Oman .. A new lung that Houthis breathe Iranian weapons
English - Monday 22 July 2019 الساعة 08:12 am
Aden – NewsYemen.net
The Yemeni army and security forces, periodically seize smuggled weapons in food shipments believed to be coming from the Sultanate of Oman via the port of Sarfeet, linking the province of Al-Mahra to the Sultanate
Sources point out that some shipments were passed through the port of "Shahin" in Al-Mahra, as a result of weak security measures, but some were seized in areas controlled by the government on its way to the Houthis
Earlier reports confirmed that the coast of Shabwa province, passing through Baihan, has become one of the most important supply arteries for the Houthis, because it is difficult to control this open coast on the ocean by the Arab Coalition forces, in contrast to the Red Sea
According to US reports, Iran has used its good relations with Oman to increase the amount of smuggled weapons to the Houthis, and some of may have been used to attack ships in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea
US officials have recently acknowledged that Iran has stepped up arms transfers to the Houthis, and that much of the smuggling has been through the Sultanate of Oman, including through land routes to exploit the border gaps between them and Yemen
But US officials did not accuse Oman of participating in arms transfer, but that the Omani authorities turn a blind eye to infiltrations and smuggling
The officials did not rule out Houthi's sophisticated missiles through recent smuggling operations which have recently doubled, including the missiles that targeted the US destroyer near the Strait of Bab El-Mandeb in 2016, as well as SAM anti-aircraft missiles found by the Yemeni Army in in Sa'ada Governorate
Arranged Intrigues
After excluding Doha from the Arab Coalition, the Qatari regime has used various malicious ploys to destabilize the liberated areas and distort the role of the Coalition at the same time by stirring sleeping cells in Al-Mahra and supporting those cells through the Omani authorities, whose complicity has become explicit
The Yemeni government along with the Arab Coalition, have tried to stabilize the security situation in Al-Mahra and to disrupt the movement of smuggling of Iranian weapons through Muscat, but Oman and Qatar have made the opposite movements by supporting their agenda in the province and recruiting some tribes and dignitaries by granting them Omani nationality
Qatar is behind these suspicious acts from early and these agendas are implemented by Oman
Public Complicity
The role of the Oman has not only limited in granting citizenship to the tribes of Al-Mahra and turn them into papers of conflict, but has also - since the start of the Decisive Storm begun in 2015 - facilitated its Waterways and land borders to smuggle Iranian weapons to the Houthi group in Yemen
Earlier, Reuters quoted US and Western officials accusing Oman of turning its territory into an Iranian arms crossing to Yemen, as well as playing an intermediary role with the Houthis in the negotiations with the Yemeni government before turning into a new suburb of the Houthi leaders' retreat and a transit station between Sanaa and Tehran
Hidden Agendas
Observers say that Qatar and Oman's interventions in Al-Mahra threaten the security of the region in general and serve the interests of Iran and its militias in Yemen
They assert that the most prominent goal of Qatar and Oman in Al-Mahra is to thwart the project of the passage of the Saudi oil pipeline in the province of Al-Mahra and the establishment of a joint oil port in the eastern coasts of the province
Observers believe that the attempts of Qatar and Oman to block the joint oil project between Yemen and Saudi Arabia, through the spread of chaos and the attempt to detonate a civil conflict in Al-Mahra is directly in the interest of Iran, and affects Yemen and the Gulf, including Qatar and Oman themselves
Suspicious Movements
"Al Arab" newspaper quoted Yemeni political sources, monitored the suspicious movements by elements of the Muscat's cell, which is overseen by intelligence officers and the Omani and Qata
ri to raise the level of security tension in the province of Al-Mahra on the Yemeni-Omani border and push the situation towards the clash between insurgents supported by Muscat and Doha and the Authority in the province, which receives support from the Arab Coalition
According to the newspaper, Al-Mahra has witnessed a recent increase in the flow of elements from outside the province, brought by the Brotherhood leader based in Muscat Hamoud Al-Makhlafi and a number of loyalists to Oman, where these elements participate in demonstrations led by Ali Salem Al-Harizi, who leads the protests against the Arab Coalition in Al-Mahra
Human Dolls
Muscat has used its old influence in Al-Mahra to incite the Saudi forces stationed in the governorate in coordination with the government. A committee called the "Peaceful Al-Mahra sit-in" is organizing the protests and financed by Oman and Qatar
According to the Saudi government, the presence of its forces comes at the request of the Yemeni government and to develop the province and reduce the smuggling of arms and drugs
Call to leave the conflict
Rushdi Mu'aily, director general of media and public relations in Al-Mahra, urged the political parties to live in solidarity and convergence and to give priority to the provice's interests
Mu'aily told "Al Arab" newspaper, that those who support the legitimacy of Hadi should not be hostile to the forces of the Arab Coalition, which was credited with repelling the Iranian Houthi tide in Yemen
