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Houthi Forces Move on Southern Yemen, Raising Specter of Regional Ground War Houthi Forces Move on Southern Yemen, Raising Specter of Regional Ground War
(about 2 hours later)
CAIRO — Forces aligned with the Iranian-backed Houthi movement continued their advance into areas of southern Yemen on Friday, as Saudi Arabia conducted a second day of airstrikes intended to stop them. AL MUKALLA, Yemen — Forces aligned with the Iranian-backed Houthi movement continued their advance into areas of southern Yemen on Friday as Saudi Arabia conducted a second day of airstrikes intended to stop them.
The Houthis’ continued advance in the face of heavy airstrikes has raised the possibility of the Saudi-led coalition’s deploying ground troops — a move that would continue the Yemeni civil war’s escalation toward a regional battle. The Houthis’ continued advance in the face of heavy airstrikes is focusing attention on the possibility of the Saudi-led coalition’s deploying ground troops — a move that would continue the Yemeni civil war’s escalation toward a regional battle.
The Saudi government has said it has no plans to send troops, but declined to rule out the possibility. On Thursday, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt, whose government depends heavily on financial aid from Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf monarchies, said Cairo was prepared to send troops “if necessary.” The Saudi government has said it has no plans to send troops, but declined to rule out the possibility. On Thursday, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt, a close ally of the Saudis, said Cairo was prepared to send troops “if necessary.”
Residents and local news reports said Friday that the Houthi-aligned forces were fighting in the streets of Aden, the southern port town where the Saudi-backed president, Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi, had until recently prepared to make his last stand. Residents and local news reports said Friday that the Houthi-aligned forces were fighting in the streets of Aden, the southern port town where the Saudi-backed president of Yemen, Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi, had until recently prepared to make his last stand.
Mr. Hadi lost control of the capital, Sana, to the Houthi forces months ago, and he finally escaped last month to take refuge among his supporters in Aden. On Wednesday, he disappeared again as the Houthi forces closed in, surfacing Thursday night in Saudi Arabia. His supporters said he was en route to an Arab League summit meeting this weekend in Egypt, and it was unclear whether he would return to Yemen anytime soon. Clashes between the Houthi forces and fighters loyal to Mr. Hadi had plunged the city into chaos, residents said Friday. Soldiers had deserted army bases near the city, and opportunists had swooped in to plunder them.
The Houthis were also reported to be making gains in the restive Southern provinces of Abyan and Shabwah, both of which were expected to pose stiff resistance to the group. Both provinces are home to pockets of Sunni Muslim extremists, including Al Qaeda’s Yemeni branch, and the extremists loathe the Houthis as heretics because they follow a variant of Shiite Islam. “They looted all military bases in the city,” said one resident, speaking on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. “Tanks were taken to pieces in one of the bases.”
The Houthis represent a minority among Yemen’s mostly Sunni Muslims, but the group has gained momentum by forming an alliance with Yemen’s former president, Ali Abdullah Saleh. He has helped enlist important parts of the military and security services still loyal to him to fight alongside the Houthis against Mr. Hadi’s forces. And Mr. Saleh and the Houthis have built other support by tapping into popular grievances with the Hadi government, beginning with its attempts last year to cut price subsidies in the arid and impoverished country. With Mr. Hadi’s forces in disarray, civilians were arming themselves to oppose the incoming Houthi forces, and there was sporadic fighting in neighborhoods around the city. “No one is leading the battles against the Houthis in Aden,” the same resident said. “People regrouped in the city’s districts and formed their own militias to fight the Houthis.”
As Yemen reeled from the first day of airstrikes on Thursday, the Houthi leaders sought to showcase their public support in the capital by holding a rally to condemn the Saudi campaign. Thousands attended, suggesting that the movement may not be easy to crush through airstrikes alone. Mr. Hadi lost control of the capital, Sana, to the Houthi forces months ago, and he finally escaped last month to take refuge among his supporters in Aden. Then on Wednesday he disappeared again as the Houthi forces closed in, surfacing Thursday night in Saudi Arabia. On Friday, he landed in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, to represent Yemen at an Arab League summit meeting, but it was unclear whether he would return to Yemen anytime soon.
The foreign minister of President Hadi’s government said Friday that he hoped that the airstrikes would end “as soon as possible.” But he was vague about how he defined their mission or expected to resolve the underlying conflict. The Houthis were also reported to be making gains in the restive Southern provinces of Abyan and Shabwa, which had been expected to pose fierce resistance. Both provinces are home to pockets of Sunni Muslim extremists, including Al Qaeda’s Yemeni branch, and the extremists loath the Houthis as heretics because they follow a variant of Shiite Islam.
“If they can complete their mission in the coming few days or few hours, it will be stopped,” the foreign minister, Riyadh Yassin, said in an interview with the BBC from Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt. Mr. Hadi had been “forced to request” the military intervention, Mr. Yassin said, but “nobody is happy about that.” The Houthis represent a minority among Yemen’s mostly Sunni Muslims, but the group has gained momentum by forming an alliance with Yemen’s former president, Ali Abdullah Saleh. He has helped enlist important parts of the military and security services still loyal to him to fight alongside the Houthis against Mr. Hadi’s forces.
He said he hoped that the Houthi forces would “understand the meaning of these strikes” and come to negotiations, but Mr. Yassin also acknowledged that he could not rule out the possibility of a request for foreign ground troops to help roll back the Houthi advance. On Thursday, the Houthi leaders sought to showcase their public support in the capital by holding a rally to condemn the Saudi Arabian air campaign. Thousands attended, suggesting that the movement may not be easy to crush through airstrikes alone.
“It depends what is there on the ground, how much is going on,” he said, as well as “the evaluation of the experts and the military people.” The Saudi-led coalition on Friday extended its airstrikes to three military bases controlled by forces loyal to Mr. Saleh and the Houthis in the central province of Marib, according to news reports and local tribal leaders. There were reports of strikes against the Houthi’s home base in the north as well.
Phillip Hammond, the British foreign secretary, said Friday that Britain, like the United States, was providing logistical and technical support to the Saudi-led campaign. He noted that the intervention had been requested by Yemen’s legitimate government, under Mr. Hadi. “But we’re clearly not going to get involved in military action ourselves,” Mr. Hammond said.
He also discounted Saudi efforts to portray the Houthis as an instrument of Iranian influence.
“The Houthi are not Iranian proxies in the sense that Hezbollah is an Iranian proxy,” he added. “I suspect if you went to Tehran, you’d find a degree of frustration in Tehran that, for all the support they pile in, they can’t actually control what the Houthis do.”
Separately, Mr. Hadi’s foreign minister said Friday that he hoped the airstrikes would end “as soon as possible.”
“If they can complete their mission in the coming few days or few hours, it will be stopped,” the minister, Riyadh Yassin, said in an interview with the BBC from Sharm el Sheikh.
But he declined to define the mission except to say that he hoped the Houthis would “understand the meaning of these strikes” and come to negotiations.
As for a possible ground invasion, he said, “it depends what is there on the ground, how much is going on,” and “the evaluation of the experts and the military people.”