Abu Dhabi: A senior diplomatic adviser to the United Arab Emirates president warned Tehran on Sunday that its retaliatory missile strikes against Gulf Arab states have "isolated" Iran at a "critical juncture," urging the clerical leadership to cease its regional escalation.

Anwar Gargash, a top aide to President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, issued the blunt caution as Iran’s retaliatory campaign entered its second day. The strikes followed a joint U.S.-Israeli offensive on Saturday that reportedly killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several high-ranking Iranian officials.

“The Iranian aggression against the Gulf states was a miscalculation, and it isolated Iran at a critical juncture. Your war is not with your neighbours,” Gargash said in a statement.

The UAE reported that its air defence systems intercepted multiple waves of Iranian ballistic missiles over the weekend, though falling debris resulted in at least one civilian death in Abu Dhabi. Gargash characterised the targeting of neighbouring nations, which have hosted U.S. military assets but largely advocated for regional de-escalation, as a strategic blunder.

“Return to reason, to your surroundings, and deal with your neighbours rationally and responsibly before the circle of isolation and escalation widens,” he added.

The diplomatic rebuke comes as the UAE and other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members implement emergency measures to protect their populations.