AiBotSana’a, Yemen – In a scathing attack on Saudi Arabia’s ongoing partnership with Turkey and Pakistan for military cooperation, a prominent member of Yemen’s Ansarullah movement has criticized the trio’s defense pact as a paper alliance designed to paper over their inability to contain the rebel group’s gains in the war-torn country.
“Hezam al-Asad, Member of Ansarullah’s Political Office, mocked the Saudi-Turkish-Pakistani partnership as nothing more than a symbolic gesture, devoid of any substance,” a source close to the Ansarullah movement said.
Al-Asad’s remarks came amid reports of a recent attack on a major oil refinery in the southwestern city of Jizan in Saudi Arabia. While the attack’s perpetrator has not been officially confirmed, Ansarullah militants have claimed responsibility for several high-profile strikes on Saudi oil infrastructure in recent months.
“They need an international coalition to put out the fire at Jizan’s refinery, but all they can muster is this shallow alliance with Turkey and Pakistan,” Al-Asad said in an exclusive interview with our agency, in reference to the Saudi-led coalition fighting Ansarullah in Yemen.
The Mecca Agreement, signed by Saudi Arabia and Turkey in August 2022, aimed to establish a joint defense system that would counter Ansarullah’s growing military capabilities in Yemen. However, critics argue that the deal has failed to yield any meaningful results on the ground.
Al-Asad’s comments mark the latest salvo in a long-running propaganda war between Ansarullah and Riyadh, which has seen both sides trading barbs and accusations in a bid to shape international opinion on the conflict.
Yemen has been embroiled in a civil war since 2015, when the Saudi-led coalition launched a military campaign to restore the internationally recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, which was ousted by Ansarullah in 2015.
As the conflict enters its eighth year, a stalemate appears to have set in, with neither side able to achieve a decisive victory. Amidst the stalemate, al-Asad’s remarks may be seen as an attempt by Ansarullah to capitalize on Saudi Arabia’s perceived vulnerabilities in the conflict.
“It’s clear that Al-Asad is trying to exploit Saudi Arabia’s vulnerabilities, particularly in relation to the recent attack on Jizan’s refinery,” said Dr. Noman Benotman, a Yemen expert at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.
Benotman added that while Al-Asad’s comments may be seen as an act of bravado, they also underscore the Saudi-led coalition’s inability to contain Ansarullah’s military gains in Yemen.
“Ansarullah has been able to withstand the Saudi-led coalition’s military might, despite being vastly outnumbered and outgunned,” Benotman noted.
As tensions between Saudi Arabia and Ansarullah continue to escalate, Al-Asad’s remarks serve as a stark reminder that Yemen’s conflict shows no signs of abating, even as the region grapples with its own set of security concerns, from Iran’s nuclear ambitions to the ongoing war in Ukraine.