iran took over our embassy and held hostages. Reagan, too, after Carter passed.

  6. Hey Gary… President Donald J. Trump is in charge now, and not “Do Nothing” Kamala Harris or Joe Biden. President Trump is doing what should have been done decades ago by other “Do Nothing” Presidents. Sorry you allow your hatred of President Trump to cloud your understanding of the situation and how the Iranian regime posed a threat to world peace and American security, but President Trump is doing and will continue to do what is best for America.

    Perhaps tomorrow you can write an article and tell us what a great job Jimmy Carter did in dealing with Iran, and how you admired his executive leadership in foreign affairs and economic prosperity.

    MAGA

  9. It’s important to note that most global unrest in the past 5 years has been caused by three 70-something white boomer losers desperate to stay out of prison.

  10. More has been accomplished in long term security for the countries of the Middle East in the last 2 years than the past 50 combined. Iran attacking Dubai Kuwait and Qatar shows it is isolated even by other Muslim countries. What An amazing development towards a new Middle East

  11. Ah, gee Gary, thanks for censoring my earlier harmless commentt. Have you considered reviewing the references on your bio? At least one has has been implicated in the Jeffrey Epstein case. Probably more than just one.. i just thought that perhaps you’d enjoy censoring some of those references since it appears you enjoy censoring comments.

  12. So, to you, the thousands and thousands of Iranians murdered and/or tortured just dont matter. Good to know.

  14. Before making ignorant TDS comments like “The U.S. action is obviously illegal and unconstitutional,” you would be well served to first read the War Powers Act of 1974–enacted by Congress–that reflects your ignorance.

    Stick to travel.

  15. The ayatollahs regime is truly evil. Trump did the right thing here if we’re honest about it, even if you hate him with a passion. This is bigger than US politics s**t show. Much bigger.

  17. Over 50 years ago I had a terrific time in Iran, going overland from France to Nepal I made a side trip off the usual route (Ankara-Tehran-Kabul) to see the Persian Gulf area. It’s was a magnificent, proud place with an ancient history and a very rich culture. But there was tremendous resentment against the Shah, who in 1953 was placed in charge thanks to a U.S.-backed coup against a popular leader. And that was the start of where we are today.

    I am really sorry that a group of nasty religious fanatics got control of the country, and hope they are soon gone. But installing another leader will simply repeat the process of failed regime change. Remember, Iran has 93 million people and is 75% urbanized. Also, 40% are ethnic minorities. It is not a place that can be invaded or controlled from the outside.

    I have seen no plans by this administration for what to do after the war–maybe leave things alone as in Venezuela where the same gang is still in charge? Its rationale for this conflict, “they may have missiles to hit us” makes no sense. The ayatollahs may be crazy but they were never stupid. The same lies were told about Iraq and, with slight variation, Vietnam.

  18. The War Powers Resolution, codified as 50 U.S.C. ch. 33, requires notification to Congress within 48 hours of the first use of troops, and any such use must be ratified by Congress within 60 days after that.

    We live in an age where declaration of war doesn’t happen. Korea, Vietnam, Gulf I. Grenada – the list goes on.

    In this case, prompt action was essential to the mission. Intelligence disclosed three top meetings by Iranian officials including Khameini. A leak or delay would have meant the difference between success and failure.

    I suspect that the Roberts Court would find adequate limits and timelines under the Act to withstand scrutiny under the non-delegation and major questions doctrines.

  19. “Attacking citizens is amoral.” Hmmmmmmm, who else has been doing a great deal of this recently?

  20. @1KBrad – first, read the constitution. second, this has nothing to do uniquely with trump – presidents of both parties have acted with impunity on this for 60 years.

  22. @Catman – I did not censor you (I haven’t even been online since this posted), but i also don’t see anything you’ve written

  23. Decent post in light of the circumstances, Gary. It’s nuanced. I think you struck a balance and even attempted some humor in dark times.

    Was surprised how basically the wealthy Gulf city states like Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Dubai, Kuwait, etc. do not have much defensive capabilities nor any shelters. Much of that should be rethought.

    The Iranians I’ve met outside of Iran clearly want regime change, too. Ironically, decapitating this regime also helps Ukraine, because Iran was providing munitions and drones to Russia. Wonder how Xi feels about all this. Maybe he thinks twice about Taiwan, knowing the costs would be great and that his allies are stretched thin already.

