Coalition fails to end Mukalla uprising despite dispatching 1.5 million liters of fuel
HADRAMOUT, July 30 (YPA) – The Saudi-led coalition on Tuesday permitted “Petromasila” Oil Company to dispatch 30 fuel trucks to power stations in Mukalla and coastal districts of Hadhramaut, in an effort to quell the ongoing popular uprising demanding the removal of pro-coalition authorities.
According to Sabri Salem bin Makhashen, media official for the “Hadramout Tribal Alliance,” the pro- coalition authorities allowed the dispatch of 30 tankers carrying 1.5 million liters of mazut and diesel to Mukalla’s power plants.
In a video posted on social media, he explained that the amount of fuel sent would not be enough to run the power grid for more than 10 hours, compared to the mere two hours of electricity provided daily.
He also pointed out that an estimated 400,000 liters of diesel are being stolen every day.
Bin Makhashen accused the coalition-backed authorities of looting the missing fuel, without transparency on its usage.
He suggested that it might be benefiting certain factions, including the Southern Transitional Council (STC), the Islah party, and the General People’s Congress (GPC), with the intention of discrediting the alliance, as he put it.
He pointed out that the Hadramout Tribal Alliance has been working since last year to stop the ongoing looting of the province’s resources.
He also revealed that the Hadramout Oil Company had refused to raise the electricity plants’ fuel needs since last Friday, seemingly in an effort to escalate tensions until the coalition allowed the passage of commercial diesel.
In the past two days, protests erupted in Mukalla and several areas, including Ghayl Bawazir and Al-Shihr.
Protesters blocked main roads, closed the Mukalla oil port, and shut down the city’s electricity authority, calling for an end to power outages that have left coastal districts with only two hours of electricity a day, following more than 16 hours of blackouts
They called for the removal of the pro-coalition authorities in Hadramout, particularly Governor Mabkhout bin Madi, who has been detained in Riyadh since April.
Protesters accused the pro-coalition officials of looting the province’s oil wealth and revenues.
@E.Y.M