Two UAE-backed commanders killed in bomb attack in Abyan

ABYAN, Jan. 06 (YPA) -At least two leaders of the UAE-backed factions were killed and nine recruits were wounded on Saturday when an improvised explosive device (IED) exploded in Mudiyah district in Abyan province, southern Yemen.

According to local sources in Abyan province, the IED went off and targeted a military vehicle carrying the commander of the first battalion of the Sixth Support Brigade, Aref Al-Hazmi, and the commander of the second company in the same brigade, Ammar Hammadi, in the Wadi Omran area. The attack left the two commanders killed in addition to wounding nine recruits.

The sources suggested that the operation was carried out by al-Qaeda elements in Wadi Omran, east of Abyan province.

In October last year, the Southern Translational Council (STC)’s factions announced that Wadi Omran had been cleansed of al-Qaeda elements.

The attack on the STC factions today in Wadi Omran is an indication of the failure of the STC forces’ military operations to take control of Abyan province.

It should be noted that the pro-UAE factions accuse Saudi Arabia of supporting takfiri organizations in the areas controlled by the Saudi-led coalition in southern and eastern Yemen, as part of the ongoing conflict between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi in the country.

E.M