father as defense minister in 2011. However, he was appointed deputy defense minister in November 2011. His term lasted until 20 April 2013 when he was replaced by Fahd bin Abdullah, another member of the royal family. Traditionally, the decision follows exemption "based on his request," but the royal order issued exempting Khalid bin Sultan from office, did not include this phrase. 2009 Yemen bombing In November 2009, Khalid bin Sultan led a Saudi military intervention in Yemen. The campaign had various tactical mistakes, and Khalid was heavily criticized. The Saudis had 130 casualties and Yemen lost over 1000. In December 2009, Khalid gave a 48-hour ultimatum for Houthi withdrawal from Al Jabri. Soon, he declared that the campaign had ended after the Houthi promised through Al-Quds Al-Arabi they would withdraw from the border in exchange for a ceasefire. The Houthi also stated that the Yemen government had used Saudi territory to bomb targets. In February 2010, Ambassador Smith met with Khalid. Smith brought attention to Saudi airstrikes on Yemeni hospitals. Khalid admitted that the event occurred because Yemen had designated the area as a Houthi military base. He also stated that this event occurred because of inaccurate military equipment and the U.S. refusal to provide Predators. He went on to state that Saudi strategy was to force the Houthis to reconcile with the Yemeni government by a strong show of military force. He complained that it was difficult to avoid civilian casualties. The Saudi-Yemeni joint committee granted clearances to Khalid bin Sultan for attacks to be conducted. He also stated that Yemeni intelligence was unreliable and politically motivated. Yemen data claimed terrorist positions in a place when in actuality the place was the office of General Ali Mohsen Al Ahmar, a political adversary to President Saleh. Controversy King Abdullah was not pleased by Khalid's leadership when Saudi troops could not quickly push back Houthis who had seized Saudi territory in late 2009. King Abdullah specifically expressed his concerns over the long duration of the conflict, large number of casualties, and Saudi incompetence. Therefore, this situation led to decrease in his potential succession of his father as defense minister. Joseph A. Kéchichian, a Middle East analyst, argued after Khalid's removal from office on 20 April 2013 that there are three potential reasons for his dismissal, one of which is about his activity in 2009 mentioned above. The others were related