Saeed Shahabi: Saudis must accept defeat in Yemen

Saeed Shahabi, a Bahraini political analyst in London, was interviewed by Press TV to discuss Saudi Arabia’s campaign against Yemen.

What follows is a rough transcription of the interview.

Press TV: It is quite amazing, isn’t it, that the Yemeni people have stood strong even though this aggression by Saudi Arabia has been continuing for so long?

Shahabi: I think the world will have to learn from the Yemenis how persevering they are, how patient and how steadfast they have been over the past year. Imagine yourself in a place where you are being bombarded day and night without stopping and when all the world is keeping quiet about the massacres your people are subjected to.

The Saudis have not stopped for a single day in the past year dropping bombs and guided missiles on innocent people all over Yemen - north, south, east and west – without any lull in the campaign, in those bombing campaigns, yet the people are there and today the thousands, the tens of thousands of people who have poured in the streets in defiance and in anger at the Saudi crimes is just amazing. You cannot describe it except to say that these people are really courageous.

Press TV: But it is interesting, isn’t it, that now Ahmed al-Asiri, the Saudi general as well as even Adel al-Jubeir have said that this is now the end of this campaign, that a political process is now needed, I believe those are Adel al-Jubeir’s words, but it is interesting that the Saudi campaign still continues just as aggressively as before. So where to now for Yemen?

Shahabi: There are several facts here. Number one that this war has to come to an end and that the Saudis are under international pressure to stop it because it is becoming an embarrassment to their allies - to Britain, to America, and to the United Nations.

Number two that the Saudis have simply been defeated. They have not fulfilled any of the goals they had set out at the onset of the campaign a year ago.

Number three that the people of Yemen have proven to be resilient and they cannot be defeated and they have really stood up to the reputation of Yemen and Yemenis that they are real fighters.

Number four that the Saudis have their own internal problems and apparently there is a lot of differences and disagreements within the ruling elite, between the military, the politicians and also those who are in various government positions. On one hand they want to stop it. On the other hand they do not want to be seen as having been defeated by a country that is so primitive in its armed forces as Yemen.

So the Saudis are in a very, very difficult position but they have no alternative but to swallow the cup of poison and accept the defeat.

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