WASHINGTON — U.S. President Joe Biden pledged support for the United Arab Emirates after it intercepted a ballistic missile fired by Yemeni fighters during a visit by Israel’s president, the third attack in a month on the Middle East’s financial hub.
“We’ve been in daily contact with the UAE, addressing those threats,” Biden told reporters during an Oval Office visit Monday by Qatar’s ruler. Biden said he directed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin “to do everything he can to communicate the support of the United States for the UAE, Saudi Arabia and throughout the Gulf region.”
The UAE destroyed the latest incoming missile and there were no casualties, with fragments falling “outside of populated areas,” a Defense Ministry statement said on Monday, without giving details on the location. A spokesman for the Iranian-backed Houthi fighters confirmed the attack, which the U.S. State Department said had targeted Abu Dhabi.
