Control of Hadramaut ports given to Yemen coast guard

 The Arab coalition, led by Saudi Arabia, on Thursday handed over to the Yemeni coast guard the management of ports and coastal security in Hadramaut.
It also supplied Yemeni forces with boats equipped with weapons, communication devices and advanced radars, to guard and protect the coast of Hadramaut.
The handover, during which it was declared that the Hadramaut coast guard are fully equipped and ready, took place at an official ceremony in Mukalla, with the attendance of Salem Ahmed Al Khan-bashi, Deputy Prime Minister of Yemen, Lt-Colonel Abdullah Al Zuwaidi, Joint Task Force Commander of the Arab Coalition, Mo-hammed Saeed Al Jaber, Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Yemen, Matthew Toller, Ambassador of the United States to Yemen, Major-General Faraj Salemin Al Bahsani, Governor of Hadramaut, and several Yemeni officials.
Lt-Colonel Al Zuwaidi said that the Arab coalition handed over its responsibilities to protect Yemen's coast to the Yemeni coast guard. It had also trained 26 Yemeni coast guard officers and 398 recruits and supplied the service with 32 boats, he added.
He added that the coalition re-stored coast guard boats damaged by Al Qaeda, and constructed coastal radar stations and provided them with AIS devices and ship identification systems while noting that they have established a mechanism to issue licences for commercial ships."Today, we are celebrating the readiness of the coast guard forces in Hadramaut," he stated.
The coast of Hadramaut stretches over 350 kilometres and has seven major ports and dozens of small harbours.
Al Khanbashi thanked the coalition for training and supporting the Yemeni coast guard, protecting Ye-men from terrorist attacks and stopping smuggling of people, weapons and drugs, which will achieve the country's security and stability.
The Saudi ambassador to Yemen said that upgrading capabilities of the Yemeni coast guard comes as part of the coalition's efforts to restore security and stability in the entire Yemeni territories.
Major-General Al Bahsani said the Saudi-led Arab coalition had made great efforts to prevent any terrorist threats in the coastal areas of Hadramaut.
The 2nd Military Command in Yemen has recently launched an 'Operation Iron Fist' to tighten antiterrorist security measures across the western areas of Mukalla.
The UAE has recently delivered patrol vehicles to the coast guard in Hadramaut. The vehicles are equipped with the latest tools and equipment which will enable the forces to perform their duty of maintaining security and stability.