Question:
Is the Southern Movement still pro-American? Or has the loyalty of the Council shifted to the British because of the UAE’s containment of it, making it a follower of the UAE, while the UAE represents the British in the country? In other words: Has America failed to maintain the Southern Movement, and has Britain been able, through the UAE, to bring it to its side? Or does it still follow America in its movements, and the UAE, due to its military strength in Aden, has only been able to influence it without the Southern Movement becoming loyal to the British?
Answer:
- Britain was disturbed when it realized that America had managed to win over Ali Salem al-Beidh and Ali Nasir Muhammad through direct and indirect means via Egypt and Saudi Arabia during the reign of Fahd in the early nineties. This was despite the fact that Britain was the one that formed, through its agents, what was called the "National Liberation Front in South Yemen" and invited it to negotiations in Geneva starting from 20 November 1967. Subsequently, Britain granted independence to South Yemen on 30 November 1967 after the departure of British forces. Al-Beidh became the ruler of the South with British support, so his alignment with America was considered by Britain as an act of ingratitude! Therefore, it decided to remove them from power, especially since it had the means to do so; its man, Ali Saleh, had a formidable force in the North... Thus, a war broke out between the forces of the two sectors in 1994, only four years after the unification of the two parts of Yemen! When the war ended with the defeat of the military units described as "Southern," Ali Salem al-Beidh and Ali Nasir Muhammad fled and retreated somewhat into the background.
Then Saleh’s government in Sana'a began persecuting and pursuing military personnel in the South. This continued for years, leading to the later establishment of an association for retired military personnel dismissed from their jobs in the South. It was an association with demands related to persecution, pursuit, and deprivation of rights. With the continuation of these grievances, a secessionist tendency leaked into the veteran military personnel involved in that association. It thus became a secessionist focus and a nucleus for the gathering of secessionists whose movements gained what is known today as the Southern Movement (Al-Hirak Al-Janoubi), which officially announced itself in Southern Yemen in 2007, in addition to other less important and less effective movements that we will not focus on.
- America exploited this situation in the South to gain a foothold in Southern Yemen, just as it gained another foothold in Northern Yemen through the Houthi movement and Iranian support for it. Thus, from the perspective of international conflict, the Southern Movement shifted from demands to lift injustice and became a new tool for America to intervene in Yemen, whose government was loyal to the British. It has been the habit of major powers to exploit the internal situation and tensions in small countries to gain influence in them. America, through King Fahd’s intelligence in Saudi Arabia, tried to contact the military in Southern Yemen during the nineties, i.e., after the civil war in 1994. Although Salem al-Beidh was among its followers at that time, his retreat then and his call in exile for material actions against Saleh’s rule did not make America see that alone as a success. So, it began looking for someone to adopt a strong political action that would group the people of the South, forming intensive pressure that effectively influences Saleh’s rule.
America found what it was looking for in the opposition activist Hassan Baoum. He was moving significantly, demanding the secession of South Yemen, moving early from one city to another, and touring the tribes persistently, calling on them to support him and his secessionist demands. All of this was happening against the backdrop of the suffering and marginalization to which the people of the South were subjected. Baoum held event after event to create more public opinion demanding the detachment of the South from Yemen, and his approach was peaceful, rejecting acts of violence. It was noted that Hassan Baoum’s secessionist movements found resonance and sometimes momentum in the southern regions, where the idea that marginalization was a systematic policy had deepened... He then began to face arrest and pursuit by the Sana'a government; he was arrested several times for a period exceeding a year between 2007 and 2008, then arrested again in 2010, released after two months in 2011, and re-arrested in the same year.
