Yemen's Houthis Seek to Seize Oil and Gas Pipelines Located Between Marib and Shabwah

The Ansar Allah (Houthi) group is planning tolaunch an attack on areas in Marib and Shabwah provinces to take over the oil and gas pipeline thatconnects Safer in Marib to Balhaf in Shabwah, a military source told Sheba Intelligence on Monday. This Houthi move is a new threat to the peace process in Yemen. 

The sources pointed out the Houthi group hasmobilized crowds of fighters in the Afar area of Al-Bayda, and the fighters moved toward the Wadi Mansam area near the Baihan district of Shabwah. 

Despite the group's confrontation with the U.S.-led international forces on the West Coast, it has kept mobilizing forces on the frontlines in Yemen, which suggests that the group continues seeking to seize the oil and gas areas. 

She said that the group is also mobilizing in preparation for cutting off the road between Bayhan district and Ataq, the capital of Shabwa. The Houthi also seek advance towards Markha, which they believe to have social support. At present, Marcka is controlled by the southern separatists, and the Shabwa Defense Forces are stationed there. 

Information indicates that several Al-Qaedaoperatives gathered in some areas of Shabwah in an attempt to exploit any clash between the Houthis and pro-government forces. Lately, Shabwah has protests over the rising prices of fuel, and these protests may lead to chaos in the main cities. 

In the same vein, the activity of terrorist groups escalated in Shabwah. A bombing targeted a military vehicle of the Shabwah defense forces in the Al-Musaina area. Three soldiers were also assassinated by detonating an explosive device that targeted two separatist patrols in Mudiyah ofAbyan.

A local official in Shabwah told Sheba Intelligence, "The assaults on the patrols that coincided with the Houthi group's attack were not a normal matter. We suspect that the Houthis want to confuse the situation by pushing armed groups inside the governorate to commit crimes under the name of terrorism and pushing other groups to demonstrate under the pretext of demands."

The local official added, "For a week, the Houthis have been attacking several areas in Shabwah, including Baihan, where they have clashed with the Giants' forces across the Qand'a area, and the clash left a number of deaths and injuries from both sides."

The official feared that citizens in Bayhan, Markha, and the rest of the Shabwah may not support the Giants forces and the ShabwahDefense Forces, saying, "The friction between these forces and the tribes of Shabwah during the last period created a gap that the Houthis exploited. The soldiers who have a presence in Shabwah have excavated archaeological areas in search of archaeological treasures, creatingtensions between the security forces and citizens."

Political observers in Yemen believe that the separatist takeover of Shabwah in August 2022created a major rift between the anti-Houthi resistance forces in this oil-rich province.