Amazon’s cloud unit reports fire after objects hit UAE data center

 Amazon’s cloud unit, AWS, said on Sunday (March 1, 2026) that power ​to its data center in the ‌United Arab Emirates was shut down ​temporarily after objects struck ⁠the facility, triggering sparks and a fire.

The UAE is reeling from Iran’s retaliatory ‌missile and drone strikes following U.S. and Israeli attacks ‌on Iran. The Iranian strikes hit ‌airports, ⁠ports, and residential areas ⁠across the country and the wider Gulf.

When Reuters asked AWS whether the incident at ​the data center was ‌connected to the strikes, the company did not confirm or deny.

• AWS said: “At around 4:30 AM ‌PST, one of our Availability Zones (mec1-az2) ​was impacted by objects that struck the data center, ⁠creating sparks and fire.”

• According to the company’s website, an “Availability Zone” is ‌made up of one or more connected physical data centers. These zones are separate, isolated locations within each AWS Region.

• Fire department cut power to the ‌facility while crews worked to extinguish the ​fire, AWS said.

• It will take several hours to ⁠restore connectivity in the affected zone, the ⁠data center operator said, adding that other zones in the ‌UAE are operating normally