Eurasia Press & News
Reconciliation between Qatar and four boycotting Arab countries has not yet been reflected in the Yemeni file.
Yemeni political sources suggested that a mortar attack on the Arab coalition’s camp in Al-Alam area in Shabwa was part of a broader scheme aimed at stopping the Riyadh Agreement from being implemented and thwarting the completion of the second phase, which covers the military and security aspects of the deal signed between the Yemeni government and the Southern Transitional Council (STC).
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, indicated that the coalition’s camp in Al-Alam was attacked by mortar shells after a wave of incitement led by the Muslim Brotherhood and the mobilisation of armed fighters near the camp in recent days.
Another Arab coalition camp in the Balhaf area of Shabwa was hit by a similar attack, in conjunction with a media campaign against coalition forces.
Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated governor Muhammad bin Adiu took part in the media campaign as news broke that he was slated to be replaced, in line with the political part of the Riyadh Agreement.
The agreement also includes the withdrawal of Muslim Brotherhood groups from the governorates of Shabwa, Abyan and Hadramout.
Informed sources revealed to The Arab Weekly that coalition camps had been targeted in attacks similar to those against the coalition’s military committee’s headquarters in the Shakra area of Abyan, which monitored the truce and supervised the redeployment of government forces and STC fighters.
The sources said that the Giants Brigades in southern Yemen are taking over positions in former battlefronts, in light of the stability of the military and security situation following the announcement that a government would be formed from the Riyadh Agreement.
However, parties, linked to the Muslim Brotherhood and the Qatar-backed camp are continuing to push back by holding armed meetings in the region of Qarn Al-Kallasi, near Shaqra, aimed at challenging coalition forces and demanding their departure from Abyan.
Informed sources revealed to The Arab Weekly that the suspicious military activities are being carried out by Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated forces funded by Doha in the Tor Al-Bahah area in Lahj, north of Aden, where elements of the forces of the so-called Popular Mobilisation Forces in Taiz have been mobilised to join new military formations, as Taiz faces relentless attacks from the Houthis.
Those forces, which the Muslim Brotherhood is trying to legitimise by creating what is called the Tor Al Bahah Axis that includes nine military brigades, have clashed in the past with the STC’s Sa’iqa forces, and the tribes of Lahj who refused to host them in their governorate.
Observers linked the military escalation in Shabwa and Tor Al Bahah and the Houthi militias’ attack on areas in the north of Al-Dhale governorate with renewed bombing attacks and assassination attempts targeting the Security Belt Forces in the interim capital, Aden, after the formation of a new government headed by Moein Abdul Malik.
Security sources revealed to The Arab Weekly that a terrorist cell recently tried to plant explosive devices in military areas and throw sound bombs near government facilities, with the aim of disturbing public security, obstructing government activities and proving that Aden is an insecure city.
Informed political sources indicated to The Arab Weekly that the reconciliation drive between Qatar and four boycotting Arab countries has not yet been reflected in the Yemeni file, as media discourse broadcast by Doha-affiliated media continues to support the Houthis’ project and push for a chasm between forces of the anti-coup camp.
The sources warned of an increase in attacks aimed at undermining security in the liberated areas, with the aim of thwarting the Riyadh Agreement and hindering the deal from being finalised, which threatens Qatari influence in Yemen.
The US’s move to designate the Houthi militias as a terrorist group has confused the Turkey-Qatar axis in Yemen after some members of this axis revealed their true positions, admitting that they do not see the Houthis as a real enemy.
Some leaders of this axis, who were vocal about the need for rapprochement with the Houthi movement, attacked the US’s decision, including Turkey-based Muslim Brotherhood activist Tawakkol Karman.
