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Drones Suspected In Yemeni Rebels' Multi-Target Attack On UAE (Updated)

This is the first official confirmation that the Yemeni rebel group has struck inside the UAE.

BY JOSEPH TREVITHICK JANUARY 17, 2022
THE WAR ZONE

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates have, for what appears to be the first time ever, acknowledged an attack inside their country, possibly involving drones, by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. They have also declared their right to retaliate and said that those responsible will be held accountable. The Houthis had already claimed responsibility for causing explosions in the UAE's capital, Abu Dhabi, that killed three people and injured six more.

UAE officials had earlier said that two separate explosions in the vicinity of a depot belonging to the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company triggered a fire, which then caused three fuel tanker trucks to blow up. A separate fire was also reported at a construction site near Abu Dhabi International Airport.

“The cause of the fires are small flying objects, possibly belonging to drones, that fell in the two areas,” according to the country's official news agency, which also insisted that there was was "no significant damage" as a result. Houthi officials have indicated that missile units, as well as those who employ drones, took part in this operation, suggesting that it might have involved multiple types of weapons. Details remain limited on exactly how these attacks were carried out.

"We condemn the Houthi militia's targeting of civilian areas and facilities on UAE soil today," a subsequent statement from the UAE Foreign Ministry said. "The terrorist militia has carried out a cowardly act to spread terrorism and chaos in the region in order to achieve its illegal aims and objectives."

Yahya Sare'e, a Houthi spokesperson, has issued a statement expanding on the group's claims about the size and scope of its attacks on the UAE. The Houthis now say they targeted the airport in Dubai and unspecified "sensitive Emirati sites and facilities," in addition to the airport and oil-related infrastructure in Abu Dhabi. The statement says that "ballistic and winged missiles," the latter likely referring to cruise missiles, were employed along with a "large number of drones."

There have been no reports of attacks outside of Abu Dhabi so far. No pictures or video have emerged yet showing the wreckage of any drones or missiles, which could be used to help identify what specific types might have been employed.

However, these claims, whether substantiated or not, are very similar to those surrounding the unprecedented drone and missile strikes on oil-related infrastructure in Saudi Arabia in 2019, many of which were borne out. The Houthis took responsibility for those attacks, though the United States blamed Iran directly for carrying them out.

It remains to be seen what further details about the Houthis attacks in the UAE, and evidence to support them, might emerge in the coming days and weeks.

"The armed forces [the Houthis] warn foreign companies, citizens, and the residents of the UAE enemy state that they will not hesitate the expand the bank of targets to include more important sites and facilities during the coming period, [and] that they should stay away from vital sites and facilities for their own safety," Sare'e's statement added. "[The] UAE will be an unsafe state as long as its aggressive escalation against Yemen continues."

In the meantime, there have already been reports that the Saudi-led coalition has launched airstrikes against targets in Yemen's capital Sana'a in response to the attacks in the UAE.