    @drrichard — As always, I appreciate your comments and perspective. As much as I’m no fan of Don or Bibi, I hope the outcome here is a free, prosperous Middle East, including for the Iranian people, so you or I or anyone could visit again, like you did those many years ago.

  24. @Gary Leff:

    You are out of your depth here, Gary. I am a lawyer and I can assure you I have read the Constitution and am familiar with it.

    In summary, it says the President is the Commander in Chief of the armed forces but that only Congress can declare war.

    As summarized by @Retired Lawyer above, the War Powers Act gives the President the power to commence military operations for a period of 60-days provided that he advise Congress within 48-hours of commencing operations.

    The fact that Trump calls it a war does not make it so. As stated by @Kathy, above, we haven’t had a declared war since WWII, yet we had the Korean War, the Vietnam War; the Cold War, the War on Terror, the War in Afghanistan and the Iraq War.

    What Trump has done is neither illegal nor against the Constitution.

  25. @1kBrad – the consensus of lawyers in the Trump administration is that the War Powers Act itself is unconstitutional (they believe the President has authority *unfettered by* the constitution).

    But the constitution doesn’t allow Congress to delegate its warmaking authority to the President. The constitution is clear that congressional authorization is required to start a war precisely so that no one individual – the president – can take the country to war on their own authority.

    And while it’s debatable what small scale military engagements consitute war, this one is certainly large enough and the President himself says so (see, for instance, https://www.ms.now/news/trump-iran-strikes-casualties-war-congress-reaction)

    But as I say, no federal court will enjoin a president’s military adventurism.

  26. Gary, why do you let TDS stay inside your head? You know your stuff about Airlines & Credit cards.

    World politics and terror regimes; not so much. Let things play out. Maybe Americans and Airline crews won’t have to worry about being killed in airplane hijackings? 9/11, Europe & Africa in the 70’s 80’s & 90’s should jar your memory.

  27. Anyone remember this – “Now that Obama’s poll numbers are in tailspin – watch for him to launch a strike in Libya or Iran. He is desperate,”

  28. @Dave Flaat — Pretty sure Gary is pleased with the results so far, so save the ‘TDS’ quip for when it makes sense. Like, y’all are sounding like the ‘boy who cried wolf’ with that one-trick pony.

  29. Interesting theory. Are you sure these attacks aren’t because the Iranians were denied their points during their last stay ?

  31. You end your article with partisan politics. Shame on you. You have left the gossip columnist group and shown support for a slice of the political spectrum that a lot of your readers find very objectionable. Stich to passenger foibles in the future.

  32. Just a gentle reminder that Obama bombed 8 countries during his presidency…a 9th if you count showering Iran with pallets of cash. I don’t recall any democrat getting off their knees and taking a break from servicing him to raise protest either

  33. There has never been a court that upheld the constitutionality of the War Powers Act, and many courts which have dismissed attempts to use it, and the Supreme Court’s decision last week in the tariff case casts even more doubt on its constitutionality given the fact that it claims to take Executive Commander in Chief Powers and place them in the hands of Congress . . . the mirror image of the tariff case which would presumably receive the same result. Congress has two remedies including withholding a Declaration of War (largely a formality leftover from the 18th Century) and the much more toothsome remedy of using it’s power of the purse to deny funding for the operation, which it can do at any time but likely will not.

    It’s noteworthy how well the UAE seems to be handling the chaos at the airport that is not in any way of its own making, issuing emergency visas and guaranteeing lodging and food at zero cost to all stranded passengers including those stuck in transit. This is what people mean by high state capacity. Brilliant and kind.

    For all of the doubters, the cold blooded attacks on innocent civilian targets in neutral and non-belligerent countries is proof positive of the dangers that Iran posed to the region and the world if they were ever allowed to get nuclear weapons or further develop their missile capabilities. To be against this action is to be in favor of this and the continuation of the mass murder of innocent Iranian protesters and I have no problem supporting it on that basis alone, despite not being a Trump supporter, and in fact being highly critical of him.

  34. Mantis – that’s because you have to leave your echo chamber to see things you are not used to seeing. Leftists criticizing Democrats is a tradition older than time itself and is literally how we elected a pedophile twice.

