Wegen eines Crashs der Freitag-Datenbank war das Jemen-Mosaik vom 22. Oktober 8:00 Uhr verschwunden. Hier ist es wieder
Due to a crash of the database at "Der Freitag", this Yemen Mosaic from Oct. 22, 8:00 am CET had vanished. Here it is again
Cease fire breached by both sides – Hunger – Gender analysis – Oct. 8 Sanaa air raid: US support (German); is a war crime – Saudis buy German arms (German) – How to end the war – Media story of “proxy war” – and more
Schwerpunkte / Key aspects
Klassifizierung / Classification
cp1a Am wichtigsten: Waffenstillstand / Most important: ceasefire
cp1b Am wichtigsten: Sonstiges / Most important: Other
cp2 Allgemein / General
cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation
cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis
cp6 Südjemen und Hadi-Regierung / Southern Yemen and Hadi-government
cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche/ UN and peace talks
cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia
cp9 USA
cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain
cp11 Deutschland / Germany
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade
cp13b Flüchtlinge / Refugees
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
cp15 Propaganda
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
cp18 Sonstiges / Other
Klassifizierung / Classification
***
**
*
(Kein Stern / No star)
A = Aktuell / Current news
B = Hintergrund / Background
C = Chronik / Chronicle
D = Details
E = Wirtschaft / Economy
H = Humanitäre Fragen / Humanitarian questions
K = Krieg / War
P = Politik / Politics
PH = Pro-Houthi
PS = Pro-Saudi
T = Terrorismus / Terrorism
cp1a Am wichtigsten: Waffenstillstand / Most important: ceasefire
Bruch des Waffenstillstands, Einzelheiten: cp16, 17
Breach of ceasefire, details: cp16, 17
21.10.2016 – Deutsche Wirtschafts-Nachrichten (* A K P)
Saudis fliegen weiter Angriffe: Keine Waffenruhe im Jemen
Im Jemen ist die erhoffte Waffenruhe schon nach wenigen Stunden wieder gebrochen worden. Saudi-Arabien fliegt mit der Unterstützung der USA und Großbritanniens Luftangriffe. Auch zivile Ziele sollen getroffen worden sein.
Die mit großer Hoffnung erwartete Feuerpause im Bürgerkriegsland Jemen ist am ersten Tag mehrfach gebrochen worden. „Es gibt überhaupt keine Waffenruhe“, sagte der Sprecher der von Saudi-Arabien angeführten Militärkoalition, Ahmed Assiri, am Donnerstag. Er warf den Huthi-Rebellen mehrere Verstöße gegen die von den Vereinten Nationen vermittelte Feuerpause vor. Die Rebellen meldeten ihrerseits einen tödlichen Angriff der Militärallianz auf Zivilisten. Insgesamt wurden mindestens elf Menschen getötet.
21.10.2016 – AFP (*A K P)
Scheiternde Waffenruhe im Jemen: Gefechte mit elf Toten
Die mit großer Hoffnung erwartete Feuerpause im Bürgerkriegsland Jemen ist am ersten Tag mehrfach gebrochen worden. „Es gibt überhaupt keine Waffenruhe“, sagte der Sprecher der von Saudi-Arabien angeführten Militärkoalition, Ahmed Assiri, am Donnerstag. Er warf den Huthi-Rebellen mehrere Verstöße gegen die von den Vereinten Nationen vermittelte Feuerpause vor. Die Rebellen meldeten ihrerseits einen tödlichen Angriff der Militärallianz auf Zivilisten. Insgesamt wurden mindestens elf Menschen getötet.
Assiri zählte 43 Verstöße gegen die Waffenruhe entlang der saudischen Grenze. Dabei hätten die Rebellen Granaten, Raketen und Gewehrschüsse abgefeuert. In der Grenzregion Dschasan wurden dem saudischen Zivilschutz zufolge bei einem Angriff ein Mann und seine Tochter verletzt worden.
Die Militärkoalition beantworte jeden Verstoß gegen die Waffenruhe mit eigenen Luft- und Artillerieangriffen, sagte Assiri. „Wenn sie aufhören, feuern wir keine einzige Kugel ab.“ Die Militärkoalition sei weiterhin entschlossen, sich an die Waffenruhe zu halten, sagte Assiri. Auch um die Stadt Tais zählte ein Sprecher regierungstreuer Kräfte 69 Verstöße gegen die Waffenruhe sowie neun weitere in Nahm, nordöstlich der Hauptstadt Sanaa.
Fünf regierungstreue Kämpfer seien im Nordwesten des Landes bei Angriffen der Rebellen getötet worden, erklärten die Hadi-Truppen. Drei Rebellen seien in der Provinz Hodeida im Westen des Landes getötet worden. Unter den Todesopfern waren nach Angaben der Rebellen auch drei Zivilisten, die bei einem Luftangriff der Militärkoalition in der Provinz Saada nördlich der Hauptstadt Sanaa getötet worden seien.
http://www.taz.de/!5350447/ und siehe auch ORF:http://orf.at/stories/2363279/
Kommentar: AFP lenkt die Aufmerksamkeit klar auf die Verstöße der Houthis und ihrer Verbündeten und schiebt die saudischen Luftangriffe (mehr als einen!!!, s. cp16) verschämt dazwischen. Und: Es gibt glaubwürdige Quellen, und es gibt Assiri. Beides hat so viel miteinander zu tun wie Oper und Hackfleisch.
21.10.2016 – World Bulletin (* A K P)
Coalition warplanes hit Yemen rebels
The air strikes late Thursday targeted positions of the Iran-backed Huthi insurgents at Jebel al-Nabishuaib, on the southwestern outskirts of rebel-held Sanaa, according to witnesses.
Warplanes from the Saudi-led coalition have hit rebel positions outside the Yemeni capital Sanaa, witnesses said Friday, after the alliance accused insurgents of breaching a shaky ceasefire.
They said the area hosts bases for air defences controlled by renegade troops loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who is allied with the Shiite rebels.
Air raids also targeted rebels in the northern provinces of Jawf and Saada, witnesses and rebel media said.
Coalition spokesman Major General Ahmed Assiri said on Friday that alliance warplanes were only conducting surveillance flights and "reactive" strikes, in response to rebel truce violations.
Patriot missiles shot down two rebel missiles fired in Marib, east of Sanaa on Thursday, he said.
http://www.worldbulletin.net/middle-east/178953/coalition-warplanes-hit-yemen-rebels
Comment: “surveillance flights” = terrorizing the population by the sound of fighter jets and the fear of air raids; “"reactive" strikes” would only be “reactive” as directed against the missile launchers from which missiles had been fired before; “air raids also targeted rebels”, refers to civilians.
21.10.2016 – Xinhua (* A K P)
Ceasefire violations deepen uncertainty of peace process in Yemen
Yemen's dominant Shiite Houthi group traded accusations with Saudi Arabia on Friday over breaching a ceasefire mediated by the United Nations, deepening the uncertainty of the peace process in the country.
The UN-brokered 72-hour ceasefire, meant to last for three days, came into effect on Wednesday midnight.
According to a statement released by Houthi-run media, a Thursday night air strike by the Saudi-led coalition killed three civilians in the northern province of Saada.
The coalition accused the Houthis of firing rockets on the southern Saudi cities of Jazan and Najran, killing two civilians, according to a statement by Saudi official media.
Meanwhile, Saudi-backed Yemeni government of exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi said its troops in the Yemeni central province of Marib shot down three missiles fired by Houthis late on Thursday.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2016-10/21/c_135771659.htm
21.10.2016 – Reuters (A K P)
Parties to Yemen war exchange accusations of breaching ceasefire
Warring factions in the war in Yemen exchanged accusations on Friday of violating a 72-hour ceasefire
The Saudi-led coalition said in a statement on state news agency SPA that Iran-allied Houthi forces have used rockets, shells, and snipers to attack border cities inside Saudi Arabia in the Jizan and Nijran provinces.
It also accused the Houthis of launching attacks on the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, and other provinces such as Taiz, Hajja, Shabwa, Mareb and Aden.
The coalition said it had responded to the Houthi attacks "according to the engagement rules and continuing to exercise the highest self restraints towards the violations of the ceasefire."
The Houthi movement said the coalition struck a number of areas in the border district of Shad, causing damage to properties, according to the Houthi-allied Al-Maseera TV. It added that the Houthis responded to the attacks.
No casualties have been reported by either side.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-ceasefire-idUSKCN12L2R5
Comment: This article is quite bad. The Saudis did not claim that the Houthis shelled “the capital Sanaa”, this refers to Sanaa province (certainly Nehm region). – All the Saudi air raids against various targets in several parts of the country are not even mentioned. – No, both sides claimed casualities.
21.10.2016 – Saba Net (A K PH)
Enemy warplanes, mercenaries continue breaching cease-fire
The Saudi-American warplanes and their mercenaries continue their crimes and breaches of the UN announced ceasefire over the past hours.
