Dramatic video shows Shahed drone hitting Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah district
Dramatic video shows Shahed drone hitting Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah district
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An Iranian Shahed drone struck near the Fairmont Hotel in Dubai, causing a large explosion and fire, according to numerous geolocated videos and eyewitnesses.
One witness told CNN she saw the drone strike while walking on the West Palm Beach near the hotel. Initially, she thought the drone was “a bird falling out of the sky,” then saw the drone bank left sharply before detonating.
“Now, we’re all sitting underneath the parking lot” taking shelter, she added.
Video shared with CNN shows the moment of impact. The drone, its wings clearly outlined against the sky, dropped at a steep angle between several high rise buildings before bursting into flame when it reached the ground.
Big picture: The Fairmont is located in Dubai’s high-end Palm Jumeirah, a thickly-settled manmade island off the city beach, known for its luxury apartments, hotels and restaurants.
The landfall of an Iranian drone in the middle of one of the wealthiest, most populated cities in the United Arab Emirates is virtually unprecedented. The strikes also come during Ramadan, and CNN staff on the ground in Dubai heard blasts in between calls to prayer from mosques in the city.
CNN’s Anna Chernova, Gianluca Mezzofiore, Zeena Saifi and Isa Cardona contributed.