Saudi-led coalition launches strikes against Yemen rebels: media
World
Saudi-led coalition on Monday launched air strikes targeting Yemen's Huthi insurgents.
RIYADH (AFP) - The Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen s Huthi insurgents said Monday it had launched air strikes targeting the rebel-held capital Sanaa after a deadly attack against coalition ally Abu Dhabi.
"In response to the threat and (out of) military necessity, air strikes have begun in Sanaa," the official Saudi Press Agency said on Twitter.
The Huthis Al-Masirah TV channel confirmed the raids by the coalition, without immediately reporting any casualties.
Earlier on Monday, Yemen s Huthi rebels claimed attacks in Abu Dhabi that triggered a fuel tank blast killing three people Monday, and warned civilians and foreign firms in the UAE to avoid "vital installations".
The United Arab Emirates is part of a Saudi-led military coalition that supports Yemen s government against the Iran-backed Huthis, and the coalition launched retaliatory raids against Yemen s rebel-held capital Sanaa late Monday, without any immediate reports of casualties.
The Huthis have repeatedly carried out cross-border drone attacks against Saudi Arabia, but this is the first deadly assault acknowledged by the UAE inside its borders and claimed by the Yemeni insurgents, who said they had fired ballistic missiles and deployed armed drones.
Abdul Ilah Hajar, adviser to the president of the Huthis Supreme Political Council in Sanaa, said the military operation in Abu Dhabi was a warning shot.
"We sent them a clear warning message by hitting places that are not of great strategic importance," he told AFP.
"But it is a warning if the UAE continues its hostility to Yemen, it will not be able in the future to withstand the coming strikes."
The US vowed to hold the Huthis "accountable", while Britain, France and Gulf powers all likewise strongly condemned the attacks in the UAE.
