AWS Data Center Fire Shocks UAE Amid Middle East Tensions

AWS temporarily shut down power to its UAE data center after objects struck the facility, causing a fire. The incident occurs amid Iranian missile and drone strikes across the Gulf in retaliation for U.S. and Israeli attacks. Restoration and investigation are ongoing while other UAE zones remain unaffected.

Amazon's cloud computing unit, AWS, faced a troubling incident on Sunday as power to its data center in the United Arab Emirates was shut down. This followed objects striking the facility, which triggered sparks and resulted in a fire. The event occurs amid a backdrop of heightened tensions in the Middle East, specifically with Iran's retaliatory missile and drone strikes across the region in response to U.S. and Israeli attacks.

When questioned by Reuters about any potential connection between the data center incident and the ongoing strikes, AWS remained tight-lipped, neither confirming nor denying any linkage. The company stated, "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."

The fire department promptly intervened, cutting power to the affected facility while extinguishing the flames. AWS noted that it would take several hours to restore connectivity to the affected zone. However, they assured that other zones in the UAE continue to operate normally, keeping disruption to a minimum.

(With inputs from agencies.)