MOBILE DEVICES
Free Headline Alerts     
Worldwide Web WorldTribune.com

  breaking... 


Wednesday, May 12, 2010     INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING

Saudis stations thousands of troops near Yemen to deter Iran-backed rebels

ABU DHABI — Saudi Arabia plans to maintain several thousand troops along the border with Yemen.

ShareThis

Officials said the Saudi Defense Ministry has allocated funding for more than 3,000 soldiers along a portion of the 1,600-kilometer border with Yemen. They said the soldiers would be joined by the Saudi National Guard and forces from the Interior Ministry to prevent a renewal of Iranian-backed Shi'ite rebel infiltration from Yemen.

"There has been an ongoing assessment of the military's position, with the first task to ensure adequate protection and deterrence," Saudi Deputy Defense Prince Khaled Bin Sultan said.

Secret Gum Disease & Bad Breath Cure, 100% Guaranteed!


Also In This Edition

In a tour of the Saudi-Yemeni border on May 8, Khaled did not say how many soldiers would be kept along the Yemeni border, Middle East Newsline reported. But he said the Royal Saudi Army would maintain a brigade headquarters that would coordinate a range of military and security force units.

"We will not to hesitate to provide all the requirements of the armed forces," Khaled said.

Officials said the Saudi military was authorized to maintain a brigade-size presence along the Yemeni border near former positions of the Iranian-backed Believing Youth in northern Yemen. They said the military and security presence would be bolstered to prevent renewed Shi'ite rebel infiltration.

"There will be a force capable of confrontation and deterrence," Khaled said. "We take into account the worst-case scenario."

Officials said Khaled and the rest of the Saudi leadership have determined that Interior Ministry security forces were not capable of preventing Shi'ite infiltration into the Saudi border province of Jizan. They said the government was overseeing the construction of a series of border posts and facilities.

In November 2009, the Believing Youth infiltrated Saudi Arabia and captured two border villages. The Shi'ite rebels were said to have occupied the villages for more than a month.



About Us     l    Contact Us     l    Geostrategy-Direct.com     l    East-Asia-Intel.com
Copyright © 2010    East West Services, Inc.    All rights reserved.