September 2015 Ma'rib Toshka missile attack

Ma'rib Toshka missile attack
Part of Yemeni Civil War (2015–present) and the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen

OTR-21 Tochka missile launcher
Date4 September 2015
LocationMa'rib governorate, Yemen
Result

Houthi tactical victory

Belligerents

Yemen Yemen
(Revolutionary Committee)

 Yemen (Hadi Government)
Coalition:

Casualties and losses
None Saudi Arabia 10 soldiers killed
United Arab Emirates 52 soldiers killed
Bahrain 5 soldiers killed
Yemen 33-87 Pro-Hadi soldiers killed[2][3]

On 4 September 2015, the Yemeni army launched a OTR-21 Tochka ballistic missile against a military base in Safer, an area in Ma'rib Governorate [4]. The base was being used by military forces of the Saudi-led coalition. The missile hit an ammunition dump, creating a huge explosion which inflicted numerous casualties among coalition troops. 52 UAE,[1] 10 Saudi, and 5 Bahraini soldiers were killed in the attack. In addition, dozens of pro-Hadi Yemeni troops were also killed in the strike.[2][3]

Retaliation

The UAEAF F16F Block 60 conducted several airstrikes on Marib, Sanaa, and Saada in retaliation for the attack in which was described "the heaviest airstrikes Sanaa endured". the UAEAF also bombed the position from which the missile is believed to have been fired.[5]

Reaction

UAE declared a three-day period of mourning with the UAE flag flying at half-mast in honor of the soldiers killed in Yemen.[6]

US secretary of state, John Kerry, offered his condolences to the UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan on the death of the Emirati soldiers.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 UAE mourns losses in Yemen
  2. 1 2 "Yemen crisis: UAE launches fresh Yemen attacks". BBC News.
  3. 1 2 Melissa Gray, CNN (5 September 2015). "Saudi-led coalition strikes back at Houthis". CNN.
  4. ↑ "The Marib offensive, three weeks in". Yemen Peace Project. Retrieved 2018-09-20.
  5. 1 2 "UAE forces bomb Yemen rebels after coalition troop deaths". The Guardian. 5 September 2015.
  6. ↑ "Last of Emirati soldiers who fell defending Yemen arrive back home". The National. 12 September 2015.
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