A military source told Saba that the hostile military jets launched a number of air raids against the governorates of Sa’ada, Sana’a, Mareb and Al-Jawf.
The aerial attacks killed and injured a number of civilians and caused to damages to civilians’ properties, the source said.
It also added that the army and popular committees confronted a ground movement attempt by the Saudi army to Qulal Al-Shaibani in Asir.
They also confronted a progress attempt by the enemy’s mercenaries in Al-Buq’a border inlet of Sa’ada as well as other confrontations in Taiz, Lahj and Al-Dhale.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news444400.htm
21.10.2016 – Press TV Iran (* A K PH)
Saudi Arabia violates Yemen ceasefire again
The Saudi regime has once again violated the ceasefire in Yemen, carrying out airstrikes on the impoverished Arab country.
Saudi Arabia launched rocket attacks against several areas in the Yemeni province of Sa’ada on Friday. According to Yemen's al-Masirah news website, the rockets hit residential areas in Shada district.
On Thursday, six people were killed in airstrikes by Saudi warplanes on Sa'ada and the province of Amran.
The Yemeni army and popular committees launched retaliatory attacks on Saudi military positions in the southwestern province of Jizan.
Al-Masirah reported that the Yemeni forces fired rockets and artillery shells at the Saudi military camp of Mosem and other posts in the east of the town of Samtah on Friday.
http://presstv.com/Detail/2016/10/21/490097/Yemen-Saudi-Arabia-Jizan
and
21.10.2016 – Saudi Gazette (A K PS)
Dramatic increase in ceasefire violations by Houthi militias
The Command of the Coalition Forces Supporting Legitimacy in Yemen has announced that the number of ceasefire violations by Houthi militias and their supporters increased dramatically during the past 24 hours.
It said the violations reached 124 in the Jazan sector and 81 in Najran.
There were 692 ceasefire violations inside the Yemeni territory, which include 124 incidents in Marib, 24 in Shabwa, 265 in Taez, 44 in Dhale, 48 Hajjah, 116 in Al-Jawf, 25 in Sanaa, 41 in Al-Baydha and 5 in Aden.
The militias used snipers and various weapons such as missiles and projectiles in the attacks.
The Coalition Command said the response to the sources of fire was made in accordance with the approved rules of engagement and stressed the coalition troops’ commitment to the policy of self-restraint toward these violations.
http://saudigazette.com.sa/saudi-arabia/dramatic-increase-ceasefire-violations-houthi-militias/
Comment: However, such a violation count sounds quite doubtful. Saudi propaganda likes great figures, remember enlarging 2 Iranian warships to 40 – the whole Iranian navy does not have so many vessels.
Comment by Judith Brown: Says Saudi Arabia. Nb - where KSA lists the ceasefire violations some districts do not have a Houthi militia presence, such as Aden.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154831149703641
20.10.2016 – Alliance News (A K P)
Yemen's warring sides on Thursday accused each other of violating a temporary UN-brokered truce, hours after it went into effect.
Comment by Judith Brown: The ceasefire started last night and it was meant to help the humanitarian crisis. But the airports were destroyed in Sanaa and Hodeida so that no aid could get in by air, the roads and ports have long been destroyed. What sort of humanitarian gap is this??? And why are they still fighting??? Do any of them care about Yemeni people??
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154827442058641
20.10.2016 – Jennifer (* A K)
[Listing up breaks of ceasefire by Saudi coalition; image]
https://twitter.com/teddy_cat1/status/789206152055697408 =https://twitter.com/AristoT43914395/status/789182123097726976
20.10.2016 – AFP (* A K)
Elf Tote trotz Feuerpause im Jemen
Vereinzelte Kämpfe im Bürgerkriegsland Jemen gefährden die brüchige Feuerpause. Am ersten Tag der dreitägigen Waffenruhe wurden mindestens elf Menschen getötet
Beide Konfliktparteien warfen sich am Donnerstag gegenseitig Verstöße gegen die Waffenruhe vor. Fünf regierungstreue Kämpfer seien im Nordwesten des Landes bei Angriffen der Rebellen getötet worden, erklärten die Hadi-Truppen. Drei Rebellen seien in der Provinz Hodeida im Westen des Landes getötet worden.
Unter den Todesopfern waren nach Angaben der Rebellen auch drei Zivilisten, die bei einem Luftangriff der Militärkoalition in der Provinz Saada nördlich der Hauptstadt Sanaa getötet worden seien.
Ein Sprecher der Militärkoalition kündigte "angemessene" Reaktionen auf die Verstöße gegen die Waffenruhe an. Rebellensprecher General Scharaf Lokman sagte, seine Einheiten würden die Waffenruhe einhalten - vorausgesetzt, "der Feind" halte sich in der Luft, am Boden und im Wasser ebenfalls daran.
20.10.2016– APA /DPA (* A K P)
Kämpfe im Jemen flauen ab – Waffenruhe vereinzelt gebrochen
Die Gewalt im Bürgerkrieg im Jemen ist nach Eintreten einer 72-stündigen Waffenruhe zunächst zurückgegangen. Die Konfliktparteien warfen sich jedoch vereinzelt Verstöße gegen die Feuerpause vor. Besonders im Norden des Landes habe es an der Grenze zu Saudi-Arabien schwere Gefechte gegeben, hieß es aus Armeekreisen.
Die Vereinten Nationen hatten eine Waffenruhe ausgehandelt, die vorerst von Donnerstagnacht bis Samstag dauern soll. Regierungstreue Truppen, die dem international anerkannten Präsidenten Abd Rabbo Mansur Hadi nahe stehen, warfen den schiitischen Houthi-Rebellen vor, bereits kurz nach Inkrafttreten gegen die Feuerpause verstoßen zu haben. In einer am Donnerstag veröffentlichten Erklärung hieß es, dass die Rebellen zusammen mit Truppen des früheren Präsidenten Saleh Regierungsstellungen in der Provinz al-Jauf, nahe der Grenze zu Saudi-Arabien, angegriffen hätten. Die Stellungen seien aber zurückerobert worden.
Insgesamt sollen die Rebellen in mehr als 43 Fällen gegen die Waffenruhe verstoßen haben, teilte die regierungstreue Koalition am Donnerstag mit. Darunter seien neben Feuergefechten auch Artillerieangriffe gewesen.
Auch die von Saudi-Arabien geführte Koalition soll erneut Luftangriffe geflogen haben. Die jemenitische Nachrichtenagentur Saba berichtete von drei Luftschlägen rund 100 Kilometer östlich von Sanaa. Über mögliche Opfer wurde zunächst nichts bekannt.
https://www.suedtirolnews.it/politik/kaempfe-im-jemen-flauen-ab-waffenruhe-vereinzelt-gebrochen
20.10.2016 – Reuters (** A K)
Yemen missile launch, Saudi-led air strike strain truce
A 72-hour truce in Yemen came under pressure on Thursday when missiles fired from Yemen injured civilians in southern Saudi Arabia, according to an Arab coalition which launched air strikes that Iran-allied Houthi fighters said killed three people.
A ceasefire brokered by the UN took effect late on Wednesday, raising hopes of an end to a war that has devastated the Arab world's poorest country and left it on the verge of famine.
That brought Sanaa its first night without air strikes in nearly three months and the truce was generally holding across the Arabian Peninsula state, residents and officials said.
But rockets were fired by the Houthi group at Jazan and Najran in Saudi Arabia, the Saudi-led military coalition said in a statement.
"43 violations were committed along the border... in which snipers and various weapons were used, including missiles," it said.
The Houthis said they had launched attacks on Saudi military camps across the border over the past two days and that a coalition airstrike on Thursday killed three civilians in northern Saada province.
In the southern city of Zinjibar, al-Qaeda militants ambushed a checkpoint and killed five soldiers and injured several others, a local official told a sign of how the war has spiraled out of control.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-ceasefire-idUSKCN12K0UL
20.10.2016 – Reuters (A K P)
U.S. urges Houthis to keep ceasefire
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday urged Yemen's Houthis to respect a ceasefire and said Saudi Arabia had a right to be free from rocket attacks like one that he said killed two Saudi civilians.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-usa-idUSKCN12K2L1
Kerry “urged Yemen's Houthis to respect a ceasefire”; he did not urge the Saudis and their allies to do so as well. Kerry said Saudi Arabia “has a right to be free from missiles being launched from Yemen”. And Yemen should not have the right to be free of Saudi air strikes????
20.10.2016 – Yemen Post (* A K)
FRAGILE Ceasefire: Saudi airstrikes kill 4 in attack on Saada home & Houthis clash in 3 #Yemen regions as both sides breach day 1 ceasefire.
https://twitter.com/YemenPostNews/status/789096361471971328
20.10.2016 – Nasser Arrabyee (A P)
Yemen alleged cease-fire is not holding,never ever will. No peace,no end of war without UNSC resolution obligating Saudis2stop hostilities
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/789093997721554944
20.10-2016 – Hassan Al-Haifi (A K P)
Planes hovering and bombing. Attempted advances at border and by mercenaries. If anyone says truce in Yemen, tell them IOCA BS as usual.
https://twitter.com/commonsense575/status/789037037538177024
21.10.2016 – Asharq Al-Awsat (A K)
YCMHRV: Violations of Yemen’s 4th Truce by Houthis, Saleh Supporters
Documented incidents and events point out that Houthis and Saleh supporters violated the three truces in the first hours. Violations varied between raiding over residential areas, targeting army and resistance forces’ bases and hindering access to humanitarian aid.
