Throughout April, intensified military activity in the western coastal districts brought changes on the ground and a high number of casualties. In western Taiz, Tareq Saleh, the nephew of the former president, began commanding a group that his supporters and the coalition are referring to as the Yemeni National Resistance Forces. In Hajjah, with the backing of Sudanese and Saudi troops the Hadi military raised the Yemeni flag in Midi town on April 11. In Hodeidah port city, where these coastal military campaigns are ultimately directed toward, Supreme Political Council head Saleh Al-Sammad was killed in an airstrike on April 19, and replaced by Mehdi Mohammed Hussein Al-Mashat. Several of these developments could have further reaching implications on UN-sponsored negotiations, which Envoy Martin Griffiths plans to present “a framework for” by mid-June, he told the Security Council during his first briefing on April 17.
To read about all the major economic, humanitarian, political, and military developments that took place in Yemen throughout the month, access the full April 2018 issue of the Yemen Trend by clicking on the PDF icon below.