UAE fighter jets destroyed a missile battery that was used to <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/government/2022/01/24/uae-confirms-two-ballistic-missiles-intercepted-over-abu-dhabi/" target="_blank">launch rockets towards Abu Dhabi</a> on Monday morning. The Ministry of Defence released footage of a strike by F-16 jets in Al Jawf, outside <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/gulf-news/2022/01/18/who-are-yemens-houthis-and-what-do-they-want/" target="_blank">Houthi</a>-controlled Sanaa in Yemen. The attack took place at 4.10am, shortly after the launcher fired two ballistic rockets towards the Emirati capital. Both were shot down by air defences protecting the city. Al Jawf is about 1,400km south-west of Abu Dhabi. UAE authorities said the attempted strike on Abu Dhabi "did not result in any casualties, as the remnants of the intercepted and destroyed ballistic missiles fell in separate areas around the emirate". Flashes were seen in the sky over the capital at about 4.15am, residents said. Last week, after a Houthi strike on an Adnoc oil storage plant <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/2022/01/21/victims-of-abu-dhabis-deadly-houthi-attack-named/">killed three</a> workers and <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/2022/01/20/abu-dhabi-blast-survivors-recall-moment-deadly-houthi-strike-hit/">injured six</a>, the government said it <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/2022/01/17/abu-dhabi-blasts-a-sinful-attack-by-houthi-militia-says-senior-uae-official/" target="_blank">"reserves right to retaliate"</a>. A projectile fired at Abu Dhabi airport caused a minor fire in an under-construction extension area away from the terminal, with no injuries. Dr Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to President Sheikh Khalifa, said it was a “heinous attack on civilian facilities”. In Abu Dhabi on Monday, pupils <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/education/2022/01/23/abu-dhabi-parents-pupils-and-schools-optimistic-about-monday-return-to-classrooms/">returned to schools</a> as planned after several weeks of remote learning and the roads were busy. At the airport, flights took off as normal on a busy Monday morning. There were no flights planned between 3.45am and 5.10am - and 17 flights took off between then and 9am as scheduled, the airport's live board showed. “All flights are operating as scheduled," said Etihad Airways, based at Abu Dhabi international. "The safety of passengers and employees is the highest priority." In Saudi Arabia, the Coalition said it destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis towards the city of Dhahran Al Janub early on Monday. Shrapnel from the intercepted missile landed in the city’s industrial zone and pictures of burnt vehicles were published by local media. Bahrain's government was among the first to condemn the strikes, which it described as "terrorist aggression targeting the lives of innocent people". The attacks came just hours after the Arab League group of nations <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/2022/01/23/arab-league-seeks-terror-designation-for-houthi-rebels-after-abu-dhabi-attacks/">met in Cairo</a> to call for the US to designate the Houthis a terrorist group. The US administration said it is <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/us-news/2022/01/19/uae-ambassador-to-us-calls-on-washington-to-re-designate-houthis-as-terror-group/">considering the move</a> after the first Abu Dhabi attack, which was condemned by world leaders.
