Updated

The United Arab Emirates says two of its pilots were killed when their military plane crashed due to "technical failure" during an operation in Yemen.

The statement published by the state news agency Tuesday offered few details. Emirati forces are part of a Saudi-led coalition that began bombing Iranian-allied Yemeni rebels in March 2015.

The Emirati forces have concentrated their efforts on counterterrorism operations in Yemen and in securing key southern regions of the war-torn country. More than 100 Emirati soldiers have died in the war, which is the deadliest in the UAE's nearly 46-year history.

The war has devastated Yemen, killing more than 10,000 people, with some 7 million facing the threat of famine and 460,000 children severely malnourished. Cholera has killed more than 2,100 people.