When the UAE sent in ground troops to Yemen early this month, it had spelt out rebuild the country, or at least part of the recaptured South starting with Aden, the strategic port city. "The objective was to hold on to positions its forces had seized from the Houthis with troops loyal to the ousted president and put the impoverished country on its feet again. Emirati troops, who landed in Aden, brought with them tanks and armoured vehicles, which swung the campaign away from the rebels," said UAE local English language daily, Khaleej Times, in its editorial on Saturday. Enthused by the breakthrough after months of bombings, it continued, troops loyal to Yemeni President Hadi, backed by a GCC coalition, are now eyeing a strike on Sana'a, the capital. The Emirati brigade's ground intervention proved decisive, and it was the first time a large foreign force had entered the war, but Al Houthis retain control of large parts of the country from their stronghold in the North. The rebels are definitely under pressure but are unlikely to give up without a fight. This would mean pouring more resources by way of funds and troops into the campaign, which would be better spent fortifying government positions in the South and rebuilding infrastructure crippled by fighting and aerial raids. Yemen, one of the poorest countries in the Arab world, has been battered and its people are in dire need of help. "The UAE has led humanitarian efforts for Yemen, and only recently announced it was releasing AED300 million for relief and rehabilitation of people affected by the conflict," the paper added. The larger strategic objective is to help the Yemenis rebuild the country themselves. Schools, healthcare systems and other institutions must be re-established and built brick by brick. Keeping the peace will be harder than waging war, and Gulf countries realise the people of Yemen have an important role to play in these times of relative calm. Stability should return to the South before a wider campaign is launched, but the Yemeni Foreign Minister announced that the coalition's focus would be the capital in the North. It is true that resistance to Al Houthis is growing; pressing on with the military offensive will only heap more trouble on ordinary people. "We should not forget that the conflict has claimed 4,300 lives so far. Four out of five Yemenis now need aid and the UAE is sending relief supplies to help the population. More than 1.4 million people have been displaced. The World Food Programme says 12.9 million are 'food insecure', an increase of 20 per cent in six months. Relief must reach them on a war footing. The UAE Red Crescent has managed to ease the sufferings of some of them, but there's a long way to go," it added. Led by GCC forces, large swathes of South Yemen have been freed from Al Houthi control. "It is now important to establish the writ of the legitimate government and win the hearts of struggling Yemenis with a sound reconstruction plan as envisaged by the UAE for the area. Deployment of development forces in the South is important before heading North with fighting units," the paper concluded.