Thus, the secessionist Baoum became a major symbol of the Southern Movement due to his persistent efforts and his incitement of veteran military personnel, tribes, and activists against the central government in Sana'a, and his consolidation and deepening of secessionist demands. With his links to America and receiving Iranian support, his steps were characterized by rapid movement. Baoum formed the Supreme Council of the Southern Movement and became its president (The Supreme Council for the Peaceful Movement for the Liberation of the South represents the main faction of the Southern Movement, which also includes factions including the High National Commission for the Independence of the South, the Supreme National Council for the Liberation and Restoration of the State of the South, the Southern Democratic Assembly, and the Union of Southern Youth and Students... Ad-Dali' Governorate is considered one of the most heated and active areas of the movement... Al-Jazeera Net, 3 March 2011). There were sites that explicitly described Baoum as an Iranian agent, as stated on the Huna Aden website on 13 September 2016. Thus, the Southern Movement led by Hassan Baoum, which fed on marginalization, is a political movement linked to early American support, and it became a nucleus through which America could work to penetrate Yemen from the south as well. The movements, activities, and strikes carried out by the movement, centered in the city of Ad-Dali', despite Hassan Baoum being a Hadrami from Al-Mukalla and not from Ad-Dali', were all akin to training for this group in political work. Initially, the Sana'a government did not see this movement as dangerous because its prominent activities were political; therefore, it was content with arresting its symbols, such as Hassan Baoum, Ahmed bin Farid, Ali al-Gharib, and Ali Munasir, for periods and then releasing them.
- America's men in the Southern Movement mastered the idea of secession, which became an ideology for them, and they grew rigid upon it. As for others who were swept up with the activities of the Southern Movement fueled by marginalization, some were local activists, and others were under the influence of the British and their men in Yemen. Such people were sometimes with unity and sometimes with secession; secession was not their ideology. The government in Sana'a benefited from these people by diluting the idea of secession around which America's agents centered, and it used to push some of its men among them for the same purpose... As we said, the Sana'a government did not see them as a danger. But when it became clear to President Saleh’s government in Sana'a and the British behind it that this movement was gaining tangible momentum and its risks were escalating—especially since America's agents were at the forefront of the movement—the state in Sana'a, along with the British and their regional followers, began dealing with this movement seriously to contain it.
This was especially true as it appeared to have become resistant to eradication in light of the growing feelings of marginalization in the South. The "British" containment plan evolved according to the development of the Southern Movement, moving from serious attempts at infiltration to pursuit that did not stop at arrest but went to violence... This continued until the UAE entered by land with its army, exploiting its presence in the Arab Coalition. This reached its peak after the killing of Saleh, where Britain's influence in the North became weak and it feared a vacuum if the Houthis succeeded in extending their influence in the North. Therefore, it began to think seriously about having a force in the South to serve as a pressure card to have a presence in the governance of Yemen, or if not possible, at least in the South.
Thus, it began thinking seriously about concentrating influence in the South, especially since it did not rely entirely on Hadi, given that Saudi Arabia dominated him. So, it took care of this matter through the UAE, in addition to the beginning of the forces of the former Yemeni President Ali Saleh—who was killed by the Houthis at the end of last year on 4 December 2017—returning to the South and lining up alongside the UAE forces in fighting the Houthis. "A Yemeni government source confirmed that Tariq Saleh, the nephew of Ali Saleh, is in Aden under the protection of UAE forces, and diplomatic sources stated that the UAE is making great efforts to lift the sanctions imposed on Ahmed, the son of Ali Saleh, in order to play a political role in the future..." (Yemeni Nas Times website, 5 February 2018). The commander of the Southern Transitional Council forces, Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, stated: "We will support Tariq Saleh and stand by his side in the North and in all territories until the full liberation of Sana'a... 30 January 2018, France 24." This means that Britain is playing a game in the South and reinforcing its influence with its agents among the relatives of Ali Saleh, who are influential in the Yemeni Republican Guard forces and the General People's Congress party. The secessionist forces were supported by the UAE, noting that the UAE participates with air and ground forces, while Saudi Arabia participates only with air forces.