  35. Well, we know where this guy stands. “The U.S. action is obviously illegal and unconstitutional.” You need to read Article 2 of the Constitution. The president has not DECLARED war. And this comment is just totally wrong, “Thoughts and prayers for Rashida Tlaib, and for the students and faculty of Columbia University.” YIKES. Why not stick to travel? I’d much rather read about the flight attendant prohibiting a he/she/they/their/it from using the lavatory on a jet and posting so many pictures of airline toilets. As far as “censorship”, the producer of this web site is perfectly allowed to censor any and everything. That is stated in the First Amendment.

  36. The 2001 Congressional Authorization to Use Military Power is applicable and has not been revoked by Congress.

  37. Indeed, it’s a clever strategy by Iran, as they cannot defeat USA or Israel directly….but, by using this ‘flanking’ strategy…that is, using leverage from fear and chaos of tourists and residents in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in particular…not only will the UAE lose millions in tourist revenues, but many businesses will also pause investment plans. Eventually, the UAE and Qatari leaders beg Trump to stop before their economy falls into a recession.

  38. Gary’s expression of thoughts and prayers for Rashida Tlaib and the Columbia U. students is sarcasm.

  39. The Emirati, Bahraini, Kuwaiti and Saudi royals remain fully on board with Israel, the US and the UK governments in attacking Iran and pushing for regime change in Iran. The Saudis have been throwing around big money in the last 14 months to get Trump to finish off the Ayatollahs in Iran. They look forward to opening the door for cheaper Iranian prostitution once again as they are a bit too bored of the Moroccan prostitution scene and the Dubai and Bahraini prostitution scene makes them vulnerable in domestic positioning and is more expensive, and they like to go cheap on people like Trump does.

  40. Lets kick some ass for once and for all and put an end to Iran. Like we should have done in 1979 and on 9/12/2001. 3,000+ 9/11 victims were civilians too.

  41. “Thoughts and prayers for Rashida Tlaib, and for the students and faculty of Columbia University.” WTF?

    My thoughts and prayers are with our soldiers and the civilians in Iran who will be taking up the fight.

    Gary, you’re embarrassed yourself with this one – and owe an apology.

  42. These are tough times for Tlaib and her friends at Columbia U.

    That said, this too shall pass and they’ll be fine in the long run.

  43. @Bradley

    ‘Lets kick some ass for once and for all and put an end to Iran. Like we should have done in 1979 and on 9/12/2001. 3,000+ 9/11 victims were civilians too

    You seem to be geographically challenged. It was Saudis like Bin Laden and Egyptians who carried out 9/11. But I’m old enough to remember Bush 2 saying Iraq was responsible for it in justifying an attack on Iraq. Of course, even he wasn’t as deluded as MAGA to claim that Iran was responsible.

  44. @Mak

    “It’s noteworthy how well the UAE seems to be handling the chaos at the airport that is not in any way of its own making, issuing emergency visas and guaranteeing lodging and food at zero cost to all stranded passengers including those stuck in transit. This is what people mean by high state capacity. Brilliant and kind”

    Brilliant and kind? Seriously, that’s the least you could expect any competent airport and airline to do. I was stuck there last June during the last round of strikes and they basically let passengers fend for themselves. At least they seem to have upped their game a little bit to basic competence. And while the UAE is hardly in Irans league when it comes to brutality, they are a totalitarian government too — check out their life imprisonment for peaceful protests not even against their goverment, but the Sri Lankans last year

  46. @Winston, but we only elected Biden once, or are you counting his election to the Vice Presidency?

  47. I take umbridge at your ignorant comment “The U.S. action is obviously illegal and unconstitutional.”

    When you don’t know what you are talking about, you should just shut up and keep your prejudices to yourself.

    The only two wars since 1918 that were declared by congress were WWI and WW2, and these were declared after the respective Presidents had already, as Commander In Chief, commenced war operations. All the wars since then were conducted by presidential direction. Congress only can stop them by passing specific legislation to withdraw funding for such operations.

  48. It’s still good that Ayatollah is dead; the targeting of civilians and travel disruption isn’t ‘great,’ but isn’t unexpected (hopefully will resolve soon, lest the entire region become chaos indefinitely).

