Shabwa Retaken
Southern Resistance forces today retook Shabwa province in
southern Yemen. The Houthi insurgents and their allies handed over Shabwa to Southern
Movement and withdrew after given safe passage out of the area, a military official
told AFP. The Houthis reportedly booby-trapped government buildings before
fleeing, AFP reported. Southern Movement is a southern secessionist group.
Other sources also confirmed the Houthi pullout from Shabwa
(see the map below).
“The province has been handed over to Southern Movement,”
said Salem al-Awlaqi, a political activist in Shabwa. (AFP, 15 August)
Anti-Houthi forces took Aden last month and subsequently
retook Daleh, Lahj and Abyan provinces. Ahabwa becomes the fifth province in
south Yemen recaptured by pro-government forces.
Advancing Toward Taiz
Pro-government forces, backed by UAE military, are advancing
toward Taiz, the country’s third largest city and the gateway to the capital
Sanaa. The Houthis captured Taiz in September. Reports and photos appearing in
the social media on Saturday show anti-Houthi forces seizing the government’s
complex in Taiz (top photo). The recapture of Taiz by pro-government forces
will be a serious blow to Houthi chances to hold on to Sanaa for long, and
a major victory for UAE-backed forces that also retook Aden.
Photo credit (top): Resistance forces seizing the government
building in Taiz; Saturday 15 August 2015. (Twitter/@Basha_#Yemen)
6 comments:
Houthis may be drinking from the jam of poison soon!!!!
Will be interesting to see if Saudi/UAE war aim will remain unconditional surrender of Ansarullah.
There are reports UAE-GF composition includes conscripts. Also, it appears, Ansarullah and Yemeni Army elements are changing tactics, intending to engage in attritional warfare targeting logistical routes which extend further, as the Saudi/UAE/SR offensive extends northward towards Sanaa.
in my humble opinion i believe this Houthi "withdrawal" is partially being initiated by Iran because ever since Iran signed the nuclear deal there has been a coincidental "withdrawal" of Houthis but why??? why at this time???? IMO Iran did some secret deal with KSA or US or UEA on Yemen. Afterall How much does Iran really need Yemen? its another poor arab country with alot more to damage Iran than Benefit Iran so am just suspicious of these UAE forces advances and houthi withdrawals. too suspicious!!
UAE military capabilities and its readiness to stop the Houthis on the ground must have come as a surprise to many. Instead of searching for conspiracy theories to explain the string of defeats suffered by the Houthis in the past couple of months, you probably need to start with the leadership teams in both UAE and KSA and their determination to limit Iran's influence in the Arabian Peninsula by not letting a Houthi takeover of Yemen.
The UAE-led resistance forces on the ground seem to want to secure south Yemen and extend the defensive parameter to Taiz against any Houthi/Saleh counterattack. I don't see them moving into Sanaa immediately after capturing Taiz, which BTW looks imminent.
Dear Kemji
I think you are way optimistic about Iran's ability to influence the events in Yemen .So far it has been offering just a tad more than lip service to houthis and not much else .If Yemenis are hoping for a peaceful and democratic future , they need to look beyond UAE , KSA or Iran .
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