Just hours after launching two missiles in an attack on Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates’ capital, a video published by the UAE Ministry of Defense claims to show an F-16 fighter jet destroying a Houthi ballistic missile launcher in Yemen. Local defenses successfully intercepted both of these missiles. The al-Jawf governorate, around 870 miles southwest of Abu Dhabi, is reported to have the responsible missile launcher. The F-16 was identified as belonging to the UAE Air Force and Air Defense by The National, a state-owned publication in the UAE.
As Yemen’s Houthi rebels continue to attack the country, two ballistic missiles apparently fired from the same launcher were shot down over Abu Dhabi. The missiles were shot down early this morning by Emirates authorities, but they didn’t say whose air defense system was utilized at first. The Houthi missiles are shown in action over Abu Dhabi, with interceptor missiles — most likely Patriot Advanced Capability 3 (PAC-3) — speeding towards their targets in social media videos. THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) has been used in the past to defend the UAE against ballistic missiles. Two big explosions were also recorded over the city, while missile parts fell over the capital, according to the UAE’s state-run WAM news agency, without injuring anyone.