NEW YORK – 21 January 2022 – During a closed meeting of the United Nations Security Council, H.E. Lana Nusseibeh, Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates to the United Nations, presented a classified briefing on the Houthi terrorist attacks. Ambassador Nusseibeh was joined by an official from the UAE armed forces. Following the conclusion of the meeting, the Council issued a press statement condemning the Houthi terrorist attacks that targeted the UAE as well as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The press statement emphasized the need to hold the Houthis accountable for these acts of terrorism and urged all states to cooperate with the UAE government to do so.
“Today, the Council has spoken with one voice that this egregious aggression by the Houthis is a clear threat to the international community,” said H.E. Lana Nusseibeh. “These terrorist attacks did not only threaten the lives of UAE citizens, but also the citizens of every UN member state who have made the UAE their home. It is essential that the Security Council and the international community hold the terrorist Houthi militias to account for these crimes and to prevent future atrocities.”
On 18 January, the UAE had submitted a letter to the president of the United Nations Security Council requesting a meeting of the Council to address the Houthi terrorist attacks.
At 10 a.m. UAE time on 17 January, Houthi militias targeted the Musaffah ICAD 3 area and the new construction area at Abu Dhabi International Airport, both of which are civilian infrastructure. The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attacks, which killed three civilians and injured six other civilians.
This latest attack is part of a pattern of repeated terrorist behavior by the Houthis. On 12 January, the UAE condemned the Houthis’ seizure of a UAE-flagged civilian cargo ship in the Red Sea as an act of piracy during a United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East. The civilian cargo vessel, known as the RWABEE, was seized by the Houthis on 3 January.