Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi group attacked the United Arab Emirates in what it said was an operation using missiles and drones, setting off explosions in fuel trucks that killed three people and causing a fire near the airport of Abu Dhabi, capital of the region's commercial and tourism hub.

The strike on a leading Gulf Arab ally of the United States takes the war between the Houthi group and a Saudi-led coalition to a new level, and may hinder efforts to contain regional tensions as Washington and Tehran work to rescue a nuclear deal.

"The UAE condemns this terrorist attack by the Houthi militia on areas and civilian facilities on Emirati soil...(It) will not go unpunished," its foreign ministry said. "The UAE reserves the right to respond to these terrorist attacks and criminal escalation."

"The UAE condemns this terrorist attack by the Houthi militia on areas and civilian facilities on Emirati soil...(It) will not go unpunished," its foreign ministry said. "The UAE reserves the right to respond to these terrorist attacks and criminal escalation."

The UAE, a member of the coalition, has armed and trained local Yemeni forces that recently joined fighting against the Houthis in Yemen's energy-producing Shabwa and Marib regions.

"With (nuclear) negotiators running out of time, the risk of a deterioration in the region's security climate is rising," said Torbjorn Soltvedt, principal MENA analyst at risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in a phone call with his Emirati counterpart, condemned the attack, the UAE state news agency reported. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Washington would work to hold the Houthis accountable.

The Houthis have frequently launched cross-border missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, but have claimed few such attacks on the UAE, mostly denied by Emirati authorities.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said the group fired five ballistic missiles and "a large number" of drones at Dubai and Abu Dhabi airports, an oil refinery in Musaffah and several "sensitive" sites in the UAE. 

Reuters