UAE

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Yemen’s Houthi rebels vowed fierce retaliation Friday for American and British strikes against them, further raising the prospect of a wider conflict in a region already beset by Israel’s war in Gaza.

The bombardment — launched in response to a recent campaign of drone and missile attacks on commercial ships in the vital Red Sea — killed at least five people and wounded six, the Houthis said.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Yemen’s Houthi rebels fired their largest-ever barrage of drones and missiles targeting shipping in the Red Sea, forcing the United States and British navies to shoot down the projectiles in a major naval engagement, authorities said Wednesday. No damage was immediately reported.

DUBAI, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Iranian authorities said on Friday that security forces had arrested 11 people suspected of involvement in two bomb blasts that killed nearly 100 people at a memorial service for a slain military commander.

The Islamic State militant group has claimed responsibilty for the attacks in Kerman, southeastern Iran, on Wednesday.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Islamic State group claimed responsibility Thursday for two suicide bombings targeting a commemoration for an Iranian general slain in a 2020 U.S. drone strike, the worst militant attack to strike Iran in decades as the wider Middle East remains on edge.

Experts who follow the group confirmed that the statement, circulated online among jihadists, came from the extremists, who likely hope to take advantage of the chaos gripping the region amid Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

DUBAI/RIYADH, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's name was conspicuously - perhaps surprisingly - absent from a list of countries the United States announced as part of its new naval coalition protecting Red Sea shipping from Yemen's Houthi group.

Although it has a U.S.-equipped military, has been waging war on the Houthis for nearly nine years and relies on Red Sea ports for 36% of imports, Saudi Arabia along with Gulf ally the United Arab Emirates has proclaimed no interest in the venture.

DUBAI, Dec 20 (Reuters) - The leader of Yemen's Houthis warned on Wednesday they would strike U.S. warships if the Iranian-backed militia was targeted by Washington, which this week set up a multinational force to counter Houthi attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

The Houthis, which control vast amounts of territory in Yemen after years of war, have since last month fired drones and missiles at international vessels sailing through the Red Sea, attacks it says respond to Israel's assault on the Gaza Strip.