Sana’a warns Ankara: Turkey to meet worse fate than that of Riyadh, allies if it intervenes in Yemen

A member of the Supreme Political Council of Yemen says after Saudi Arabia’s heavy defeat in its war on the impoverished state, a possible military intervention by countries such as Turkey is not a wise move, warning that the fate awaiting Ankara will not be better than that of Riyadh.

“If Turkish soldiers enter Yemeni soil, they will have a fate worse than that of the aggressors who preceded them,” Abdul Wahab al-Mahbashi told Iran’s IRNA news agency on Thursday.

The remarks came in the wake of media reports that said hundreds of Turkish military vehicles and equipment have been transferred to some African ports, from where they would be sent to Yemen.

“With all the oil [money] in their possession, the United States and the Persian Gulf Arabs’ media outlets and mercenaries were defeated in Yemen and forced to retreat and find a way out of the self-made quagmire,” Mahbashi said.

“If Turkey enters the battlefield in Yemen, it is a sign that the country is not governed by wisdom and prudence, and that Turkish officials are suffering from irrationality and short-sightedness.”

The Yemeni official also predicted that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan would not deploy troops to Yemen, but rather mercenaries, the same scenario that he implemented in Libya.

“Erdogan failed in Syria, which borders Turkey …, so a Turkish meddling in Yemen will definitely bring Erdogan closer to be overthrown by the Turkish nation,” he added. “Invading Yemen will not have a happy ending for Erdogan himself as well as the country’s government and military.”

Saudi Arabia launched a devastating military aggression against Yemen in March 2015 in collaboration with a number of its allied states, and with arms and logistics support from the US and several Western countries.

The aim was to return to power a former Riyadh-backed regime and crush the Houthi Ansarullah movement which has been running state affairs in the absence of an effective government in Yemen.

The war has failed to achieve its goals, but killed tens of thousands of innocent Yemenis and destroyed the country’s infrastructure.

Yemeni forces have gone from strength to strength against the Saudi-led invaders, and left Riyadh and its allies bogged down in the country.

Yemenis conduct drone attack on Saudi airbase

Early on Thursday, the spokesman for Yemeni Armed Forces reported a new retaliatory drone strike on King Khalid airbase in the southwestern Saudi city of Khamis Mushait.

Brigadier General Yahya Saree said a Qasef-2K was used in the attack, adding that the raid was accurate, legitimate and a natural response to the Saudi aggression and siege of Yemen.

Saudi state TV, however, claimed that the Saudi-led coalition had intercepted the explosives-laden drone fired from Yemen in the direction of Khamis Mushait.

Saudi-led coalition commander killed in Ma’rib clashes

In a separate development on Wednesday, the Doha-based Al Jazeera news channel reported that a senior commander of the Saudi-led coalition had been killed in Yemen.

Major General Mohammad al-Harmali died in clashes with Yemeni army soldiers and allied fighters from Popular Committees in the central province of Ma’rib, according to the report.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk