Yemen's Houthis threaten to attack Dubai Expo

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree warned that his group could attack Dubai Expo 2020 following a previous attack on the UAE.
2 min read
26 January, 2022
The Houthis have threatened to attack the UAE's Dubai Expo [Getty]

The Houthi rebels in Yemen have threatened to attack the Dubai Expo nearly two weeks after they fired rockets at Abu Dhabi.

In a tweet directed to the UAE, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree hinted that the next attack on the UAE may take place at the Dubai Expo.

"Expo! You may not win with us, and we advise that you change your location," he tweeted.

The undersecretary of the Houthis' information ministry, Nasr Al-Din Amer, tweeted that their forces "have what is worth displaying at the Dubai exhibition," referring to the ballistic missiles that the group claims to have manufactured and used during on attacks on the UAE.

The tweets came as Israel’s President Isaac Herzog announced that he would conduct his first-ever visit to the UAE, after being invited for a two-day visit by Abu Dhabi’s powerful Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed.

Herzog will also open Israel’s national day at the upcoming Dubai Expo.

Three people were killed and six others injured after a suspected drone strike set off an explosion at an oil storage facility in Abu Dhabi earlier this month. The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack.

The Iran-backed Houthi rebels seized a UAE-flagged ship off the coast of Hodeida, Yemen's main port on 3 January, coinciding with the second anniversary of the assassination of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani. The Houthis claimed the ship was carrying military equipment.

The US has vowed to hold the Houthis accountable for Monday's attack.

The UAE has been part of an Arab coalition supporting the internationally-recognized Yemeni government against Houthi rebels, who took over Sana'a in September 2014.

Continued fighting in the country, including a sustained air assault and blockade on Houthi-held territory by the Saudi-led Arab coalition, has led to the world's worst humanitarian crisis.