On a rare path, Arab countries are affected by the remnants of Hurricane Gabrielle.

Arab Weather - The latest computer simulations and satellite images indicate that Category 1 Hurricane Gabrielle is near the Azores Islands on Friday, bringing heavy rains and strong winds to the islands earlier in the day. The hurricane is expected to follow a rare path over the coming days toward Portugal and the coast of Morocco.

Origin of Hurricane Gabrielle

Hurricane Gabrielle formed in mid-September 2025 from a tropical wave in the Atlantic Ocean. It began as a tropical storm and then developed into a Category 1 hurricane. Warm waters and other weather conditions helped it develop into a Category 4 hurricane, with wind speeds of approximately 220 km/h and an atmospheric pressure at its center of approximately 948 millibars.

Hurricane Gabrielle's projected path

After the Azores, it is expected to lose its tropical characteristics and become a post-tropical storm in meteorology. However, it will continue moving towards Portugal, where it is expected to reach the Portuguese mainland on Saturday and Sunday as a post-tropical depression or weak tropical storm. However, it is expected to be accompanied by strong winds reaching over 100 km/h, high waves, and rainfall of varying intensity.

The weak depression then moves to the coasts of the Maghreb, bringing some random rainfall to parts of the Maghreb countries.

Why is this path unusual?

Tracks that take hurricanes from the central or western Atlantic directly toward the Azores and then to Portugal or the European coast are unusual. Most hurricanes in the Atlantic head west toward the Caribbean or the East Coast of America, or turn north or east as they approach the North Atlantic, losing strength before reaching Europe.

In history, there are rare examples of hurricanes or similar systems making a run for it in Iberia:

• Hurricane Vince in 2005: A notable example—it became the first hurricane recorded to have struck Portugal/Spain with tropical characteristics.
• Hurricane Gordon 2006: It reached the Azores in cyclonic status, and was the first hurricane of this type to affect the Azores since 1992.

This history shows that such movements are not exceptional, but they are extremely rare, which makes Gabriel's case interesting to study.