Egypt’s army always backed Yemen: army commander

CAIRO – 1 May 2018: Egypt’s has army always been a great contributor to Yemen’s stability since 1962, Major General Nasser al-Deebani, commander of the seventh district in the Yemeni army in Naham Directorate, told Egypt Today.

In an interview about the situation in Yemen, and specifically Naham Directorate, which has been witnessing a serious war between the army and other armed factions and militia, including the Houthis, Deebani said that a lot of Yemen’s army leaders studied and graduated in Egypt. “The Egyptian army has participated in developing our military knowledge several years ago, and now they are supporting and backing us in every possible way,” Deebani told Egypt Today.

The struggle in Naham started on March 21, 2015 near the Aden city borders and has been ongoing since then, according to Deebani. “The battle however still needs more military planning to guarantee that civilians will not be harmed in any way,” he stated.

“The army has done a great job in Naham since the start of the armed faction’s battle; we have done about 90 percent of our job and will continue until reaching Sana'a,” Deebani said, affirming that the significance of Naham’s battle comes as a result of its nearness to the Yemeni capital of Sana’a. “Here we are about 18 to 22 kilometers away from Sana'a,” he explained.

He added that the Yemeni army is determined to end this battle with all of the armed factions and militia inside the country.

Egypt is one of the Arab countries that participated in the military intervention in Yemen in 2015 to back legitimacy inside the country. The struggle, however, has been escalating with the existence of several armed factions inside the state, which is trying to find stability through political solutions.

On April 18, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said that reaching a political solution in Yemen is up to only the Houthi militia, not to Saudi Arabia or any other international organization or country.

He affirmed during a joint press conference with United Nations Secretary General António Guterres that the Houthis, who illegally took over Yemen, are the party standing in the way of reaching a political and final solution.

“They took over the country, transformed it into military barracks, used children in the war, planted mines, blocked villages and caused famine,” Jubeir stated, adding that all of their actions are completely unacceptable.

The Saudi minister said that after the assassination of former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh last December, Houthis became isolated. “The public opinion turned against them and the political parties avoided cooperating with them,” he stated, adding, “They violate international laws constantly.”

Jubeir assured that the only accepted political solution to end the Yemeni war should come within Arab initiatives.

Former President Saleh was assassinated in a shooting on December 4, 2017 by the Houthi militia while he was heading to his home in Sanhan, Sana’a. Photos and videos of the brutal assassination went viral on social media, shortly after announcing his death by the rebel militia.

In a televised speech following the assassination, Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi called on Yemenis to rise up against the Iran-aligned Houthis. He also called for a new approach in the battle against the rebel militia, who had been allied with Saleh before he turned against them by backing the Saudi-led coalition.