A secret military mission to Yemen by the air force is commemorated with a special exhibition at the Air Force Museum that opened on Saturday, 40 years after Taiwanese troops were deployed to help North Yemen forces.
The now declassified military aid program, which the air force conducted from 1979 until 1990, began with a request from then-diplomatic ally Saudi Arabia to aid its ally, the Yemen Arab Republic, which had no ties with Taiwan, a Ministry of National Defense official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
North Yemen at the time was engaged in a rivalry with the People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen, which it fought during a brief war in 1972.
Photo courtesy of the Republic of China Air Force Museum
The countries in 1990 formed the Republic of Yemen, but strife returned to the region in 2017.
The air force denies ever flying any combat missions over Yemen.
In what was known as the Great Desert Program (大漠計畫), the air force deployed more than 1,000 personnel — including pilots and ground crew — to assist and advise the North Yemeni air force, until Saudi Arabia withdrew its diplomatic recognition of Taiwan, ending the program, the official said.
Many participants in the program would rise to prominent military and civilian positions, including Deputy Minister of National Defense Shen Yi-ming (沈一鳴) and former Civil Aeronautics Administration director-general Billy Chang (張國政), the official said.
The exhibition features records and documents, as well as uniforms, insignia and photographs from 200 veterans who participated in the mission, the official said.
On the opening day, the Air Force Academy presented a commendation of gratitude to personnel involved in the mission on behalf of the armed forces.
POLAM KOPITIAM CASE: Of the two people still in hospital, one has undergone a liver transplant and is improving, while the other is being evaluated for a liver transplant A fourth person has died from bongkrek acid poisoning linked to the Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, as two other people remain seriously ill in hospital. The first death was reported on March 24. The man had been 39 years old and had eaten at the restaurant on March 22. As more cases of suspected food poisoning involving people who had eaten at the restaurant were reported by hospitals on March 26, the ministry and the Taipei Department of Health launched an investigation. The Food and
A fourth person has died in a food poisoning outbreak linked to the Xinyi (信義) branch of Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in Taipei, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said on Monday. It was the second fatality in three days, after another was announced on Saturday. The 40-year-old woman experienced multiple organ failure in the early hours on Monday, and the family decided not to undergo emergency resuscitation, Wang said. She initially showed signs of improvement after seeking medical treatment for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but her condition worsened due to an infection, he said. Two others who
The long-awaited Taichung aquarium is expected to open next year after more than a decade of development. The building in Cingshui District (清水) is to feature a large ocean aquarium on the first floor, coral display area on the second floor, a jellyfish tank and Dajia River (大甲溪) basin display on the third, a river estuary display and restaurant on the fourth, and a cafe and garden on the fifth. As it is near Wuci Fishing Port (梧棲漁港), many are expecting the opening of the aquarium to bring more tourism to the harbor. Speaking at the city council on Monday, Taichung City Councilor
Taiwanese should be mindful when visiting China, as Beijing in July is likely to tighten the implementation of policies on national security following the introduction of two regulations, a researcher said on Saturday. China on Friday unveiled the regulations governing the law enforcement and judicial activities of national security agencies. They would help crack down on “illegal” and “criminal” activities that Beijing considers to be endangering national security, according to reports by China’s state media. The definition of what constitutes a national security threat in China is vague, Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) said. The two procedural regulations are to provide Chinese