US, UAE troops ‘seize model city’ during major exercise amid Iran & virus tensions

US Marines and Emirati troops held a major military exercise on Monday that saw forces seize a sprawling model Middle East city, AP reported. The drill was conducted some 200km (125 miles) southwest of Abu Dhabi amid tensions with Iran and despite the new coronavirus pandemic.

Troops raced over the dunes of the Al-Hamra Military Base to take the model city, complete with multi-story buildings, an airport control tower, an oil refinery and a central mosque.

Controlled explosions rang out as Emirati troops rappelled from hovering helicopters and Marines searched narrow streets on the Persian Gulf for “enemy” forces, the report said.

The biennial exercise Native Fury saw 4,000 US troops from the Army, Marines and Navy position armored vehicles and other equipment from Kuwait and the island of Diego Garcia in al-Hamra using a portable pier system.