Terror groups down but not out in Yemen, premier says
TROOPS TRAINED AND ARMED BY UAE ‘WERE CRITICAL IN FIGHT AGAINST TERRORISTS’
The war against Al Qaida and Daesh in Yemen is not over yet despite achieving major successes over the last couple of years, Yemen’s prime minister said yesterday.
Speaking at a military parade in the city of Al Mukalla, the capital of Hadramout, held to mark the second anniversary of expelling Al Qaida from Hadramout, Ahmad Obaid Bin Daghar said Yemeni army troops with the help of the Saudi-led coalition have dealt major defeats to terror organisations who sought to exploit the current war against the Iranbacked Al Houthis to make a foothold in Yemen.
“The battle with terrorism is not over yet and we have to fight it to the end,” he said, adding that the Saudi-led coalition’s military assistance has enabled Yemeni troops to “decisively” defeat Al Qaida and Daesh.
Coalition help
The governor of Hadramout, Major General Faraj Salmeen Al Bahsani, said army troops booted Al Qaida and Daesh from their strongholds in Hadramout and uncovered dozens of tonnes of explosive materials that they looted during their rule of Al Mukalla.
“Those forces have been set up to be an active partner with local, regional and international forces in the battle against terrorism. We celebrate the second anniversary of liberation as well as the normalisation of public life in the province and the recovery of the state’s productive, service and development facilities,” Al Bahsani said.
Al Qaida overrun the city of Al Mukalla and neighbouring coastal areas for one year, cashing in on the crumbling of security and military bodies during the early days of the Saudi-led military operation in Yemen.
Soon after, thousands of Yemeni forces, trained and armed by the UAE Armed Forces, were able to push Al Qaida from their strongholds in April 2016.
Military and security units also expelled Al Qaida and Daesh from parts of Aden, Lahj, Abyan and Shabwa, squeezing the militants into rugged mountains in the province of Baydha.
Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Yemen’s Defence Ministry said fighter jets from the Saudi-led coalition launched at least five air sorties east of Sana’a, hitting a military base controlled by Al Houthi militants.
Blasts around Sana’a
Residents in Sana’a reported hearing yesterday large explosions rocking different mountains that host military camps.
Other air strikes targeted Al Houthi military equipment and militants who were heading to battlefield in Taiz, Marb’s Serwah, Hodeida and Hajja.
Forces loyal to the internationally-recognised government has gained control of almost 80 per cent of the Yemeni land thanks to massive air and military logistics support from the Saudi-led coalition.