From Abu Dhabi to Riyadh: Saudi Arabia Wrests the “Giants Brigades” from Emirati Influence
French Intelligence Report Reveals a Shift in the Loyalties of Salafi Factions in Southern Yemen According to the Balance of Funding
NYN | Reports and Analyses
A French intelligence report has revealed a striking strategic shift in the map of influence in southern Yemen, marked by Saudi Arabia’s success in pulling one of the UAE’s most prominent field assets out of its orbit by attracting the Salafi factions known as the “Giants Brigades” and redirecting their military and financial loyalty from Abu Dhabi to Riyadh.
According to Intelligence Online, this shift reflects the fragile nature of alliances based on funding, where military and political decision-making remains dependent on the party most capable of providing financial resources and support.
Riyadh Reshapes the Battlefield Landscape
The report stated that Saudi intelligence succeeded in courting Salafi commander Abu Zara’a Al-Muharrami, positioning him as the spearhead of a project to reorganize military forces in the south. This effort aims to gradually curtail the influence of the Southern Transitional Council and replace it with Salafi formations that pledge direct loyalty to Riyadh.
The report noted that this move represents a severe blow to the UAE, which had invested for years in training and arming these forces, only to find itself excluded from exercising direct influence over them.
Regional Concern and Omani Warnings
This shift, according to the report, has sparked growing regional concern, particularly in Oman, which warned of the risks posed by deploying hardline Salafi factions in the border governorate of Al-Mahrah, given the potential direct threat to regional and security stability.
The publication also pointed to accelerated Saudi steps to empower the Salafi current within the structures of local authority in Aden, with the aim of tightening control over security and political decision-making in areas under coalition influence.
A Struggle for Influence Using Local Tools
Observers believe that what is unfolding in southern Yemen is essentially a regional struggle for influence in which local forces are used as instruments of execution, amid intense Saudi–Emirati competition to gain the favor of influential international powers, foremost among them the United States and “Israel.”
They warn that the continuation of this approach turns occupied areas into open arenas for settling scores between proxies, threatening to deepen chaos and paving the way for external projects that undermine Yemen’s sovereignty and the future of the region as a whole.
