The leadership of the so-called “Homeland Shield” militia funded by Saudi Arabia has attracted hundreds of mercenaries, including elements and leaders of the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda, to recruit them in the Lodar district of Abyan Governorate in southern Yemen.
Informed sources reported that Saudi Arabia has integrated about 1,500 mercenaries from the northern governorates and elements of Al-Qaeda into the so-called “Third Brigade, Homeland Shield” in the Akd area of Lodar.
They indicated that Saudi Arabia has assigned the so-called “Abdul Rabbo Al-Raqibi Al-Baydani” to lead the mercenaries and Al-Qaeda elements in Jabal Akd, and appointed the mercenary called “Ali Al-Ghail Al-Baydani” to the position of chief of staff, and the mercenary “Mohammed Alwan” from Dhamar, the so-called “Chief of Operations”.
According to the sources, Saudi Arabia has gathered dozens of Al-Qaeda elements in Abyan who fled Al-Bayda during the past years and included them among its mercenaries in Jabal Akd.
The sources stated that among the terrorist leaders who joined the Saudi mercenaries within the “Homeland Shield” militias in Jabal Akd are “Abu Muslim Al-Qaisi”, “Abu Bandar Al-Baydani”, and “Abu Yasser Al-Baydani”, noting that the term “Oh our brother” has become widely used among these terrorist groups.
In a related context, the sources explained that there are differences between the mercenaries from Abyan and these terrorist elements, as a result of marginalizing the people of Lawdar and Abyan and granting them marginal roles based on regionalism among the mercenaries themselves, which is no different from the Transitional Militias affiliated with the Emirates.
