A drone attack targeting a major oil facility in Abu Dhabi by Houthi rebels in Dubai-Yemen, United Arab Emirates, killed three people on Monday and caused a fire at Abu Dhabi International Airport.
Emirati police identified the dead as two Indians and one Pakistani. Six people were also injured in an industrial area where Abu Dhabi’s state-owned energy company operates a pipeline network and oil tanker storage facility.
Senior diplomat Anwar Gargash said on Twitter that he was dealing with “transparency and responsibility” for “malicious attacks on some civilian facilities” by rebel groups in the capital of the United Arab Emirates. , Blame the Houthi for the attack.
“Terrorist militia tampering with local security is too weak to affect the stability and security in which we live,” he said.
Three transport tankers ignited at the oil facility, and another fire broke out in the extension of Abu Dhabi International Airport.
Preliminary investigations have shown that there were small flying objects that could belong to the drone that had fallen into two areas and could have caused an explosion and fire, police said. They said there was no significant damage from the incident without providing further details.
Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed to be behind an attack targeting “sensitive emirati facilities.” At a press conference late Monday, military spokesman Yehia Salea, without presenting evidence, Fushi ballistic missiles and explosives at airports in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, as well as in UAE oil refineries and elsewhere. He said he targeted it with a loaded drone.
The United Arab Emirates has primarily withdrawn its troops from Yemen, but is still actively involved in the conflict and is supporting the Yemeni militia fighting the Houthi.
The incident occurs when the Houthi faces pressure and suffers great losses. Yemeni government forces, allied and supported by the United Arab Emirates, have pushed back rebels in major states. With the support of the Giants Brigade backed by Emirati, government forces regained Shabwah Governorate earlier this month, damaging the Houthi’s efforts to complete control of the entire northern half of Yemen.
Condemnation of the attack on the United Arab Emirates has been received from all over the world.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said the US will work with the UAE and international partners to hold the Houthi responsible, “We are by Emirati’s partners and everything about their territory. We are countering the threat. “
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres accused the assault of being “banned by international law” and urged all sides to “prevent escalation amid heightened tensions in the region,” a spokesman said. Stephen Dujaric said. Yemen’s UN special envoy Hans Grundberg headed to Riyadh to meet with Saudi Arabian and Yemeni officials about the “recent military rise” in Yemen, Dujaric added.
Saudi Arabia and many other Arab countries have accused the attack of being a “cowardly terrorist attack.” Experts from the United States and the United Nations, as well as the Kingdom, have accused Iran of supplying the Houthi with weapons.
The United Arab Emirates has been a key member of the Saudi-led coalition that has been at war with the Houthi since 2015, to empower the internationally supported government that was expelled by rebels the previous year. I’m trying to recover.
The Emirati army was killed in the course of the conflict, but for the current eight years the war has not directly affected the daily lives of the United Arab Emirates. Skyscrapers and 5 star hotels.
The airport fire in Abu Dhabi, described by police as “minor”, occurred in an extension of the international airport currently under construction. The airport, home of Etihad Airways, has been building a new midfield terminal for years, but it wasn’t clear if it was where the fire broke out.
“Precautionary measures have caused short-term confusion on a small number of flights,” Etihad Airways said, saying that airport operations have returned to normal. Abu Dhabi Airport did not immediately respond to the request for comment.
Another explosion struck three oil transport tankers near the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s complex in the Musaffah Industrial Zone. The company describes it as a pipeline and terminal facility located approximately 22 km (13 miles) from the center of Abu Dhabi. Here, 36 storage tanks also supply fuel trucks.
It is also a short distance from the Al Dhafra Air Base, a military facility that houses the US and French forces. U.S. Air Force Brig. General Andrew Clark, commander of the U.S. Army’s Al Dhafra Air Base, said in a statement to the Associated Press that he affected the base during the attack, saying “there was no incident.”
“The US military is ready and available to support and support Emirati’s partners on request,” he said.
The location of the ADNOC facility where the tanker ignited is approximately 1,800 km (1,100 miles) northeast of Sa’dah, home of the Houthi movement in Yemen.
This incident occurs when South Korean President Moon Jae-in is visiting the United Arab Emirates. The two countries reportedly reached a preliminary agreement to sell medium-range South Korean surface-to-air missiles for about $ 3.5 billion while traveling to the United Arab Emirates.
At an event attended by the South Korean president earlier that day, Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazulowei refused to comment on the attack, but told AP that an investigation was underway.
The Houthi used a bomb-laden drone to launch an inaccurate attack on Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in the wild. The group also launched missiles at Saudi Arabia’s airports, oil facilities and pipelines, and used booby trap boats to attack on major routes.
Earlier this month, the Houthis seized an Emirati-flagged vessel in the Red Sea. This is an important route for international trade and energy transport.
In Saudi Arabia there were civilian deaths from the Houthi attack, but in the UAE there were no previously reported deaths.
The overwhelming number of civilian deaths in conflict are occurring in Yemen. The war killed 130,000 people in Yemen, both civilians and combatants, exacerbating hunger and famine across poor countries.
Torbjorn Soltvedt, an analyst at risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft, claims that Fushi is responsible for the attack on the UAE, while Iraqi-based militias also respond to allegations of Emirati interference in Iraqi politics. He said he was threatening.
He said the attack highlights the missile and drone threats facing the UAE and other major oil producers in the region. Without a solution to spread tensions in the wider region, the Gulf Arab countries “remain vulnerable to attacks,” he added.
Aya Batrawi
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