Soldiers of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) check vehicles at a checkpoint in Aden, Yemen, on Aug. 22, 2019. Various security units of the Southern Transitional Council on Thursday launched a large-scale campaign to ban weapons in the strategic Yemeni port city of Aden. (Photo by Murad Abdo/Xinhua)
ADEN, Yemen, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- Various security units of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) launched on Thursday a large-scale campaign to ban weapons in the strategic Yemeni port city of Aden.
Heavy security forces backed by armored vehicles were deployed around key government facilities and military bases located in different neighborhoods of Aden.
Several new checkpoints were also set up by security troops around the city's main entrances and intersections to search for weapons.
The crackdown, which covers all the neighborhoods of Aden currently controlled by the southern forces, will continue to include other neighboring main cities.
A military official told Xinhua that the campaign to ban weapons was launched in cooperation with the Saudi-led Arab coalition for the purpose of imposing security and stability in the country's southern regions.
"The widespread use of weapons in Aden enabled the terrorist elements to attack the security forces and the criminal cases also increased," said the source anonymously.
He added that "this campaign will play a very important role in securing Aden and aborting terrorist attacks in this city that has suffered a lot."
Many activists and local citizens voiced full support for the measures taken by the STC forces against the widespread phenomenon of carrying weapons in Aden.
Some STC supporters and young activists began an awareness campaign by distributing leaflets to advise citizens to cooperate with the security forces on disarming the city of Aden.
Weal Adeemy, an Aden-based activist, told Xinhua that Aden used to be very peaceful, but the years-long military conflict led to the spread of weapons that threatens the security of the city.
He added that "the war created chaos and taught Aden's people how to use weapons in the city that used to be a safe haven for hundreds of tourists from different countries."
"We will exert hard efforts to increase awareness among local residents and support the STC forces to achieve stability for the southern people," he said.
Last week, the STC forces completely seized Aden after days of intense street fighting with the government forces, leaving scores killed and injured.
The Yemeni government held the STC and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a key partner of the Saudi-led coalition, fully responsible for the consequences of the coup against the authorities in Aden.
But the southern forces kept advancing on the ground and gained full control of the neighboring province of Abyan.
Aden's fighting started when senior leaders of the STC accused the Saudi-backed Yemeni government of "backing Islamists and leaking information to the Iran-backed Houthis," who targeted an army base in Aden earlier this month, killing scores of soldiers including some commanders.
The STC was a part of the Saudi-led coalition to fight Houthi militias in northern Yemen.
The impoverished Arab country has been locked in a civil war since late 2014, when the Houthis overran much of the country and seized all northern provinces including the capital Sanaa.
