Houthi militias side by side with their Republican Guard ally have imposed mandatory recruitment across several districts in Tihamah. They are threatening citizens, forcing them to undertake military training, logging over 72 hours, in preparation for their dispatch to frontiers. Houthi militias are planning for the recruits to fight under a slogan called “the day of the horn”.
Recruitment is mainly focused on the sons of the southern region of Al Hudaydah Governorate: ad Durayhimi district, al zraniq district, and Bayt al-Faqih district. They also targeted areas were they dominate, and have promised all those who stand down from recruitment and fulfilling their war duty to face imprisonment and payment of fines for backing down.
Intimidation is forcing people to abandon their homes and families in fear of being immediately put to death in case they refused to fight under Houthi calling.
Coincidently, the Popular Resistance launched a series of attacks on Houthi headquarters and training centers, inflicting mass damage, in a response opposing the oppression citizens are being forced to and the compulsory militant recruitment they are being subjected to.
The Resistance also went after militia members at one of the checkpoints in Al Hudaydah, according to a media office in Tihamah.
Popular Resistance forces in Tihama have promised a striking response against militants for all the consequent violations they have been committing. Houthi militia had agitated the Popular Resistance by their constant kidnap of children beneath 15 years of age and chucking them into battle fronts.
The resistance also tackled down a Houthi headquarters in Tihama, in addition to bombarding governmental directorates that were transformed into barracks overrun with militants. The militants had taken advantage of governmental facilities in hopes of diverting the attention of Arabian coalition’s air forces.
A military source told Asharq Al-Awsat that Yemen’s national army monitors all military militia movements in regions under their jurisdiction. They send back information to higher military leaderships, so that militant action is dealt with and orders are issued according to the approved military plan and in coordination with the Arabian coalition forces.
Crimes committed by Houthi militias surpass all international customs. It is particularly incriminating to insert citizens and minors in local battles between conflicting parties, sources pointed out.
Laws are set for the protection of civilians from military operations, however, Houthi militias and supporters of the ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh have no regard to local or international conventions when it comes down to recruitment.
Popular Resistance forces have entrapped a governmental buildingin the Dhamar Governorate, which had previously fallen into the militant dominance. The resistance established checkpoints across security exits and mountainous areas surrounding the building, in case of any unpredictable movement and for the confrontation to those militants escaping battlefronts. All these efforts came after fierce clashes the Popular Resistance led last August, in which they resulted in the ejecting militia and Saleh supporters from several zones.
As for the battlefield in Taiz , Sadam al- Haribi, media Popular Resistance Spokesman, said that there are three running fronts at the moment : al-Ghomayta front, al-Shareej front , and al-Hifaan front. The Popular Resistance is trying, by winning those fronts, to gain access to al- Rahidah city and later head towards al-Hobaan. He pointed out the remarkable advance in the resistance’s progress, at al-Hifaan front. They seized three main mountains and are currently undertaking aggressive battles at al-Hitari Mountain. Should they get hold of al-Hitari, they will evidently be winning over al-A’abous region.
Collaborative effort put by the Popular Resistance yielded in rising victorious over several fronts and taking down of tens of militants. However, Yemen’s national army has transferred bodies of killed militants to secure areas, in a notion of respect for the dead. Alternatively, Houthi militants are notorious for acts of corpse disfiguration, Spokesman al-Haribi added.
West of Yemen, specifically at al-Haseeb, the Popular Resistance reached 4 kilometers deep into the zone. The slowed advancement can be referred to several reasons, one of which is the presence of civilian neighborhoods, Spokesman al-Haribi explained. Building rooftops are infested with militant snipers, in addition to Houthis usage of heavy-weight artillery against civil residential areas, he added.