Yemen’s President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi has fled the country on a boat from the southern port city of Aden, according to The Associated Press, which cited Yemeni security and port officials.
The news service says Houthi rebels have captured the city’s airport, and that Aden, the country’s economic hub, could soon fall. The Shiite rebels captured the capital city, Sanaa, in September and have swiftly advanced toward Aden, where Hadi encamped after being pushed from power.
Rebels also reportedly were battling pro-government security forces guarding the president’s palace in Aden, and seized an airbase that was critical to U.S. drone operations against al-Qaida.
On Tuesday, Hadi appealed to the U.N. Security Council to authorize a military intervention to prevent Yemen from “sliding into more chaos and destruction,” according to the Guardian.
Reuters news agency reports that Saudi Arabia is moving heavy military equipment, including artillery, to its border with Yemen. Saudi Arabia says the buildup at the border is purely defensive.
Gregory Johnsen, a Yemen expert with Buzzfeed, tells NPR’s Michele Kelemen that Saudi Arabia is sabre rattling, and that it would be a huge miscalculation if it sends troops into Yemen.
Johnsen, the author of The Last Refuge: Yemen, al-Qaeda, and America’s War in Arabia, says the increasing chaos in Yemen could spill over into the region, especially between Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran, which Johnsen says is providing aid Houthi rebels.
“What we’re seeing are regional rivalries, particularly between Saudi Arabia and Iran are being grafted on to this local domestic conflict.” Johnsen says when you put all the different elements together, it’s a “witch’s brew”.
The ongoing volatile political and security situation has forced the U.S. to pull all its remaining personnel — civilian, military and intelligence — out of the country. The move could have an impact on U.S counter-terrorism efforts against al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, considered one of the most dangerous offshoots of the terror group.
