Report: Saudi And Gulf State Soldiers Poor Into Aden

Saudi Arabia has been leading a series of airstrikes against the Iran-backed Shiite Houthi militants since March 26. Above, a Saudi soldier fired a mortar at the Saudi border with Yemen on Tuesday. Photo: Reuters

AFP: 'Hundreds' of Gulf Arab troops enter Yemen's liberated Aden

Aden (AFP) - Hundreds of Gulf Arab troops from the Saudi-led coalition fighting Iran-backed rebels in Yemen have entered the southern port of Aden, a military source told AFP on Monday.

The source said the troops arrived in Yemen's second city on Sunday with tanks and armoured vehicles. He gave no further details.

The Saudi-owned Al-Hayat newspaper reported on Monday that a total of 1,500 troops, most of them from the United Arab Emirates, had reached Aden.

Update #1: Hundreds of Gulf troops enter Yemen after Aden ‘liberated’ -- Al Bawaba
Update #2: Saudi-led Coalition Deploys 3,000 Troops in Yemen, Sources Say -- Defense News

WNU Editor: The Saudis and their Yemeni allies want to accelerate the perception that the trend of this war is now going in their favour. I doubt that this is going to work .... especially if Saudi forces start to enter Houthi territories where I suspect that the war will then certainly become even more bloodier than what it is today.

Is Yemen Going To Be Saudi Arabia's Quagmire?

Hugh Naylor, Washington Post: For Saudis, Yemen conflict risks ‘becoming their Vietnam’

BEIRUT — Two weeks into a Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen, the airstrikes appear to have accelerated the country’s fragmentation into warring tribes and militias and done little to accomplish the goal of returning the ousted Yemeni president to power, analysts and residents say.

The Yemeni insurgents, known as Houthis, have pushed ahead with their offensive and seem to have protected many of their weapons stockpiles from the coalition’s bombardments, analysts say. The fighting has killed hundreds of people, forced more than 100,000 people to flee their homes and laid waste to the strategic southern city of Aden.

WNU Editor: It is too early to make such a claim.

The Saudi Arabian Military Is Showcasing Their War In Yemen

Brian Murphy, Washington Post: Saudi generals use Yemen war to showcase their new swagger

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia -- There’s no fog of war here. It’s more like a high-gloss, stage-crafted showcase of Saudi Arabia’s new military swagger.

Every evening since the Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen began last week, the fortress-like grounds of the defense ministry in Riyadh has opened to journalists. They listen to a briefing on the latest battlefield events, see some black-and-white warplane video clips of missiles destroying suspected rebel buildings and convoys, and pose a few questions. All pretty standard fare for reporters covering any conflict.

But the Saudis have added their own sense of purpose and pride. The event has become something of a possible dress rehearsal for a country that could be quickly moving out of the background of American-directed security agreements and taking regional matters into its own hands.

WNU Editor: Saudi Arabia's generals and defense officials may feel good with what is happening right now, but on the ground the Houthis rebels are still advancing and taking territory .... Yemen Houthi fighters backed by tanks reach central Aden (Reuters). There is going to be a point when Saudi Arabia will have to commit ground troops to push back the Houthi rebels .... and when that day comes every analyst is saying the same thing .... a ground war will be extremely difficult and bloody in Yemen .... Analysis: Yemen ground operation carries risks, from hostile terrain to guerrilla warfare (Fox news/AP). My prediction .... when that happens expect the Saudi "swagger" to disappear.

Update: The U.S. is staying out of this fight, but they are letting their weapons play a big role .... The Pentagon Hangs Back in Yemen As American-Made Planes Pound Rebels (Joseph Trevithick, War Is Boring)

Saudi Arabia Sends Conflicting Messages On Their Military Buildup Near The Yemen Border (Update)

Reuters: Saudi military buildup at border with Yemen is defensive: two Saudi sources

(Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's military buildup near its southern border with Yemen is purely defensive, two Saudi sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

"We are protecting our borders only," said one of the sources when asked if the kingdom planed to intervene in Yemen.

"Tanks have been moved to the border but this is only to defend the country," said the second Saudi source.

WNU Editor: It appears that Saudi Arabia's threat to enter the Yemen civil war is all bluff.

