By Nawal al-Maghafi
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has funded politically motivated assassinations in Yemen, a BBC investigation has found.
Training provided by American mercenaries – hired by the UAE in 2015 – has then been used by Emiratis to instruct locals, sparking a surge in targeted killings, a whistleblower says.
The findings come as conflict in Yemen has returned to the international spotlight following attacks on ships in the Red Sea.
The UAE government has denied the allegations in our investigation – that it had assassinated those without links to terrorism – saying they were “false and without merit”.
The killing spree in Yemen – more than 100 assassinations in a three-year period – is just one element of an ongoing bitter internecine conflict pitting several international powers against each other in the Middle East’s poorest country.
The deadly atmosphere has discouraged the permanent return of Yemen’s internationally recognised government. This, it could be argued, has indirectly helped to embolden the Iran-backed Houthis. Washington has announced that it will now re-designate the group as “global terrorists”.
I have been reporting on the conflict in my native Yemen since it began in 2014. The fighting led to the government losing control of the country’s north to the Houthis – who over the years have become savvier and better equipped.
In 2015, the US and the UK supported a coalition of mostly Arab states led by Saudi Arabia – with the UAE as a key partner – to fight back. The coalition invaded Yemen with the aim of reinstating the exiled Yemeni government and fighting terrorism. The UAE was given charge of security in the south, and became the US’s key ally on counter-terrorism in the region – al-Qaeda had long been a presence in the south and was now gaining territory.
