Page 10 - ARUBA TODAY

A10 WORLD NEWS
Friday 16 august 2019
Thousands of Yemenis rally in support of separatists in Aden

AHMED AL-HAJ trol of his compound. Pho-
NOHA ELHENNAWY tos he sent to the AP show
Associated Press bullet marks on the walls of
SANAA, Yemen (AP) — his house and he urged the
Thousands of Yemenis ral- Hadi's government to pro-
lied Thursday in the port city tect his family.
of Aden in support of south- Late on Thursday the STC is-
ern separatists who seized sued a statement affirming
the city from the country's that its goal is to restore an
internationally recognized "autonomous state of the
government amid diplo- south." Both the separatists
matic efforts aimed at re- and Hadi's government are
instating forces loyal to the allies within a Saudi-led co-
Saudi-backed president. alition that has been fight-
Yemeni military officials ing northern Yemen-based
said a Saudi Arabia-United rebels, known as Houthis,
Arab Emirates commis- since 2015.
sion arrived to monitor the The UAE is a key member
withdrawal of separatist In this Friday Aug. 9, 2019 frame grab from video, Southern Transitional Council separatist fighters of the coalition. However,
forces from government line up to storm the presidential palace in the southern port city of Aden, Yemen. it never threw its full sup-
headquarters and military Associated Press port behind Hadi because
camps seized last week of his ties to Yemen's Muslim
from President Abel Rabbo government since 2014. All flights run by Yemeni documents. He said in an Brotherhood group, a pan-
Mansour Hadi's presidential The officials spoke on con- state-run airlines were di- interview via WhatsApp Arab movement that many
guards after four days of dition of anonymity as they verted from Aden to Say- that the fighters caused Arab countries, including
fighting that left more than were not authorized to brief oun, some 720 kilometers panic among his children UAE, consider to be a ter-
70 people dead, including the media. (450 miles) away, leaving when they opened fire on rorist organization.
civilians. But as their supporters Sayoun the only airport his house and some family After the UAE-backed
Officials in Hadi's camp said rallied, separatist forces under the control of Hadi's members were arrested. separatists seized control
that forces loyal to the so- waged a series of attacks government. Al-Qubati, a Hadi loyal- of Aden and kicked Hadi's
called Southern Transitional against Hadi's forces and A top Yemeni command- ist and commander of the forces out of their camps,
Council, which represents supporters, according to er, Mahran al-Qubati, told presidential guards, es- the Saudi-led coalition
the separatists, had with- government statements, The Associated Press that caped last week's armed ordered an immediate
drawn from the presiden- prompting the closure of UAE-backed forces raided assault targeting his bar- cease-fire and threatened
tial palace. Yet, they still some government agen- his compound in Aden's racks but was wounded to bomb the separatists if
remained in key positions cies, including the Interior Dar Saad district, assault- Thursday during fighting they did not return to posi-
in Aden, which has served and Foreign Affairs minis- ing family members and that ended with the UAE- tions they held before the
as the seat of Hadi's interim tries. taking computers and backed forces seizing con- fighting.q

Iraq takes security measures following mysterious blasts

By QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA Israel has struck Iranian bas- It said the directives ap-
Associated Press es in neighboring Syria on plied to "Iraqi and non-Iraqi
BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq on numerous occasions, and parties." Iraq hosts Ameri-
Thursday banned unau- there has been speculation can troops and forces be-
thorized flights and ordered that it might be expand- longing to the coalition
all military camps and mu- ing its campaign to target fighting the Islamic State
nitions warehouses to be Iranian bases to Iraq. How- group, which sometimes
moved outside Iraqi cities ever, neither the Iraqi gov- conduct operations and
following a massive explo- ernment nor Israel have ad- airstrikes in the country.
sion at a munitions depot dressed the reports. The statement urged all
southwest of Baghdad Iraqi Prime Minister Adel parties to abide by the di-
that killed one civilian and Abdul-Mahdi ordered a rectives, stating that any
wounded 13 earlier this "thorough investigation" other flight activity "will be
week. into the incident, ordering considered (an) enemy
The exact cause of Mon- the investigation be con- flight and dealt with from
day night's explosion at the cluded within a week. our air defenses immedi-
al-Saqr military base is still In this Monday, Aug. 12, 2019 photo, plumes of smoke rise after In a statement issued Thurs- ately."
unknown. The blast shook an explosion at a military base southwest of Baghdad, Iraq. day following a national se- The statement called for
the Iraqi capital and sent Associated Press curity meeting, Abdul-Mah- the transfer of warehouses
explosives and mortar shells di ordered the cancellation and camps belonging to
shooting into the sky, dam- group under the umbrella explosion at the base, also of all aviation approvals for the defense and interior
aging nearby homes and of the mainly Iran-backed known as Falcon Camp, on flights throughout the coun- ministries and the PMF and
terrifying residents who ran militias known as the Popu- faulty storage that caused try, unless authorized by the other factions that partici-
into the streets with their lar Mobilization Forces. The overheating amid typically commander of the armed pated in fighting IS to be
cellphones. Black smoke state-sanctioned PMF mili- high temperatures in Bagh- forces. The statement did moved outside the cities. It
billowed over the city for tias have fought alongside dad. But the blast has also not specify military or civil- said violators will be "con-
hours afterward. Iraq's regular armed forces given rise to a host of the- ian flights but specifically sidered an irregular pres-
The federal police base against the Islamic State ories, including that Israel cited reconnaissance, ence and dealt with in ac-
houses a weapons de- group. may have conducted an fighter jets and helicopters cordance with the law and
pot belonging to a militia Some officials blamed the airstrike. and drones of all kinds. order."q