Yemen’s Houthi Produce Winged Ballistic Missiles; IDF Uncovers Attack Tunnel; UAE Withdraws Troops from Yemen

By TOC On Jul 9, 2019

PANAGYURISHTE, (BM) – Your briefly report on July 09 in last 12 hours from BulgarianMilitary.com:

Yemen’s Houthis manufacture new ballistic missiles, drones

Yemen’s Houthi group has announced that it has locally produced ballistic missiles and drones to use in attacks against Saudi targets, MEMO reported.

Mahdi Al-Mashat, head of the Houthi-run Supreme Political Council, yesterday opened an exhibition of Yemeni military industries, which included ballistic and cruise missiles and new drones made in the country, according to the Houthi-run SABA news agency.

“The new Yemeni weapons called Winged Ballistic Missile Quds-1, Sammad-3 Drone, Qasif 2k Drone and Sammad-1 Reconnaissance Drone,” the agency added, “will enhance the Yemeni military capabilities and will change the course of battle against the countries of the aggression.”

A military spokesman for the Houthi group had said days ago that new missile and drones would soon be used in the group’s military operations.

The Saudi-led coalition has been fighting Houthis in Yemen since 2015 with the aim of re-instating the internationally-recognised government that the Houthis ousted from power in a coup in Sanaa in late 2014.

IDF uncovers cross-border attack tunnel from southern Gaza

The military on Monday uncovered a cross-border attack tunnel that entered Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip, five years after the start of a 2014 operation aimed at finding and destroying such passages, the Times of Israel reported.

The tunnel was found during the construction of an underground barrier around the coastal enclave, the Israel Defense Forces said.

It was not immediately clear if the tunnel uncovered on Monday was newly dug or an older passage that had not yet been found by the IDF.

“At this time, IDF soldiers are conducting an investigation of the passage. More information will be provided shortly,” the army said in a statement on Monday night.

A spokesperson for the Eshkol region, in which the tunnel was found, said the local government was in contact with the military about the matter.

“The tunnel does not represent a threat and it is being taken care of by the IDF,” the regional council said in a message to residents.

Yemen: UAE withdraws troops from Al Hudaydah after months of fierce battles

The UAE declared on Monday its intention to “start reducing the number of its troops in several areas in Yemen,” MEMO reported.

The UAE’s decision does not mean an end to its participation in the war on Yemen, which has been going on since 2015 and has caused dozens of casualties. The crimes committed in Yemen have received increasing international condemnation and calls to stop arms sales to the UAE and its Saudi ally in both Europe and the United States.

The official attributed the decision to a “redeployment” plan adopted by the UAE for “strategic and tactical reasons”, adding that Abu Dhabi is moving from a “military force strategy” to prioritising a “peace plan” in Yemen.

Emirati official news agency or the UAE-owned media have not reported the news.

The UAE official indicated in an interview with reporters in Dubai, on condition of anonymity, that: “there has been a reduction of armed forces in Al Hudaydah (west of Yemen) for strategic reasons and in other areas for tactical reasons”. Thus, for more than a year, the UAE has failed to control Al Hudaydah, while the Houthis are still monitoring the city’s strategic port despite the fierce battles taking place in the area.

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BulgarianMilitary.com
Editorial team
Source: MEMO, The Times of Israel