According to Al-Akhbar, citing sources in Sana’a, the recent battle on Yemen’s western coast and the defeat of forces aligned with Riyadh disrupted what the sources describe as a Saudi plan to reproduce the

“Syrian collapse scenario”

in Yemen.

The sources allege that Riyadh had been preparing for this scenario for more than a year by strengthening Salafi formations, including the Nation’s Shield Forces, Emergency Forces and Giants Brigades, while placing hardline commanders in senior military positions.

Al-Akhbar’s sources further claim that Syrian personnel participated in training Salafi factions in the Saudi regions of Al-Wadiah and Sharurah in recent months.

According to informed military sources cited by the newspaper, Sana’a obtained intelligence indicating that Saudi Arabia had facilitated the transfer of hundreds of extremist operatives from Syria into Yemen through Saudi territory.