Yemeni government appoints governors for 2 provinces partly controlled by Houthis

By Mohammed Sami and Serdar Dincel

YEMEN / ISTANBUL (AA) - Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council issued two decrees on Sunday appointing new governors for al-Bayda in central Yemen and al-Jawf in the north, two provinces partially controlled by the Houthis.

The government-run version of Saba news agency said that Major General Hussein al-Ajji Ali al-Awadhi was appointed as governor of al-Bayda. Major General Amin Ali al-Akimi was also named as governor of al-Jawf and commander of its military axis, the agency added.

Al-Awadhi replaces former al-Bayda governor Nasser al-Sawadi, while al-Akimi takes over al-Jawf from al-Awadhi, who had served as the province’s governor.

The appointments come as both provinces face a complex military situation, with clashes continuing between government forces and the Houthi group over control of strategic positions.

The Houthis control most areas of al-Bayda, while control of al-Jawf is divided between the group and government forces.

Al-Bayda holds strategic importance because of its central location in Yemen and its borders with eight other provinces, four in the north and four in the south.

Al-Jawf is also of military and geographic significance because it shares a land border with Saudi Arabia and lies near the Houthi-controlled provinces of Saada, Amran and Sanaa. It also borders Marib and Hadhramaut, which are under government control.

Since Oct. 5, Yemeni government forces have launched Operation “Dawn of Yemen” to restore state institutions from Houthi control and retake the capital, Sanaa.

Military escalation between government forces and the Houthis resumed in July, killing and wounding thousands and displacing more than a quarter of a million people, according to UN reports.

The escalation ended a period of relative calm that had prevailed in Yemen since April 2022, while the humanitarian crisis has worsened amid continued fighting and displacement.

Yemen has been at war since the Houthis seized Sanaa and several provinces in September 2014, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in March 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government.