Hacer Baser, Alaa Mohamed Aboueleinin Aly and Zehra Nur Duz
17 January 2022•Update: 17 January 2022
DUBAI, ANKARA
At least three people were killed and six others injured due to blazes caused by a possible drone attack in the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) capital Abu Dhabi, police said on Monday.
The dead included two Indians and one Pakistani national, a police statement said.
Earlier, the police said a fire erupted after three fuel tanker trucks exploded in the Musaffah area near oil storage facilities of ADNOC, an oil firm. Another fire broke out at a construction site at Abu Dhabi International Airport.
"Initial investigations indicate the detection of small flying objects, possibly drones, that fell in the two areas, which may be the cause of the two fires,” the police said in a statement cited by the state news agency WAM.
Meanwhile, Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed to have carried out an attack on the UAE.
Rebel spokesman Yahya Saree told the pro-Houthi Al-Masirah channel that an “important statement” will be issued soon “about a unique military operation it carried out in the UAE", without further details.
The Saudi-led Arab coalition, for its part, said it observed “a hostile escalation by the Houthi group using booby-trapped drones that took off from Sanaa Airport.”
Turkey condemned the attacks.
“We wish Allah’s mercy upon those who lost their lives at the attacks and extend our condolences to the families of the victims and to the people and Government of the United Arab Emirates,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
