Gulf States in May 2026: the most important developments in society
In May 2026 daily life in the Gulf States was shaped by the regional war and by the Hajj season. UAE schools and universities moved to remote learning on 4 May after missile alerts and returned to in-person classes on Monday, 11 May. A travel warning for Dubai and other destinations was lifted the same week.
Saudi Arabia announced on 17 May the start of the month of Dhul Hijjah, and on 18 May that the Day of Arafat would fall on 26 May and Eid al-Adha on 27 May. The Saudi Environment Ministry urged pilgrims to conserve water, and the UAE deployed medical teams in Makkah for the pilgrimage. According to reports, 65,592 Bangladeshi pilgrims had reached Saudi Arabia by 19 May, and the death toll among them had risen to 18.
In other news, Bahrain suspended entry from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and South Sudan over Ebola concerns on 19 May. The UAE President approved a unified health insurance system for citizens. Experts in the UAE warned that sarcastic or assumptive online comments can bring fines of up to Dh500,000, and Iran's human rights body condemned Bahrain's mass revocations of citizenship as collective punishment.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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