Forces loyal to UAE seize Aden airport from Saudi-backed Yemen government

Forces loyal to the United Arab Emirates are reported to have taken control of the airport in Aden ousting fighters loyal to the Saudi-supported president Mansour Hadi.

The seizure of the airport by Yemeni forces with the backing of those from the UAE is fueling tensions between the Saudi-backed president Hadi and the UAE's crown prince Mohammed bin Zayed of Abu Dhabi. The prince is also deputy commander of the UAE armed forces. One soldier was said to have been killed during the takeover. The UAE forces joined those of Saudi Arabia in fighting the rebel Houthis and driving them out of Aden and the surrounding areas. Also, supporters of the secessionist Southern Movement allied with pro-Hadi forces to drive out the Houthi but this has led to rival factions within Aden. The Southern Movement and its supporters appear to have the support of the UAE. Hadi returned went in exile in 2014 when Houthis seized much of the country including the capital Sanaa that they still hold.

Witnesses said rival faction traded gun and rocket fire for nearly three hours at the airport Tuesday night, although they did not mention specifically UAE forces. The UAE had controlled the airport back in February and did not allow Hadi to land forcing him to land on the island of Socotra. In a report in May Hadi accused the UAE as acting like an occupier. Hadi was successful in a second attempt to land at Aden later but fired the person who was in charge of the airport for disobeying his orders. Hadi had his forces lay siege to the airport. The Saudis intervened and were able to calm down both sides. Yet after a few weeks the UAE did not allow presidential bodyguard Brigadier General Qabati to land his plane at the airport. In response to this action president Hadi fired Aden governor al-Zubaidi and Hani bin Braik minister of state and general commander of the security belt forces run by the UAE. This move simply reinforced the breaking up of the forces that had taken Aden from the Houthis.

After the firing of al Zubaidi there were huge demonstrations against the Haidi government in Aden. Al Zubaidi set up a council of 26 members that included the governors of five provinces and even two government ministers. This council is now challenging the Hadi government for control of Aden and surrounding areas. The latest airport incident is an illustration of their challenge. The Southern Movement was willing to help Hadi oust the Houthi from the south but were often oppposed to his government when he controlled the whole country even though he himself hails from the south.

From 1967 to 1990 South Yemen was a separate country. Four years after reunification South Yemen declared its independence again only to be defeated in the subsequent civil war which the north won. However, for many years now the Southern Movement and other groups have sought more autonomy or independence for South Yemen. After having supported Hadi to rid the south of the Houthis who are a Shia group supported by Iran they are now working towards independence for the south complicating the situation for Hadi and also exhibiting divisions within the Saudi coalition. The civil war in Yemen has killed more than 10,000 people created a humanitarian crisis, and has been characterized by brutal bombing campaign led by Saudi Arabia that killed many civilians.

UAE using mercenaries from Colombia to fight in Yemen

The United Arab Emirates(UAE) secretly sent hundreds of mercenaries from Colombia to Yemen to battle against the Houthi rebels who still control much territory in the east and north of the country, including the capital Sanaa.

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The program was originally run by a private company with connections to Erik Prince the founder of Blackwater. Blackwater was involved in a number of incidents in Iraq that outraged the Iraqi government. The UAE says the program is now run by the UAE military. Another 450 Latin American troops including fighters from Panama, Salvador, and Chile are in addition to the Saudis, UAE troops and locals loyal to the government of Mansour Hadi, all fighting against the rebel Houthis. The UAE may worry about losses to its own troops causing difficulties at home. In September one strike by the Houthis killed 45 troops, almost all from the UAE.

Sean McFate, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council:“Mercenaries are an attractive option for rich countries who wish to wage war yet whose citizens may not want to fight.The private military industry is global now.”He said the U.S. had legitimized the practice by relying heavily on contractors in iraq and Afghanistan. There are now 1,800 Latin American soldiers training at a military base in the UAE. Saudi Arabia has already sent hundreds of Sudanese soldiers to Yemen. A recent UN report also claimed that there are 400 Eritrean troops in Yemen. If this is true it could violate a UN resolution restricting Eritrean military activities.

The Colombian recruits get salaries from $2,000 to $3,000 a month. In Colombia they would make about $400 a month. If deployed to Yemen they get a bonus of $1,000 more a week, according to an anonymous former senior Colombian military officer who is involved in the project. The project began five years ago in 2010. The exodus of some of Colombia's best trained soldiers is causing some trouble in the fight against drugs in Colombia. Jaime Ruiz, the president of Colombia's Association of Retired Armed Forces Officials said: “These great offers, with good salaries and insurance, got the attention of our best soldiers.” Often money earned is sent to Colombia to support families of the troops.

