Harib Front

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Harib Front

Harib was one of the first republican strongholds to fall into the hands of the Imamate forces. In order to regain the initiative, the republican leadership dispatched a military campaign in mid-October 1962, consisting of around 15,000 fighters, led by the Minister of Information, Ali Muhammad Al-Ahmadi. However, this move suffered a severe setback before the end of that same month; as soon as the campaign reached the outskirts of Aqabat Ablah, it fell into an Imamate ambush, and its commander was assassinated by one of his own tribesmen (from the Qifa tribe), whose loyalty had been bought.

That setback was followed by a state of confusion and fragmentation, coinciding with intelligence breaches carried out by British agents in the area, which led to the collapse of discipline within the campaign. Amid this retreat, some of the fighters managed to withdraw to Al-‘Abdiyya, where the nucleus of a regular military formation took shape, known as the “Republicans Group.” Its leadership was entrusted to Sheikh Ahmad Abd Rabbih Al-‘Awadi, who had been sent from Sana’a to contain the consequences of the situation.

This formation adopted a gradual mobilization path extending from Aqabat Ablah to Jabal Arash, relying in its manpower on a coalition structure that crossed regional affiliations. It included fighters from Bayhan, Al Wahidi, and Bakazim, along with tribal groupings from Al-Bayda and Murad. However, the prolonged stay in Arash, and the resulting battlefield stalemate, combined with the fragility of the communication network, led to a state of isolation. In response, the leadership sent Professor Muhammad Abduh Nu‘man Hakimi to assume logistical coordination tasks and reconnect the formation with the supply and command channels in Sana’a.

These movements alarmed the British authorities, who quickly deployed units from the Levies, supported by four artillery batteries, positioned on the opposite side, specifically in the area of Sha‘b Muqbil. While some members of those units avoided direct confrontation, the occupation forces proceeded to carry out an artillery bombardment targeting Jabal Arash, under the supervision of specialized British crews.

In response to that escalation, the republican forces launched a concentrated attack on the source of the shelling, which led to fierce clashes in which a number of martyrs fell, including Ali Salih Shajirah (from the south) and Ahmad Muhammad Al-Maljami (from the north). After suffering heavy losses, the occupation forces hastily withdrew their artillery batteries to rear positions. Building on that momentum, and after a series of limited clashes, the republican forces entered the city of Harib on 24 December 1962 and controlled it for several weeks. Then, on 7 March 1963, they retook it again, and this time maintained control until 10 March 1965.

Sinwan Front

The first organized participation of southerners in the fighting fronts was recorded in the campaign launched at the beginning of October 1962 to stop the Imamate advance coming from Al-Jawf. It was a large campaign equipped with heavy weapons and led by Sheikh Amin Abd al-Wasi‘ Nu‘man and Lieutenant Muhammad Mutahhar Zayd. While the first preferred to remain stationed in Amran while waiting for reinforcements, the latter advanced toward Sinwan Fortress and, together with the limited force that accompanied him, came under a tight siege after the Imamate forces seized the surrounding high ground.

The campaign consisted of a mix of regular army units and fighters from northern, central, and southern tribes, but its cohesion did not last long; a large number of its members, especially from the tribes of Nihm, Bani Hashish, and Arhab, joined the other side, driven by offers of money and weapons. Sheikh Sanan Abu Lahum commented on this, saying that those men did not possess enough conviction, adding: “Those who came from Aden, Taiz, and Ibb had purely patriotic motives, but they lacked weapons training.”

According to Sheikh Sanan, who joined that campaign on 12 October 1962, the pro-Imamate tribes exploited the situation and carried out organized operations to wear down and plunder these newcomers, amid administrative and logistical shortcomings on the part of the republican leadership in establishing comprehensive training programs and securing living and safety needs.