Military shake-up in Amran
The Houthis on Saturday evening said that they handed over the headquarters of the 310th Armored Brigade they captured last Tuesday in Amran City, 50 kilometers north of the capital Sana’a, to a battalion of the 9th Brigade based in Sa’ada governorate.
“In an effort to normalize the situation in Amran, a military battalion from the 9th Brigade arrived to take command of the 310th Armored Brigade and supervise security in Amran governorate,” read a statement by Houthi spokesperson Mohamed Abdulsalam on the group’s website, ansaruallah.com.
Late Sunday troops from the 6th Military Command withdrew from their military positions around Dhain mountain, a strategic location in Amran that overlooks Amran city, Mohamed Al-Arqi, a local source who lives in the area, told the Yemen Times.
The battalion from the 9th Brigade was seen late Sunday replacing the 6th Military Command’s troops, according to Al-Arqi.
The replacement of the military forces in Amran is a significant development. The 310th Armored Brigade, which was led by the deceased Brigadier General Hamid Al-Qushaibi, falls under the command of the 6th Military Command. Al-Qushaibi was widely seen as an Islah Party ally. As part of a previous agreement between the Houthis and the central government, the 310th Armored Brigade was to be handed over to the 9th Brigade, which is seen by the Houthis as a more neutral force.
However, the political affiliation of the 9th Brigade remains unclear. The government has not yet commented on the brigade’s recent takeover of the 6th Military Command’s positions, but the brigade, which is based in Houthi-controlled Sa’ada, has refrained from engaging in the fight between Houthi rebels and factions of the military.
These recent moves come after the Houthis, who took control of Amran City last Tuesday, July 8, exchanged artillery fire with forces of the 6th Military Command after capturing the city. The Houthis were firing at Dhain mountain from Sha’ab Al-Ghail in Hamdan district.
On Friday, warplanes attacked Houthi positions in Hamdan and allegedly destroyed a tank captured by the rebels. Another tank was reportedly destroyed by pro-government forces positioned on Dhain mountain.
Despite the Houthis’ declaration on Saturday that they would leave the city and hand over government offices in Amran, their fighters continue to occupy all government departments in the city, according to a source who visited the city on Sunday and requested anonymity for fear of reprisals.
As of Monday, the Houthis were setting up checkpoints at all entrances to the city and conducting security patrols around Amran using local police vehicles, according to the source.
The recent fighting has lead to the displacement of up to 70,000 men, women and children from Amran governorate and “numbers are growing by the day,” according to the latest situation report by the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) released July 9.
“The humanitarian situation is very dire as many people were forced to leave their homes while others were trapped inside being unable to flee the fighting to more secure areas,” the report read. “Access to the area is very difficult; the UN agencies could not intervene so far due the lack of clarity in the situation.”
Commander shake-up, security plan for the capital, UNSC statement
The fall of Amran to the Houthis led President Hadi on Saturday to sack senior military commanders seen to be close to Major General Ali Mohsen. The highly influential Mohsen defected from former President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s regime during the uprising of 2011 and was fired as commander of the 1st Armored Division in 2013.
General Mohamed Al-Magdashi, commander of the 6th Military Command, was dismissed and replaced by General Mohamed Al-Hawri. Al-Magdashi is said to be an ally of Mohsen.
Hadi also replaced the commander of the 1st Military Command in Hadramout, General Mohamed Al-Sawmali, with General Abdurrahman Al-Halili.
Amidst talk that the Houthis will set their sites on the capital Sana’a following their victory in Amran, the Interior Ministry on Saturday formed a security crisis group headed by General Ali Lakhsha’a, the deputy minister of interior.
General Abdo Al-Tarib, the minister of interior, also ordered Lakhsha’a to “supervise the security of the capital Sana’a and Sana’a governorate.”
In the past month the Houthis have engaged in on-and-off clashes with local Sunni tribesmen affiliated with the Islah Party in the Hamdan and Bani Matar districts of Sana’a governorate, not far from Yemen’s capital.
Meanwhile, the Islah Party said in a statement on Wednesday that the “Houthis seek the damage of the state and the republican system, and the obstruction of the National Dialogue Conference (NDC) outcomes.”
The party demanded that the government disarm all militias including the Houthis, as agreed on in the NDC. Both the Islah Party and the Houthis took part in the NDC.
The details surrounding the death of the 310th Armored Brigade’s commander, Brigadier General Al-Qushaibi, is still ambiguous. While the Houthis said last Wednesday that they found him dead in a house nearby the brigade’s headquarters, the Islah Party said the Houthis executed Al-Qushaibi in what they consider to be a “war crime.”
On Saturday, the UN Security Council demanded “that the Houthis, all armed groups and parties involved in the violence withdraw and relinquish control of Amran and hand over weapons and ammunition pillaged in Amran to the national authorities loyal to the Government.”
The Security Council’s statement and the statement made to the press by UN Special Envoy to Yemen Jamal Benomar were otherwise reiterations of previous statements, calling for a ceasefire and disarmament but lacking specific details of implementation and repercussions for failing to do so.
The Defense Ministry reported Sunday that it held a funeral for 16 members of the 6th Military Command who died in the course of fighting. According to the state-run Saba News Agency, on Monday a further 8 soldiers from the same military region received military funerals.
