Beginning in March, the Saudi war in Yemen has killed many thousands of Yemens, but hasn’t been entirely restricted to Yemeni territory, as intermittent shelling across the border by the Shi’ite Houthis has killed over 50 Saudis inside Saudi Arabia, overwhelmingly military and border troops.
The Saudi military has issued a statement today revealing that among the latest deaths in cross-border fire was Maj. Gen. Abdulrahman bin saad al-Shahrani, the commander of the nation’s 18th Brigade, and the highest ranked official killed so far in the war.
Exactly when Shahrani was killed is unclear, but the statement indicated that he was visiting troops on the “front lines” when he was badly wounded by “random enemy fire.” He died later in the hospital. A previous report from the Saudi state media said a soldier was killed Saturday on the border, but it is unclear if this was the same incident.
Saudi Arabia attacked Yemen in March, vowing to oust the Shi’ite Houthis and force the return of former President Hadi, who is in exile in Riyadh. Hadi resigned in January after talks with the Houthis on the question of free elections broke down. Hadi was “elected” in 2012 in a single-candidate vote. This was only meant to be a two-year interim term, though he extended his own term in office into 2015.
One less Saudis general is not going to stop Saudis to ask Isis or Al-Queda for another general.
Good. Hopefully more of them get the same treatment.