Salafist extremist groups active in Mahrah

MAHRAH, Oct. 15 (YPA) – Saudi Arabia, which leads the Arab coalition in Yemen, has been accused of supporting extremist Salafist groups (from the Al-Hajjouri group) in the east of the country, with the aim of gaining control of the province.

According to a local source, extremist Salafist groups, specifically the Al-Hajjouri group, have recently been active in Mahrah with direct support from Riyadh through the King Salman Center and their military base at Al-Ghayhda airport in the province.

The source added that this activity of the group poses a real threat to the demography of Mahrah, authentic identity and the peaceful thought of its sons.

“The cultivation of extremist ideology of radical Salafism funded by Riyadh in a Mahrah society cannot be accepted,” he said, adding that Mahrah has a society that believes in moderation and religious moderation since the dawn of Islam.

The same source accused the Office of Endowments in Mahrah of “inaction” in the face of the hardline expansion, pointing out that it is managed by a person described loyal to Saudi agenda.

He called on moderates and provincial officials to stand against this extremist group, saying that “the group is currently seeking to establish  local radio stations to spread their takfirist ideas in some areas in Mahrah and take control of mosques inside the capital al-Ghayhda”.

E.M