The
Yemeni Republican Guard is an elite formation of the
Yemen Army. It is currently commanded by the former
President Ali Abdullah Saleh's son,
Ahmed Saleh. It was most notably involved in the
2011 Yemeni uprising, fighting in favour of the
Saleh government. The unit was traditionally relied on as the backbone of the regime, and the unit was the best armed and trained in the armed forces. The Defence Ministry both overlooked and engaged in corruption with the unit in order to ensure the loyalty of the unit's leadership.