August 5, 2015

What Is Being Achieved In Yemen?


An excerpt from, "The Cruel And Aimless War On Yemen" by b, Moon of Alabama, August 3, 2015:
The situation for the people in Yemen is catastrophic. Doctors Without Borders, which has experience from many war zones, says it is the worst conflict they ever worked in.

The theocratic family dictatorship of Saudi Arabia, with U.S. support, is relentlessly bombing the country and blockading it from all urgently needed supply for the people. The declared aim of the war is to reinstate the Saudi/U.S. selected President Hadi. But no one in Yemen wants Hadi back. He now would not survive there even one day.  The UN warns of the danger of mass starvation.

The Houthi supporters and forces aligned with former president Saleh failed to capture the southern harbor town Aden. Infiltrated special forces from the United Arab Emirates directed Saudi air attacks against Houthi positions. After the Saleh forces and the Houthi retreated UAE forces, which include many mercenaries from Pakistan, invaded the city via its airport and from the sea.

Landing ships have been supplying heavy vehicles. TV pictures show newly arrived French Leclerc main battle tanks, Russian build BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicles and motorized heavy mortars. Additionally many armored and armed wheeled vehicles have been supplied. This is an invasion force of at least brigade size - some 4-5,000 soldiers. That this operation is so far very well planned and executed lets me believe that it is under direct U.S. supervision.
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Between 1962 and 1970 Egypt fought a war in Yemen against predominately Yemeni forces. Some 25,000 of its soldiers were killed in that war. I expect that the current U.S. supported invasion of Yemen, like the Egyptians, will get bogged down within a month or two.

Meanwhile many Yemeni civilians will silently die from lack of access to water, food and medicine.
An excerpt from, "The UAE Just Effectively Invaded Yemen" by Michael Cruickshank, Conflict News, August 4, 2015:
Over the last week, the entire momentum of the war in Yemen has shifted. While previously pro-government forces and the so-called Popular Resistance were trapped within the port city of Aden, now they are pushing the Houthis back in all directions. First they managed to secure the port facilities, then the entire residential region of the city, and then finally the Aden International Airport.

Many have reported these advances as being led by pro-Government fighters, however this is only half the story. What is actually occurring is far more remarkable, and strangely almost absent from the media headlines.

Last week, and over the weekend, ships arrived at the Port of Aden and began offloading armoured vehicles. This started as small columns of vehicles, which could have conceivable been ‘delivered’ to the pro-government fighters, however has now ballooned into something completely different. Hundreds of vehicles including main battle tanks, APCs, AFVs and self propelled artillery have landed in the city, and joined the fight against the mainly Shia Houthi militias.