Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement sent experts to train Yemen’s Houthi rebels in the assembly and launch of ballistic missiles and drones from Sanaa's international airport, the Saudi Arabia-led coalition supporting the internationally recognised Yemeni government said on Sunday.
The Arab coalition presented photos and video to back its claim during an extensive press briefing in Riyadh.
The exhibits included images showing Hezbollah members training Houthi militants on the assembly of explosive-laden drones and satellite images of the airport, which it said was being used to launch attacks on Saudi Arabia.
“The terrorist organisation Hezbollah has spread destruction in the region and around the world, and it bears responsibility for targeting civilians in Saudi Arabia and in Yemen,” Brig Gen Turki Al Malki, the Arab coalition spokesman, said.
In a video clip shown at the briefing, a man identified as Hezbollah commander speaks to Abu Ali Al Hakim, the Houthi head of intelligence and fifth on the coalition’s list of most-wanted rebel figures.
They are heard discussing the rebels' battle to retain control of the vital Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, gateway for the bulk of imports and aid to Yemen. The rebels agreed to a UN-mediated truce and to cede control of the port after a coalition-backed government assault in 2018, but never honoured their commitment.
The Syrian war is about to end, and most of the mujahideen will come to Yemen
Hezbollah commander
“When your retreats increased from the battlefronts and the aggression reached Hodeidah airport, this is for you before the aggression. This happened because of the disputes that occurred. If the United Nations had not resisted the sedition, Hodeidah would have fallen from us,” the Hezbollah commander tells Al Hakim.
“Our project is bigger than these disputes. We left everything and came to stand with you. The Syrian war is about to end, and most of the mujahideen will come to Yemen. If we lose the sea, we will not get any support and the mujahideen will not get it [the support]. We want a large crowd of mujahideen. We want to organise our ranks to prevent the fall of Hodeidah."
Both Hezbollah and the Houthi rebels are aligned with Iran, which is accused by its Arab neighbours of meddling in the internal affairs of other states in the region.
Brig Gen Al Malki said the war in Yemen was “intellectual, social and sectarian in nature" as was the case in Lebanon.
“The Iranian regime supports its proxies in the region with activities that led to destruction and devastation. The Houthi militia has adopted sectarian ideology from Iran and have rejected all UN efforts to resolve the crisis politically,” he said.
The Houthi militia has adopted sectarian ideology from Iran and have rejected all UN efforts to resolve the crisis politically
Brig Gen Turki Al Malki,
Arab coalition spokesman
Hezbollah has been designated as a terrorist group by the United States and several European countries, although some countries have been reluctant to sanction the group’s political wing, fearing it could destabilise Lebanon and hamper contacts with authorities.
In November, the coalition released footage showing the use of Sanaa International Airport as a military base to conduct experiments and tests of air defence systems. The videos also showed how hangars at the airport had been converted into a base where missiles were being manufactured under the supervision of “foreign experts”.
Sharp rise in attacks
The press briefing came a day after two people died and seven were injured in a Houthi missile attack on the southern Saudi Arabian city of Jizan. The fatalities were a Saudi citizen and a Yemeni resident, the Saudi Press Agency and other media reported.
Civil Defence teams sent to the scene discovered “a military projectile” had fallen on a shop.
The coalition said earlier on Sunday that it had destroyed weapons warehouses at a Houthi rebel camp in Sanaa, as it intensifies an aerial bombing campaign against the rebels.
“The operation in Sanaa was an immediate response to an attempt to transfer weapons from Al Tashrifat camp in Sanaa,” it said.
A report published last week by the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said that Iran’s Quds force – the overseas operations wing of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – and Hezbollah have played a “critical role in providing weapons, technology, training and other assistance to the Yemen-based Houthis”.
“Not only has there been a rise in the number of attacks against Saudi Arabia over the past year, but Iran and Lebanese Hezbollah continue to provide the Houthis with increasingly sophisticated weapons systems,” the CSIS report said.
The coalition said on Sunday that the Houthis had launched 430 ballistic missiles, 851 drones and 100 explosive-laden boats targeting Saudi Arabia since 2015. The rebels have also endangered maritime navigation with more than 247 naval mines.
