Hundreds of recruits from Dhalea, Lahj removed from service

HADRAMOUT, March 30 (YPA) – The Saudi-appointed governor of Hadramout, Salem Al-Khanbashi, has dismissed hundreds of recruits from the southern provinces of Dhalea and Lahj at the Barshid camp west of Mukalla.

“Sources familiar with the matter stated that the dismissals targeted recruits within the brigade led by Abdul Daim Al-Shuaibi and were carried out in coordination with Taher Al-Aqili, the Minister of Defense in Shalal Shaya’s Islah Party-affiliated government. The move has been described as a military purge along regional lines.

According to the sources, the actions were taken under Al-Khanbashi’s direct orders, highlighting the overlap of political and military authority in the oil-rich province, and aimed at eliminating the presence of forces loyal to the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC), often referred to as “the dissolved faction.”

The decision followed the involvement of these recruits alongside militants from the dissolved STC factions in the takeover of Wadi Hadramout districts and the seizure of Islah Party-run First Military Region camps at the end of December.

Sources also noted that Minister Al-Aqili, currently in Hadramout since last Friday, praised the dismissals, signaling an unspoken consensus to remove elements loyal to the dissolved STC faction—especially after the Barshid camp was targeted by Saudi airstrikes in early January.

These developments coincided with Saudi efforts to reorganize its military and political influence in Hadramout and Shabwa in cooperation with the Islah Party, the Yemeni branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, amid allegations that the STC’s attempts to eliminate factions loyal to it and end their presence in southern Yemen.

AA