Thus, Britain began to be active in the South through the UAE to penetrate the original Southern Movement or marginalize it by creating a new movement to lead the scene... The UAE started with the wing of Ali Salem al-Beidh, despite Britain being aware of the extent of American attempts to support Ali Salem al-Beidh and Ali Nasir. Among those American attempts were the offer of Iranian support and Egyptian facilities, such as the meeting of the Southern Movement in Cairo led by Ali Nasir Muhammad in 2014, as well as Lebanese facilities; Beirut provided Ali Salem al-Beidh with a refuge and a media platform he had been deprived of in Oman since seeking refuge there in 1994. Then, with the outbreak of the Saudi Decisive Storm in 2014, he moved to Riyadh, which showered him with money... Despite this, as we said earlier, the UAE began trying to influence the wing of al-Beidh and Nasir... As for why it started with this wing, there are two reasons: First, it adopts violence, and second, its previous background in loyalty to the British, as they were behind the formation of his National Front and handing him the rule of South Yemen. They wanted to revive that era in his memory to bring him back to it or close to it, so they softened towards him... After the start of the Arab Coalition operations in Yemen in 2015, they moved him from Saudi Arabia to the UAE, where he currently resides in "Abu Dhabi." This is because al-Beidh used to move between countries loyal to America; he stayed for about two years (2012 and 2013) in Lebanon supported by Iran and under the protection of its party there, then moved to Saudi Arabia, and then the UAE won him over as it was in the coalition and moved him, as we mentioned, to where he resides in Abu Dhabi surrounded by an aura of respect... It is known that Salem al-Beidh is volatile; his loyalty was to the British when he was President of South Yemen, then in the early nineties America won him over, and he remained on this loyalty while moving between countries loyal to America. Now he is in the UAE, and they are trying to polarize him, and it is not ruled out that he might flip again; if that happens, things may become tense between him and the UAE... In any case, his position is closer to the Transitional Council, which he praised: "The former Yemeni Vice President, Ali Salem al-Beidh, announced his support and blessing for the call to form a 'Southern Political Entity,' a day after three governors in southern governorates supported the call of the Governor of Aden, Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, to form the entity. Al-Beidh confirmed in a statement obtained by Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that he would support this call 'with everything possible,' and urged various southern political forces and independent figures to 'interact positively with this call and step out of the state of waiting, indifference, and dependency towards a new phase'... Al-Beidh's statement came a day after three governors joined: the Governor of Abyan, al-Khader al-Saeedi; the Governor of Lahij, Nasir al-Khobaji; and the Governor of Ad-Dali', Fadl al-Jaadi, in the call of the Governor of Aden, Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, to form a 'Southern Entity'... Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, 16 September 2016." His companion Ali Nasir Muhammad is similar; he sometimes supports secession and other times wants a single government in Yemen but with conditions he sees! When asked about the solution in Yemen on 4 October 2017—i.e., before Ali Saleh’s uprising against the Houthis at the end of 2017—he said: "Forming a consensus national unity government. Excluding the main elements causing the war from both sides, 'the Houthis and the Hadi government,' from any official positions during the transitional phase. Withdrawing weapons from all parties and groups and handing them over to the Ministry of Defense, because Yemen needs one president, one government, and one defense minister, and resorting to the ballot box in the coming period... Al-Ahram Al-Araby, 4 October 2017." It is clear from all this that the British have succeeded through the UAE in penetrating to an influential degree both men and their wings, as they did not take secession as a fixed ideology they would not deviate from as the Southern Movement was originally established, but rather according to the circumstances surrounding them.
As for the wing of Hassan Baoum, it was politically and ideologically secessionist to the bone... The British realized that any compromise solutions, temptation, or dominance would not work, so they tried to besiege him in Oman under house arrest in a devious way, i.e., without an official decision. He had sought refuge there because it appeared neutral, as if he did not know that it was moving with Britain according to the role assigned to it! Through its agents in Oman, the noose was tightened around Hassan Baoum, and he was placed under house arrest in the Omani city of Salalah for a long time... With this long absence of America's first man in the Southern Movement, the factions loyal to America in the movement weakened to some extent. The British, through the UAE, seized the opportunity and focused efforts to create a southern movement parallel to Baoum’s wing that would outbid him on the issue of the South.