Analysts expected the fourth ceasefire to last for some time given the international pressure put on warring sides as well as the critical economic situation of Yemen. Yet, the fourth truce quickly collapsed.
Clashes were mutual- However, facts show that violations were first made by Houthis and Saleh supporters.
The Yemeni Coalition to Monitor Human Rights Violations (YCMHRV) documented 125 violations by Houthis and Saleh supporters in eight provinces: Taiz, Sana’a, Hajjah, Dhale, al-Bayda, Ma’rib, al-Jawf and Shabwah.
The report provided a table that unveils the total number of violations in these regions, respectively, in the first ten hours—the figures go as follows: 64, 19, 12, 9, 7, 6, 5 and 3. Military actions conducted by the Houthis killed two and injured 12 (mainly civilians).
The team that prepared the YCMHRV report carried out interviews with victims’ families and residents who were terrified by the missiles.
Witness Mujib Abdullah said that he heard that a truce was declared then a missile dropped over his house and his neighbor’s.
Comment: The YCMHRV is a Hadi government organisation. This report downplays the violations by the Saudi coalition (see cp16, 17). Do not mix facts and propaganda.
20.10.2016 – Saudi Press Agency (A K)
Monitoring Committees Affiliated to Coalition Forces Supporting Legitimacy in Yemen Makes Statement on Violations of Ceasefire Agreement
The Monitoring Committees affiliated to the Coalition Forces Supporting Legitimacy in Yemen have announced that more than 43 violations of the ceasefire agreement - which was valid since Wednesday midnight on 18/01/1438H - were committed between the coalition forces and the militias of Houthi and ousted Saleh. These violations were committed along the border between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Yemen, particularly in Najran and Jazan Regions, in which snipers and various weapons were used, including missiles and projectiles.
The Coalition Forces also said that the response to the sources of fire was made in accordance with the approved rules of engagement. As the Coalition Forces announces this, it will continue confronting the violations of ceasefire agreement and continue imposing no-fly and no-sail zones as well as air reconnaissance against any movements made by Houthi militias and their supporters, stressing at the same time their commitment to the policy of self-restraint towards these violations.
The Coalition Forces hold the Houthi militias and their supporters the responsibility of disrupting the access of humanitarian aid to the areas besieged by the militias in Yemen. The Coalition Forces will continue committing to the ceasefire agreement
http://www.spa.gov.sa/viewstory.php?newsid=1550578 and as reported by the BBC: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-37723472
Comment: There are ceasefire violations by BOTH sides (see other articles and cp16, 17). “air reconnaissance” over Yemeni Houthi hold territory is a violation of ceasefire. During ceasefire, the Houthis might move in their territory from wherever to wherever, that is nothing the Saudis would be granted to supervise assuming the role of some sort of police. – “continue imposing no-fly and no-sail zones” is another breach of ceasefire. “Imposing no-fly zones” is a bad joke, the only ones using military aircraft over Yemen are the Saudis and their allies. This announcement only can refer to civilian flight the Saudis will not admit to go and leave from and to Sanaa and Hodeida airports. To threaten any civilian flights there would be another breach of the ceasefire – by things like that, the Saudis are showing that they accept the ceasefire only very unwillingly.
Comment by Judith Brown to BBC article, photo and map: Hadi in control???? He isn't even in control of a square inch of Yemen. This map offered by the BBC is not only way out of date - it's describing something that never happened. Look at the South Yemen flag in this picture. These troops are separatists in Aden.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154827483093641
20.10.2016 – Saba Net (A K)
Army spokesman reaffirms forces' commitment to ceasefire
The army spokesman, brigadier general Sharaf Luqman that the leadership of the army and popular forces will commit to the ceasefire as long as the enemy also abides by it on land, sea and air.
He said the forces are ready to immediately retaliate against any aggression on time
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news444278.htm
Comment: Houthi / Saleh side.
20.10.2016 – WAM (A K P)
Command of Coalition declares adherence to ceasefire in Yemen
The command of the Arab coalition forces to support the legitimacy in Yemen have issued a statement declaring adherence to a three-day ceasefire as of today midnight.
The statement which was carried by Saudi Press Agency (SPA), said that, "In response to a request by Yemeni President, Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, in his letter to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman Bin Abdulaziz of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, it is decided to start a cease-fire as of the time 11:59 p.m. Yemen time on Wednesday for a period of three days."
"As stated in the letter of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, the President of the Republic of Yemen, and for the entrance and distribution of the greatest possible humanitarian and medical assistance to the brotherly Yemeni people, the coalition forces will abide by the ceasefire, with the continuation of the air and maritime embargo and inspection and aerial reconnaissance of any moves by the Houthi militias and troops loyal to them," the statement added.
http://www.wam.ae/en/news/international/1395301517215.html= http://gulftoday.ae/portal/f1bfbefb-1671-4e37-b380-10bfcd5678b8.aspx
20.10.2016 – DPA (* A K P)
Neue Waffenruhe in Kraft getreten
Im Bürgerkriegsland Jemen ist am späten Mittwochabend offiziell eine neue Waffenruhe in Kraft getreten. Sie soll nach Angaben der Uno zunächst 72 Stunden dauern. Alle Beteiligten haben demnach zugesagt, sich an die Feuerpause zu halten.
Der Uno-Sonderbeauftragte für den Jemen, Ismail Ould Sheikh Ahmed, erklärte, sollte sie halten, gebe es eine Option für eine Verlängerung.
http://www.nzz.ch/international/krieg-in-jemen-neue-waffenruhe-in-kraft-getreten-ld.123076 =http://www.zeit.de/politik/2016-10/jemen-buergerkrieg-un-waffenruhe
20.10.2016 – Reuters (* A K P)
Yemen ceasefire goes into effect after day of violence
A U.N.-mediated truce to the war in Yemen went into effect a minute before midnight on Wednesday, hours after Saudi-led air strikes hit military bases in the capital Sanaa and rival militias battled near the border with the kingdom.
The coalition led by Saudi Arabia said in a statement it would respect the three-day truce provided its foes in Yemen's Iran-allied Houthi movement also complied, allowed aid supplies to reach combat areas and kept calm on the border.
Residents reported in the early hours of Wednesday that air raids hit several army barracks, the latest of thousands of air strikes during a 19-month military intervention by Saudi Arabia and Arab allies.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-idUSKCN12J1RE and by Middle East Eye:http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/yemen-truce-comes-effect-under-un-plan-1163683289
19.10.2016 – Middle East Monitor (* A H K)
UN official criticises Yemen ceasefire
A UN humanitarian aid official criticised the long term effectiveness of the 72-hour ceasefire between Yemen’s warring sides, set to be implemented tonight.
UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen, Jamie McGoldrick, reminded the international community that Yemen’s economy has collapsed, food, goods and aid are unable to enter the country due to the damaged Hodeidah port and only about half of hospitals are even partially operating. He went on to highlight the cholera outbreak that began three weeks ago and is at risk of spreading.
While he welcomed the ceasefire as a first step, he has urged longer-term access for humanitarian relief.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20161019-un-official-criticises-yemen-ceasefire/
19.10.2016 – Aljazeera (A K P)
Film: Sama'a Al-Hamdani on Houthis/Saleh agreeing to ceasefire in Yemen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTRJRo1_6I0&sns=fb
Comment by Judith Brown: A rather one sided view of the conflict from Al Jazeera - Qatar are Saudis strongest partner in the Middle East - followed by a good interview with academic Samaa Al Hamdani on the prospects for peace.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154823824873641
cp1b Am wichtigsten: Sonstiges / Most important: Other
21.10.2016 – ZDF (** B H K)
Film: Jemen: Kampf ums Überleben
Der Bürgerkrieg im Jemen nimmt kein Ende. Hungersnot und Mangelversorgung treffen vor allem die Kinder. Krankenhäuser sind überfüllt und ein Ende ist nicht in Sicht.
20.10.2016 – Oxfam (** B H K)
From the Ground Up: Gender and conflict analysis in Yemen
Conflicts and humanitarian crises affect men, women, girls, and boys differently due to their different societal roles and the deep-rooted socio-cultural and economic inequalities which become exacerbated during crises. Men and boys form the vast majority of direct victims of armed conflict and associated impacts like forced recruitment or arbitrary detention. Women bear the burdens of running the households under extreme stress and are often exposed to different forms of gender-based violence. During emergencies, women and girls become more vulnerable as basic services collapse and livelihoods diminish. In order to better understand the impact of armed conflict on men, women, boys, and girls, and the changes that have resulted in gender roles and relationships at household and community levels since the onset of conflict in March 2015, Oxfam, CARE and GenCap in Yemen collaborated to collect and analyse available data to further inform immediate humanitarian response as well as longer-term programming in Yemen.
