An Iraqi armed faction has threatened to attack the UAE if regional war breaks out as Israel intensifies its attacks on Lebanon, killing over 700 people and injuring more than 6,000 since Monday.
The leader of the Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada - of the umbrella group the Islamic Resistance in Iraq - said the UAE would be its "first target" in case of a war.
Abu Alaa al-Walaei warned that such an attack would be "very easy for the Islamic Resistance in Iraq's missiles and drone", which he said could reach the depth of Israel as well as its "alternate sites" in the region - alluding to its supposed allies.
The group has carried out strikes on several parts of Israel since the war on Gaza began and after Israeli attacks on Lebanon intensified this week.
The UAE normalised relations with Israel in 2020 under the controversial US-brokered "Abraham Accords".
Earlier this week, Iraq's Kataib Hezbollah faction vowed to send 100,000 fighters to Lebanon to support Hezbollah against Israeli attacks.
In a letter addressed to Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, the faction's leader Abu Alaa al-Walai said he was ready to deploy men to support the Lebanese group, which is the main target of the brutal Israeli assault.
"Nasrallah once told me that Iraq was the greatest reservoir of power and a vital artery of resistance," he said.
He said his fighters were "waiting for the signal" to act, after which a "human deluge will flood Lebanon's borders and trenches".
"If Hezbollah has lost a thousand martyrs, then we will assist it with 100,000 heroes," he vowed.
His letter came after Hezbollah lost members - as well as two children and other civilians - in an attack last week when hundreds of pagers and wireless communication devices detonated in homes, vehicles, and markets.
The act is believed to have been planned by Israel's intelligence agency Mossad.
At least 39 people died in the attack and some 3,000 were wounded. Hezbollah announced that hundreds of its fighters were released from service due to injuries sustained in the eyes and hands.
Meanwhile, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa al-Sudani reiterated his country's support for Lebanon during a meeting with his Lebanese counterpart Najib Mikati on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York.
Sudani stressed Iraq's readiness to support Lebanon through political and humanitarian tracks, according to a statement from his media office on Thursday.
Sudani said Iraq had called for an Arab and Islamic summit to "resolve this crisis and take strong positions towards the [Israeli] aggression".
"The international system has failed to defend human rights in Lebanon and Palestine and protect the lives of their people," he said.
"The Iraqi government will not delay in providing all the capabilities required to support our brothers in Lebanon," he added.
Mikati praised Iraq's efforts to prevent the spread of conflict in the region and for the support given to Lebanese citizens.
On Thursday, Iraq received the first group of some 44 Lebanese people who were injured in the current war with Israel.