In conducting a fatal strike in Abu Dhabi, Yemen’s Houthi militia have sent shockwaves through the UAE. Abu Dhabi is some 1,300km away from the Houthi group’s heartlands, yet the group managed to blow up three fuel trucks in the Musaffah industrial area and cause a fire at Abu Dhabi international airport on 17 January. The UAE was swift to point the finger for the drone attack at the Iran-backed Houthis, which in turn didn’t waste much time in acknowledging responsibility.
Such attacks have typically been focused on Saudi Arabia, which borders Yemen. But some attacks have been perilously close to Abu Dhabi, and in 2019 the Houthis claimed responsibility for a drone attack on Saudi Arabia’s Shaybah field, which straddles the UAE-border (MEES, 23 August 2019). (CONTINUED - 200 WORDS)