Arab coalition will get the job done in Yemen

The Saudi-led Arab coalition forces in Yemen will not leave before completing what they have begun, which is total peace in the country. The international community, however, seems immune to this fact. The forces have been able to quell the Houthis’ exploits and limit their presence to 15 per cent of the Yemeni area. But leaving the country now would mean chaos, with Yemen becoming a breeding ground for terrorist groups. A case in point is Afghanistan which still remains a hub for terrorist groups. This is because the US, after its intervention in 2001, was not able to ensure lasting peace nor do anything for the country’s development.

The coalition would not want to make the same mistake and hence is staying put, offering humanitarian relief to the Yemenis, helping in the reconstruction of the country, providing basic amenities such as education, hospitals and power supply and preserving the country’s security. The UAE relief material supply to Yemen increased after the war with over $4 billion having been spent so far. Saudi Arabia’s aid for development initiatives has reached around $11.5 billion.

Yemen being strategically located, with a threat of closure of the strait of Aden proving perilous, it is important that there is stability in the country. Hence the coalition’s aim is to find a lasting political solution based on humanitarian values.

The Saudi-led Arab coalition’s decision to intervene in Yemen to reinstal the legitimate government in the country came after several rounds of negotiations. Many unsuccessful Yemeni initiatives later, the GCC stepped in without any positive outcome. It was then the UN’s turn by which time the Houthis had expanded into Yemen augmenting their influence using force and taking control of different areas across the country. Military intervention soon became necessary, and in March 2015, Saudi Arabia led nine African and Middle East countries into Yemen in response to calls by former ousted Yemeni interim President Abd Rabbu Mansur Hadi. Code-named Operation Decisive Storm, the intervention was in compliance with the UN Charter.

The Houthis, strong in demography and strategy, had by then not only survived but had even extended their atrocities to reach civilians and children.

Pre-war Yemen was governed by a regime on the lines of Tehran, considered a supporter of terrorism by fueling the spread of Al

Qaeda and Daesh outfits on its soil.

Both regimes are deemed threats to world peace. In fact, the US sanctions imposed on Iran are aimed at restraining this trend. Iran’s plot of establishing a country based on religious doctrine was a failure and that is when they shifted tactics and supported the Houthis who govern by force like the Hezbollah in Lebanon. It is this unhealthy development that the Arab coalition is trying to curtail. The international community in general and the US in particular should be aware that the Saudi-led coalition is fighting on their behalf. The coalition has definitely succeeded in containing a threat that could have jeopardised world peace, yet some countries seem unaware of this and are backing the Houthis.

In this context, it is unfortunate that Martin Griffith, United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen, brushed aside the Geneva talks as just that and not negotiations.

Griffith failed to take cognizance of the number of negotiations held with the Houthis earlier and the solutions proposed. The Houthis have not paid heed to any, and instead have taken advantage of the truces.

It is time the world community appreciates the efforts made by the Arab coalition to maintain world peace. Leaving Yemen now would mean a job half done, and would only make room for the US and Western countries to move their troops in. Yemen was helped before the crisis and the coalition will not leave it midway without ensuring peace for the country and stability for its people.

The international community should be aware that the Saudiled coalition is fighting on their behalf.