Tariq’s political office in Taiz: Objectives, context, and repercussions

The Political Bureau of the “National Resistance” inaugurated a branch in Taiz city, located in the heart of Yemen, on July 21, 2022. This move came over a year after the establishment of the initial political office in Al-Mukha city on March 25, 2021. The Al-Mukha office served as a front for the “Guardians of the Republic” brigades and other military units formed by the United Arab Emirates under the banner of “Joint Forces,” stationed along the western coast, stretching from the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait in the Dhu Bab District through Al-Mukha port city to Al-Khawkhah, situated 163 km south of Hodeidah city.

Tariq Saleh, assuming command of these forces, utilizes Al-Mukha city in Taiz Governorate as his operational and logistical hub for both political and security endeavors. Saleh was relocated there by the Arab coalition in early 2018 following his departure from Sana’a amidst escalating tensions within the Saleh-Houthi alliance. Armed confrontations erupted between the two factions south of the Yemeni capital on December 1, 2017, lasting approximately three days and culminating in the assassination of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh on December 4, 2017. Tariq Saleh, who led Saleh’s security detail, managed to escape during these turbulent events.