Yemen missile intercepted as Israeli president visits UAE
Rebel attack fuels regional tensions
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The United Arab Emirates intercepted a ballistic missile fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels early Monday as the Israeli president visited the country, authorities said, the third such attack in recent weeks.
The attack amid President Isaac Herzog’s visit only fuels the ongoing tensions affecting the wider Persian Gulf, which has seen a series of attacks as Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers collapsed and Yemen’s yearslong war raged.
As negotiators in Vienna now attempt to save the accord and Emirati-backed forces press on the Houthis, the rebels are launching their longest-range attacks yet. Those assaults represent a major challenge for the Emirates, which long has advertised itself to international businesses as a safe corner of an otherwise-dangerous neighborhood.
The UAE’s state-run WAM news agency reported the interception, saying that “the attack did not result in any losses, as the remnants of the ballistic missile fell outside the populated areas.”
It wasn’t immediately clear where the missile remnants fell. The country’s civilian air traffic control agency said there was no immediate effect on air travel in the UAE, home to the long-haul carriers Emirates and Etihad.
Already, the country’s top prosecutor has threatened that people who film or post images of such an incident would face criminal charges in the UAE, an autocratic federation of seven sheikhdoms on the Arabian Peninsula. That makes reporting on such incidents even more complicated for journalists.
In the absence of those videos, the Emirati Defense Ministry released black-and-white footage it described as showing the destruction of a ballistic missile launcher in Yemen’s al-Jawf province some 30 minutes after the attack. Another attack last week saw a similar strike launched on al-Jawf in the minutes after, leading analysts to suggest the Emiratis may receive intelligence assistance from the West for its strikes.
Al-Jawf is some 840 miles southwest of Abu Dhabi.
Houthi military spokesman Yehia Sarei wrote on Twitter that the rebels would make an announcement about an attack in the coming hours that reached into “the depths of the UAE.” He did not elaborate. The Houthis’ Al-Masirah satellite news channel later reported that airstrikes had begun targeting Sanaa, Yemen’s rebel-held capital.
Herzog, Israel’s ceremonial president in its parliamentary democracy, is in the country on a state visit. The ceremonial leader met Sunday with Abu Dhabi’s powerful crown prince, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
“I wish to emphasize that we completely support your security requirements and we condemn in all forms and language any attack on your sovereignty,” Herzog told Sheikh Mohammed, according to his office.
Herzog’s office told The Associated Press early Monday that the trip was “expected to continue as planned” when asked about the missile interception. Herzog was scheduled to visit Dubai’s Expo 2020 world’s fair Monday, which the Houthis had previously threatened to target.
U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price condemned the Houthi attack. “While Israel’s president is visiting the UAE to build bridges and promote stability across the region, the Houthis continue to launch attacks that threaten civilians,” Price wrote on Twitter.
In the hours after the Houthi attack early Monday, Syrian state-run media said an Israeli strike hit near Damascus. The Israeli military did not immediately acknowledge it.
Last week, a similar attack saw both Emirati and U.S. forces fire interceptor missiles to bring down a Houthi attack as the missiles came near AlDhafra Air Base in Abu Dhabi.