Houthi rebels attacked Abu Dhabi in response to UAE offensive 2:16
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (CNN) --
The United Arab Emirates said it intercepted two ballistic missiles aimed at its capital, Abu Dhabi, early Monday, following a deadly drone attack on the city a week ago. week.
In a statement, the UAE Defense Ministry said "its air defense intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles fired by the Houthi terrorist group."
"The attack caused no casualties, as debris from the intercepted and destroyed ballistic missiles fell in separate areas around the Emirate of Abu Dhabi," the statement added.
The ministry said it is "ready to face any threat and takes all necessary measures to protect the state from all attacks."
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2:25
Missiles set off 'fire in the sky' in Abu Dhabi
At around 4:15 a.m. on Monday, witnesses in Abu Dhabi said they heard the sound of explosions and saw what they described as fireballs in the sky.
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Several flights were delayed upon arrival at Abu Dhabi airport, according to the airport's website.
The flight tracking website Flightradar24 showed planes bound for Abu Dhabi circling near the airport.
The incident comes a week after Iranian-backed Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for a drone strike near Abu Dhabi airport on January 17 that killed at least three people and sparked multiple explosions in the capital. of the United Arab Emirates.
It was the first deadly attack in the United Arab Emirates in years.
The spokesman for Yemen's Houthi rebels warned at the time that "the UAE is an insecure state as long as it continues its aggressive escalation against Yemen."
In response to the attack, the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen launched airstrikes on the Yemeni capital Sanaa, killing at least 12 people in the deadliest bombardment on the city since 2019.
On January 21, at least 82 people were killed and 266 injured when an airstrike hit a detention center in Yemen, according to Houthi Health Minister Taha Al-Mitwakel.
Another airstrike that day hit a telecommunications building in the strategic port city of Hodeidah, leading to a nationwide internet blackout.
The Houthis blamed the Saudi-led coalition for the attacks.
The Saudi-led coalition denied deliberately targeting the detention center, with its spokesman Brigadier General Turki Al-Maliki calling the claims "baseless and baseless", according to the Saudi state news agency SPA.
The coalition said it had hit Hodeidah, bringing down "one of [the Houthis'] havens of maritime piracy and organized crime."
The coalition also said it hit "military targets" in Sanaa.
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The United Arab Emirates military campaign
The United Arab Emirates is a major coalition partner that has been fighting a six-year military campaign led by Saudi Arabia to crush the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels who control much of Yemen.
The offensive began in 2015 to restore Yemen's internationally recognized government after it was ousted by the Houthis.
The coalition stepped up its attacks in the war-torn nation in the wake of the Houthi missile and drone attack on Abu Dhabi last week.
In 2019, the United Arab Emirates withdrew most of its troops from Yemen, after privately deeming the war unwinnable.
The campaign failed to crush the rebels, but it came at a huge humanitarian cost, with thousands of Yemenis killed and widespread malnutrition and disease.
More recently, the UAE has returned to the conflict, backing Yemeni groups in hotspots such as the oil-rich provinces of Shabwa and Marib.
United Arab EmiratesYemen
