War fears have reportedly sparked a £450m-a-day tourism collapse in Dubai, leaving luxury resorts deserted and trapping millions of migrant workers in a cycle of despair
Dubai has reportedly become a ghost town as fears of Iranian missile strikes have turned the glitzy holiday hotspot into a dead zone. The once-bustling beach clubs and five-star resorts now sit eerily quiet, with the city claimed to be bleeding a staggering £450million every single day.
Until recently, the airport was the world’s busiest for international travel, but incoming flights have plummeted to a mere fraction of their usual levels.
The desert dream has turned into a nightmare for a city that aimed to smash records with 20 million visitors this year. Instead, the threat of retaliatory strikes by Iran following US military action in February has terrified tourists into staying away.
In a desperate bid to save face, the standard excuse for shuttering doors is that they are “closing for an upgrade.”
However, the reality is stark as the Daily Mail reports that at least seven major five-star hotels have closed recently, leaving thousands of staff either sacked or on indefinite “unpaid leave.”
Renowned spots like the St Regis on the Palm and the Armani Hotel in the Burj Khalifa are among those impacted. One guest at a remaining hotel described a skeleton crew struggling to cope.
The Anantara World Islands Dubai Resort, where villas can cost over £1,000 a night, admitted it would be “ceasing operations with immediate effect.”
While the wealthy elite can flee the city’s backbone, millions of migrant workers, are trapped. In squalid labour camps like Sonapur, the atmosphere is said to be one of pure desperation.
Sonapur translates to “City of Gold,” but for the Indian, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi workers living there, the name is now a cruel irony. With the tourism tap turned off, many have no wages and no way to afford a flight home.
One resident said: “Life as a security guard in Dubai used to mean you could only experience the beauty of Dubai on the bus on the way to work and the way back to your accommodation. Now there’s not even a bus ride.”
Meanwhile, the UAE has banned anyone from sharing images of damage from Iranian attacks, with violators facing a year in prison and £20,000 fines. One Pakistani worker told reporters that people are too scared to even use WhatsApp.
They said: “No one wants to speak about it [the ongoing war]. Everyone is too terrified. We have been told not to talk about it. It’s the worst place in the world to be able to talk.”
He added: “The big problem now is not Iran but business. There are no tourists, and all businesses are really down… what you see in the media is completely wrong. Things are not fine.”
As repatriation flights begin to ferry some workers back to the Philippines and Sri Lanka, those left behind potentially face a grim future.
Michael Page of Human Rights Watch said: “The conflict has brought new risks to migrant workers while also exposing the gaps in labour and other rights, including those enabled by the kafala (sponsorship) system.”
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