The Quds ground-launched cruise missile was unveiled on 7 July 2019. (Ansar Allah)
The Yemeni rebel group Ansar Allah (Houthis) implied a significant increase in the range of its Quds cruise missile when it claimed the type was used to attack Abu Dhabi on 17 January.
Yahya Saree, the group's spokesman, announced on the following day that four Quds-2 cruise missiles were launched against Abu Dhabi's Musaffah oil refinery and airport, a Zulfiqar ballistic missile had targeted Dubai airport, and Samad-3 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were used against unidentified “sensitive and important” targets.
He warned that the group was prepared to launch more attacks against a wider range of targets in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in response to the escalating fighting in Yemen.
The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) said a fire broke out at around 1000 h at its Mussafah Fuel Depot on the south side of Abu Dhabi city killing three of its workers and injuring another six. Abu Dhabi's police confirmed there was also a minor fire at a construction area at the airport.
The UAE's ambassador to the United States confirmed on 19 January the weapons used in the attack.“A combination of cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and drones targeted civilian sites in the UAE. Several were intercepted, a few of them didn't, and three innocent civilians unfortunately lost their lives,” Ambassador Yousef al-Otaiba said during a Jewish Institute for National Security of America event.
“We've passed on some urgent requests for our defence needs based on the attacks,” he added. “I think the United States is looking at this very carefully.”
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