Iran's Revolutionary Guard train Houthis in Eritrea
2013-01-22 16:29:42 / Yemen Fox

Yemeni political and diplomatic officials say Iran trains large numbers of Houthis in Eritrea, Yemen's neighbor on the African coastline overlooking the Red Sea.
The officials revealed that Yemen has evidence proving that Iran has been smuggling weapons on sea to Eritrean islands, before these arms are transferred in smaller shipments to Houthis in the northern Yemeni province of Sa'ada where the militant group persistently seizing control.
The London-based Asharq Alawsat paper quoted the officials as saying that "Iran drills Houthi fighters in an Eritrean island near Yemeni coasts," after the deteriorating situations in Syria made it difficult to transport the trainees from Yemen to Iran or Lebanon.
"Yemen has factual information that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard transport Houthi fighters and train them on Eritrean territory with the full knowledge of Eritrean government," added the sources.
The Yemeni officials called upon Iran and Eritrea to refrain from such acts that do not serve normal bilateral relations.
According to the officials, Iran sends smuggled weapons to Eritrean islands and then ships them in smaller cargoes on fishing boats into Yemeni lands where arms dealers take them to Houthis in Sa'ada.
A Yemeni informed political source in Sana'a stated that the "Iranian national security council adopted a new strategy intended to shift the battle from Syria and Lebanon in the north to the Yemen on the southern tip of Arabian Peninsula, after Tehran has realized that its allied regime of Bashar Assad in Damascus cannot continue.
"The Islamic Republic feels it is losing its influence in Syria, so it seriously seeks an alternative in the northern part of Yemen, Red Sea and African Horn, capitalizing its strong ties with the Eritrean regime."
The source noted that the new Iranian strategy takes in consideration how to control international shipping lanes and to be present on the Red Sea and Arab Sea so as to secure grasp on Bab el Mandeb, beside Hermoz Strait, and thus have global trade passages and energy lifelines in hand.
Tehran denied meddling in Yemeni internal affairs in many occasions. In a recent press conference, its envoy to Sana'a said his country does not spy on Yemen, refuting reports in this regard as political propaganda.

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