Coalition to task nephew of Yemen slain ex- President new mission

ADEN, Jan. 31 (YPA) – Saudi-led coalition would task nephew of Yemen’s slain ex- President Ali Abdullah Saleh a new mission to run a front line in the Yemeni embattled southwestern province of Taiz to fight Houthi fighters, a pro-coalition military official said on Wednesday.

“General Tareq Mohammed Abdullah Saleh, who along with his uncle were once allied with dominant Houthi group and switched sides in December last year, has been assigned by the leadership of the coalition to go to Taiz to run the battles and recapture the province,” the official told Yemen Press Agency on condition of anonymity.

However, local commanders in Taiz, who are loyal to Riyadh-based resigned President Hadi, rejected the proposal, citing war crimes committed by General Tareq and his slain uncle against the residents of the country’s third largest city since 2011, when the people of Taiz first revolted against Saleh’s 33 years of corrupted rule.

“Commander of Taiz General Khalid Fadhil and the commander of the 35th Brigade, Adnan al-Hammadi, say their rifles and men are ready to welcome General Tareq,” said the official, disclosing a deep rift between the will of coalition leadership and the military leaders of Taiz.

local military leaders fear that event of Aden could be repeated in Taiz, he said.

Tareq had fled the capital Sanaa after a week-long deadly clashes with Houthis last month that erupted after Saleh changed alliance and joined the coalition, which eventually ended with the killing of Saleh on Dec. 4, 2017.

Tareq then fled to coalition-held part of the southern province of Shabwah, where he declared joining the coalition forces. He then was sent to Aden to lead infighting against the UAE-backed southern separatist groups, but his militias were defeated by the separatists who recaptured the city on Tuesday.

Tareq then fled to coalition-held part of the southern province of Shabwah, where he declared joining the coalition forces. He then was sent to Aden to lead infighting against the UAE-backed southern separatist groups, but his militias were defeated by the separatists who recaptured the city on Tuesday.

Sameera Hassn-Zak