More News On Saudi Arabia Building Up Its Military Forces On The Yemen Border

Exclusive: Saudi Arabia building up military near Yemen border - U.S. officials -- Reuters
Saudi Arabia moves military equipment to border with Yemen -- The Guardian
Saudi Arabia moves heavy arms to border with chaos-stricken Yemen -- RT
Saudi Arabia moves heavy armour to Yemen border as proxy war heats up -- IBTimes
Saudi Ally Retreats in Yemen as Rebels Advance on Stronghold -- Bloomberg
Why the Gulf States Won’t Save Yemen -- Bobby Ghosh, Defense One/Quartz

U.S. Officials: Saudi Arabia Building Up Military Forces Near Yemen Border

Reuters: Exclusive: Saudi Arabia building up military near Yemen border - U.S. officials

(Reuters) - Saudi Arabia is moving heavy military equipment including artillery to areas near its border with Yemen, U.S. officials said on Tuesday, raising the risk that the Middle East’s top oil power will be drawn into the worsening Yemeni conflict.

The buildup follows a southward advance by Iranian-backed Houthi Shi'ite militants who took control of the capital Sanaa in September and seized the central city of Taiz at the weekend as they move closer to the new southern base of U.S.-supported President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

The slide toward war in Yemen has made the country a crucial front in Saudi Arabia's region-wide rivalry with Iran, which Riyadh accuses of sowing sectarian strife through its support for the Houthis.

WNU Editor: The peace talks are suppose to begin soon .... UN-led talks on Yemen to begin in Doha as Saudi Arabia backs Hadi (Middle East Eye) ..... and Saudi Arabia has made it very clear that they would intervene if these talks fail .... Saudi Arabia Warns That They May Intervene In Yemen If Peace Talks Fail. Unfortunately, it appears that the Houthis did not receive the "memo" .... Yemen’s Houthis Extend Advance in South After Saudi Warning (Bloomberg).

Saudi Arabia Warns That They May Intervene In Yemen If Peace Talks Fail

BBC: Saudi Arabia warns of 'necessary measures' over Yemen

Gulf Arab states will take "necessary measures" against Yemen's Houthi rebels if a peaceful solution cannot be found to the country's instability, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister has said.

Saud al-Faisal also condemned Iranian "interference" in Yemen.

The UN has warned that Yemen is on the edge of civil war, as the Shia Houthis attempt to tighten their control.

The group has been pushing further south from its northern stronghold, clashing with local armed elements.

This moves the Houthis closer to conflict with forces loyal to President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, who is based in the southern port city of Aden.

WNU Editor: This conflict is about to heat up .... and fast

More News On Saudi Warnings That They May Intervene In Yemen If The Peace Talks Fail

S.Arabia: Arabs will take action over Yemen if peace efforts fail -- Reuters
Saudis Will Take ‘Necessary Measures’ in Yemen If Talks Fail -- Bloomberg
Saudi foreign minister says intervention possible in Yemen -- ANSA
Yemen minister calls for Gulf Arab military intervention -- Reuters
Yemen’s embattled government appeals for regional military aid -- Washington Post
Yemen asks neighboring countries for military intervention to stop Shi'ite power grab -- Haaretz/AP
Yemen Asks for Help As Rebels Head South -- VOA

Saudi Arabia’s War Inside Yemen

Disorder On The Border -- Foreign Policy

In June 2004, the Houthis, a group of rebels in the Sa'dah governorate of northwest Yemen, began taking up arms against the Yemeni national army. They claimed, and continue to claim, to be defending their own specific branch of Shia Islam -- Zaydism -- from a Yemeni regime they say is too dependent on its northern neighbor, Saudi Arabia, and its partner in the war on terrorism, the United States. Yemen's political and military leaders have labeled the Houthis a terrorist group supported by Iran. This smoldering civil war attracted little outside attention until last month, when, on November 5, Saudi Arabia sent its warplanes to bomb Houthi positions around the border, both on Saudi territory and inside Yemen. It was Saudi Arabia's first cross-border military intervention since the Gulf War in 1991.

Read more ....

Previous Post: Yemen Civil War News Updates -- December 17, 2009

My Comment: The best review that I have read on this conflict to date.