UAE armed forces intercept Iranian drone

The UAE’s Armed Forces have intercepted an Iranian Qassef-1 drone loaded with explosives that was intended to strike Yemeni forces on the Red Sea coast, state news agency WAM said on Wednesday.

The interception of the Houthi militia drone is the third reported by Saudi coalition forces over the last week.

Saudi air defences shot down two Houthi drones in the kingdom’s territory last Wednesday, one of which was claimed to have been targeting facilities of oil giant Saudi Aramco.

Read: Yemen’s Houthis claim drone attack on Saudi Aramco facility

WAM said examination of the aircraft unveiled a “large quantity of explosive materials intended to be used against Yemeni forces”.

“The Arab Coalition, led by Saudi Arabia, continues to counter these Iranian capabilities which pose a direct threat not only to the Yemeni forces and people, but also threaten the Red Sea Cost shipping lane’s movement, along with civilian infrastructure,” according to the statement.

At a press conference in Al-Khobar on Monday, the coalition presented wreckage of one of the drones shot down in Saudi Arabia last week, claiming it was Iranian in origin.

Read: Saudi air defences intercept missile fired at Najran

It said a panel of experts had concluded Iran was supplying Yemen’s Houthis with Ababil drone craft to conduct surveillance and offensive operations.

Saudi Arabia and Arab partners including the UAE intervened against the Houthis in Yemen’s war in 2015 to restore the internationally recognised government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.