Amazon says drone strikes damaged 3 facilities in UAE and Bahrain

Amazon Web Services (AWS) reported on Monday that drone strikes have severely impacted two of its data centers in the United Arab Emirates, as well as a facility in Bahrain. The strikes took place on Sunday morning, leading to significant damage and forcing the facilities offline. In a statement on its AWS health dashboard, the company indicated that the data centers in the UAE were directly struck, resulting in sparks and fire. Additionally, AWS highlighted that a nearby drone strike in Bahrain caused physical damage to its infrastructure. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has been identified as a contributing factor to these incidents. AWS acknowledged the challenges posed by the strikes, which have led to structural damage and disrupted power delivery. Fire suppression efforts have also contributed to additional water damage at the affected sites. The company is actively working to restore services but anticipates a lengthy recovery process due to the extent of the physical damage. In light of these developments, AWS is focused on regaining data access and service availability in the impacted regions, even as full restoration of the facilities may take time. The company has cautioned customers about the likelihood of ongoing instability in the Middle East, advising them to prepare for potential disruptions. This includes backing up data and considering migration of workloads to other AWS regions. Earlier on the same day, Amazon had alerted customers in the Middle East about possible delivery delays due to escalating tensions in the region, as Iran launched missiles and drones in retaliation to U.S.-Israeli actions. Notifications of extended delivery times were posted on Amazon's marketplaces in Israel, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and the UAE. This situation remains fluid, and AWS plans to provide further updates as new information becomes available.