http://en.starafrica.com/news/eritrea-joins-yemen-conflict-on-sarabias-side.html
Eritrea joins Yemen conflict on S/Arabia’s side
Posted by: APA Posted date : December 23, 2015 at 5:20 pm UTC
Eritrea has announced it is joining the so-called Islamic alliance to tackle global terrorism by sending troops to bolster Saudi Arabia’s military campaign against Houthi rebels in Yemen. In an announcement by the Eritrean Ministry of Foreign Affairs seen by APA on Wednesday, the government in Asmara said it had reached an agreement with Riyadh to contribute militarily to the offensive in exchange for a hefty economic aid package.
For the past fifteen years Eritrea has been regarded by the outside world as a reclusive state with serious economic challenges which are partly blamed for a steady exodus of Eritreans from the country.
The Foreign Affairs ministry in Asmara expressed Eritrea’s readiness to join the regional military alliance against what it called agents of terror in Yemen and would be doing so “without reservations”.
However, the government in Asmara has not indicated when it would be deploying troops to join the Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen.
The announcement in Asmara came at the end of President Isaias Afewerki’s recent trip to Saudi Arabia where he held a closed-door meeting with King Salman Bin Abdelaziz, the subject of which was not disclosed.
However, sources in Asmara have intimated to APA that Eritrea’s impending military involvement in Yemen follows the Saudi King’s expressed commitment to assist the largely reclusive country with what they described as huge financial aid.
The Islamic alliance against global terrorism contains 35 Muslim countries under the leadership of Saudi Arabia.
Signature : APA
Received on Thu Dec 24 2015 - 07:23:31 EST