Sanaa, Yemen – Naef has been a government soldier in southern Yemen for nine years. When he joined the government army in 2016 – aged only 19 – he thought that the Yemeni government’s war against the Houthi rebel group would be brief. A decade has elapsed, and the conflict remains unsettled, with the Houthis remaining in Sanaa.Naef was clear as to the reason for the government’s failure – a lack of unity and clear command structure. For years, government soldiers and other anti-Houthi fighters have adhered to conflicting agendas across the country, with many of the fighters in the south supporting the separatist Southern Transitional Council (STC). A solution to that division, Naef thought, was far-fetched.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listHowever, more recently, things have changed. The STC’s decision to attempt to seize all of southern and eastern Yemen backfired, and Saudi Arabia backed pro-government troops in pushing the group back. The STC is now divided, with one leader on the run, and others declaring that the group had been dissolved.The Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), Yemen’s UN-recognised authority led by President Rashad al-Alimi, has seized the initiative and, on January 10, established the Supreme Military Committee (SMC), with the goal of overseeing all anti-Houthi military units, and integrating them into the official Yemeni military, under one command.Al-Alimi said that the SMC would ultimately be a vehicle to defeat the Houthis, and reclaim all of Yemen.T …
