Houthies attack the Basque Country in the run-up to the Club World Cup: FIFA Houthis News

FIFA says the competition will take place “as planned” in Abu Dhabi, the host city, despite being targeted by Houthi missiles twice a week.

FIFA says the 2021 Club World Cup, to be held in Abu Dhabi in February this year, is set to go ahead as planned, despite the escalation of the long war in Yemen, which saw the Basque capital targeting Houthi missiles last week. .

On Monday, the BAC said capture and destroy Two ballistic missiles fired by Yemeni Houthi rebels at Abu Dhabi.

Events a Houthi drone and missile attack He killed three civilians in Abu Dhabi last week.

The Club World Cup, attended by regional champions and representatives of the host countries, will be held from February 3 to February 12 at two venues in Abu Dhabi.

The escalation of violence and the two attacks raised doubts about the tournament, but FIFA, the governing body of the football world, told Al Jazeera that the event could go ahead as planned.

“The FIFA Club World Cup will be scheduled as scheduled for the UAE 2021,” a FIFA spokesman said.

“FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2021 security, FIFA continues to monitor the situation and is cooperating with the Local Organizing Committee and other important players in the Basque Country regarding the security arrangements for the tournament.”

The seven-team event is underway with the host team Al Jazira Club against AS Pirae of Tahiti, a substitute for Auckland City FC, and for the second year in a row has left the tournament due to COVID regulations.

Al Ahly SC CAF Champions League winners, CF Monterrey CONCACAF Champions League winners, Al Hilal SFC AFC Champions League winners, Libertadores Cup SE Palmeiras and Chelsea European champions make up the squad.

After last week’s attack on an oil plant and an area under construction outside Abu Dhabi airport, Brazil’s Palmeiras also told Al Jazeera that “there are no changes in the Abu Dhabi club’s schedule and procedures.”

On Monday, social media videos showed the sky over Abu Dhabi lit up before dawn, with light points resembling missile interceptors, The Associated Press reported.

The UAE Ministry of Defense, quoted by the state news agency WAM, said that “traces of the captured ballistic missiles fell in various areas around Abu Dhabi” and that it was “ready to face any threats and … take all necessary measures”. protect the state ”.

Two Indians and a Pakistani man working for the oil giant ADNOC were killed last week when three petrol tanks exploded near a storage facility.

The Yemeni war began in 2014 when Houthi rebels took over much of the country, including the capital Sanaa, forcing President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to flee.

Fighting escalated in March 2015, when Saudi Arabia and the United States, with US support, formed a military coalition in favor of the Hadi government, and managed to oust the Houthis from the south.

The blast has sparked fears that the humanitarian crisis will escalate in Yemen, where the situation is already dire, with more than 16 million people without food security.

Although it is difficult to gather accurate figures, the UN estimates that more than 377,000 people have died as a result of the conflict by the end of 2021.