Yemen's Houthi group on Monday claimed responsbility for a military operation that struck areas deep inside the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in which three people including two Indians were killed. Another person who died in the attack may be a Pakistani.
The Houthis' claim came just after three petroleum tankers exploded in a fire near the storage facilities of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) in the UAE captial's Musaffah industrial district, the official WAM news agency reported, citing an announcement of the Abu Dhabi police.
Unverified footage on social media showed a thick plume of black smoke billowing from what appeared to be the Musaffah area."Initial investigations found parts of a small plane that could possibly be a drone at both sites that could have caused the explosion and the fire," Abu Dhabi police said in a statement, adding there was no "significant damage".
The Houthi movement, which is battling a Saudi-led coalition that includes the UAE, has frequently launched cross-border missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, but has claimed few such attacks on the UAE, mostly denied by Emirati authorities.
The Houthi's military spokesman Yahya Saree in a brief press statement said, "An important statement will be announced in the upcoming hours to reveal details on the strategic operation deep inside the UAE."
UAE authorities and ADNOC did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. The coalition's spokesman did not immediately respond.
Pro-coalition forces backed by the UAE recently joined fighting against the Houthis in Yemen's energy-producing regions of Shabwa and Marib.
The UAE had largely scaled down its military presence in Yemen in 2019 amid a military stalemate and heightened regional tensions with Iran, but continues to hold sway through Yemeni forces it armed and trained.
The Houthis, who ousted the internationally recognised government from the capital, Sanaa, in late 2014, prompting the coalition to intervene, have said that their growing military capabilities would allow the group to target the UAE.
In July 2018, the UAE denied reports that the Houthis attacked Abu Dhabi airport with a drone. A month later, Dubai International Airport said it was operating as normal after Houthi-run media said the group launched a drone attack there.
In December 2017, the Houthis said they fired a cruise missile towards a nuclear power plant in Abu Dhabi, which Emirati authorities denied.
(With input from agencies)
(Edited by : Priyanka Deshpande)
First Published: Jan 17, 2022 5:43 PM IST
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