Wave of UAE cyberattacks targets pro-Saudi military commanders in Aden
ADEN, April 26 (YPA) – A wave of large-scale cyberattacks targeting prominent military commanders who have recently shifted their alignment toward Saudi Arabia has been reported over the past few days, sources familiar with the matter said.
According to the sources, the Saudi-backed ” Dera Al-Watan” factions, announced that the phone of their commander, Bassam Al-Mahdar, had been unexpectedly hacked.
Al-Mahdar had long been considered one of the UAE’s key allies in Aden before shifting allegiance to the Saudi camp.
According to the group, Al-Mahdar’s phone number was hacked and used to distribute messages of unknown intent. The leadership of “Dera Al-Watan” issued a warning statement disclaiming any responsibility for communications sent from the hacked number, strongly suggesting the involvement of a foreign actor.
Less than 24 hours after the breach of Al-Mahdar’s phone, the media office of Second Al-Amaliqa (Giants) Brigade commander Hamdi Shukri Al-Subaihi announced that his WhatsApp account had also been hacked.
The cyberattack comes months after Al-Subaihi survived an assassination attempt involving a car bomb in Aden, which left 10 of his escorts dead or injured. At the time, suspicion fell on elements believed to be affiliated with the UAE.
Security sources in Aden have linked the surge in cyberattacks to shifting loyalties between the UAE and Saudi Arabia since January.
They claim that the UAE has lost control over Salafist leaders such as Al-Mahdar and Al-Subaihi following the dissolution of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) earlier this year.
According to these sources, the UAE has increasingly turned to cyber intrusions to gather intelligence by targeting the phones of these leaders, in response to Al-Mahdar’s appointment as commander of “Dera Al-Watan” and Al-Subaihi’s alignment with the Saudi-backed camp.
The nature of the cyberattacks points to the use of advanced technologies to obtain sensitive information and potentially carry out financial fraud schemes intended to damage the reputations of leaders who have broken away from Abu Dhabi.
These developments in cyberattacks come after reports that Saudi Arabia excluded the UAE from the coalition following the Hadramout events, as Salafist leaders moved closer to Riyadh, pushing Abu Dhabi to resort to “digital espionage” to settle scores with its former allies.
@E.Y.M