Military officials in Yemen say forces from the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) have destroyed an Iranian-made military drone in Yemen's southwestern port area of Mocha.
Major General Ahmad Saif al-Yafai, deputy chief of Yemen's army staff, said on January 28 that the drone was discovered on a mobile launch pad in territory controlled by insurgent Shi'ite Huthi militia.
Yafei said the U.A.E. forces, part of a Saudi-led air alliance that supports Yemen's Sunni-led government, destroyed the Iranian-built drone before it could be launched.
Yafei told the U.A.E. state news agency WAM that the smuggling of Iranian drones into Yemen is evidence of "blatant Iranian interference" and illustrates "attempts made by Tehran to destabilize the region and threaten peace in Yemen."
