Yemen, south reaches fragile calm, Hadramout to be handed over to local security personnel

Yemen, south reaches fragile calm, Hadramout to be handed over to local security personnel

Gli scontri nell'Hadramout e negli altri governatorati meridionali sono diminuiti ultimamente dopo numerose proteste e scontri tra residenti armati e l'esercito. Il governo di Hadramout ha accettato di trasferire al personale locale gran parte delle funzioni legate alla sicurezza a partire dal prossimo mese di gennaio, su richiesta delle tribù della zona.

“There is a preliminary agreement with the tribesmen that the maintenance of security is the top priority…. Over four [government] security checkpoints have been withdrawn based on the requests of tribesmen,” said Gen. Ali Nasser Lakhsha, the deputy interior minister and a member of the committee formed by President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi to negotiate with tribes in Hadramout.

 “We have distributed a number of security personnel in many districts of the governorate to maintain security. This was done in agreement with the tribes,” he said.

“The Interior Ministry will present a list of the security personnel belonging to the governorate to the governor. The lists will be distributed to the general managers of the districts. The general manager of each district, who is a resident of the same district, will be mainly responsible for security,” he added, saying dialogue with the tribes is ongoing and that any changes the government concedes to will be gradually implemented.

The Hadramout Tribal Federation, which is placing the demands on the government, say they will cooperate, provided they see tangible results.

 “We will not agree [completely with the government] unless the military camps are evacuated, the security checkpoints are manned by local police, and jobs are transferred to Hadramout residents,” said Saleh Molla, a spokesperson for the federation. He confirmed that several checkpoints had been handed over to local control. 

“We have ended the strike, but we may go on strike again,” he added.

While Lakhsha denied reports that the government had used military planes in the fighting that took place in Hadramout over the weekend a local journalist, Hadba Al-Yazidi, said he witnessed several aerial strikes.

The root of the mass protests can be traced back to early December when Sheikh Sa’ad Bin Hamad Harbish was shot dead at the entrance to the city of Sayoun by checkpoint soldiers. The sheikh reportedly refused to stop at a routine checkpoint when soldiers asked to inspect the convoy he was travelling with for weapons. Following the sheikh’s death, the Hadramout Tribal Federation almost immediately demanded that all government forces be removed from the area.

Source Yemen Times