Saudi Ministry of Defense Briefing: Operation Decisive Storm - April 7

WASHINGTON, April 7, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a summary of the daily press briefing held today in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on the developments of Operation Decisive Storm. The briefing was conducted by Brig. Gen. Ahmed bin Hasan Asiri, advisor in the Office of the Minister of Defense.

• The coalition command today issued necessary permits for a ship to sail from Djibouti to Aden carrying relief supplies and Red Cross medical staff.
• The coalition air campaign is ongoing and coalition forces, along with the people's committees and local supporters have isolated the Houthi militias in Aden.
• Since the start of Operation Decisive Storm, the air campaign has been focused on the Houthi operations in Sana'a, Taiz and Dhali.
• The coalition command called on Yemeni military commanders who have split from the legitimate Yemeni military to abandon the terrorist groups and rejoin their military units and support the legitimate government of Yemen.
• The coalition targeted pro-Houthi military units.
• Today, the coalition destroyed approximately 11 Houthi ammunition storage depots.
• The number of Houthi militias is decreasing as more Houthi militias are abandoning the fight. This is an indication of the lack of organization and coordination within the Houthi militias.
• At Al-Anad Airbase, the Houthi militias danger has been neutralized. On Monday, the Houthi militias attempted to take the base. They entered the base and hid. Coalition forces repelled them and the base is now under the control of the regional people's committees.
• The southern borders of Saudi Arabia are stable and the Border Guards continue to perform their duties.
• Coalition naval operations are collaborating with the states in the region at Bab-el-Mandeb and the Horn of Africa.
• Coalition forces are working to achieve their main goals of securing Aden and preventing the flow of supplies to the Houthi militias who are still hiding in the city.
• Military units affiliated with former president Ali Abdullah Saleh and the Houthi militias are trying to reinforce their presence in Aden.
• Coalition forces targeted anti-government military units, including the Republican Guard and the paramilitary Central Security force.
• The Houthi militias previously stormed the Yemeni army facilities and looted the arms and imported large quantity of weapons from outside Yemen.
• The military campaign is a planned and organized. Two weeks of military operations is a short time, particularly if the operations are carried out according to a prescribed plan that takes into consideration the safety of citizens and the infrastructure of the country.
• Since the Houthi militias started their military campaign early 2002, they have launched six wars against the Yemeni army. The Yemeni government has demonstrated that Iran has been supplying the Houthi militia with weapons. These weapons enter Yemen through the country's sea ports.
• Following the most recent coup in Sana'a, there have been 14 weekly flights between Iran and Yemen carrying weapons for the Houthi militias. The planes were also carrying what they called Iranian "tourists" travelling to Yemen and Yemeni "tourists" travelling to Iran.
• Iran has trained young Yemenis to fly military aircraft, and maintain the air fleet and heavy weapons.
• Iran and Hezbollah provided Houthi militias with sabotage training for the purpose of destroying government installations and infrastructure. These destructive plans are now halted by the Operation Decisive Storm.
• Samsam 5 is a joint Saudi-Pakistani military exercise to achieve mutual experience and benefit.
• Following grave losses on the ground in Aden, the Houthi militias began shelling residential areas.  According to media reports, they have also cut-off water and electricity to some parts of the city.  The International Red Cross called the situation in Aden catastrophic.

SOURCE Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia, Information Office

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