Turkey using Brotherhood to control Yemen

Ahmed Adel

The Muslim Brotherhood militias in the southwestern Yemeni city of Taizz do everything possible to demonstrate allegiance to Turkey, a main benefactor of terrorist organizations around the world.

Turkey has been paying growing attention to this Yemeni city for some time now.

The Muslim Brotherhood and the Iran-backed Houthi militia share control over the city. Turkey is now stepping into the same field, using its influence within Islah Party, the branch of the International Organization of the Muslim Brotherhood in Yemen.

Turkey sent dozens of intelligence officers to Yemeni cities, especially Shabwah, Socotra, and Mocha. It sent these officers under the cloak of offering humanitarian aid to Yemenis affected by the war going on in their country.

Turkey tries to expand its presence on the Yemeni coast as part of its expansionist project in the region. The Yemeni coast brings Turkey close to important maritime passageways in the Red Sea.

Turkey boosted its presence in Somalia and then tried to gain presence in the Sudanese Red Sea island of Suaken. Its attempt to gain presence in Yemen aims at bringing it close to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Arabian Sea.

According to the Yemeni site, al-Mashhad, Qatar and Turkey support the militias operating in Taizz through Muslim Brotherhood leaders in the city.

Islah party uses the same militias in staging attacks on southern Yemen, which reveals Brotherhood intentions for controlling the southern Yemeni city of Aden.

Islah Party has been trying to form a popular mobilization force. It has recruited over 5,000 people in the force under the pretext of fighting the Houthis.

The strange thing still is that fighting has already stopped in the cities where the party forms the new force.