Studies Center: Remaining influence of "Abu Awja" portends a battle in Wadi Hadramout
English - Wednesday 22 February 2023 الساعة 07:55 am
Aden, NewsYemen:
The Sana'a Center for Studies said that a cycle of political and military polarization over the fate of the first military zone is escalating in the Hadramout Valley, heralding a new round of combat battles between the Yemeni parties in the anti-Houthi camp.
In an analysis written by Majed Al-Madhaji, entitled (Wadi Hadramout: The Awaited Battle), the center saw that this renewed polarization constitutes an extension of sharp divisions that have been latent for some time between the Yemeni parties, which did not find a way to settle during the war.
The analysis said: "The expected clash in Seiyun can be described as a conflict over the last explicit northern areas of influence in the geography of southern Yemen, which the Southern Transitional Council seeks to bring under its control."
He added, "Most of the strength of the military force of the first region is made up of individuals, most of whom come from northern Yemen, as there are families of soldiers and other northern families in Seiyun, whose members have been working in the trade or service sector since 2015."
He pointed out that despite the affiliation of the commander of the first military region, Major General Saleh Muhammad Timis, to the southern governorate of Abyan, Yahya Muhammad Abu Awja (who hails from Amran governorate) was until recently the pillars of the region's war and its actual commander, and he is considered the most prominent symbol of northern control that he is condemned by the parties Southern and Hadrami.
He added, "From this standpoint, the decision of the President of the Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, came in December to replace him with a Hadrami military figure, "Amer bin Hatyan" from the second military region (based in Mukalla on the coast of Hadramout) as an attempt to ease tensions and absorb pressures calling for structural changes in the Hadramout Valley.
He added, however, by saying: "However, Al-Alimi kept Abu Awja's position as commander of the strong 135th Armored Brigade within the framework of the military zone, a step that was not welcomed by the Transitional Council, which was dissatisfied with the continued influence of Abu Awja."
He stated that "the pressure exerted to make more changes in the first military region represents a major challenge for the Islah Party, the local branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, given that northern Hadhramaut is its explicit influence and a geographical extension of its stronghold in the city of Ma'rib."
He believed that "the control of anti-Brotherhood parties over Wadi Hadramout" would mean the completion of the Islah siege in Marib, with the STC taking control of Shabwa, south of Marib, and the Houthi forces stationed on the front lines west of the city of Marib.
On the other hand, the analysis indicated that the situation in the Hadramout Valley fuels division within the Presidential Leadership Council and undermines the ability to reduce tensions among its members.
