A brief press conference in Mehr News Agency brought Mohammad al-Bakhiti member of Ansarullah movement political office and Sheikh Abdul Salam Wajih, a member of Zaidi Council of the Scholars to the spotlight and with it the current Yemeni crisis where Saudi-led coalition has been engaged with disasterous results to Yemeni infrastructure and has beset the country with chaos and devastation. To the conference Press TV, IRIB’s international network Sahar, and Iraqi Al-Iraqiya TV contributed.
Sheikh Wajih was first to address the presser and believed that the atrocities against Yemenis were not justified by any human rationality; “Zionists, Saudis, and the US are accomplice in this onslaught, however, Yemen will be their cemetery,” he added. “During past 9 months of the strikes by Saudi-led coalition, Yemeni infrastructures were destroyed, hospitals, schools and other public venues were targeted, killing thousands and rendering thousands more wounded.”
Wajih however believed that despite the attacks, Yemen had been unfazed and “will break the horn of the devil".
On the question of the future of Yemen, he said that the coalition was totally mislead in its calculation of taking the whole Yemen over; “however, the ultimate victor will be Yemenis and the occupier forces will concede humiliating defeat. We are now stronger and more united than before and see the future very bright despite thousands of bombs detonating, hitting the cities and devastating everywhere,” said he with a glimmer of hope on his eyes.
Mohammad al-Bakhiti was the second to answer questions. “About Al-Qaeda, I should say that Al-Qaeda in Yemen has a quite different situation compared to that in other countries. In Yemen, people have succeeded in trap Al-Qaeda in a siege. The group was in the brink of internal collapse just before the crisis; however, they took the opportunity for granted when the movement drew the battle to north of the country and into Saudi territories, taking the vacuum in the south hence created,” he told reporters.
“Public Committees and the army are not responsible for fighting Al-Qaeda, however; the southerners should also contribute to the fight against the group as well; the conditions on the grounds goes favorable to public committees, since the battle has been drawn to Saudi territories and we hasted to the fronts with Ballistic missiles now to dishearten Saudis further. This will force Saudis to a retreat to bring a balance of forces in frontlines,” he detailed.
Wajih rejoined the discussion with his commentary on Al-Qaeda; “despite the propaganda bubble which is called Al-Qaeda of Yemen, I would say that the group systematically suffers any position in the south, since the majority Shafi'is do not back Takfirist sentiments; Saudi Arabia has poured billions of dollars into Yemen, but Zaidis and Shafi'is yet live in peaceful symbiosis,” he said.
On UN Resolution 2216 on Yemeni crisis, Al-Bakhiti believed that the resolution would no longer provide a criterion for Ansarullah to engage in negotiations; “we know that international efforts have sought to bring a consensus to warring factions; we reached at a 7-article accord, and announced that anything in odds with Yemeni sovereignty will be opposed fiercely; the UN resolution is biased and justifies strikes on Yemen, effectively denying the right to defend for Yemeni people and violating the sovereignty. However, we believe only result of the battle will bring the outcome to situation, not the resolution, ” al-Bakhiti emphasized.
Ansarulllah had been accused of undermining the political process in Yemen, only resorting to war to solve the struggle for power. This was a question to which al-Bakhiti responded that Ansarullah advocated president election and a new government after Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi had resigned, however, Saudi-backed parties prevented any political solution; some form of accord yet was accessible when it was abandoned with battle set in.
“Now, with over 9 months since the war, Saudi-backed parties would not recognize any solution. Instead, they bring forth their own version; an example of solution would demand that Ansarullah retreat from Yemeni cities, Mansur Hadi return, and war be stopped for 7 days; if we recognized this conditions, which would bring Hadi to power, there would be no need to further negotations; however, we hit some success which drew the war into Saudi soil,” he detailed. “Parties backing Mansur Hadi demand he return to his position as president, but they would not give up grip on power as well. We believe that all parties should share power and all should participate in the cabinet, and advocate dialogue as a sole solution to the crisis,” he concluded.
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