Yemen: UAE drones changed the battle course in Marib "a Yemeni military commander says".
Photo of UAE soldier after securing Marib. 2015.
Back again, the UAE returned to play a major role in the Saudi led Coalition in Yemen which has been leading a desperate battle with the Houthi rebels in the western and southern areas of Marib province, the last foothold in northern Yemen, for the internationally recognized government of President Hadi.
On Wednesday, a top commander in the pro-government forces said that the UAE is playing a significant role in the battle with the Houthi rebels in Marib, since the beginning of this week. This coincided with the arrival of military commanders from the UAE backed forces fighting the Houthi rebels in Hodeida, the western coast of Yemen.
"The UAE drones have changed the battle course in Marib and Al Jawf since the beginning of the current week" said the Yemeni military commander who asked to stay anonymous.
"Dozens of air strikes were launched by UAE drones. These strikes thwarted the Houthis' large-scale offensive towards Marib city and revived the spirit among the fighters of the tribes and the pro-government forces fighting the Houthis in western and southern Marib" the commander said.
"The strikes launched by the UAE drones hunted top Houthi field leaders and precisely stroke Houthi gatherings in Sirwah and Al Kassarah fronts, and launched several airstrikes targeted Houthi gatherings in Al Hamra Hill and near Hailan Mountain" the military commander added.
The military commander said that the UAE Aerial Capabilities have changed the path of the battle ground in favor of the pro Yemeni Government forces to deter the Houthi offensive in Marib, not just through the direct engagement in the airstrikes but also through reconnaissance missions which played a major role in paralyzing the capabilities of the Houthi forces and succeeded to deepen the cracks in their ranks.
"The UAE Aerial Capabilities played another efficient role on the battle ground through monitoring the targets within the Houthi forces. This helped a lot in directing proactive strikes against major targets within the Houthi forces", the military commander explained.
The UAE seems to play a new significant role in the battle with the Houthis around Marib which reflects a Saudi desire following a series of setbacks for the pro-government forces in Marib and Al Jawf.
The Yemeni forces which were fully backed by the Saudi led Arab Coalition, failed to deter the Houthi offensive towards Marib and Al Jawf despite the huge support these forces received since the war began in 2015.
These forces which are mostly loyal to the Al Islah political party failed to combat the Houthis and lost territory in the Nehm front which the Houthis took full control over earlier in November 2020.
The same forces pulled back from strategic sites between Marib and Al Jawf later in 2020, which emboldened the Houthis to take over Al Jawf province and advance towards Marib, the last stronghold of the Yemeni government in northern Yemen. The UAE’s return to the battle ground in Marib indicates that the battle is taking a new turning point towards driving the Houthi rebels out of the oil-rich province.
There has been no official statement from the Arab Coalition stating that the UAE is participating in the current battle to stop the Houthis from advancing into Marib city, yet local commanders and the arrival of UAE backed troops from the western coast proves that the UAE is supposed to play a new major role in northern Yemen, especially in Marib which the UAE has hekped liberate it from Houthi forces in 2015.
