UPDATE - UAE denies Yemen rebel claim of missile attack

*UPDATES WITH UAE DENYING HOUTHI CLAIM

By Murad al-Arifi

SANAA (AA) – The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Sunday denied claims by Yemen’s Houthi rebels of firing a missile on a nuclear power reactor in Abu Dhabi.

The official WAM news agency disputed Houthi claims that they had fired a cruise missile toward the al-Barakah nuclear facility.

WAM, citing the country’s emergency authority, said the UAE has “an air defense system capable of dealing with any kind of threat against the reactor”.

A Yemeni military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, earlier said the missile had fallen in the northern province of Al Jawf after its launch.

Al-Barakah nuclear reactor is expected to be operational next year.

On Saturday, the Houthi group accused the UAE of backing former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, whose forces have been battling rebels for control of the capital Sanaa.

The UAE is a member of a Saudi-led coalition fighting Houthi rebels since 2015 after they overran Sanaa and much of the country and forced the internationally recognized government of President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi to flee to Saudi Arabia.