For Pakistan: War drums just got louder at Yemen-Saudi border

[FaujHistorian]

News are in.
Houthis are doing what Hizbullah and Hammas and so many other Iran supported militants do around the region.

Fire Ketusha rockets into neighbors.

This and perhaps few more attacks like this will put more pressure on Pakistan to drop in 10,000 troops. In some ways we should have done this few months ago, and situation would not have come to this.

But perhaps just like here in FATA, Pakistanis dilly dallied for 10 years to face the obvious, we may remain indecisive in this case too.

Who knows.


Flights, schools suspended as Houthi mortars hit Najran | Arab News

Flights, schools suspended as Houthi mortars hit Najran


file-05-1429640365038032200.jpg

In this April 21, 2015 photo, Saudi soldiers prepare to fire artillery towards the border with Yemen in Najran, Saudi Arabia. (AP)

JEDDAH: MD AL-SULAMI

Published — Wednesday 6 May 2015

Last update 6 May 2015 12:13 am
| نسخة PDF Print News | A A
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Mortar shells and Katyusha missiles fired by Houthi rebels across the Yemeni border have hit a field hospital, school, cars and houses in the town of Najran, the Saudi-led coalition said on Tuesday.
Brig. Gen. Ahmed Assiri, coalition spokesman, said there were no casualties in the town. However, there were injuries reported at the field hospital.
Saudi Airlines has now suspended its operations to Najran until further notice. Director of Education in Najran Nasser Al-Manea visited the school affected by the shells, and later the department tweeted that the education minister had suspended all classes in the region. The department is now looking at ways to hold examinations.
“Air and ground forces will respond in the right way to these hazardous acts and will not allow them to be repeated,” Al-Assiri told Saudi TV.
The Saudi military had already deployed Apache combat helicopters to target the rebels in the border area.
He said that this type of attack had been expected, and was a reaction to attempts by the coalition to suspend military operations until humanitarian assistance could be delivered to the Yemeni people.
The Houthis had refused to abide by UN Resolution 2216 to lay down their arms, which showed that they have “no political program” and only intend to “kill for the sake of killing,” he said.
“I would like to reassure the citizens of Najran that the situation is under control, and ground troops and the Border Guard are now doing their job in dealing with the source of the fire and the elimination of those who dare to fire across the border. The Air Force will do its duties in this regard, and will not leave this matter to pass without a response.”
He said this is not a significant threat because the Saudi-Yemen border area is rugged mountainous terrain, “which allows for a few infiltrators with one mortar to cause losses at border posts.”
One shell fell on the house of a journalist in the city but did not cause any injury or loss of life. Another shell landed on a kindergarten school but the building was empty, a source said.
“No one was hurt when one of the mortars tore into a room on the second floor of the house of Saleh Al-Swan, the bureau chief of Al-Watan in Najran,” the source said. Al-Swan later said his family was safe.
Some of the mortars fell on open land, while others landed close to residential homes and caused slight damage to some cars and buildings, the source said.



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[RazorMC]

Pakistan has already said that we will step-in if Saudi integrity is threatened.
I guess the honorable thing to do would be to stick to our promise.

 

[Saif al-Arab]

Nothing to worry about dear. The Houthi terror cult is just desperate due to their many recent spankings so all they are capable of are sending some firecrackers into the nearby Najran Province. Nobody has been killed and the damage is small.

No need for Pakistan to be involved.

Saudi Arabian City of Najran Hit by Mortars
Houthis Say Local Yemeni Tribesmen Launched Attack in Coordination With Them​

This photo shows an army tank being transported, in the city of Najran, Saudi Arabia, near the border with Yemen on April 23. Mortars and long-range rockets struck the city on Tuesday. PHOTO: ASSOCIATED PRESS
​

By HAKIM ALMASMARI in San’a, Yemen, and
ASA FITCH in Dubai
Updated May 5, 2015 4:59 p.m. ET

Mortars and long-range rockets blasted cars and punched holes in buildings in the southern Saudi Arabian city of Najran on Tuesday, a Saudi official said, underscoring the threat posed to the nation’s territory by the instability across its southern border in Yemen.

