Yemen's Houthis Say They Carried Out Attacks On UAE With Missiles, Drones

Yemen's Houthi rebel group said Monday that it targeted sensitive locations in the United Arab Emirates.

Authorities in the Gulf country said earlier in the day that three fuel trucks exploded and a fire broke out at a construction site near Abu Dhabi International Airport, killing three people and injuring six others in what officials say was an operation using missiles and drones.

Those killed were reportedly two Indians and a Pakistani.

The attack was condemned by many Arab countries as well as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree said the operation was codenamed "Yemeni Hurricane" and added that it came in response to the "US-Saudi-Emirati escalation" in Yemen.

Saree added that his group's operation targeted the airports of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, the oil refinery in the Mussafah area in Abu Dhabi and "a number of important and sensitive Emirati sites and facilities" using five ballistic and winged missiles and a large number of drones.

He also called on foreign companies, nationals and residents to avoid important sites and facilities in the UAE for their safety as he warned of more attacks.

The UAE in a statement said it reserves the right to respond to the attacks and vowed that such attacks will not go unpunished.

The Saudi-run news agency SPA cited a statement by the Saudi-led Arab Coalition late Monday confirming the targeting of Houthi leaders in northern Sanaa.

The statement, however, did not reveal details on the targeted figures.

Yemen has been engulfed by violence and instability since 2014, when Iran-aligned Houthi rebels captured much of the country, including the capital Sanaa.

A Saudi-led coalition aimed at reinstating the Yemeni government has worsened the situation, causing one of the world's worst man-made humanitarian crises, with nearly 80% or around 30 million people needing humanitarian assistance and protection and more than 13 million in danger of starvation, according to UN estimates.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar -