A major internet outage caused by Cloudflare disrupted online services and events across the UAE on November 18, 2025. Many residents in Abu Dhabi experienced delays of up to three hours as several popular websites, including social media platforms, went offline during the outage.
The impact was notably felt at the World Masters Jiu Jitsu Championship in Abu Dhabi, where some matches were delayed by several hours. Thousands of users panicked as they could not access key websites, and organizers faced challenges managing timely event schedules.
Cloudflare quickly implemented a fix and continues to monitor the technical issues to prevent future disruptions. UAE officials and tech teams are working to ensure a stable internet experience as normal activities resume.
Key Points of the Cloudflare Outage
- Occurred on November 18, 2025, affecting the UAE, especially Abu Dhabi.
- Caused delays of up to three hours in accessing major websites and social media platforms.
- Disrupted the World Masters Jiu Jitsu Championship events, causing match delays.
- Thousands of users experienced panic and inconvenience due to unavailability of websites.
- Cloudflare acted quickly to fix the issue and is monitoring systems to prevent recurrence.
- UAE officials and tech teams are collaborating to ensure reliable internet service.
This incident underscores the growing dependence on cloud-based infrastructure and illustrates the wide-reaching effects when these systems experience technical problems. Residents and event organizers are advised to stay updated through reliable news sources as normal services continue to be restored.
