'A full war': Singaporeans trapped in Dubai, Qatar recount shock over Iran's retaliatory strikes
SINGAPORE - Singaporean Sat Lunasky had switched off her lights, ready to sleep, but her phone buzzed to life past midnight, telling her to seek shelter as debris was expected to fall near where she was.“For me, that’s when it hit me that this was a full war,” said the 53-year-old consultant, who was scheduled to leave Dubai on March 3 after spending a month setting up her business there.Alarmed, she grabbed her emergency bag and sped down to the underground carpark in search of safety, only to return about an hour later to wait for further instructions from the authorities.Following US-Israel strikes on Iran, and Iran’s retaliatory strikes on Middle Eastern states including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar, the region’s air spaces have been closed, leaving thousands stranded.Singaporean marketing professional Sheryl Ho was monitoring the news in her Dubai home when she heard the first explosions, and then the roar of fighter jets.The 28-year-old said: “The scale of the attacks was what surprised me as I definitely did not think landmarks in Dubai would be targeted.”