UAE Drone Crashed In Shabwah Governorate

In the early hours of the incident, sources opposed to the Ansar Allah movement claimed that this drone belonged to the movement, or some others referred to it as the main perpetrator of this attack. However, the Ansar Allah group never took responsibility for shooting down this drone.

On the other hand, some speculations suggest that this drone was shot down by Al-Qaeda militants in Shabwah Governorate. This claim is consistent with the geographical location of the drone crash and the areas under Al-Qaeda control and influence in this Governorate. Additionally, considering the remains of the aforementioned drone, which were almost completely destroyed and burnt down, strengthens the speculation that the drone was destroyed by a foreign agent like Al-Qaeda.

Examination of the wreckage of this drone by the IWN indicates that this UAV is most likely a Chinese Wing Loong 1 drone belonging to the United Arab Emirates.

Read more: Military Knowledge: Wing Loong 1 Drone

It is said that in the recent incident, the mentioned drone entered the Al-Rawdha area in Shabwah Governorate from the south and crashed in an uninhabited area. This indicates that the drone originated from the Balhaf and Razum coastal region. The Balhaf region has been under the control of Emirati forces for years, and there are also French occupiers in this area. Local sources from Balhaf and Shabwah have stated that the sky in this area has been witnessing daily flights of reconnaissance drones for years.

It should be noted that since the beginning of the war in Yemen, four UAE drones from the Wing Loong drone class have been shot down. The drone that crashed in the Al-Rawdha region in Shabwah Governorate on April 29, 2024 is the fifth Wing Loong UAV belonging to the UAE that has been shot down and destroyed in Yemen.