Sunbathers flee for their lives in Dubai as fresh Iranian explosions rock the region

The tourist hotspot was one of multiple targets as Iran fired missiles in retaliation to US and Israeli attacks over the weekend.

Smoke could be seen billowing as the revenge strikes were launched on Sunday, causing huge disruption to flights going in and out of the the world's busiest international hub.

Celebrities and influencers have described the goings on as "very scary" as "loud bangs" are heard echoing from the explosions.

Read more: LIVE: Israeli strikes kill at least 31 In Lebanon, US jet crashes and new blasts rock Dubai

Read more: Questions raised over defence of key British base after Iranian kamikaze drone strike on RAF Akrotiri

Former Nottingham Forest and Leicester City footballer Alan Rogers posted a clip to X showing what appears to be the sound of the blasts in the distance.

In the video, sunbathers lounging around a swimming pool below can be seen quickly gathering their belongings before making an exit.

Rogers captioned the post: "Was just about to tweet quiet today in Dubai then this."

The 49-year-old, who relocated to the city where he operates as a crypto trader, also tweeted earlier: "Good morning all. Surreal scary day here in Dubai yesterday, watching drones and missiles flying over your head and landing very close to you.

"Just hope not to many people hurt. Sat having a coffee this morning and hearing what sounds like jets none stop flying around. Stay safe people."

At least one person has also been killed and seven others wounded during an "incident" at Abu Dhabi’s Zayed International Airport.

TV personality Kate Ferdinand, wife of former England footballer Rio, also said her family had a "very scary night" at their Dubai home.

The reality TV star, 34, and her husband, former footballer Rio Ferdinand, relocated to Dubai last year with their young children, and the couple are among several celebrities living in the region as missiles continue to fall.

Airspace closures in the Middle East have resulted in a number of commercial flights being grounded since the attacks began on Saturday.

Nearly half of the flights scheduled to depart from London Heathrow to the region on Sunday were cancelled.

Analytics company Cirium said 24 of the 56 flights from the UK's busiest airport were axed.

Ferdinand shared a post to her 1.4 million followers on Instagram on Sunday, and wrote: "Thank you for all of your messages and sorry for the silence, I haven’t wanted to worry you all I just haven’t been able to find the words.

"We are safe. The government are doing an amazing job of keeping it that way and despite my nerves I feel we are in very safe hands.“We are hoping for a calmer evening tonight, last night was very scary."

Dubai has been targeted alongside various other countries in the Middle East including Bahrain and Qatar in response to the US and Israeli blasts on Saturday morning which killed Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Blasts were reported in Jerusalem, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha in Qatar, and Manama in Bahrain on the third day of the conflict.

Former Geordie Shore star Sam Gowland, said he was kept up overnight at his villa in Dubai by the "banging."

In a post to his Instagram story on Sunday, he wrote: "Wow, so scary last night. I hardly slept with all the banging.

"This mornings' wake-up call was at 7.30am with two more rockets going over my villa. Going to be a crazy day.

"Can’t really tell you the feeling you get from the noises, I’ve never experienced anything like it."

Elsewhere, Petra Ecclestone, the daughter of former F1 founder Bernie Ecclestone, called Saturday night "one of the most scary, worst nights of my life."

In a post on Instagram, the socialite spoke about her family relocating from Los Angeles to Dubai earlier this year, and said: "I feel like us as a family had been through a lot recently.

"We came to Dubai to feel safe, and we finally felt like we were settling in. And now this has happened, so it’s really kind of been a shocking turn of events – but thank God we are safe."

British Armed Forces are also responding to the suspected strike at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, which is home to thousands of British airmen and their families, at around midnight on Sunday.

Three British schools on the island have also been closed with immediate effect while and residents have been advised to shelter until further notice.In response, officials in the UK are understood to be working on plans for the potential evacuation of more than 100,000 Britons from the Middle East.