AWS Bahrain, UAE remain offline 6 months after Iranian strikes
What's the story
Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced that it cannot restore access to its cloud-computing facilities in Bahrain and parts of the United Arab Emirates. The announcement comes over six months after these sites were damaged by drone strikes during the early days of the Iran war. The damage at several Bahrain-based sites was beyond what AWS services are designed to withstand.
Damage evaluation
AWS's update on the situation
In an update on its health dashboard, AWS said, "After a thorough assessment, we have determined that we are unable to restore access to the resources and data hosted exclusively in this region."
The company also revealed it has been unable to recover resources and data stored in one of its availability zones in the UAE.
However, work is ongoing to restore two other affected UAE zones.
Attack details
AWS's UAE facilities were directly hit by drones
The disruptions began in March after US and Israeli strikes on Iran, which retaliated with missile and drone attacks on Israel and Gulf states hosting US troops.
Two of AWS's UAE facilities were directly hit by drones, while a nearby strike damaged one in Bahrain.
The attacks have raised concerns over the security of future data center developments in the Gulf region amid rising infrastructure demand due to the AI boom.
Project revisions
Changes proposed for UAE AI data-center project
In light of these events, the UAE is considering changes to its major AI data-center project. The proposed changes include dispersing facilities across the country and using underground and blast-resistant infrastructure.
Despite the challenges, Amazon remains committed to supporting its customers in Bahrain and the UAE.
The company expects to provide an update on the situation in the UAE "in the coming months," with more information for users in Bahrain due early 2027.