The Bellingcat investigative website reported on 11 January that Houthis have used an Iranian-made armed drone to target Yemeni government military high command.

The attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels that killed at least six people occurred in Lahj province in the south of the country on Thursday.

The drone exploded above a podium at al-Anad base, in the southern province of Lahj, where high-ranking officers and officials were watching a parade.

Medics said army deputy chief of staff Gen Saleh al-Zindani and Lahj governor Ahmed al-Turki were among those hurt.

A Houthi-run TV channel said the rebels had targeted personnel from the Saudi-led coalition backing the government.

But later, Bellingcat has identified at footages of the attack drone that looks similar to Iranian designed Ababil II unmanned aerial vehicle.

“Fragments seen in videos and images of the attack, as well as the distinctive shape of the drone seen in videos, indicate that it is from the Iranian designed Ababil II family. A version of the Ababil II, the Ababil T, has been used the Houthis under the name Qasef 1,” said in Bellingcat’s report.

Also noted that an engine recovered after the attack appears to be a DLE 111 petrol engine, the same kind found by Conflict Armament Research (CAR) in the Ababil T.

Other fragments also appeared to fit the front canard and rear wings of an Ababil T.