AWS Confirms Drone Strikes Hit Data Centers in UAE and Bahrain
Amazon’s cloud computing division has confirmed that drone strikes hit three of its facilities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain.
The attacks occurred on Sunday morning, just days after the US and Israel launched retaliatory strikes against Iran over the weekend.
Initial Reports Point to “Objects” Striking Facilities
Amazon Web Services (AWS) initially reported that “objects” struck a data center in the UAE, which triggered “sparks and fire.”
On the same day, the company also began investigating power and connectivity failures at another facility in Bahrain. On Monday, the tech giant officially confirmed that drones caused the outages.
Drone Strikes Cause Direct Hits and Structural Damage
The company revealed that two facilities in the UAE suffered direct hits.
“In Bahrain, a drone strike in close proximity to one of our facilities caused physical impacts to our infrastructure,” the company stated.
The attacks caused significant operational damage. AWS explained that the drones resulted in structural damage and disrupted power delivery.
“In some cases, [it] required fire suppression activities that resulted in additional water damage,” the company added.
Conflict Exposes Vulnerability of Critical Infrastructure
The incident has exposed the growing vulnerability of critical technology infrastructure during military conflicts. AWS noted that it is working quickly to restore services.
However, the company warned that repairs could take time “given the nature of the physical damage involved.”
AWS Advises Customers to Backup Data and Relocate Workloads
The firm strongly recommends that customers using its services in the region back up their data. AWS also advises clients to “potentially migrate workloads” to alternative facilities in other parts of the world.
Regional Instability Poses Ongoing Risks
Looking ahead, AWS cautioned customers that the ongoing conflict means “the broader operating environment in the Middle East remains unpredictable.”
President Donald Trump has signaled that the US strikes on Iran could last four to five weeks but could “go far longer.”
Iran continues to launch waves of missiles and drones against US bases and allies throughout the region, including in the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia.
