The Gulf Cooperation Council for the Arab states condemned "sabotage operations" of commercial vessels near UAE territorial waters on Sunday.

That "would increase tensions and conflict in the region and jeopardize the interests of their peoples," Abdul Latif Al Zayani, the GCC secretary general, said in a statement.

Four commercial vessels were targeted by "sabotage operations" near the territorial waters of the UAE without causing casualties, the UAE foreign ministry said on Sunday, without giving details of the nature of the sabotage.