Expert says Israel playing overt, fundamental role in Yemen’s Ma’rib battle

An expert on Yemen’s political affairs says Israel has been playing an overt, fundamental role in the battle in Ma’rib province, which has been central to the Sana’a government’s fight to gain control over all of the war-torn country’s territory.

“Israel has played an overt, vital role in the battle of Ma’rib in particular and throughout Yemen in general,” Zayd Ahmad al-Grsy said in an interview with Press TV.

“Any movement of the United Arab Emirates, whether in the Red Sea, south of Yemen, Socotra Island and other islands, is an Israeli action carried out by the Tel Aviv regime under the cover of Abu Dhabi,” al-Grsy said.

He stressed that all of the UAE's movements are carried out with the aim of achieving the Israeli regime’s goals.

The political analyst maintained that Israel has been directly involved in the war against Yemen, reiterating that the regime’s role is completely obvious in the Ma’rib battle.

Saudi Arabia and its allies, the UAE in particular, launched a deadly military campaign against Yemen in March 2015 to return Yemen's former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi to power.

The war – which the Saudis thought would last only a few weeks but is still ongoing – has led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of civilians, including women and children, in what the United Nations has described as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, and destroyed much of Yemen’s infrastructure.

Fearing Yemeni retaliation, the UAE announced in 2019 that it would withdraw its forces from Yemen, in what Yemenis has described as a false declaration.

The UAE is also planning to jointly develop an anti-drone missile system with Israel. In March, Israel's major aerospace and aviation manufacturer, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), announced the plan, saying it will work with UAE’s state-owned weapons maker EDGE to build the system in order “to detect, identify, classify, and intercept a broad range of threats.”

Al-Grsy said Israel has been training militants in the UAE and in its military bases in Eritrea, and has a presence in the command room of Ma’rib operations alongside Saudi, Emirati and American officers.

Certain reports show that Israeli fighters and espionage drones are also involved in the Ma’rib battle, he added.

Asked about the latest developments in Yemen, al-Grsy said the Yemeni Army and popular forces have continued to advance toward Ma’rib city, taking control of strategic areas on their way.

They have advanced toward the city from the north and managed to take control of key areas, which the Saudi-backed mercenaries have been unable to retake, he said.

By advancing toward Sahn al-Jinn military camp, the political commentator went on to say, the Army and popular forces cut off the supply route of mercenaries in al-Jadafar desert north of Ma’rib city.

He added that the achievement comes after Yemeni fighters took control of two strategic areas, Talaat al-Hamra and al-Balq, a few days ago, despite the Saudi-led coalition's air support for the mercenaries.

Elsewhere in his remarks, al-Grsy underlined that the goal of Yemeni fighters is to expel the Saudi and Emirati occupiers from the city, adding that mediators from the Sana’a government are still in talks with tribal leaders.

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

www.presstv.co.uk