Gender inequality and the specific barriers faced by Yemeni women and girls in achieving their full potential have long been recognized as both underlying and direct causes of food insecurity, malnutrition and poverty in Yemen. While the Yemen crisis is evolving rapidly, a general pattern of deteriorating gender relations and the marginalization of women from participation and leadership in decision-making forums appear evident. Advances made in recent years to address gender inequality in Yemen are at risk of being reversed. Such advances include recognition of the importance of including women in peace talks as a driver for peace and security in a country that has long been affected by multi-faceted conflicts. Secondly, there are reports of increasing marginalization of women as well as increasing levels of gender-based violence (GBV), and fears have been expressed that this will serve to further reinforce gender inequality in the long-term reconstruction phase.
A scoping study was conducted by CARE and Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Gender Capacity Standby Project (GenCap) to review and assess available information on the impact of the conflict on gender roles and relations, and the consequently different needs of women, girls, boys, and men.
It found that while there was good pre-conflict information on gender issues in Yemen, most assessments conducted since March 2015 have been ‘gender blind’. The study concluded that further gender and generational analysis is needed to ensure that humanitarian programming in Yemen is aware of and responsive to changes in gender relations, so that it meets the different needs of women, men, boys, and girls
Humanitarian programmes in all sectors need to work to safeguard the progress on gender equality that was made prior to the emergency, continue advancing that progress, and lay the foundations for sustainable and gender-equitable recovery and reconstruction, and for the participation of women in peace talks and in the protection of their social and economic rights – by Wolfgang Gressmann
20.10.2016 – Telepolis (** A K P)
Saudische Bomber vor Angriff in Sanaa von US-Luftwaffe betankt?
US-Militärexperten gehen von einer Beihilfe der US-Kräfte in der Region aus. Bei Bombardierung waren rund 140 Zivilisten getötet worden
Nach der Bombardierung einer Trauergemeinde in der jemenitischen Hauptstadt Sanaa mit rund 140 Toten und über 500 zum Teil Schwerverletzten kommen nun weitere Informationen über die Rolle der USA bei diesem mutmaßlichen Kriegsverbrechen heraus. Nach einem Bericht des US-amerikanischen Nachrichtenportals AlterNet könnten nicht nur die lasergelenkten Bomben aus US-Produktion stammen (Trauergemeinde im Jemen offenbar von US-Bomben getroffen, ). Offenbar wurden die saudi-arabischen Bomber zudem von US-Militärs betankt. Sie sollen den Angriff auf ein Gemeindezentrum dadurch erst möglich gemacht haben.
Die These vertritt der Rüstungsexperte Pierre Sprey, der in den 1960er Jahren unter US-Verteidigungsminister Robert McNamara im Pentagon an der Entwicklung von Kampfflugzeugen beteiligt war. Sprey gilt, so heißt es bei AlterNet, als Chefentwickler der F-16, deren Vorgänger, F-15, von der saudischen Luftwaffe benutzt wird.
"Wenn das saudische Kampfflugzeug (das den Angriff in Sanaa geflogen hat) auf dem größten saudischen Stützpunkt, der Prinz-Sultan-Luftwaffenbasis, stationiert war, dann ist es fast sicher, dass es von der US-Luftwaffe während des Einsatzes neu betankt wurde", sagte Sprey gegenüber AlterNet. Es gebe zwar einen weiteren Luftwaffenstützpunkt, die König-Khaled-Basis, nahe der Grenze zum Jemen. Es sei aber unwahrscheinlich, dass die saudische Luftwaffe diese Einrichtung nutzt, weil die aufständischen Huthi-Rebellen sie bereits mit Scud-Raketen angegriffen haben. Sergeant Major a.D. Michael Adams, ein ehemaliger Angehöriger der Special Forces, bestätigte diese Einschätzung.
Doch auch wenn die saudischen F-15-Kampfflugzeuge von einer Jemen-nahen Basis gestartet wären, hätten sie nur rund eine Viertelstunde Operationszeit über dem Rebellengebiet gehabt. Über dem Luftraum der von den Rebellen kontrollierten Städte im Südwesten des Landes hätten sich die Flugzeuge sogar nur fünf Minuten Zeit aufhalten können. "Es ist kaum die ausreichende Zeit für die Manöver eines Bombenangriffs", schreibt AlterNet – von Harald Neuber
20.10.2016 – IRIN (** A K)
UN-Experten: Luftschläge im Jemen verletzten humanitäres Völkerrecht
Eine Untersuchungskommission der Vereinten Nationen hat der von Saudi-Arabien angeführten Koalition vorgeworfen, Anfang des Monats bewusst sog. "double tap"-Luftschläge auf eine Beerdigungsfeier im Jemen ausgeführt zu haben. In einem Bericht an den UN-Sicherheitsrat, welcher IRIN vorliegt, spricht die Kommission insbesondere bei dem zweiten Angriff der Koalition davon, dass sie im Rahmen des humanitären Völkerrechts "ihre Pflichten verletzt hat" und "keine wirksamen vorbeugenden Maßnahmen zur Minimierung ziviler Opfer, inklusive von Ersthelfern" getroffen habe.
Die Untersuchung der Expertenkommission bietet einen sehr viel detaillierten Einblick in den Vorfall als die Ermittlungen des JIAT [eigene „Untersuchung“ der Saudis].
Die VIP-Gäste seien für den weiteren Verlauf des Konflikts von entscheidender Bedeutung gewesen, heißt es im Bericht: "Hätte der Angriff mehr von den hier aufgeführten Personen getötet, [...] dann hätte die Houti-Saleh-Allianz einen vernichtenden politischen und militärischen Schlag zu verkraften gehabt."
Versehen mit der Unterschrift des federführenden Kommissionsvertreters, Ahmed Himmiche und am 17. Oktober dem Vorsitzenden des Sanktionsausschusses des Sicherheitsrates für den Jemen zugegangen, enthält das Schreiben eine Liste von 25 hochrangigen Offiziellen, die bei der Beerdigung des Vaters von Saleh´s Innenminister Jalal Al-Ruwaysahn zu Gast waren. Ganz oben auf der Liste: Saleh persönlich, der nach seiner Absetzung im Zuge von Protesten der Bevölkerung sein Heil bei den Houti-Rebellen suchte.
Laut des Berichts der Kommission, verließen Saleh und sein Sohn vor dem Angriff den Ort des Geschehens.
Die zwei Luftschläge, ungefähr um 15:20 Uhr und 15:30 Uhr lokaler Zeit [GMT+3], "fielen mit dem Zeitpunkt zusammen, an dem die höchste Zahl an Trauerndenen erwartet wurde", schreibt die Kommission. Videomaterial des Angriffs erschienen kurz nach der Attacke in Sozialen Medien und zeigen deutlich Rauchschwaden, bevor weitere Bomben [ordinance = Kampfmittel] fallen. Außerdem ist das Geräusch von Kampfflugzeugen zu hören.
Das Schreiben der Expertenkommission nimmt auch Bezug auf lokale Bräuche, nach denen "politische und militärische Führer und Zivilisten, eine Teilnahme nicht vermeiden konnten."
Die Versammlungshalle, wo die Menschen zusammenkamen, bietet Platz für 1.000 bis 2.000 Personen. Hunderte Zivilisten, darunter Kinder, waren während des Angriffs anwesend.
Angesichts der Bedeutung der Familie, welche die Feier ausrichtete, der Größe des Saals und die übliche hohe Zahl von Teilnehmerinnen und Teilnehmern bei solchen Anlässen, kommt die Kommission zu dem Schluss, dass die von Saudi-Arabien angeführte Koalition "vernünftigerweise zu dem Schluss kommen musste", dass "sich eine überaus hohe Zahl an Zivilisten, darunter auch Kinder auf dem Anwesen aufhalten und aus diesem Grund [...] jeder Luftangriff eine hohe Anzahl an zivilen Opfern nach sich ziehen würde".
Die Kommission nimmt Bezug zu relevanten Abschnitten des Internationalen Humanitären Völkerrechts (International Humanitarian Law - IHL), insbesondere was den zweiten Schlag angeht: "Das IHL verbietet Angriffe gegen hors de combat, Verwundete und medizinisches Personal und Einheiten."
"Der zweite Luftangriff, der sich drei bis acht Minuten nach dem ersten Luftangriff ereignete, führte mit an Sicherheit grenzender Wahrscheinlichkeit zu noch mehr Opfern unter den bereits Verwundeten und den Ersthelfern" heißt es weiter. "Das Timing zwischen den Explosionen legt den Schuss nahe, dass es sich um den bewussten Einsatz der ‘double tap’-Taktik handelte, in deren Folge Individuen, die auf die erste Explosion reagieren, von der Zweiten getroffen werden."