There may be peace talks in the near future. Past efforts at peace have failed as the UN and the Hadi government in effect demand the Houthi withdraw from all the areas they have won and lay down their arms. The Saudi-led coalition seems bent on subjecting the Houthis to a humiliating defeat if they can.

Human Rights Watch(HRW) and other human rights groups have been critical of the Saudi-led bombing campaign. HRW claims at least 10 air strikes broke the laws of war killing civilians. Saudi Arabia simply denies such reports. The recent HRW report claims the strikes killed at least 309 civilians and wounded at least 414. They noted that it was an obligation of Saudi Arabia's allies to investigate possible war crimes The report notes: "Human Rights Watch found either no evident military target or that the attack failed to distinguish civilians from military objectives. Human Rights Watch is unaware of any investigations by Saudi Arabia or other coalition members in these or other reported cases."The attacks were on residential houses, market places, a factory, and a civilian prison. In the past, the Saudis also hit a Doctors Without Borders hospital and used cluster bombs in attacks in the north. Many of the weapons including cluster bombs are provided by the United States.

The UN claims about 5,700 people have been killed in the fighting since the Saudi-led bombing campaign began last March. More than 2,600 civilians are among those killed with about two-thirds of the civilian casualties caused by air strikes.

Division reported in US administration over support for Saudi operations in Yemen

The Obama administration is reportedly divided on support for the Saudi war in Yemen, which has caused increasing carnage.

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Official estimates now place the death toll from Saudi-led airstrikes alone at about 1,500 civilians. There have been reports of the use of cluster bombs in the north, which hit a wedding party, a UN storage warehouse and port facilities in a Houthi-controlled port. Several residential areas in the capital, Sanaa, have also been bombed. A naval blockade in which the U.S. is a participant has made it difficult for aid supplies to reach Houthi-controlled areas.

The latest incident was the bombing of a hospital in the north run by Doctors without Borders. The attack ruined the hospital and wounded two staff members. The U.S. is reluctant to irritate the Saudis at this time because they are anxious to gain support for the nuclear deal with Iran, opposed by many U.S. allies including the Saudis and other Gulf states but Israel as well. On the issue of the Iran nuclear deal both Israel and many Arab states agree. Iran is a supporter of the Houthi rebels in Yemen the targets of the Saudi-led campaign in Yemen.

The Houthis took a large portion of western Yemen even south to the port of Aden. Since the Saudi campaign in March they have lost many southern areas including the port of Aden. The conflict has been a boon for Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula which has formed alliances with local tribes to battle against the Houthis and has managed to gain control of large areas including the major port of Mukalla to the east of Aden. The group apparently has infiltrated into Aden. A recent suicide attack killed two members of a militia loyal to President Hadi's government which has established some offices in Aden in an attempt to restore a functioning recognized government in parts of Yemen again. There have been several other attacks, one shown on the appended image. Officials from the Hadi government and the president himself had been in exile in Saudi Arabia.

The UN has been trying to reach a peace agreement and political settlement for some time. However, the process is often fruitless since the UN has passed a resolution demanding that the Houthi's withdraw from all the areas they have taken and lay down their arms. Nevertheless, the Yemen government has agreed to a meeting to discuss implementation of the resolution and the Houthis as well.

Meanwhile, the Saudis are pressing for further gains supported by a large contingent of troops from the UAE. The Saudis are recruiting proxies for the battle to avoid political difficulties that might come from too many Saudi casualties. Sudan has agreed to send up to 6,000 soldiers to Yemen. The Saudis are in effect also hiring mercenaries to the tune of 800 former Colombian military. The first group of 100 under contract wtih Saudi Arabia already arrived in Aden this month. The group will wear Saudi uniforms but will be under the command of the UAE armed forces. This presence of foreign troops is not likely to go down well with locals.

Many of the militia who supported the Saudi offensive in Aden and area are southern separatists. They have no love for the Saudis or Hadi and local tribes are not likely to be happy with what is happening. An article in the Washington Post by Peter Salisbury an associate of the UK think-tank Chatham House, gives a good account of the difficulties of negotiating any successful political solution in Yemen. He fears that the West and the Saudis will press for a solution that may meet the wishes of the Hadi government, and traditional power brokers within Yemen but will leave out important players contributing to continuing instability within Yemen. The Hadi government is unlikely to have much support in Yemen, and even those who have supported it such as the southern separatists do so only to advance their own political interests. If these interests are ignored, rebellion and conflict will break out again.