    Economic fallout (rising oil costs) aren’t good for most (Europe relying on Gulf and US, since can’t buy from Russia, and China lost Iran and Venezuela as sources, so relying on Russia more).

    ‘America First’ folks still love Daddy anyway; domestic outrage over lack of Congressional approval for more forever-wars is… (well, add it to the pile), because we haven’t reigned in the imperial Presidency since 9/11; all this probably helps Democrats in the midterms, unless ‘Daddy’ can use it as a pretext to cancel elections… (which, shouldn’t be possible, but could, because, ultimately, our highest court is more partisan than it should be).

    Not that anyone’s opinion matters on this or anything, but I did appreciate Tom Friedman’s Op-Ed published in the NYTimes this morning, How to Think About Trump’s War With Iran. It’s not black and white.

  49. Two days in
    4 dead Americans
    3 jets worth $560 million shot down by friendly fire
    and
    A $billion in taxpayer funds.
    Not including the billions given to the Zionist government of Israel

  50. Apparently, U.S. officials simply hoped the Iranian people would seize the government if their leaders were killed in airstrikes. But there was a line of succession, and the country’s police state remains in place. Erin Banco of Reuters reported yesterday that before the attacks, analysts for the Central Intelligence Agency assessed that if Iran’s 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei were killed, younger hard-line men could replace him.

  51. Natasha Bertrand, Zachary Cohen, and Jennifer Hansler of CNN reported this evening that briefers from the Pentagon today told congressional staff that Iran had not been planning to attack U.S. forces or bases in the Middle East unless Israel attacked first. Trump administration officials said on Saturday that Iran was planning to strike the U.S. preemptively and thus posed an imminent threat. The briefers said there was no intelligence to support that claim.

  52. Trump was hosting a fund raiser at Mar-a-Lago on Friday, as the U.S. offensive began. The New York Times reported last November that tickets for the dinner dance were $1 million apiece. The optics of Trump partying with his rich cronies while American soldiers died is at least partly what is behind the fact that today,
    “#SendBarron” trended on social media.

  53. If you hate DonaldTrump, you should be happy. Iran always retaliates. They want to waste him but it is hard to do. If they do, haters will be happy.

  54. Before you make a rash judgment and label the President’s actions as Commander-in-Chief “obviously illegal and unconstitutional” please read the War Powers Act. Congress has given the President the ability to conduct military strikes. The Trump Administration is following their congressionally sanctioned authority. Congress will now have the opportuity to decide whether to withdraw that authority and make it illegal and presumably unconstitutional for the President to order continuing attacks against Iran. The War Powers Act was adopted in response to the undeclared wars in Korea and Viet Nam. It requires consultation with Congress and notification. Briefings are taking place today AND the Gang of Eight were notified within 48 hours as required. I appreciate your reporting on what is happening but would greatly appreciate it if you could join a growing number, still a minority, of influencers and journalists who are accurately labeling the Administration’s military operations and avoiding partisan rhetoric. Final note: Trump isn’t the first President to be accused of violating the War Powers Act. Presidents Clinton and Obama conducted Congressionally unauthorized military operations in Kosovo and Libya. Bush 43 asserted he didn’t need to but he did proceed under the War Powers Act. Clinton and Obama are mentioned most frequently as the violators of the War Powers Act as the both went well beyond the 60 day period the War Powers Act grants permission to the President to conduct military operations.

  55. Actually, it has been the official position of every President since the War Powers Act was enacted that that the Act was unconstitutional. So far, it has not been litigated to the Supreme Court.

    Gary should have worded his statement differently. Instead of using the words “obviously illegal and unconstitutional”, he should have stated something like “I believe that the action was illegal and unconstitutional because….” Then he would have been in the mainstream of arguments against such actions from both sides of the aisle over the years. The word “obviously” makes him seem oblivious to the debate about such actions that have been going on since the Constitution was signed. Gary, a little bit loose with your language there.

    What do I think of the actions in Iran? Luckily, I do not have to make a pronouncement right now. I can see how this could work out or go bad. I will make up my mind in about six months to a year.

    Finally, I am glad I was in Hawaii enjoying the nice weather, rather than anywhere near the middle east when the attack happened. No drones attacking Waikiki.

  56. @derek — No, most so-called ‘haters’ would prefer actual accountability, not violence.

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