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KHARTOUM - 2 Apr 2015

Sudan expects role in Yemen war to help its economy

Sudan’s state-run news agency SUNA reported Tuesday that Sudanese economists expect the country’s involvement in Saudi-led ‘Operation Decisive Storm’ to have positive results on the national economy.

The Sudanese government announced in late March that it had joined a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia to restore to power Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, who fled the capital city Sanaa in February after it was overrun by Houthi rebels.

Saudi Arabia and allied Gulf Arab States began air strikes in Yemen in late March as Houthi forces close in on the stronghold of President Hadi in Aden.

The Saudi-led military coalition reportedly confirmed the role of Sudanese warplanes in the operation by releasing video of four Su-24 "Fencer" bomber aircraft parked at the King Khalid Air Force Base in southwest Arabia.

According to Economics Professor Al Kindi Yusuf, Sudan's participation in the Operation Decisive Storm coalition will open up opportunities for Sudan in the Arab and Western world.

He told state news agency SUNA that their involvement could also help result in the lifting of United States economic sanctions, arguing that the coalition has the blessing and support of the United Nations and the United States.

He also predicted the mission could help attract Arab capital and help encourage bilateral trade between Sudan and other countries.

Similarly, the former Undersecretary of the Ministry of Finance Al Sheikh Mohammed, said that Sudan’s participation in the operation will lead to the opening up of relationships with Gulf countries, the flow of remittances, and the normalization of relations between Sudan and its neighbors.