UAE air raid strikes Saudi-backed Hadi fighters in Aden

At least three civilians were reported injured after an airstrike in Yemen’s southern Aden city on Saturday, local reports said, noting the raid was likely conducted by the United Arab Emirates.

A child is thought to be among the victims in the air raid on the temporary capital, where the UAE largely holds security and military control.

The raid struck a hotel in the Arish neighbourhood in Khormaksar, local sources told The New Arab, after armed clashes between forces loyal to the Saudi-backed President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi and UAE-backed fighters from the ‘Security Belt’.

Sources said the UAE Apache helicopter flew over the area where clashes grew rampant over the weekend before striking the Saudi-backed fighters. 

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The UAE operates as part of a Saudi-led coalition waging war on Yemen’s Houthi rebels who overran the capital Sanaa and other major cities in September 2014. 

Although the UAE was pivotal in recapturing Aden from the rebels in the summer of 2015, many Yemenis perceive Emirati forces as pursuing a different agenda to seize strategic regions and ports in Yemen, especially since the division of tasks has placed Abu Dhabi in charge of operations in southern and eastern provinces.

In June, accusations emerged that the UAE has 'colonised' the Yemeni island of Socotra. Reports claimed that Yemen's government leased Socotra and nearby Abd al-Kuri island to the UAE for 99 years.

The UAE has also been extending its influence in south Yemen, reportedly backing the leaders of a recent secession attempt, amid accusations it is running torture and detention facilities in the country.

The war in Yemen has killed more than 10,000 people, mostly civilians, and wounded 44,500 since the Saudi-led coalition intervened against the Houthi rebels it alleges are supported by regional arch-rival Iran.