Oracle’s Dubai Hqrs damaged in drone attack
TEL AVIV, Apr 4: The US military pressed ahead Saturday in a frantic search for a missing pilot over a remote area in southwestern Iran, a day after the Islamic Republic shot down a US warplane and promised a reward for whoever turns in the pilot.
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The plane, identified by Iran as a F-15E Strike Eagle, was one of two attacked Friday, with one service member rescued and at least one missing. It was the first time the United States lost aircraft in Iranian territory during the war, now in its sixth week, and could add to pressure on the Trump administration to end the fighting.
The war, which began with joint US-Israel strikes on Feb 28, has killed thousands, shaken global markets, cut off key shipping routes and spiked fuel prices. It shows no signs of slowing as Iran responds to ongoing airstrikes with attacks across the region.
The downing of the American planes came two days after US President Donald Trump said in a national address that the United States has “beaten and completely decimated Iran.” The US and Israel recently boasted that Iran’s air defences were obliterated.
But on Saturday, an apparent Iranian drone damaged the headquarters of US technology company Oracle in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Meanwhile, the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran said that an airstrike hit near its Bushehr nuclear facility, killing a security guard and damaging a support building. It’s the fourth time the facility has been targeted during the war.
Iran’s top diplomat reiterated his government’s willingness to join talks aimed at stopping the war. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that they “have never refused to go to Islamabad.” Last week, Pakistan said that it would soon host talks between the US and Iran.
The search for the American pilot focused on a mountainous region in Iran’s southwestern province of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad.
Neither the White House nor the Pentagon released information, but in an email from the Pentagon, obtained by the AP, the military said that it received notification of “an aircraft being shot down” in the Middle East, without further details.
A US crew member was rescued. But the Pentagon notified the US House Armed Services Committee that the status of a second service member wasn’t known.
In a telephone interview with NBC News, Trump said that what happened wouldn’t affect negotiations with Iran.
Separately, Iranian state media said a US A-10 attack aircraft crashed in the Persian Gulf after being struck by Iranian defence forces.
An apparent Iranian drone damaged the Dubai headquarters of Oracle after Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard threatened the firm.
Footage verified by the AP outside the United Arab Emirates showed a large hole in the building’s southwestern corner.
The sheikhdom’s Dubai Media Office, which speaks for its government, noted a “minor incident caused by debris from an aerial interception that fell on the facade,” saying there were no injuries. Oracle Corp., based in Austin, Texas, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Guard has accused some of the largest US tech companies of being involved in “terrorist espionage” operations against the Islamic Republic and called them legitimate targets. Amazon Web Services facilities in the UAE and Bahrain were hit in earlier drone strikes. (AP)
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