The attack was the first significant offensive against a Saudi city since a Saudi-led campaign of airstrikes began in March againstYemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants.

A Saudi military official told state television that the Houthis were responsible, while three Houthi officials said local Yemeni tribesmen launched the attack in coordination with the Houthis. It wasn’t immediately clear who was responsible.

As the shelling intensified, Saudi authorities took emergency steps. They suspended all schools in Najran, after shelling struck a girls’ school and a hospital. State-owned carrier Saudi Arabian Airlines stopped all flights to and from the city’s airport until further notice.

Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri, a spokesman for the Saudi coalition, said there were some casualties at the hospital, but didn’t say how many, the official Saudi Press Agency reported. He vowed that the attack wouldn’t go unpunished, as part of an effort to keep the border secure.

“Such acts are expected and we will keep answering them with resolve,” he said.

The Saudi-Yemen border has been the site of frequent clashes since the air campaign began. Eleven Saudi soldiers have been killed along the border since March, including three last week. The northern Yemeni province of Saada, where the Houthis have a power base, lies just across the border from Najran and has been a frequent target ofthe Saudi air offensive.

Footage broadcast on state television from the city showed debris-strewn streets, destroyed cars and a blackened room in a building where one of the munitions hit.

The Saudi airstrikes aim to unseat the Houthis and restore the exiled president, Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi. Saudi Arabia is carrying out the strikes in conjunction with allies including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Egypt. The U.S. has provided intelligence and logistical support.

The Houthis, who hail mainly from northern Yemen, spread southward last year and took over the capital, San’a, in September. They took charge of the government this year, forcing Mr. Hadi to flee to Riyadh and prompting the Saudi-led strikes.

Yemen’s continuing conflict has sparked fears of a spillover into a wider sectarian confrontation pitting Saudi Arabia and its Sunni Muslim allies against Shiite-majority Iran. Iran supports the Houthis, who adhere to the Zaidi offshoot of Shiite Islam.

The latest figures from the World Health Organization put the death toll in Yemen since March 19 at 1,244. Unicef, the United Nations’ agency for children, put civilian deaths at more than 550—including 115 children—in April. About 300,000 people have had to leave their homes amid the crisis.

Amid the rising civilian toll, newly appointed Saudi Foreign MinisterAdel Al Jubeir said on Monday that the country was consulting with its allies about coordinated pauses in hostilities to deliver aid. Saudi Arabia previously pledged $274 million of humanitarian aid to the U.N.

Yemen, the poorest country in the Middle East, has faced shortages of fuel, food and clean water during more than a month of strikes. On Monday, a U.N. humanitarian official urged the Saudi coalition to stop targeting airports so aid could be delivered safely.

Officials from the Gulf Cooperation Council, a six-member bloc including Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E., Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, met in Riyadh on Tuesday to discuss Yemen and other regional issues. After the meeting, they said they welcomed Saudi Arabia’s efforts to deliver aid to Yemen, including a recent pledge to set up an aid-delivery center in Riyadh.

Saudi Arabian City of Najran Hit by Mortars - WSJ

 

[Mav3rick]

Perhaps, this gives GoP the 'requisite' reason for entry in the conflict. I am sure that Pakistan cannot sit idle if the Saudi border is threatened.........if only this love was a 2-way street.

 

[Hyperion]

Not our war. None of our business!

 

[FaujHistorian]

Nothing to worry about dear. The Houthi terror cult is just desperate due to their many recent spankings so all they are capable of are sending some firecrackers into the nearby Najran Province. Nobody has been killed and the damage is small.

No need for Pakistan to be involved.

Saudi Arabian City of Najran Hit by Mortars
Houthis Say Local Yemeni Tribesmen Launched Attack in Coordination With Them​

This photo shows an army tank being transported, in the city of Najran, Saudi Arabia, near the border with Yemen on April 23. Mortars and long-range rockets struck the city on Tuesday. PHOTO: ASSOCIATED PRESS
​

By HAKIM ALMASMARI in San’a, Yemen, and
ASA FITCH in Dubai
Updated May 5, 2015 4:59 p.m. ET

Mortars and long-range rockets blasted cars and punched holes in buildings in the southern Saudi Arabian city of Najran on Tuesday, a Saudi official said, underscoring the threat posed to the nation’s territory by the instability across its southern border in Yemen.

