NYN | News
The crisis stemming from the prevention of gas and fuel shipments from entering the city of Ma’rib has continued into its second week, due to a tribal blockade imposed by the ’Ubaydah tribes amid rising tensions with units of the National Army over a mountainous area the tribes say is rich in minerals, according to the newspaper Aden Al-Ghad.
Tribal and local sources reported that blockade points are spread across the roads leading to the governorate’s center, where the government complex, local authority headquarters, and National Army camps are located. While fuel trucks heading into the city are being blocked, the passage of fuel outwards toward Ma’rib al-Wadi District—which is under the ’Ubaydah tribes’ influence—is still permitted.
The sources added that a recent visit to Ma’rib by Presidential Leadership Council member Sultan al-‘Aradah did not yield any significant breakthrough in efforts to resolve the crisis. Negotiations between local officials and tribal sheikhs remain unable to reach a final agreement.
According to available information, the roots of the dispute go back to an old conflict over the ownership of a mountain believed to contain valuable minerals; the ’Ubaydah tribes consider it part of their tribal lands, while army units classify it as government property under state administration. This divergence in positions has pushed tensions to unprecedented levels.
The continued closure of roads to fuel trucks has exacerbated the supply crisis inside Ma’rib city, with warnings of a worsening living situation if mediation efforts fail in the coming days and the roads are not reopened to resume the flow of vital supplies into the city.
