Shadowy militant group claims latest UAE drone attack
Dubai, United Arab Emirates | AFP | Thursday 2/3/2022 - 08:55 UTC-5
A little-known militant group has claimed the latest drone attack on the United Arab Emirates, raising the possibility of widening security risks after a wave of assaults from Yemeni rebels.
Alwiyat al-Waad al-Haq (True Pledge Brigades), which is believed to have ties with pro-Iran armed factions in Iraq, said it launched four drones at dawn on Wednesday targeting the wealthy Gulf state.
"The people of the Arabian peninsula launched a strike against the state of the 'Emirates of evil,'" the militant group said in a statement posted online.
The UAE announced the interception and destruction of three "hostile drones" at dawn on Wednesday, with follows three previous drone and missile attacks this year claimed by Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels.
But UAE did not blame the Yemeni rebels for Wednesday's drone attacks, and the Huthis -- engaged in a seven-year war with a Saudi-led coalition which includes UAE -- did not claim responsibility.
"Alwiyat al-Waad al-Haq will continue to deliver painful strikes until the UAE stops interfering in the affairs of the countries of the region, primarily Yemen and Iraq," the statement read.
It added a warning that "the coming strikes will be more severe and painful."
Senior Huthi official Mohammed Ali al-Huthi, a leading figure in the rebels' political wing, wrote a message on Twitter following the attack, before deleting the post.
"Thank you to free Iraq and its mujahideen," it read.
UAE officials did not respond to requests for comment on Alwiyat al-Waad al-Haq's claim.
The group -- described as "unknown" by Kataeb Hezbollah, a powerful Iran-affiliated armed faction in Iraq -- previously claimed an attack on Saudi Arabia in January 2021. The Huthis denied responsibility for that attack.
The attacks on UAE have prompted staunch ally the United States to deploy a warship and fighter planes to help protect the Middle East financial hub, usually a safe haven in the volatile region.
In the Huthi-claimed attacks, three foreign oil workers were killed in a drone and missile assault on Abu Dhabi on January 17, while missiles were intercepted over UAE on January 24 and 31.