New governor of Shabwa loyal to coalition arrives at Ataq airport

SHABWA, Dec. 29 (YPA) – The current governor of Shabwa, Awadh Al-Wazir Al-Awlaki, appointed by the Saudi-backed exiled Haid government, arrived on Wednesday, at Ataq airport in the province.

Local sources affirmed that the Saudi-led coalition transferred the governor on a Saudi military plane to the Airport, after UAE-backed “Al-Amaliqa” militia took control of the city during the past two days, after the Hadi decision to overthrow the ex-governor of Islah, Mohammed Saleh bin Adio.

The sources indicated that the Emirati joint operations commander, Saleh bin Mujran Al-Amiri, arrived on Tuesday, in Ataq, to appoint Al-Awlaki as governor of Shabwa, after his forces took control of the military and security sites.

This comes after unknown explosions occurred on Tuesday inside Ataq Airport, killing and wounding many officers and soldiers of the UAE and its militias at the airport.

During the past two days, the UAE sent military experts, including Israelis, from Abu Dhabi, to the Balhaf gas facility, to manage the battle of Shabwa.
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