DUBAI (Web Desk) - Passenger arrivals at Dubai International Airport declined by nearly one-third during the first half of 2026, according to airport authorities.
The airport handled around 31.5 million passengers during the first six months of 2026, compared with approximately 46 million passengers recorded during the same period last year.
According to Arab media reports, air travel across the Middle East has been severely disrupted by the war involving Iran, the United States and Israel.
Rising fuel prices have also pushed up airfares worldwide, further affecting passenger demand.
The reports said Iran targeted several Gulf countries on multiple occasions during the conflict, in what was described as an effort to cause further disruption to the global economy and increase pressure on key US allies to engage with Washington over ending the war.
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The sharp decline in passenger traffic at one of the world’s busiest international aviation hubs highlights the broader impact of regional instability on air travel and the wider global economy.
Meanwhile, Iran and Oman have reached agreements on their share of the Strait of Hormuz and its revenues, Iran's Revolutionary Guards spokesperson said, according to a report by the semi-official Tasnim news agency on Wednesday.
The spokesperson said the US was obstructing negotiations between Oman and Iran, leading to them being delayed.
Iran and Oman have been in on-and-off talks for weeks about controlling traffic through the strategic waterway, which handled one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments before the war began in February.