The attack was the first significant offensive against a Saudi city since a Saudi-led campaign of airstrikes began in March againstYemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants.

A Saudi military official told state television that the Houthis were responsible, while three Houthi officials said local Yemeni tribesmen launched the attack in coordination with the Houthis. It wasn’t immediately clear who was responsible.

As the shelling intensified, Saudi authorities took emergency steps. They suspended all schools in Najran, after shelling struck a girls’ school and a hospital. State-owned carrier Saudi Arabian Airlines stopped all flights to and from the city’s airport until further notice.

Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri, a spokesman for the Saudi coalition, said there were some casualties at the hospital, but didn’t say how many, the official Saudi Press Agency reported. He vowed that the attack wouldn’t go unpunished, as part of an effort to keep the border secure.

“Such acts are expected and we will keep answering them with resolve,” he said.

The Saudi-Yemen border has been the site of frequent clashes since the air campaign began. Eleven Saudi soldiers have been killed along the border since March, including three last week. The northern Yemeni province of Saada, where the Houthis have a power base, lies just across the border from Najran and has been a frequent target ofthe Saudi air offensive.

Footage broadcast on state television from the city showed debris-strewn streets, destroyed cars and a blackened room in a building where one of the munitions hit.

The Saudi airstrikes aim to unseat the Houthis and restore the exiled president, Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi. Saudi Arabia is carrying out the strikes in conjunction with allies including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Egypt. The U.S. has provided intelligence and logistical support.

The Houthis, who hail mainly from northern Yemen, spread southward last year and took over the capital, San’a, in September. They took charge of the government this year, forcing Mr. Hadi to flee to Riyadh and prompting the Saudi-led strikes.

Yemen’s continuing conflict has sparked fears of a spillover into a wider sectarian confrontation pitting Saudi Arabia and its Sunni Muslim allies against Shiite-majority Iran. Iran supports the Houthis, who adhere to the Zaidi offshoot of Shiite Islam.

The latest figures from the World Health Organization put the death toll in Yemen since March 19 at 1,244. Unicef, the United Nations’ agency for children, put civilian deaths at more than 550—including 115 children—in April. About 300,000 people have had to leave their homes amid the crisis.

Amid the rising civilian toll, newly appointed Saudi Foreign MinisterAdel Al Jubeir said on Monday that the country was consulting with its allies about coordinated pauses in hostilities to deliver aid. Saudi Arabia previously pledged $274 million of humanitarian aid to the U.N.

Yemen, the poorest country in the Middle East, has faced shortages of fuel, food and clean water during more than a month of strikes. On Monday, a U.N. humanitarian official urged the Saudi coalition to stop targeting airports so aid could be delivered safely.

Officials from the Gulf Cooperation Council, a six-member bloc including Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E., Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman, met in Riyadh on Tuesday to discuss Yemen and other regional issues. After the meeting, they said they welcomed Saudi Arabia’s efforts to deliver aid to Yemen, including a recent pledge to set up an aid-delivery center in Riyadh.

Saudi Arabian City of Najran Hit by Mortars - WSJ

I sure hope it is true what you say.

Believe me, air campaign alone will never work in Yemen. There will be long stalemate with constant anarchy. And it will impact KSA.

I say this based on many many many many similar examples.

I believe King Sulman took the right step and took swift action.

But it must be followed with ground campaign. Pakistani parliament is just one small section of our government. Please do not take their speeches as the final say of ALL of Pakistan. We are with KSA at this hour of need.

Remember this.

If your neighbors house is on fire, it will impact your house too. And the longer the fire burns, the worst the impact.

peace

 

[Kompromat]

Not our war. None of our business!

I am just surprised why Faujhistorian wants to get involved in Yemen so bad.

 

[Falcon29]

Hamas fires rockets(at bases and in response) after the illegally squating fanatical occupying evil creed of Zionism fires hundreds of advanced high explosive missiles at homes, hospitals , children on beaches , medicine storages, etc....and it's 110% justified. That's established fact and truth. Not opinion. If you reject this fact you live outside boundaries of Universe. I don't care what your opinion is on Houthis firing mortars, but fact is Palestinians are completely justified.

