TEHRAN – Iranian Foreign Ministry Saeed Khatibzadeh has reacted to the escalation of tensions between Yemen and some Arab states, saying that the Yemen crisis cannot be resolved through military strikes. 

In response to a question by journalists regarding the latest developments in Yemen, Khatibzadeh said the siege and military strikes are no solution to the Yemen crisis and such acts will only escalate tensions in the region, according to the Iranian Foreign Ministry. 

Khatibzadeh added that Iran has always supported a political solution based on ending the blockade on the Yemeni people, ending the war, avoiding interference in the country’s internal affairs, and preserving the country’s territorial integrity. He added that Tehran also underlines the need to prevent an escalation of the humanitarian catastrophe in Yemen.

Regarding the escalation in regional tensions, Khatibzadeh said the Islamic Republic of Iran has always underlined that no regional crises can be resolved through resorting to war and violence and one can be hopeful to achieve peace and stability in the region in a peaceful atmosphere and avoiding the continuation of tensions and the cycle of violence.

The ministry spokesman further underscored the fact that Yemen’s problems are internal, saying the Islamic republic is ready to participate in any initiative that would end the 7-year war on Yemen.

The remarks came after Yemen’s Ansarullah targeted Abu Dhabi’s vital installations with drones and missiles on Monday. 

The spokesman for Yemen’s armed forces General Yahya Saree announced that the Yemeni forces launched a “qualitative military operation deep inside the UAE.”

The UAE has confirmed that an attack happened in Abu Dhabi on Monday morning. The Emirati news agency, WAM, reported that fire broke out on Monday morning, which led to the explosion of three petroleum tankers in ICAD 3, Mussafah, near ADNOC's storage tanks. A minor fire also broke out in the new construction area of Abu Dhabi International Airport, WAM reported, adding that preliminary investigations suggest that the cause of the fires are small flying objects, possibly belonging to drones, that fell in the two areas.

Abu Dhabi Police also said that the explosions resulted in the death of three people – one from Pakistan and two from India. 

Al-Mayadeen reported that the Yemeni forces have targeted “sensitive targets” in Abu Dhabi with drones and ballistic missiles.

The Yemeni attack came after the UAE played a pivotal role in deploying southern Yemeni forces to the Shabwa governorate. It also stepped up its military activities in support of Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen, something that enraged the Sanaa forces who recently announced that they had seized UAE-flagged military ship off the coast of Hudaydah port in western Yemen. The seized ship, named RWABEE, was carrying military equipment, according to footage of the ship provided by Sanaa.

Mohammad Abdulsalam, the official spokesman of Ansarallah and head of the Sanaa delegation for peace negotiations, hinted that the UAE’s hand will be cut off if it continued to interfere in Yemen. 

“A small state in the region desperate to serve America and Israel had claimed that it distanced itself from Yemen, but it has recently been exposed, contrary to what it claimed,” Abdulsalam said in his channel on Telegram messaging app.