They found what they were looking for in Aidarus al-Zoubaidi. He is one of the well-known leaders in the Southern Movement and the founder of the secessionist movement "Hatm" (Harakat Taqrir al-Masir - Movement for Self-Determination) in 1996. Due to his proximity to the British group, President Hadi appointed him on 7 December 2015 as the Governor of Aden, months after the launch of the Saudi Decisive Storm (March 2015). This was a strong indicator of the trust the British agents had in him. Aidarus al-Zoubaidi was surrounded by a great aura in Aden; he was a successful governor for the city, restored electricity, expelled armed gangs, fought the Houthis, and opposed the proposals of the UN American envoy Ould Cheikh—all with direct and public financial and military support from the UAE. Being a fighter in the civil war in 1994 and a leader involved in the secessionist movement since an early time, pursued by the ruling regime of Ali Saleh in Sana'a since his exile to Djibouti in 1994, and being a son of the Ad-Dali' region, the center and weight of the Southern Movement, in addition to his successes as Governor of Aden and his war against the Houthis, eyes turned toward him in the South as a prominent political figure competing with the historical leadership of Hassan Baoum in the Southern Movement.
Militarily, Aidarus al-Zoubaidi relies on Hani bin Breik, the founder of the "Southern Belt" (Al-Hizmu al-Janoubi) forces, who is widely described as the UAE’s man in the South ("Hani bin Breik, who appeared on the Yemeni scene as a fighter facing the Houthis, then on the political scene as a minister imposed by the UAE force, due to his established influence thanks to the generous support from Abu Dhabi, and founded what is known as the 'Security Belt' forces, which is the militia openly supported by the state of the UAE in southern Yemen... Sasa Post, 2 November 2017"). Thus, al-Zoubaidi and bin Breik had significance in the South. But because they were in Hadi's government and its loyalty was openly to the British, this did not provide them with popularity in the call for the Southern Movement. The first step was to remove them from Hadi's government in a way that showed them, especially al-Zoubaidi, in strong disagreement with Hadi’s camp, and then Southerners would rally around him to form the new movement, and so it was...
- The Yemeni President issued a decree on 27 April 2017 to dismiss Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, Governor of Aden, and Minister of State Hani bin Breik, referring the latter for investigation. Thousands of Yemenis came out in a demonstration in the southern city of Aden to denounce Hadi's decisions. Factions of the Southern Movement announced in the "Aden Declaration" on 4 May 2017 that they had decided to authorize Aidarus al-Zoubaidi to form and head a bloc to manage and represent the South to achieve its goals and aspirations, in addition to authorizing him with full powers to take the necessary measures to implement the items of the declaration... A week after the Southern Movement tasked al-Zoubaidi with forming a political leadership to manage and represent the South, al-Zoubaidi announced his presidency of the Presidium of the Southern Transitional Council in the city of Aden on 11 May 2017, appointing bin Breik as his deputy, in addition to 26 members.
In an act of outbidding Baoum, he gave a speech with the former South Yemen flag next to him ("Al-Zoubaidi said, in a televised speech on Thursday, placing the flag of the former South Yemen state, that under the 'Historic Aden Declaration,' a 'high southern political leadership called the Presidium of the Southern Transitional Council' was established. He added that Hani bin Breik would be the vice president of the Council in addition to 26 members. He explained that 'the Presidium of the Southern Transitional Council takes over the completion of the procedures for establishing the bodies of the Southern Transitional Council and managing and representing the South internally and externally'... CNN Arabic, 11 May 2017"). Thus, al-Zoubaidi and bin Breik, and the UAE/British behind them, gained the powers to form the leadership of the South entirely. The governors of the governorates are appointees of the Yemeni President, meaning they are men from the British circle in Yemen, as are the rest of the leaders among the members of the Transitional Council, who are among its supporters. He even managed to include some of the men from Baoum’s wing in his council, such as Ali al-Saadi and Nasir al-Khobaji, even if only for a time; if the truth is revealed, they leave or are removed. It might be a way to polarize them, as Nasir al-Khobaji, in light of Baoum's "absence" from the scene, became an early supporter of al-Zoubaidi!
