UAE raid raises Yemen stakes, draws closer scrutiny of Iran allies

Reuters – By Ghaida Ghantous and Parisa Hafezi-Jan 18th2022

DUBAI, Jan 18 (Reuters) – By attacking the United Arab Emirates the Houthis sought to warn the Gulf state to stay out of a battle for prized energy regions in Yemen, where the Iran-aligned group has been angered by losses to forces backed by the powerful U.S. ally.

The UAE is unlikely to cede. Instead, one likely consequence of Monday’s deadly strike is sharper international scrutiny of Iran’s ties to the Houthis and other paramilitary forces that vie with Gulf Arab monarchies for influence around the Middle East, regional analysts said.

The unprecedented raid on Abu Dhabi, a futuristic metropolis of gleaming skyscrapers, showed the Houthis able to hit a second foreign adversary at long range, undaunted by threats of retaliation that followed similar attacks they have carried out against Saudi Arabia.

The Houthis raised the prospect of more such attacks.

The UAE, a Saudi ally, “should stop tampering in Yemen or have its arm, and those of others, cut,” Houthi spokesman and chief negotiator Mohammed Abdulsalam said on Monday.