"Civilians Killed by Strikes in Gulf States Are Almost All Migrant Workers" 10 March 2026

…Murib Zaman worked as a driver in the United Arab Emirates for two decades, living more than a thousand miles away from his family in northwestern Pakistan and sending home $300 each month.

The manicured city of Abu Dhabi, the Emirati capital, seemed much safer than his remote village, where Pakistani Taliban militants roamed. So when his family received word that he had been killed in a faraway war — struck by debris that fell from an intercepted Iranian missile, according to a statement by the U.A.E. — they were shocked…

At least 12 civilians have been killed in attacks across the Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain, according to a New York Times tally of official sources. All but one of them were foreign nationals…

But low-paid migrant workers are also uniquely vulnerable as the conflict widens. They are more likely to live in overcrowded housing with insufficient exit routes, putting them at greater risk if explosions or fires occur. And they are more likely to hold essential jobs, as grocery store cashiers, sanitation workers and delivery drivers, that require them to continue working as usual while many citizens and wealthier foreign residents can take shelter…