"Die Kommission stellt hinsichtlich des zweiten Luftschlags weiter fest, dass die von Saudi-Arabien geführte Koalition ihre Verpflichtungen, was den Schutz von hors de combat-Personen und Verwundeten angeht, bei diesem ‘double tap'-Angriff verletzt und bei diesem zweiten Angriff keine wirksamen vorbeugenden Maßnahmen zur Minimierung ziviler Opfer, inklusive von Ersthelfern getroffen hat", so das Schreiben – von Samuel Oakford
http://vergessene-kriege.blogspot.de/2016/10/un-experten-luftschlage-im-jemen.html
English version:
20.10.2016 – IRIN (** A K)
EXCLUSIVE: Double tap attack on Yemen funeral violated humanitarian law - UN panel
A UN panel of experts has accused the Saudi Arabia-led coalition of a deliberate “double tap” airstrike on a funeral gathering in Yemen earlier this month. In a report to the UN Security Council, obtained by IRIN, the panel says that the coalition’s second strike in particular “violated its obligations” under international law and it “did not take effective precautionary measures to minimize harm to civilians, including the first responders” on the scene.
The panel of experts investigation offers greater detail of the incident than the JIAT’s account.
The VIP guests were of significance to the direction of the conflict, the report states: “Had the attack killed or seriously injured more of the individuals listed… then the Houthi-Saleh alliance would have been dealt a devastating political and military blow.”
Signed by the panel’s coordinator, Ahmed Himmiche, and sent on 17 October to the chair of a Security Council Yemen sanctions committee, it includes a list of 25 top officials present at the funeral, held for the father of Saleh’s interior minister Jalal Al-Ruwaysahn. At the top of the list is Saleh himself, who threw his lot in with Houthi rebels after being unseated by popular protests in 2011.
According to the panel’s report, Saleh and his son left prior to the attack.
The two attacks, at roughly 3:20 pm and 3:30 pm local time, “coincided with a time when the funeral was expected to receive the highest number of mourners,” reported the panel. Video of one strike emerged on social media shortly after the incident, and clearly showed the hall already smoking as further ordinance fell. The sound of a jet could be heard.
The panel’s letter referenced local custom that meant “political and military leaders, and civilians, could not avoid attending.”
The community hall where the gathering took place fits between 1,000 and 2,000 people. Hundreds of civilians, including children, were present when it was attacked.
Given the prominence of the family for whom the funeral was held, the size of the hall and high public attendance common at such wakes, the panel concluded that the Saudi-led coalition “could reasonably be expected to conclude” there would be “a significantly high number of civilians, including children, at the venue and consequently… any air strike would result in a high number of civilian casualties.”
Focus on second strike
The panel makes reference to relevant provisions of International Humanitarian Law (IHL), especially with regard to the second strike: “IHL prohibits attacks against hors de combat, the wounded, and medical personnel and units.”
“The second air strike, which occurred three to eight minutes after the first air strike almost certainly resulted in more casualties to the already wounded and first responders," it reads, adding that "the timing between the explosions indicates the deliberate use of the ‘double tap’ tactic, the consequences of which are that individuals responding to the first explosion are caught by the second.”
“The Panel thus finds, in respect of the second air strike, that the Saudi Arabia-led coalition violated its obligations in respect of persons hors de combat and the wounded in this ‘double tap’ attack, and did not take effective precautionary measures to minimize harm to civilians, including the first responders, in the second strike,” says the letter – by Samuel Oakford
20.10.2016 – Reuters (* A K P)
Saudi coalition violated law with Yemen funeral strike: U.N. monitors
A Saudi Arabia-led military campaign in Yemen violated international humanitarian law with a so-called "double tap" air strike on a funeral gathering in the rebel-held capital Sanaa, United Nations sanctions monitors told the Security Council.
The U.N. monitors said there were two air strikes in quick succession on the Oct. 8 funeral, which was attended by many top political and security figures from the Iran-allied Houthi rebels and forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
In an Oct. 17 report, seen by Reuters, the monitors said they found "in respect of the second air strike, that the Saudi Arabia-led coalition violated its obligations in respect of hors de combat and the wounded in this 'double tap' attack."
"The second air strike, which occurred three to eight minutes after the first air strike, almost certainly resulted in more casualties to the already wounded and the first responders," the U.N. monitors said.
"These first responders included civilians who immediately entered the area after the first air strike to provide urgent first aid and undertake casualty evacuation," the report said.
The monitors recommended that the Security Council consider asking members of the Saudi-led coalition to stop using "double tap" attacks.
The U.N. monitors found that the Saudi-led coalition "did not take effective precautionary measures to minimize harm to civilians, including first responders, in the second strike." – By Michelle Nichols
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-saudi-un-idUSKCN12K2F1
Comment: Mohamad Shami writes an important statement worth some thoughts:
1. For the first time, the #UN admits coalition is deliberately targeting civilians in the most horrible ways
3. This has been going for over a year now and it is in no way that the UN didn't know about it. So reason they are now speaking about it is because it was exposed to the world by the widely circulated #FuneralHall#massacre on 8th Oct 16.
3. So the #UN now says #Saudi is a war criminal but does not take any strong resolution to stop Saudi. All they are saying is that that shouldn't use double tap!
4. Is it because the #US and #UK who are main partners in this aggression do not this war to end yet? Still benefitting from the #KSA Oil and money?
This exposes their partnership with Saudi in ALL the crimes against Yemenis ..
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1140875905965438
Comment by Hisham Al-Omeisy: I love how UN is stating the obvious with such a sense of discovery. Saudi double-tap(ping) in#Yemen for 18 months.
https://twitter.com/omeisy/status/789107124253126656
Comment: Omeisy is certainly right. And be aware: The panel asks the Saudi coalition to no more commit double strikes. That means, single air strikes against Yemen would not be a matter of concern for the UN.
17.10.2016 – American Herald Tribune (** B K P)
Decapitation in Sana’a…
The vital context missing from the reports on the Sana’a massacre – which said that at least 140 people were killed and over 500 hundred injured by four bombs dropped minutes apart – was any explanation, not of who was responsible, but of why they would do something so unbelievably barbaric.
There was never any question of who was responsible for the attack, because video of the burning building following the first strike recorded the next bomb-drop as well as the roar of the war-plane that dropped it.
Their guilt and that of their partners was further emphasized by a short-lived threat from the US to suspend arms shipments to Saudi Arabia.
And on this threat we must suspend disbelief! The US is not just some sleeping partner in the Saudi coalition, or in the ongoing war to reinstall the illegitimate Saudi-supported exile ‘government’ of Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi. Indeed, given the overwhelming US military presence in Yemen’s region, including the centre for East African operations in Djibouti, we might conclude that this is really just another US coalition – operating under the Saudi ‘flag of convenience’. Not only are the Saudi planes supplied and presumably maintained by the US, but all the missiles and bombs – cluster bombs and bunker busters and who knows what else – have been supplied by the US, and even re-supplied during the course of the war on Yemen. In addition to that is the ‘assistance with targeting’ provided by US and UK personnel both on the ground in the Saudi peninsula and through multiple surveillance platforms.
This interdependency between the US and the Saudis can hardly be concealed, yet its true nature cannot be admitted.
Given these links it was impossible to believe the US would really ‘review its cooperation’ with the ‘Saudi Coalition’ – or should have been. But no matter – within days of the review the US found a reason to renew arms supplies to fight the Houthis when missiles were fired at the USS Mason in the Red Sea from Yemen. Or this is what they said.
At about the same time as this direct entry into the Yemen conflict by the US, the results of an internal Saudi enquiry into the funeral bombing were released, finding that the strike was ‘not authorised’ and ‘based on false information from a Yemeni army source’. It is hard to get your head around the double-think and mendacity of these claims, and it was clearly beyond the mental capacity of some mainstream Western media reporters.
This was despite these media having themselves revealed the true motive behind the Saudi’s murderous attack.
The problem for SBS was that the Saudis’ ‘false information’ was exactly what SBS had shown to be true only a few days earlier – that top figures in the Houthi military leadership were present at the funeral as claimed by their source, and the strike – a perfect opportunity to ‘decapitate’ the new Yemeni government – was quite clearly not ‘un-authorised’.
But SBS baulked at this chance to finally start reporting news instead of just passing on US/NATO propaganda about the ‘Iranian-backed Houthi rebels’ fighting a ‘civil war’ against the ‘internationally-recognised’ Mansour Hadi government.
Perhaps it had no choice, after passing on a carefully woven but completely false narrative about Yemen for the last five years.
Most of those hapless followers of the Western MSM would have no idea that Yemen has a functioning government based in the capital Sana’a and supported by the vast majority of Yemenis, and that the ‘internationally recognized’ government is not actually recognized by Yemenis because they had no part in electing it.
