Alys Daviesand
Gabriela Pomeroy
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When Will Bailey stepped off a plane in Dubai in the early hours of Saturday morning, it was supposed to mark a new chapter in his life.
The fitness influencer from the UK had made the trip with the intention of relocating his coaching business there and securing residency.
But within 24 hours of his arrival, he was documenting Iranian missile attacks on some of the United Arab Emirates (UAE)’s most exclusive and iconic neighbourhoods.
“That was metres away from us,” he said in a video posted to Instagram, showing thick plumes of dark smoke rising from what he said was the area of one of Dubai’s most prestigious hotels, Fairmont the Palm in the luxurious Palm Jumeirah.
Bailey said he was badly shaken after witnessing the incident which authorities said led to a fire that injured four people.
On Saturday, Iran responded to US and Israeli strikes on its territory, launching missiles towards the UAE and other Gulf states.
Strikes have continued into Monday, with one person confirmed killed in the UAE.
“Since this happened, everything changed,” Bailey told BBC News. “Now we are in the middle of all of this chaos that is going on.”
He said he was uncertain whether he would go ahead with his plans to take up residency in the country as a result of the war.
“I am not sure what the plans are; I don’t know if I will stay here or I will go back to the UK. I just don’t know,” he said.
For years, Dubai has cultivated a reputation as a glamorous and attractive destination for expats pursuing business opportunities and travel.
It’s also been a safe haven for residents in an unstable wider region.
But scenes of destruction in recent days have prompted some, like Bailey, to wonder if the Dubai dream can still be a reality.
Since the attacks started, other influencers have expressed their shock and fear over the situation.
Posting on social media, former Love Island contestant Arabella Chi, who is based in Dubai, described it as “a very scary time”.
British model and influencer Petra Ecclestone said: “We came to Dubai to feel safe, and we finally felt like we were settling in, and now this has happened.”
Others, however, feel that the situation has been overblown.
Hofit Golan, a Canadian-Israeli influencer who describes herself as a TV personality and entrepreneur, said that while “the first day of the war was a shock”, “money is flowing in and [the attacks] showed Dubai’s air defences are strong”.
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The 40-year-old said she had made a trip to the mall on Monday, saying while the atmosphere was “a bit subdued” it was busy.
“Life goes on,” she told the BBC.
Another Dubai resident, Afsha Farooqui, said that despite the situation, she did not feel unsafe in the city.
“I feel safe in Dubai despite what is going on. It’s natural to feel concern but day to day, schools are open, and families are out,” she said.
“We don’t live in fear,” the 34-year-old food blogger, who is originally from India, said.
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Criticism of the government is illegal in the UAE.
Many influencers have been posting praise for the government online, stressing that there is no need to feel unsafe and that the missile defence systems are working well.
While most missiles have so far been intercepted, the damage done to iconic buildings and the images of them circulating online may make some question the dream of living in Dubai.
The image of Dubai as a prosperous and contemporary city “is now being punctured”, Yasser Elsheshtawy, professor of architecture at Columbia University, told the BBC.
“When you begin to see plumes of smoke rising in the city and sounds of explosion in some of the most exclusive places”, it “shatters that image of Dubai as this haven of security and safety”, the academic, who lived in Dubai for 20 years, said.
“It will suffer for years to come,” he added.
Karen Young, senior research scholar at the Center on Global Energy Policy, also at Columbia University, added that Iran’s decision to target civilian, and in particular tourist infrastructure, was unprecedented.
“I think for many people it just seemed impossible that the tourist infrastructure would ever be targeted in such a way, so it’s kind of pierced the facade of safety,” said Young, who previously lived in Dubai for six years.
She added that Dubai is made up of people from all sorts of walks of life, and while there are those who are part of the more glamorous scene associated with the city, there are many who don’t fit that mold.
“I think a lot of people are rightly afraid, and many people, particularly from the region, are in Dubai because they’ve escaped war somewhere else.”
Additional reporting by Ethar Shalaby.
