Yemen Crisis/Conflict & the "Decisive Storm" Coalition

delft said:

WaPo doubts whether Saudi Arabia can exit this war without losing:

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Yemen is turning into Saudi Arabia’s Vietnam

And sees this war weakening Saudi's position in Syria.
What will this mean for US support?

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WASHINGTON — The

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has secretly dispatched hundreds of Colombian mercenaries to

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to fight in that country’s raging conflict, adding a volatile new element in a complex proxy war that has drawn in the United States and Iran.

It is the first combat deployment for a foreign army that the Emirates has quietly built in the desert over the past five years, according to several people currently or formerly involved with the project. The program was once managed by a

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, the founder of Blackwater Worldwide, but the people involved in the effort said that his role ended several years ago and that it has since been run by the Emirati military.

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delft said:

In Asia Times I found this article:

But also it contains the picture of a sinking war ship. Marine Forum Daily News published half a dozen claims by the Houthis of sinking of Saudi warships and each time it said it didn't believe it. Can anyone identify this one?

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Article said:

Yemen’s army and Ansarullah fighters sink a Saudi warship in Ta’iz province on Dec. 5 in waters off Yemen

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By Awad Mustafa12:13 p.m. EST December 14, 2015

DUBAI — One hundred and fifty-two coalition soldiers are feared dead after a short range ballistic missile strike hit a coalition base at the strategic Bab al-Mandab region in the south, a coalition source told Defense News.

Among the dead in the attack, which took place Monday afternoon, was the commander of the Saudi Special Forces, Col. Abdullah Al Sahyan, the source confirmed.

"So far, nine Emirati soldiers, seven Moroccans and 23 Saudis have been identified," the source added.

The missile strike was conducted by OTR-21 Tochka mobile missile launch system for short range ballistic missiles, the source said.

The strike comes as Yemen's internationally recognized government and Houthi rebels, who have controlled the capital Sanaa since September last year, agreed to start a weeklong ceasefire on the eve of direct talks in Geneva, both sides confirmed.

"The Houthis fired a long-range missile at a secret headquarters of the pro-government military leadership close to the strategic strait of Bab al-Mandab, killing more than 100 men of the coalition," said Shehab Al Makahleh, a political analyst and director of Geostrategic Media Middle East.

"The launch of a Tochka missile on a military base in south west of Yemen by al-Mandab Strait aims to shift the political scene, which the coalition had been trying to achieve for more than 8 months, which culminated in expected ceasefire tonight before Geneva talks," he said.

The strike proves that the Houthi rebels in Yemen have improved intelligence capabilities, Makahleh added.

"Two other missiles were also launched yesterday and today on Jizan, which led the Saudis to send more troops to the borders with Yemen," he added.

President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi was due to order his commanders to halt all fire five minutes before midnight on Monday, said officials in Hadi's office.

"We have agreed to the ceasefire to lift the suffering of our people and to deliver humanitarian assistance to them," Mohammed Abdel Salam, the spokesman of the Houthis, said Dec. 12 at a news conference in Sanaa as the Houthi delegation prepared to depart for Geneva.

The internationally recognised government has long requested the unconditional implementation of a UN Security Council resolution that requires the rebels to withdraw from all areas they control and lay down arms captured in months of fighting.

Abdel Salam said the Houthi delegation will discuss the resolution at the talks in Geneva, which were due to begin on Monday. But so far the Houthis have not said they would agree to its terms.

The Security Council approved the resolution in April, after the Saudi-led coalition began launching airstrikes in March against the Houthi rebels in support of Hadi's government.

Even with the approaching ceasefire, clashes intensified across several front lines in the country.

More than 27 fighters from both sides were killed in Taiz and Lahj provinces late on Friday and Saturday, while 16 pro-government fighters and 10 Houthi fighters were killed in Jawf province, according to independent security officials.

The Saudi-led coalition also continued to carry out airstrikes against Houthi positions, according to the officials.

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Zool said:

Major strike by Yemen Forces against the Saudi Coalition is now being reported:

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