Just before the Saudi-led bombing campaign began in March 2015, talks on a ‘power-sharing agreement’ between the Houthis, former President Saleh’s faction and the now-exiled leaders finally collapsed, with the resignation of the UN mediator Jamal Benomar. Hadi – who was never elected but merely appointed following the ousting of Saleh – was long past his mandate, but his Saudi backers refused to concede to the Houthis.
As with other asymmetric conflicts in the region – notably in Palestine and Syria – the ‘peace’ sought by the aggressors is one where the victims are asked to put down their weapons and concede defeat, submitting to the ‘international community’s’ choice of leadership and political alignment.
Presumably there will be some people in Riyadh, Washington and London, who will be saying ‘the price was worth it’ – even though it cost them nothing. That price was paid by Yemenis, who may have little money but for whom life and independence is priceless – by David Macilwain
http://ahtribune.com/world/north-africa-south-west-asia/war-on-yemen/1270-decapitation-in-sanaa.html =http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-sanaa-massacre-americas-war-on-yemen/5552079
13.10.2016 – Alistair Reign (** A K)
Film: YEMEN Funeral Death/Injury Reaches 720 - All Nations - Remained Silent Culpable in Saudi War Crimes.
According to Yemen Post Newspaper the DEATH and INJURY TOLL has reached at least 720 men, women and children killed or injured when 4 aircraft Saudi coalition "double-tap" airstrike targeted a funeral hall in Sana'a, Yemen on October 8, 2016.
Reporting The News That Matters - From A Non-biased Perspective. Alistair Reign News Blog playlists are rated 18+ for possible graphic images of war, injury or death.
We post video reports from reliable media sources with journalists and correspondents reporting on location. This media outlet is not attached to, nor does it sympathize with, condone, nor condemn any religious organization or group. Alistair Reign and associated campaigns represent human rights for all, and the wellness of children worldwide.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQ4YgB4TOgc
20.10.2016 – German Foreign Policy (** B K P)
Ein Spitzenkäufer deutschen Kriegsgeräts
Saudi-Arabien nutzt zur Kriegführung im Jemen deutsche Waffen und zählt ungeachtet seiner mutmaßlichen dortigen Kriegsverbrechen weiter zu den Top-Empfängern deutscher Rüstungsgüter. Wie berichtet wird, setzt die saudische Luftwaffe bei ihren Luftangriffen im Jemen, von denen ein erheblicher Teil zivile Ziele trifft, auch Tornado- und Eurofighter-Kampfjets ein, die partiell in der Bundesrepublik hergestellt wurden. Zur Zeit wird zudem über den Verkauf weiterer 48 Eurofighter an Saudi-Arabien verhandelt. Riad hat sich auch Luna-Drohnen aus Deutschland liefern lassen, wie sie im Afghanistan-Krieg eingesetzt wurden; mindestens eine von ihnen ist im jemenitischen Kampfgebiet abgefangen worden. Darüber hinaus nutzen die saudischen Streitkräfte Munition aus deutscher Produktion; die südafrikanische Firmentochter des Düsseldorfer Rheinmetall-Konzerns arbeitet eng mit einer neuen saudischen Munitionsfabrik zusammen, die auch Fliegerbomben produziert. Schließlich erhält Saudi-Arabien deutsche Patrouillenboote, die etwa für Seeblockaden genutzt werden können; mit einer solchen Seeblockade hat Riad den Jemen in eine gravierende Hungersnot getrieben, die unter anderem 1,5 Millionen unterernährte Kinder hervorgebracht hat. UN-Organisationen laufen Sturm.
Kampfjets für Saudi-Arabien
Saudi-Arabien wird voraussichtlich eine neue Lieferung Eurofighter erhalten. Dies berichten britische Medien. Demnach verhandelt Riad, das bereits im Jahr 2006 72 Stück des partiell in Deutschland produzierten Kampfjets bestellt und einen guten Teil davon inzwischen erhalten hat, zur Zeit über den Kauf von 48 weiteren Exemplaren. Das Geschäft wird über Großbritannien abgewickelt, das ebenfalls an der Eurofighter-Herstellung beteiligt ist und schon Mitte der 1980er Jahre den Verkauf der ebenfalls in der Bundesrepublik koproduzierten Tornado-Jets an Saudi-Arabien organisierte. Dem Eurofighter-Konsortium mit Sitz in Hallbergmoos bei München gelten die Verhandlungen als hochwillkommen.
Schulung durch die Bundeswehr
Dokumentiert ist hingegen neben dem Einsatz der Tornados und der Eurofighter auch der Einsatz der in Deutschland produzierten Drohne Luna im Jemen.
Den Vertrag zur Lieferung von zehn Luna-Drohnen hatte die Firma EMT aus dem oberbayerischen Penzberg im Dezember 2010 geschlossen - in Verbindung mit einer Zusage des Bundesverteidigungsministeriums, Soldaten zur Ausbildung saudischer Militärs im Gebrauch der Drohne nach Saudi-Arabien zu entsenden. Tatsächlich reisten im Januar 2011 drei Soldaten der Bundeswehr in die Golfdiktatur, um dort etwa 20 saudische Kollegen rund neun Wochen lang zu schulen. Die "taktischen Missionsflüge", die Teil des Ausbildungsprogramms waren, wurden laut Auskunft des Bundesverteidigungsministeriums "im grenznahen Bereich zum Jemen" durchgeführt - eine Tatsache, aus der das Ministerium ableitete, das Gerät werde "zu Aufklärungszwecken im Rahmen der Grenzsicherung" genutzt.[4] Dass eine Luna-Drohne im April 2015 in der Provinz Saada abgefangen wurde, die damals von der saudischen Luftwaffe besonders massiv bombardiert wurde (german-foreign-policy.com berichtete [5]), belegt ihre Nutzung zu Aufklärungszwecken auch im Krieg.
1.000-Pfund-Bomben
Auch Munition, die die saudischen Streitkräfte im Jemen-Krieg verschießen, stammt aus deutscher Produktion oder zumindest aus Fabriken, an denen deutsche Unternehmen beteiligt sind. So hat schon im Mai 2015 ein Mitarbeiter der Menschenrechtsorganisation Human Rights Watch in einem von Riad bombardierten Gebiet eine nicht zur Explosion gelangte 1.000-Pfund-Bombe gefunden, deren Code, wie berichtet wird, "auf die Munitionsfabrik der italienischen Rheinmetall-Tochter RWM Italia auf Sardinien" hinwies.[6] RWM Italia und Rheinmetall Italia führten in den Jahren 2014 und 2015 Rüstungsgüter im Wert von 71,5 Millionen Euro nach Saudi-Arabien aus.
Seeblockade mit Folgen
Aus Deutschland beliefert wird schließlich auch die saudische Marine. Ende Mai ist das erste von insgesamt 48 für Riad bestimmten Patrouillenbooten in der Wolgaster Peene-Werft der Bremer Lürssen-Gruppe fertiggestellt worden und zur Endausrüstung in den werfteigenen Hafen überstellt worden. Anfang Juli wurde dann bekannt, dass die Bundesregierung die Lieferung der Boote genehmigt hat. Die Patrouillenboote sind unter anderem zum Schutz von Offshore-Anlagen sowie zur Eindämmung von Piraterie und Schmuggel geeignet; sie können damit auch zur Realisierung einer Seeblockade genutzt werden.
http://www.german-foreign-policy.com/de/fulltext/59465
20.10.2016 – Foreign Policy (** A P)
How to End Saudi Arabia’s War of Paranoia
The only way to solve Yemen's war, and beat back its al-Qaeda franchise, is to dissolve the country entirely.
Paranoia has long been the basis of Saudi policymaking on Yemen. It used to be paranoia about the Yemenis themselves; now it’s about Iranians. Yemen’s Houthi rebels are variously “Iranian-supported,” “Iranian-backed,” or “Iranian-influenced.” The last is my preferred description since it clarifies that, while they model themselves after Lebanon’s Hezbollah and have adopted the slogan “God is great, death to America, death to Israel, damn the Jews, power to Islam,” they ultimately want to be masters of their own fates more than Iranian surrogates. (And as members of the Zaidi sect they are only Shiite-like rather than actual Shiites.)
There is good reason to doubt these rebels pose a direct threat to Riyadh, outside the confines of Saudi paranoia.
Nonetheless, as an apparent quid pro quo for tolerating Washington’s nuclear rapprochement with Tehran, Riyadh has demanded U.S. support for the Saudi-led coalition fighting to re-establish in Sanaa the rule of Hadi. (Hadi, for the present moment, prefers the greater security of a Riyadh hotel suite.) There’s an additional factor, which makes the favors run 2-to-1 in Riyadh’s direction: Washington wants Saudi involvement and a stamp of approval for the U.S.-led coalition fighting the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq.
Fear, if not quite paranoia, could also describe official Washington’s attitude toward Yemen. Its rocky hillsides have been the training areas for Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).
There’s a crucial difference in Saudi and U.S. interests that quickly becomes apparent. Whereas Riyadh’s thinking is dominated by Iran’s support for the Houthi rebels who control the capital and much of what was once North Yemen (or, more formally, the Yemen Arab Republic), Washington’s anxieties focus on the south.