With this almost decisive control of the Transitional Council headed by Aidarus al-Zoubaidi in Aden, and his possession of relatively large military forces led by bin Breik in other southern governorates, and even in Marib, and the rallying of the governors of the governorates around the leadership of Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, as well as the support of the veterans of the former "State of the South" from the "Socialists" such as Ali Salem al-Beidh, who announced his support for al-Zoubaidi early on, and the support of Tariq al-Fadhli and his movement with an Islamic character added to his strong tribal status in Abyan, and the UAE standing by him financially, politically, and militarily—the British have resolved the issue of the Southern Movement around their agent Aidarus al-Zoubaidi to a great extent. If political conditions remain as they are, especially with the weight of the UAE in the South, this control is likely to continue.
- As for America, it realized its delay and showed its annoyance. What indicates America's annoyance at the formation of the Transitional Council is the opposition of its international envoy, Ould Cheikh, to the Council ("The UN envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh, sent a 'clear threat' message to the dismissed Governor of Aden, Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, against the backdrop of his announcement of the formation of a transitional council for the secession of the South, according to an informed source. Al-Mashhad al-Yemeni quoted an informed source as saying that Ould Cheikh met al-Zoubaidi, conveying a clear threat message in case of his insistence on adhering to the council he announced, which was rejected by the Yemeni presidency, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Houthi group, and many within the Southern Movement. He stated that in case of his 'al-Zoubaidi's' adherence, the United Nations and the Security Council would include him among the obstructers of the peace process in Yemen and the implementation of Resolution 2216 issued under Chapter VII, and they would be dealt with like the Houthis and Saleh as 'rebels'... Russia Today, 14 May 2017").
It seems that America rectified the situation by pressuring Oman to release Baoum. After he was released, Hassan Baoum began to move strongly against the Transitional Council, which the UAE supported, in a major manifestation of the Anglo-American struggle over Yemen. It appeared that his movements were with clear Saudi support, as the first conference of the Revolutionary Movement Council under his leadership was held under their watch and sight in the city of Aden on 17 August 2017, attended by six hundred of his followers, accusing the UAE of occupying South Yemen... The conference statement said: "We categorically reject the exploitation of the enthusiasm of our Southern people, the pumping of lies, and the emotional influence on them to extract popular support and then go against the popular will of the South... We emphasize that leader Hassan Baoum, head of the Supreme Council for the Revolutionary Movement, is considered the Southern leader and symbol in whom we take pride... What is happening today in the South is a feverish race between external forces such as the state of the United Arab Emirates, which has come to acquire the ports of the South and its resources and control the destiny of our people and its orientations, and then comes to grant a few of those it took as its followers a few miserable crumbs... Aden al-Ghad, 17 August 2017." That is, Baoum’s group is openly hostile to the UAE and demands its exit from Yemen, and Baoum’s conference called al-Zoubaidi’s group "followers of the UAE who are given a few crumbs."
Then was the second conference of Baoum’s group, held on 11 November 2017. The final statement of the second conference of Baoum’s Revolutionary Movement Council, held in Aden and of which Al-Araby Al-Jadeed obtained a copy, said: "We call upon the countries of the so-called Arab Coalition for direct dialogue as equals with the Supreme Council of the Movement after withdrawing all its forces from our lands, emphasizing our keenness on the social and religious bonds between us." The Council headed by Baoum described the coalition as "occupation countries" and continued: "We emphasize our full right to deal with the occupation by all legitimate ways and means at the appropriate time and place according to our national interests." The statement stressed that "any negotiations or solutions that exclude the Southern cause and its legitimate representative will not succeed because the legitimate representatives are those who led the movement since its first day and not those created by chance or made by money or cloned by foreign occupation..." (Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, 11 November 2017). Although the statement spoke about the Arab Coalition, it was mainly directed against the UAE because the conference was held under Saudi protection!