I always tell people who get upset at Palestinians responding to cockroach terrorists, you can always take in this 6 million white Jews into your country. Of course I never get a response, because they know well if they do that their local population will likely genocide their Jewish minrotiy within a few years. So if you dint agree to take them in, then shut your mouth.

 

[FaujHistorian]

Perhaps, this gives GoP the 'requisite' reason for entry in the conflict. I am sure that Pakistan cannot sit idle if the Saudi border is threatened.........if only this love was a 2-way street.

It always was.

We failed to capitalize on the good will we had in 1970s. Instead of training our work force to international standards, we sent droves of untrained men who had no idea how to behave in KSA.

In the 70s, Pakistanis were called ya doktor and ya Mohandas.

We should have used that stage to setup proper companies for construction and other services. Instead we sent over individuals with zero tameez.

So go easy and accept our own shortcomings.

 

[DESERT FIGHTER]

I sure hope it is true what you say.

Believe me, air campaign alone will never work in Yemen. There will be long stalemate with constant anarchy. And it will impact KSA.

I say this based on many many many many similar examples.

I believe King Sulman took the right step and took swift action.

But it must be followed with ground campaign. Pakistani parliament is just one small section of our government. Please do not take their speeches as the final say of ALL of Pakistan. We are with KSA at this hour of need.

Remember this.

If your neighbors house is on fire, it will impact your house too. And the longer the fire burns, the worst the impact.

peace

You don't rush to help your neighbour to put out the fire in his bathroom when your own house is burning ... Unless you have some sort of a "keera".

 

[Saif al-Arab]

I sure hope it is true what you say.

Believe me, air campaign alone will never work in Yemen. There will be long stalemate with constant anarchy. And it will impact KSA.

I say this based on many many many many similar examples.

I believe King Sulman took the right step and took swift action.

But it must be followed with ground campaign.

Remember this.

If your neighbors house is on fire, it will impact your house too. And the longer the fire burns, the worst the impact.

peace

Brother KSA lies in the center of the MENA region basically and is and has been surrounded by conflict zones since like forever. The only exception being fellow GCC states. Hell, even Kuwait was at war in the 1990's and Oman had it's conflicts' as well in the 1960's and 1970's.

Yemen in the south (equivalent to ME's Afghanistan), Horn of Africa further away, Sudan across the Red Sea, unstable Egypt across the Red Sea, Israel/Palestine a stone throw away in the north, a chronically unstable Iraq in the north and a pariah state to the east.

The Houthi's are not a threat to KSA at all militarily. Quite honestly then Yemen is a quagmire and the solutions must be found among themselves. KSA can help but I am afraid that nothing will change before the fundamentals change. The Houthi's and to a lesser degree AQAP are the only challenges in terms of groups. Sealing the border off completely (a work in process) just like with Iraq will solve most of the problems.

 

[FaujHistorian]

Not our war. None of our business!

We said the same thing many a times before

and look what kind of mess we got ourselves in.

Why we say all these things? Because we do not know and not realize how important Pakistan is for the region. The more we hide from the challenges, the smaller the Pakistan will get in terms of its stature.

Of course I make you right, Pakistan has killed it's own people for dollars so why wouldn't it kill Yemenites for a few Riyals more.

Another burning post.

Sadly

So APS students (all Pakhtoons), were butchered by Pakhtoon terrorists for dollars? or were that for Riyals.

Let's what your shining wisdom tell you.

 

[rockstar08]

i knew it will eventually come to this ..

 

[Kompromat]

We said the same thing many a times before

and look what kind of mess we got ourselves in.

Why we say all these things? Because we do not know and not realize how important Pakistan is for the region. The more we hide from the challenges, the smaller the Pakistan will get in terms of its stature.



Another burning post.

Sadly

So APS students (all Pakhtoons), were butchered by Pakhtoon terrorists for dollars? or were that for Riyals.

Let's what your shining wisdom tell you.

Pakistan needs to shut its doors and become a pacifist power. We only fight those who attack us.

 

[SipahSalar]

EVERYBODY RELAX! Senegal just sent 2000 troops.