Washington’s and Riyadh’s separate wars are bound together in a manner not necessarily obvious to outsiders. The Royal Saudi Air Force and the U.S. Air Force are sharing Yemen’s airspace and adjoining, even overlapping, battle space. The two countries have to cooperate and therefore largely tolerate the behavior of the other party.
But that tolerance is under strain.
U.S. concern for Saudi tactics had meant reduced levels of cooperation. Inflight refueling was curtailed, meaning that Saudi F-15s could not loiter in Yemeni airspace, waiting for targets to present themselves. And cooperation was reduced on “targeting” — the curious technical word meaning what size of bomb to drop, from what height, from what direction, and even at what time of day, the latter so as to reduce “collateral damage” or, more accurately, civilian casualties. The Saudis had already been targeting clinics and schools and the justification — that the Houthis were placing military stores and headquarters in or close to them — was wearing thin.
The bombing of a funeral two weeks ago was both a humanitarian catastrophe and a major tactical disaster for the overall strategy of the anti-Houthi war. Even though the target was a Yemeni politician allied to the Houthis, bombing such a gathering was contrary to the ethics of the U.S. military.
The U.S. strategy should be to maintain a cease-fire that could be brokered into a power-sharing arrangement in the north. Hadi, Washington’s and Saudi Arabia’s man, technically controls from his Riyadh hotel suite the majority of Yemen territory. Unfortunately that land is the empty part of Yemen, with perhaps a population of only 3 million. The Houthi-Saleh alliance controls much less of the ground, but the mountainous part is militarily defensible. Additionally, this territory is home to more than 20 million people, the bulk of the country’s population.
The partition of Yemen, a return to Ibn Saud’s deathbed wish, should have a clear logic for all sides. The south wants it. Hadi himself may prefer it. The crucial local foreign power in the south, the UAE, is also said to think it is the best option. Distracted by its involvements elsewhere, Iran may not oppose it. It may depend on whether Saudi Arabia and, more particularly, its defense minister and deputy crown prince, Muhammad bin Salman, can be convinced of the wisdom of his grandfather’s deathbed words.
Barring another outrage in Yemen with civilian casualties or a terrorist attack in the United States, Washington’s efforts over the next few months of political transition at home are likely to be limited. But the problem of Yemen, or of the two Yemens, will be waiting for the next U.S. president – by Simon Henderson
http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/10/20/two-yemens-are-better-than-one-saudi-houthi-iran/ =http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/how-to-end-saudi-arabias-war-of-paranoia
Comments by Judith Brown: A fair article but like many of the others it does not recognise that Hadi has international recognition but he is not seen as legitimate in much of Yemen. And splitting Yemen is an option. But it might not do anything to stop the war - two neighbouring countries embroiled in war is as bad as a civil war. Before such decisions are made, there must be peace.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154827474283641
Another article stating that the war will end if north and South Yemen divide. I disagree. That will just lead to an ongoing cross border war. And what about the differences between Aden and Hadramaut, Taiz and everyone else? The war has to stop before any decision can be made on the political future of Yemen. If there is to be a split, it has to be friendly or the violence will carry on.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154831172338641
4.5.2016 – Middle East Eye (** B K P)
The media misses the point on ‘proxy war’
Yemen is a Saudi war of aggression, while Syria and Libya are the result of a dangerous Gulf-led strategy of backing groups of sectarian fighters.
The term “proxy war” has experienced a new popularity in stories on the Middle East. Various news sources began using the term to describe the conflict in Yemen immediately, as if on cue, after Saudi Arabia launched its bombing campaign against Houthi targets in Yemen on 25 March.
It is certainly time to discuss the problem of proxy war in the Middle East, because a series of such wars are the heart of the destabilisation and chaos engulfing the region. The problem with the recent stories featuring the term is that it is being used in a way that obscures some basic realities that some news media are apparently not comfortable acknowledging.
The real problem of proxy war must begin with the fact that the United States and its NATO allies opened the floodgates for regional proxy wars by the two major wars for regime change in Iraq and Libya. Those two profoundly destabilising wars provided obvious opportunities and motives for Sunni states across the Middle East to pursue their own sectarian and political power objectives through proxy war.
The fact that the news media began labelling Yemen a proxy war in response to the Saudi bombing strongly suggests that the term was a way of softening the harsh reality of Saudi aggression.
The assumption underlying that application of “proxy war” is, of course, that Iran had already turned Yemen into such a war by its support for the Houthis. But it ignores the crucial question of whether the Houthis had been carrying out “preponderantly foreign goals and foreign strategies”. Although Iran has certainly had ties with the Houthis, the Saudi propaganda line that the Houthis have long been Iranian proxies is not supported by the evidence.
Far from proving the Iranian proxy argument, the Houthi takeover of Sanaa last year has actually provided definitive evidence to the contrary. US intelligence sources recently told the Huffington Post that before the Houthis entered the capital, the Iranians had advised against such a move.
So the Houthis clearly don’t intend to serve an Iranian strategy for Yemen.
The NBC story on a “regional proxy war” completely misses the seriousness of the problem. It turns its proxy war concept into an abstract and virtually antiseptic problem of limiting Iranian influence in the region through the US bombing Iraq. It ignores the fact that the regional actors behind the wars in Syria, Iraq and Libya are pulling the region into a new era of unbridled sectarian violence and instability.
Once it became clear that Sunni states were creating a proxy war in Syria that could tip the balance against the Syrian regime, Iran and Hezbollah intervened in support of the regime.
The media stories have offered only anodyne references to the problem of proxy war. What is needed in media coverage is a focus on the nasty realities of proxy war and their origins – by Gareth Porter
http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/media-misses-point-proxy-war-1956459570
Comment: Great article which I missed in 2015.
21.10.2016 – Almanar (** B K P)
Saudi Decisive Storm .. Scene Is Turned Upside down
“If you quit, I quit”, an equation used by Saudis to summarize their war on neighboring Yemen, putting aside all the slogans of determination and firmness that were enameling the Kingdom’s newspapers for over 18 months. Saudis have raised the white flag, and he who declared the war on Yemen has gotten out of his box to spoke the kingdom’s desire to stop it after not only the failure to achieve its goals, but also having retroactive results.
Finally, Adel al-Jubeir uttered: “We want to stop the war,” Saudis tweeted after that: “We have lost.”
Two days ago, Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir expressed his country’s desire for a cease-fire in Yemen and knocked the ball in the court of Yemenis. Jubeir questioned the possibility of Yemeni commitment to the ceasefire in Yemen! Careful to abide by the cease-fire was nothing more than to ease the effect of the declaration of failure.
Since the beginning of the aggression on Yemen, Saudi ignored all the voices that came out to condemn the war and called for its cessation.
Recently, New York Times published a report about Minister Mohamad bin Salman, citing information from Saudi diplomats and princes of the royal family, in which it revealed that bin Salman’s decision to go for a war on Yemen without coordinating with any of the Saudi officials, although there was a debate among them about taking an action against Yemen.
It became clear that bin Salman claimed the aggression on Yemen from the first few hours. Upon the war started, Saudi media was mentioning bin Salman’s name as a “commander of Decisive Storm as he was taking photos with Saudi fighting forces here and there
Decisively, Saudi Arabia identified goals behind the war as follows:
– To restore “legitimacy” that Saudi Arabia exclusively granted to a resigned president who does not represent the people in Yemen as far as he represents the image of Saudi influence in the country.
– To withdraw Ansarullah group from the capital Sanaa and back to Saada.
– To disarm Ansarullah.
– Not to allow any role for former President Ali Abdullah Saleh in Yemen’s future.
After 18 months of aggression on Yemen, Saudi media reticent to mention the achievements of the Kingdom in the war. Muted Saudi media has been compensated by Saudi tweeters who commented on the recent Jubeir’s declaration in which he recalled the achievements of the Kingdom in Yemen.
Mojtahed, a Saudi activist on Twitter said: “The objectives of Decisive Storm was to take Houthis out to Saada and to hand their weapons over to the legitimate power which must return back to Sanaa, but it ended up as “if you quit, I quit.”
At the beginning of Decisive Storm, Jubeir was speaking like [Georges W.] Bush when he launched Operation Desert Storm. but today, he is speaking like Mahmoud Abbas in a tone of humiliation and degradation,” Turki bin Mohamad, third Saudi activist tweeted, commenting on Jubeir’s statements.
Even today, there is no clear official figures on the number of Saudis killed by the imposed war on Yemen, but there are figures published from time to time.
What about the financial cost which affects heavily the economic deficit of the Kingdom
The clearest expression of Saudi Arabia’s decline came by Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, who said in a tweet published in last May: “Whether we agree or disagree with the Houthis, they remain part of the social fabric of Yemen.”
