SANAA, Yemen — When Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree threatened to target the United Arab Emirates, questions were raised about the seriousness of carrying out such a threat. This was the second such threat in two days: Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam had made another threat Sept. 17, saying, "The UAE deserves to be targeted at this time more than ever before."

Saree said in a televised speech Sept. 18, amid tension following the attacks on Saudi oil processing facilities days earlier, “We have dozens of targets within our range in the UAE; some are in Abu Dhabi and can be attacked at any time.” 

Hannah Porter, a Washington-based Yemen analyst, told Al-Monitor, “The recent statement by the Houthi military spokesman is interesting, since the UAE has largely backed off of its offensive against the Houthis and is primarily focused on its interests in the south [of Yemen].” 

This is not the first time Houthis threatened to attack the UAE, but it was the first to go viral on several international news outlets. This caused people to wonder how serious these threats were. Houthis have carried out various threats against Saudi Arabia, more so than against the UAE. Most recently, Houthis took credit for the attacks on Aramco oil processing facilities Sept. 14 — although the United States and Saudi Arabia said Iran was behind behind the attack, not the Houthis.