Saudi-backed forces launch wide-scale arrest campaign in Mukalla
HADRAMOUT, Aug. 31 (YPA) – Saudi-backed forces launched a wide-scale abduction campaign in the city of Mukalla, the capital of Hadramout Province, on Monday, detaining numerous residents and taking them to their own prisons.
Local and rights sources in the city confirmed that Saudi-backed “Emergency Forces” launched a sweeping arrest campaign targeting participants in a protest against the establishment of the so-called “Coordination Council,” which is affiliated with Riyadh.
According to the sources, hundreds of armed personnel deployed in military vehicles across Mukalla’s streets and neighborhoods, pursuing protesters into residential areas as they called for an end to Saudi tutelage.
The sources said Saudi Arabia is seeking to impose a new reality on the people of Hadramout and other governorates under its control through the use of armed force and by creating political and social entities loyal to Riyadh.
They added that members of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) delegation, along with Sheikh Amr bin Habrish Al-Aliyi, head of the Hadramout Tribal Alliance, are still in custody in Riyadh, where they have been held since January.
Mukalla has witnessed widespread popular opposition to the establishment of the “Coordination Council,” headed by Saudi-backed Governor Salem Al-Khanbashi.
Protesters have chanted slogans rejecting the council, saying it further entrenches Saudi tutelage over oil-rich Hadramawt.
Meanwhile, Saudi-backed forces had already deployed heavily across the city, setting up new armed checkpoints and imposing tight security measures targeting protesters, as the STC prepared to organize mass rallies in Mukalla, Aden, Seiyun, and other major cities on Tuesday.
At the same time, hundreds of residents from Shabwa, Abyan, Lahj, and Al-Dhalea headed toward Aden in a large-scale popular mobilization to participate in an STC rally scheduled for Tuesday to mark what the council calls “Army Day,” amid a heavy deployment of Saudi-backed forces at the city’s entrances.
Rights sources in Aden said Saudi-backed forces blocked participants at the city’s entrances, preventing them from entering Aden.
The move came amid continued escalation by the STC, which is calling for an end to Saudi tutelage as the economic crisis deepens, basic services such as cooking gas and electricity remain scarce, and salaries go unpaid for a third consecutive month.
@E.Y.M