According to US authorities, the US military and the United Arab Emirates joined forces on Monday to defend an air base near Abu Dhabi, where around 2,000 American service members and personnel are stationed, from a missile attack by Yemen’s Houthis. According to a statement from the US Central Command (CENTCOM), Patriot missile defenses were deployed at “two inbound missiles” at Al Dhafra Air Base. According to CNN, this is the first time the US has fired Patriot missiles since the first Gulf War in 1991. “Both missiles were successfully avoided from hitting the base as a result of our combined efforts.” According to CENTCOM, there were no American casualties. In a week’s time, the UAE, which is a member of the Saudi-led coalition that has been at war with Iran-backed Houthi rebels for years, was hit by a second attack, and tensions had risen to new highs. The UAE has mainly stayed out of the line of fire, with the Houthis preferring to attack Saudi Arabia, which borders Yemen.
Two ballistic missiles launched by Houthis early Monday, according to CNN, were intercepted by the United Arab Emirates, in what the Iran-backed group predicted would be part of an ongoing offensive against Dubai. At 4:05 a.m., I’m going to go to a restaurant. Witnesses described the projectiles as “fireballs in the sky,” and some residents of the capital awoke to the sound of explosions when the projectiles were intercepted by air defense missiles. Three foreign workers were killed and several others were injured in a Houthi drone and missile attack near Abu Dhabi’s airport last week. “Its air defense has intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles fired by the terrorist Houthi organization,” the UAE Ministry of Defense stated in a statement released on Monday. As the remnants of the intercepted and destroyed ballistic missiles fell in separate places around Abu Dhabi, there were no casualties, according to the statement. There are “all required steps to safeguard the state from all attacks,” according to the ministry, which is “ready to deal with any threats.”