Recent Houthi attacks have been condemned by the French and US embassies in Saudi Arabia, as well as the kingdom’s Gulf Arab allies.
“Houthi attacks are perpetuating the conflict, prolonging the suffering of the Yemeni people, and endangering the Saudi people alongside more than 70,000 US citizens residing in Saudi Arabia,” the US embassy said on Saturday.
French ambassador Ludovic Pouille offered condolences on Twitter to the families of the victims of what he called the “barbaric Houthi attack”.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The Energy Research Centre
Founded 50 years ago as a nuclear research institute, scientists at the centre believed nuclear would be the “solution for everything”.
Although they still do, they discovered in 1955 that the Netherlands had a lot of natural gas. “We still had the idea that, by 2000, it would all be nuclear,” said Harm Jeeninga, director of business and programme development at the centre.
"In the 1990s, we found out about global warming so we focused on energy savings and tackling the greenhouse gas effect.”
The energy centre’s research focuses on biomass, energy efficiency, the environment, wind and solar, as well as energy engineering and socio-economic research.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Dates for the diary
To mark Bodytree’s 10th anniversary, the coming season will be filled with celebratory activities:
- September 21 Anyone interested in becoming a certified yoga instructor can sign up for a 250-hour course in Yoga Teacher Training with Jacquelene Sadek. It begins on September 21 and will take place over the course of six weekends.
- October 18 to 21 International yoga instructor, Yogi Nora, will be visiting Bodytree and offering classes.
- October 26 to November 4 International pilates instructor Courtney Miller will be on hand at the studio, offering classes.
- November 9 Bodytree is hosting a party to celebrate turning 10, and everyone is invited. Expect a day full of free classes on the grounds of the studio.
- December 11 Yogeswari, an advanced certified Jivamukti teacher, will be visiting the studio.
- February 2, 2018 Bodytree will host its 4th annual yoga market.
The specs: 2018 Infiniti QX80
Price: base / as tested: Dh335,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 400hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.1L / 100km
UAE%20ILT20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMarquee%20players%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EMoeen%20Ali%2C%20Andre%20Russell%2C%20Dawid%20Malan%2C%20Wanindu%20Hasiranga%2C%20Sunil%20Narine%2C%20Evin%20Lewis%2C%20Colin%20Munro%2C%20Fabien%20Allen%2C%20Sam%20Billings%2C%20Tom%20Curran%2C%20Alex%20Hales%2C%20Dushmantha%20Chameera%2C%20Shimron%20Hetmyer%2C%20Akeal%20Hosein%2C%20Chris%20Jordan%2C%20Tom%20Banton%2C%20Sandeep%20Lamichhane%2C%20Chris%20Lynn%2C%20Rovman%20Powell%2C%20Bhanuka%20Rajapaksa%2C%20Mujeeb%20Ul%20Rahman%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInternational%20players%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3ELahiru%20Kumara%2C%20Seekugge%20Prassanna%2C%20Charith%20Asalanka%2C%20Colin%20Ingram%2C%20Paul%20Stirling%2C%20Kennar%20Lewis%2C%20Ali%20Khan%2C%20Brandon%20Glover%2C%20Ravi%20Rampaul%2C%20Raymon%20Reifer%2C%20Isuru%20Udana%2C%20Blessing%20Muzarabani%2C%20Niroshan%20Dickwella%2C%20Hazaratullah%20Zazai%2C%20Frederick%20Klassen%2C%20Sikandar%20Raja%2C%20George%20Munsey%2C%20Dan%20Lawrence%2C%20Dominic%20Drakes%2C%20Jamie%20Overton%2C%20Liam%20Dawson%2C%20David%20Wiese%2C%20Qais%20Ahmed%2C%20Richard%20Gleeson%2C%20James%20Vince%2C%20Noor%20Ahmed%2C%20Rahmanullah%20Gurbaz%2C%20Navin%20Ul%20Haq%2C%20Sherfane%20Rutherford%2C%20Saqib%20Mahmood%2C%20Ben%20Duckett%2C%20Benny%20Howell%2C%20Ruben%20Trumpelman%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Zayed Sustainability Prize
