Al-Qaida’s Sordid Strategy Upset by Yemeni Forces

Yemeni troops retake the Al-Oradi hospital from terrorists disguised in Soldiers’ uniforms

COL. MOHAMED AHMAD AL ASHWAL YEMEN’S SENIOR NATIONAL REPRESENTATIVE TO U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND

We lost our blood. We lost our Soldiers. We lost our innocents. But we achieved victory.

It is with immense sadness that I recall the lives of the faithful and courageous Soldiers and innocent civilians that died during a terrorist attack, but I am proud of their heroic story of sacrifice that will stun readers into silence.

A cruel and horrible event inside the Yemeni Defense Ministry’s Al-Oradi complex became a symbol of valiant sacrifice when brave Yemeni military police and commandos stormed a hospital and adjacent buildings to free them from terrorists in December 2013.

The instantaneous reaction from the Defense Ministry Guard of Military Police and the 314 Armored Brigade, in support of special forces troops, showcased the pride and skill with which Yemeni troops have bolstered their counterterrorism tactics.   

On December 5, 2013, al-Qaida launched an assault on a hospital inside a Ministry of Defense compound in Yemen’s capital city, Sanaa.

The attack began at about 9 a.m. when a group of terrorists carrying rifles and rocket launchers assaulted the gate while disguised in Army uniforms. Then a suicide bomber rammed a car loaded with explosives into one of the compound’s gates — paving the way for gunmen to rush the hospital and other buildings located within the Defense Ministry’s complex. That the terrorists exploited a hospital provides evidence of their wickedness and immorality, customary characteristics of al-Qaida terrorists. It also reveals the level of the moral deterioration this terrorist organization has reached.

In fact, what made the operation difficult for Yemeni forces was figuring out how to attack the terrorists without harming civilians. Some of the first terrorist attackers were repelled by the military police Soldiers at the main gate of the hospital. The military police fought ferociously and stopped some of the terrorists at the main gate of the hospital. Others were killed when they tried to flee from the complex’s eastern gate. In all, the complex security forces, along with special forces, killed all terrorist attackers. The terrorists killed 52 people and wounded 167 in the assault – most of them wounded from shards of glass coming from the windows of the buildings after the car bomb exploded. Among the dead were Yemeni doctors, nurses, patients and foreign employees, including German, Vietnamese, Filipino and Indian doctors and nurses who were providing aid at the hospital.

Heroes guarding the Ministry of Defense — affiliated with the 314 Armored Brigade or military police — besieged the attackers in the hospital, despite the fact that the suicide car-bomb blast aimed to spark shock and confusion. Attackers composed of three groups could not enter, or even approach, the Ministry of Defense. Any who tried died at the hands of the Ministry of Defense security forces.

The command deployed additional troops outside the compound to prevent other terrorists from entering the compound. The task was successful and forces started clearing the buildings that the terrorists had been able to enter. The Soldiers were careful not to use heavy weapons because the Al-Oradi complex is in a populated area and surrounded by houses.

His Excellency President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi visited the Defense Ministry building an hour after the attack. He held meetings with officials and senior military leaders during the operation as terrorists were flushed from buildings.

It is worth mentioning that the forces carefully and patiently assessed how many attackers were inside these buildings. The terrorists were equipped with ammunition, explosives, first-aid kits and enough dry food to last 30 days, which indicates they were planning to hunker down to achieve a moral and media victory. It was later learned there were 12 attackers in all.

After the Al-Oradi incident, the public was outraged to see surveillance videos that captured al-Qaida terrorists wandering hospital corridors and shooting unarmed doctors, nurses and patients who were lying on their beds and inside intensive care units. This horrendous event was the first time al-Qaida’s evil actions were documented so clearly on video.

One video shows a terrorist approaching a group of cowering patients. Because the terrorist was dressed as a Soldier, patients cried to him to save them. Instead, he pointed his assault rifle at the patients, as if to shoot, then casually tossed a hand grenade into the group. That graphic footage showed that al-Qaida terrorists do not differentiate between combatants on the battlefield and innocents on the street. They do not differentiate between young and old, men or women. In Yemeni culture, we don’t attack a woman,  regardless of the reason, but terrorists mercilessly murdered women who were crying for help.

A local newspaper reported that some of the victims were killed on operating tables in surgery wards, along with the doctors working on the patients. Others pretended to be dead to avoid attention from the terrorists and survived to give their testimonies about the massacre.

Who are these cold-blooded animals? The terrorists killed innocents as they were pleading for help.

One of the most important lessons we have learned from this incident is that few places are safe from these evil terrorists. Forces must be prepared to confront them at any time and in any place. Training is an integral part of this. For example, Yemen’s Special Forces have received specialized high-level training and have benefited from experiences with Arab and foreign countries. Previous training and experience, including simulations conducted on the premises of the Ministry of Defense, helped Yemeni security forces to storm and retake the buildings as it was applied in the Al-Oradi hospital operation.