- Conclusion: After the defeat of Ali Salem al-Beidh and Ali Nasir Muhammad in 1994, and Ali Saleh's seizure of the resources of South Yemen and the marginalization of the people of the South and the persecution of many of the South's military personnel... all of this caused the emergence of various opposition movements from that date until today... The most prominent are three movements:
The Southern Movement (Al-Hirak Al-Janoubi) wing of Ali Salem al-Beidh, which is volatile: sometimes with America and its agents, and sometimes agreeing with Britain and its agents...
The Southern Movement wing of Hassan Baoum, which is supported by America and its agents, especially Iran...
The Southern Movement wing of al-Zoubaidi, which is supported by Britain and its agents, especially the UAE...
As we explained above, we have shed light on their most important positions regarding current Yemeni issues... It is painful that our causes are toyed with by the colonialist disbelievers using rusty tools from our own people! Our blood is shed in Yemen and elsewhere for the benefit of the disbelievers through local tools... These people have forgotten or ignored matters that, if they understood them, they would weep blood for the evil they have done:
Allah, the Mighty and Powerful, has strictly forbidden a Muslim from leaning toward the oppressive disbelievers:
وَلَا تَرْكَنُوا إِلَى الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا فَتَمَسَّكُمُ النَّارُ وَمَا لَكُمْ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ مِنْ أَوْلِيَاءَ ثُمَّ لَا تُنْصَرُونَ
"And do not incline toward those who do wrong, lest you be touched by the Fire, and you would not have other than Allah any protectors; then you would not be helped." (QS Hud [11]: 113)
And the Messenger of Allah ﷺ says about the shedding of blood that is taken unjustly that it is greater before Allah than the passing of the world. At-Tirmidhi reported from Abdullah bin Amr that the Prophet ﷺ said:
لَزَوَالُ الدُّنْيَا أَهْوَنُ عَلَى اللَّهِ مِنْ قَتْلِ رَجُلٍ مُسْلِمٍ
"The vanishing of the world is lighter to Allah than the killing of a Muslim man." (Reported by At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Asakir)
So how is it when it is shed for the benefit of the colonialist disbelievers?! It is a crime upon a crime.
سَيُصِيبُ الَّذِينَ أَجْرَمُوا صَغَارٌ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ وَعَذَابٌ شَدِيدٌ بِمَا كَانُوا يَمْكُرُونَ
"There will afflict those who committed crimes debasement before Allah and severe punishment for what they used to conspire." (QS Al-An'am [6]: 124)
Nevertheless, Yemen, which the Messenger of Allah ﷺ described as a land of faith and wisdom, is not devoid of sincere, faithful men who will stand in wait for those who lean toward the colonialist disbelievers... and they will restore Yemen, by Allah's permission, as a home of Islam, shaded by the banner of Islam in a Rightly Guided Khilafah that restores its glory to be as he ﷺ said in what Al-Bukhari recorded in his Sahih from Abu Hurairah (ra) from the Prophet ﷺ:
أَتَاكُمْ أَهْلُ الْيَمَنِ هُمْ أَرَقُّ أَفْئِدَةً وَأَلْيَنُ قُلُوبًا الْإِيمَانُ يَمَانٍ وَالْحِكْمَةُ يَمَانِيَةٌ
"The people of Yemen have come to you; they are the most soft-hearted and gentle-hearted. Faith is Yemeni and Wisdom is Yemeni." (Reported by Al-Bukhari)
8th of Jumada al-Akhirah, 1439 AH 24 February 2018 CE