Houthi lies affect Sudan’s soldiers in Yemen

Nora Bandari

The Houthi terrorist militia occasionally works to spread lies to show false championships and try to restore some confidence to its followers and allies. Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree mentioned on November 2 that the total loss of the Sudanese army since its participation with the Arab coalition forces in Yemen has reached more than 8,000 dead and wounded.

Saree claimed at a press conference that the total losses of the Sudanese army exceed 8,000 dead and injured, including 4,253 people killed, indicating that about 850 of them were killed in 2015 and 2016, while 3,400 of them fell during the years 2017, 2018 and 2019. He pointed out that the task of the Sudanese army soldiers was limited at the outset, before being pushed to the front lines, adding that the Sudanese people were subjected to a campaign of media misinformation like other peoples in the region.

He also confirmed that the Houthi forces detained a number of prisoners from among the ranks of the Sudanese forces, saying that Sudan’s continued participation only serves the agendas of power and the coalition of aggression.

The Houthi spokesman claimed that the Sudanese army elements committed crimes and violations that amounted to rape while in Yemen. He pointed out that there are six Sudanese brigades stationed on the west coast of Yemen, but three of them, a total of 6,000 soldiers and officers, were deported. However, there are 1,000 others located in Aden and Lahij, where they are stationed in the area of ​​Ras Abbas, Aden Airport and Al-Anad airbase, in addition to 2,000 in a licensed area and 600 within a battalion located in Saqam.

His comments come days after the Sudanese newspaper Al-Tayyar reported, quoting unnamed sources, that 10,000 Sudanese soldiers had returned from Yemen.

Sudanese response

The Sudanese army responded to the allegations of the Houthi, stressing that the militia lies. It said that the Houthi statements in this regard amount to a psychological war against the Sudanese soldiers stationed in Yemen and an attempt to turn Sudanese public opinion.

Sudanese army spokesman Amer Mohammed al-Hassan told Russia Today that the number of deaths announced by the Houthis is not supported by any logic, pointing out that the Sudanese army fought a civil war for about 21 years and did not lose that many lives.

Hassan explained that talk about casualties cannot take place while the war in Yemen continues, adding that Sudan is fighting as part of the coalition forces there. He also denied the leaks regarding the withdrawal of about 10,000 Sudanese Rapid Support Forces from Yemen.

Continuous approach

The Houthi lie is a continuous approach. Last September, terrorist militias claimed that three military brigades belonging to the Arab coalition forces had fallen and thousands of families were captured. This was denied by Yemeni officials and leaders of the Arab coalition, explaining that the operation announced by the Houthis took place a month and a half ago, in which the Houthi militia lost about 700 members of its elite division.

Delusional victories

Abdul Karim Al-Ansi, political analyst and executive director of the organization Yemen First, stated that the Houthis’ allegations about the killing and wounding of about 8,000 Sudanese troops in Yemen are false, representing a sort of delusional victory. He added that the militia resorts to lying in order to raise morale on its collapsed fronts.

Ansi added that the Houthi militia is trying to show its fighters that it has achieved tremendous victories that will put it in a strong position in concluding the political agreement (which has not yet been announced) between the militia and Yemen’s political parties due to international pressure demanding a political resolution to the Yemeni crisis.

The Houthi militia is attacking the Sudanese forces because they are the most powerful and present force on the Yemeni coast, Ansi pointed out. Since its presence in Yemen, Sudan, in cooperation with the Arab coalition forces, has been able to weaken the Houthi forces and inflict many casualties on them, he said, adding that this is what the Houthis do not want, so they then sought to change Sudanese public opinion to demand their leaders to withdraw the country’s troops from Yemen.