The United Arab Emirates intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles that were fired by the rebel Houthi terror group, its Ministry of Defence said on Monday.
The ministry confirmed that the ballistic missiles were “fired by the Houthi terrorist group towards the country”, and claimed “that the attack did not result in any human losses, as the remnants of the intercepted and destroyed ballistic missiles fell in separate areas around the emirate. Abu Dhabi.”
The ministry added that it “is ready and ready to deal with any threats and that it takes all necessary measures to protect the state from all attacks,” Abu Dhabi’s official news agency WAM said on Monday.
The fresh missile attacks on the emirate follow a drone strike last week at the Mussafah fuel depot, where three workers of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) were killed and several others were injured.
Oil prices edge higher
International oil prices have been surging since last week, as the terror attack in Abu Dhabi and an explosion along a pipeline running from Iraq to the Turkish port of Ceyhan added to geopolitical concerns in the Middle East.
Brent prices edged higher again on Monday, with spot prices pushing past $88.6 per barrel, as tightening crude supplies and recent geopolitical concerns pushed the prices northwards.
The fresh terror attack in Abu Dhabi is likely to escalate the ongoing regional conflict between the Houthi group and a Saudi-led Gulf coalition, and could also hamper global efforts in the Middle East aimed at deescalating tensions between Iran and the US.
The UAE, a member of the Saudi-led coalition, has helped arm and train local Yemeni forces that are fighting against the Houthis in Yemen.
Key exporter
Abu Dhabi is one of the region’s key oil exporters and a strong ally of Saudi Arabia, with an oil production capacity of almost 4 million barrels per day.
The terror tactics seem to expose Abu Dhabi’s oil and gas installations to potentially higher risks, both onshore and offshore.
Any further attacks in the emirate could possibly trigger supply constraints in the Middle East, industry experts have said.
In 2019, drones were used by the Houthis to attack Saudi Aramco’s oil processing facilities at Abqaiq, disrupting more than 5.7 million bpd of oil supplies.
