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Saudi, UAE seek to position son of ex-Yemen president to power

June 21, 2017 at 5:08 pm

Ousted Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh [MolhiaAbo/Twitter]

A senior political source who lives in Riyadh has revealed that a future political settlement is being planned to appoint Brigadier General Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh, the son of ousted Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh who lives in UAE, as defence minister in a new government under the political settlement.

Image of Brigadier General Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh

The source revealed details of arrangements for a rapprochement between leaders of the General People’s Congress Party, loyal to Saleh, party leaders loyal to the government, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi with a view to giving the party an active role in the coming phase.

The Arab newspaper Al-Araby Al-Jadeed quoted the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, saying that agreements had been reached on strengthening the role of the General People’s Congress Party in the north. He added that, last week, a military delegation of the Arab Alliance met with Brigadier Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh in the UAE. The source did not reveal the nature of the meeting or details of what was discussed.

According to observers, the UAE-backed campaign to revive the General People’s Congress Party is taking placing concurrently with information campaigns aimed at preparing the Yemeni public for the return of Saleh’s son to take up a role as head of the party.

These campaigns are being carried out by a special media unit that includes a number of officials and journalists in the Government of Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi.