Iran Warns UAE Ports: Escalation in Gulf Conflict Threatens Global Trade Amid War With US-Israel

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has reportedly threatened to bomb the $30,000,000,000 Stargate AI data center. IRGC has released a video threatening to strike 1GW Stargate AI datacenter in the UAE. Iran’s video features an IRGC-linked warning of strikes on the 1GW Stargate UAE AI datacenter in Abu Dhabi. The warning uses satellite imagery to reveal its desert location. Stargate UAE is a major AI computing cluster planned as one of the largest outside the US, with initial 200MW phase in 2026 scaling to 1GW. The Stargate project is backed by Japan’s Softbank, American technology giants — Oracle, Cisco, Nvidia, OpenAI — and UAE’s G42. This action is said to signal Iran’s shift to asymmetric targeting of high-value Western tech assets in the Gulf amid regional tensions, exposing data centers’ strategic vulnerability beyond traditional military sites.“Should the US proceed with its threats concerning Iran’s power plant facilities, the following retaliatory measures shall be promptly enacted. All power plants, energy infrastructure, and information and communication technology of the Zionist regime, and all similar companies in the region that have American shareholders, shall face complete and utter annihilation,” said Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya HQ spokesman in a video message.The video also displayed the text: “Nothing is hidden from our sight, though hidden by Google.” It then pointed to the location of Stargate in the UAE and shows a photo of American CEOs of the project’s major partner companies, including Nvidia, OpenAI, Microsoft and Goldman Sachs.

What is Stargate UAE and what makes it ‘crucial’

Stargate is one of the most-high profile Artificial Intelligence (AI) project announced by the US President Donald Trump. US Prez had announced the project on first day in Oval office. He said that it will create thousands of American jobs. The Stargate agreement was announced in May 2025 during the US President Donald Trump’s visit to the UAE. It marks the largest data center deployment outside of the United States, according to the US Commerce Department. The project expands the footprint of American AI and cloud companies in the Middle East. OpenAI, Nvidia, Cisco and local champion G42 were part of the Trump administration’s announcement for Stargate project. “By extending the world’s leading American tech stack to an important strategic partner in the region, this agreement is a major milestone in achieving President Trump’s vision for US AI dominance,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had said in a statement at the announcement. The UAE has also said it wants to become a global leader in artificial intelligence by 2031.The warning video follows earlier threats by IRGC which had warned of targeting US companies operating in the Middle East, including Microsoft, Apple, Google and Meta. The warning, similar to one issued in March, was targeted at 18 US companies, including technology and finance companies. The warning calls these companies ‘terrorist companies’ and blames them for spying for the US government. x.com/FurkanGozukara/status/2039986135405932656?s=20On Thursday, April 2, some reports claimed that IRGC had bombed Oracle’s datacentre in Dubai. UAE’s official media denied the report and called it ‘fake and fabricated.’