Hundreds of Saudi (UAE) tanks in Aden
The WSJ is reporting (behind a pay wall):
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The fight for control of Yemen’s largest air base raged Tuesday, with Saudi-led coalition fighters saying they were rooting out the last Houthi rebels holed up in the airfield.
Link:http://www.wsj.com/articles/coalitio...els-1438676961
On Twitter a few tweets:
Quote:
Videos and photos show dozens of Leclercs, BMP-3s, other armored vehicles. Action indicates a UAE sizable armored deployment at very least...from available pictures it looked like a battalion-sized element. 20+ Leclercs and 30+ BMP-3s
There is a Tweet citing 'MFS - The Other News' which has a short RT video of armour that hundreds of Saudi tanks are rolling out of Aden. I am not great on tank recognition, are they Abrams or Lerclerc MBT; an unknown SPG and a few BMPs.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CLkknmvWcAA7l5l.jpg:large
Link:http://www.mfs-theothernews.com/2015...udi-tanks.html
One aspect intrigues me. How did this armour plus get to Aden? By sealift? Unlikely as most reports IIRC state the port is closed or not working. More likely overland? A long distance and are there good enough roads linking Yemen to KSA or Oman?
Is this "Vietnam" for the KSA & UAE?
First came the Ottomans:
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Between 1539 and 1547, the mighty Ottoman Empire sent nearly 80,000 troops to conquer the territory, of which only 7,000 men survived.
Then the Egyptians:
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During the North Yemen Civil War from 1962-1970, Egypt learned the same hard lesson, as its forces were drawn into an eight-year protracted guerrilla war in the same northern mountains that swallowed so many Ottoman soldiers. Many Egyptian historians refer to the conflict as “Egypt’s Vietnam.
Now the Saudis, UAE and few others - read on:http://soufangroup.com/tsg-intelbrie...mire-in-yemen/
Important in my armchair opinion to note how it appears many in the South want to exit a united Yemen.
Yemen proves Saudi Arabia's power is growing
An upbeat article by a KSA watcher; the full title and sub-title being:
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The liberation of south Yemen proves Saudi Arabia's power is growing
The oil-rich kingdom is becoming increasingly confident acting without the USA, and will soon turn its attention to the Syrian civil war
I had not spotted this aspect:
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In preparation for the land campaign, which began in earnest in July, training camps were set up in Saudi Arabia for the initial 5,000 Yemeni volunteers. Once the bulk of these forces were deemed combat ready, the Saudis launched Operation Golden Arrow..
Showing a picture with eight such volunteers doing PT is far from convincing!
Link:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...#disqus_thread
A new model for defeating al Qaeda in Yemen
Well there's nothing like being optimistic inside The Beltway; a new report from AEI:http://www.aei.org/publication/a-new...eda-in-yemen/?
The key points:
Quote:
- Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), still likely the most potent al Qaeda terrorist threat to the US homeland, has expanded and strengthened as the Yemeni state has collapsed, and its success buttresses the global al Qaeda network.
- The current US approach to Yemen has failed alongside the Yemeni state because it prioritized a military response to the AQAP threat rather than a more comprehensive strategy.
- A win against al Qaeda in Yemen will last only if it is part of a global strategy against al Qaeda, ISIS, and like-minded groups.
- The US must identify a way forward and lead a coordinated regional response in Yemen, including negotiating a political settlement among Yemeni stakeholders, supporting subnational actors, leading a ground offensive against AQAP, and addressing the immediate humanitarian needs of the population.
Madness comes to mind that the USA can today play such a role, including 'leading a ground offensive against AQAP'. The USA is not a neutral party in the current civil war and external involvement.
The ongoing war in Yemen has been a disaster for almost everyone involved
A Soufan Group briefing:
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The ongoing war in Yemen has been a disaster for almost everyone involved, except
the Islamic State and al-Qaeda. As
the Saudi-led coalition continues its
air campaign and is intensifying its ground efforts against Houthi rebels, the Islamic State has exploited the chaos and established itself as a serious terrorist threat to a country that has long dealt with
the more numerous and powerful al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).
(
ends with) Yemen faces a challenging future; an assertive and expanding Islamic State will make it far worse.
Link:http://soufangroup.com/tsg-intelbrie...haos-in-yemen/