Saudi Arabia Carries Out New Measures To Take Absolute Control Over Hadhramaut
Saudi Arabia has resorted to new measures in the oil-rich Hadhramaut Governorate to counter the increasing influence of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) militants and prevent them from controlling the oil fields in this eastern governorate.
In this respect, a few days after the technical visit and the preparation of a plan to control the oil fields in the largest Yemeni governorate, the Saudi command room in Hadhramaut dispatched a logistical convoy to the facilities of the Petrosilah Company in the mountainous areas of the eastern governorate with the intervention of the Saudi-backed Al-Dara’ Al-Watan (Shield of the Homeland) militants.
This Saudi move coincided with the completion of the process of handing over control of the Al-Wadiah border crossing to the Al-Dara’ Al-Watan forces as well as the pull-out of the forces of the 141st Infantry Brigade of the Islah Party (the Yemeni Congregation for Reform) from the border area, indicating that the Saudis are seeking to consolidate their grasp over the east of the war-torn country.
The forces of the Al-Daraa Al-Watan (Shield of the Homeland) are militias that were formed in November 2022 with the support of the Saudi kingdom and the role of Saghir bin Aziz, Chief of the General Staff and Commander of Joint Operations, as well as Brigadier General Tareq Mohammed Abdullah Saleh, a Yemeni military commander and the nephew of the late President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The Al-Daraa Al-Watan militants were consisted of pro-Saudi tribes in Hadhramaut Governorate, the Yemen al-Saeed forces (subordinate to Saghir bin Aziz) as well as a division of the pro-Tariq Saleh forces in western Lahj Governorate.
Saudi Arabia’s objectives in deploying Al-Dara Al-Watan militants in Hadhramaut Governorate can be summarized in two sections: 1- Confronting the Southern Transitional Council, and 2- Controlling the oil fields and ports of Hadhramaut Governorate, all of which are in line with challenging the intensification of the United Arab Emirates’ influence in the occupied regions of Yemen. Despite the Saudi-UAE alliance against the Ansar Allah movement, the Saudi kingdom and the UAE are fiercely competing with each other in usurping resources and looting the wealth of Yemen’s southern and eastern areas.
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