General Ali Mohsen Saleh: Iran Poses Threat to Yemen’s Future

General Ali Mohsen, commander of Yemen's northwest military zone, sits in his office after an interview with Reuters in Sanaa March 24, 2011. Mohsen, who has thrown his weight behind street protests demanding the immediate resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh said he has no desire to take power or hold political office. He added that military rule in Arab countries was outdated and that the people would decide who would govern them in the framework of a modern, civilian state. To match Exclusive-Interview YEMEN-MOHSEN/ REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah (YEMEN - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY PROFILE) - RTR2KCHQ

Yemeni Vice President Lieutenant General Ali Mohsen Saleh has described Iran as a ‘source of danger’ and said it poses a threat to Yemen’s future. The official Yemeni news agency on Sunday quoted Saleh as saying that the Houthi militia is an Iranian instrument in Yemen. Saleh noted that all Yemenis are aware of the Houthis’ dependence on and loyalty to Iran.

Saleh also expressed his confidence in knowing that all Yemenis are aware of the danger at hand and its source. He also pointed out that the Yemeni army will refuse to respond to the orders of those who have targeted their lives and military equipment.

They will also not respond to those who have replaced them with the militias and tried to engage them in futile wars with the Yemeni civilians and neighboring countries, the Lieutenant General  added.

The vice president continued saying: “September and October’s armies will not respond to those who have killed their soldiers and commanders and replaced them with the militias. Nor will they respond to those who have looted their camps, weapons, equipment and had the militias attack their Yemeni brothers and civilians.”

The vice president’s statements only reiterate the negative role that Iran plays in Yemen. Today, the country suffers from a state of poor humanitarian conditions, a continuous outbreak of cholera and growing differences between the Houthi and Saleh-allied militias.