Saudi Arabia has lost its war on Yemen. More precisely, Mohammed bin Salman has failed in the war on Yemen, which he employed in his battle for the throne. For the sake of the throne war between the al-Saud princes, tens of thousands of victims lost their lives, and Yemen has been destroyed with a lot of its cultural landmarks. Bin Salman recruited Saudi and Arab media to incite against Yemenis, and managed to kill the conscience of millions of people who did not turn a hair before the scenes of massacres and horrible killings.
However, he did not succeed in the most important battle: the battle to bring the Yemeni bowing to take bin Salamn to power over their dead bodies – by Israa al-Fass
http://english.almanar.com.lb/73104
21.10.2016 – The Saker (** B K P)
Yemen – an introduction to the forgotten conflict you so rarely hear about [A Who’s who with maps included]
The Yemeni conflict is characterized by the asymmetric ways it’s being fought on the battlefield and by the massive amount of suffering for the civilian population in the impoverished country.
The presidency was essentially handed over in a one-man election, mandated by the Gulf Cooperation Council as Yemen’s first step in transition, to Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, who many Yemenis regard as a puppet of the United States. It is worthy of notice that Hadi was supposed to only serve for two years until new parliamentary and presidential elections were to be held in 2014, a deal he reneged on.
The Houthis have previously been accused of wanting to replace the republican system with an Islamic Republic modelled after that of Iran, something that the Houthis themselves have on several occasions denied with the main reason for this being the fact that they are a minority in the country. Hussein Al-Bukhari, a man close to the Houthis said that:
As the security situation in Yemen began to deteriorate, with the presence of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) ever growing stronger, and with their demands for the Yemeni government to act against this terrorist threat being ignored, the once small group in the highlands of Saadah sought to take their destiny into their own hands.
When comparing the Yemeni and Syrian tragedies, it is difficult to not feel disgusted. What is truly disgusting is the unlimited amount of hypocrisy and lies being spread by the Western “humanitarian” powers and their propaganda machines (mainstream media). The same powers who are outraged by Russia and Syria’s legitimate struggle to fight terrorism because of the “humanitarian catastrophe” in Aleppo, are the same ones who are currently imposing a 18 month long blockade on Yemen, resulting in mass starvation and the recent outbreak of cholera.
The same powers who are seeking “democracy and freedom” in Syria, are backing the most medieval and criminal regimes in modern times, namely the Gulf Monarchies, in their campaign to destroy its neighboring country.
The same powers who claim to fight terrorism are selling billions of dollars’ worth of arms to the Wahhabi kingdom who shares and exports the same vile and cruel ideology to the world in the form of ISIL and Al-Qaeda.
Yemen is paying a heavy price for its natural right to remain independent and free from foreign dominance, and while the Western media are outraged by the situation in Aleppo, they remain absolutely silent on Yemen’s suffering which is why so many people have no clue as to what’s going on in the country. Hopefully, this article can shed some light on the situation for those of you who seek to understand this tragedy – by Aram Mirzaei
Comment: A good introduction into the Yemen war.
cp2 Allgemein / General
21.10.2016 – Lobelog (* B K P)
The Wheels Are Coming off the Saudi Operation in Yemen
After initially denying that their aircraft had even been there, the Saudis finally admitted that they were responsible for the double-tap strike on the October 8 funeral of a major Yemeni notable. However, they denied culpability.
This is by no means the first occasion that the Saudis have violated legal and customary protections of civilian non-combatants.
How genuine, then, is this “mistake”? And are the Saudis lying about being “mistaken” in the same way that they initially lied about not being responsible for this attack as well as earlierwedding andhospital attacks?
The funeral was certainly a tempting mark. Many “high-value targets” were present.
It seems far more likely that the Saudis, and their Yemeni clients (who allegedly supplied the intelligence), did indeed intend to hit the funeral gathering in the hopes that the two leaders of the insurgency were in attendance, and that, by killing them, the uprising would be decapitated.
There’s another pattern here: a neocon-esque Saudi refusal to concede that their vision for a dependent Yemen will not come to pass. Thus far, the Saudis have spent billions of dollars andcaused and suffered thousands of casualties—but are no closer to achieving the quick and crowd-pleasing victory Operation DECISIVE STORM was supposed to have delivered.
Worse still, US pressure has been mounting for a compromise peace deal. Such a deal would greatly embarrass Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad and thus weaken his chance to succeed his father as king. The funeral strike probably looked like a golden opportunity to “cut off the head of the snake” and thus salvage some sort of political return on the immense sums of blood and gold spent in Yemen.
The admirable special envoys of the UN secretary general have come close to achieving a peace between all the factions on three occasions
On each occasion, the Saudis directly, or their clients, foiled the peace process by aiming for maximalist positions. Lately they have even tried to abjure the PNPA. Yet deep down, the Saudis must know that compromise is inevitable.
The key issue now is the sequencing of the peace process. – by James Spencer
http://lobelog.com/the-wheels-are-coming-off-the-saudi-operation-in-yemen/
21.10.2016 – L’Indro (* B H K)
´Yemen at the time of cholera´´
Meet Faty and Mohammad and experience the war through their touching words during these 72 hours of ceasefire
Yemen ai tempi del colera
Da Sana'a, Faty e Mohammed ci raccontano la disperazione del popolo yemeni
“Siamo un popolo di gente semplice, accogliente, che non vuole la guerra”. Da Sana’a, la capitale dello Yemen, Faty Elghirbani, legacy manager dell’ufficio Promozione turistica dello Yemen, spiega che non è interessata a parlare di politica. Desidera solo che il mondo sappia cosa sta soffrendo il suo popolo. Ha contattato la Redazione de ‘L’Indro‘ insieme a Mohammed al-Hindi del Dipartimento Media della Promozione turistica dello Yemen. Vogliono che la gente comune conosca la disperazione della popolazione nel Paese. Che si parli dei morti, della fame, della distruzione. Di tutto quello che accade al di sotto dei balletti delle mediazioni internazionali.
http://www.lindro.it/yemen-ai-tempi-del-colera/
21.10.2016 – Redirt report (* B K P)
Yemen's civil war another Syria-style conflict in gestation
Waleed F. Mahdi, a native of Yemen and assistant professor at the University of Oklahoma, talked on Yemen’s own civil conflict at the Sam Noble Museum this past Monday along with the Director of the Center for Middle East Studies and OU Prof. Joshua Landis.
Mahdi said there are two wars in the war. The most important is the civil war between Houthi and former president’s loyalist against the actual president forces and his international allies. The second war is between the various political and religious groups such as the socialist, radical Islamists, Al Qaeda, Sunni moderate and Zaydi Shia.
Mahdi said that during the last 30 years, Saudi Arabia has had a lot of influence over the Zaydi community in Yemen to the point where Zaydis and Sunnis are often combined.
“Zaydi is now mostly used not has on the religious ground, but tribal ground,” Mahdi said. “For some Zaydi is used as a religious way, tribal identity or even for political purpose such the former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.”
To conclude on this information Mahdi said all these differences combined together make the Yemen conflict unique and not a one way war between Shia and Sunni and Iran and Saudi Arabia.
“Sectarianism has never been a major issue for most of the Yemenis until recently,” Mahdi told
“This new Deputy Crown and pretender to the throne wanted to test his power and thought he could end it all in few strikes,” Mahdi said, noting they created more condition for terrorism.
Mahdi also said the Saudi government is seen as part of the conflict rather than a mediator, even their first official motivation was to re-instore the democracy in Yemen, which is “a joke” when one understands that Saudi Arabia not a democracy.
“What we see with the rise of the Houthis, Iran is getting somehow the upper hand,” Mahdi said adding it greatly increased the intervention of the Saudi in Yemen that consider this country has their backyard.
The US is also to blame in this conflict – by Oliver Rey
http://www.reddirtreport.com/around-world/yemens-civil-war-another-syria-style-conflict-gestation
Comment: Some background information, but Iran’s role exaggerated.
21.10.2016 – Haykal Bafana (B K)
We live in a world where journalists apparently no longer need to practice the profession of journalism. What's wrong with you lot?
As the DC spin builds up on Yemen, it is becoming more obvious to me the Sanaa funeral hall airstrikes were US ops, rather than Saudi.
The phantom missile attacks on USS Mason simply served to draw attention away from Saudi cluelessness on the Sanaa funeral hall strikes.
I witnessed the Al Ga'a Al Kubra airstrikes, which were about 1.5 km from my place. The jets sounded different, and the explosions too did not sound the same as the usual Saudi-launched bombs & missiles.
And to trace and track that many military & political leaders at one go to one location is beyond Saudi intel capabilities.
Here's a minor gold nugget of unreported info : The 2 Yemeni generals blamed by UK & Saudi Arabia for the airstrikes have denied it.
When I say US, I mean the US and the UK.
https://www.facebook.com/haykal.bafana/posts/1129171900496152=https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154830058783641
Comment: This is what a Sanaa citizen says.
20.10.2016 – Just Security (* B K P)
If US and UK Have Joined the Fighting in Yemen, What’s Their Duty to Investigate Alleged Saudi War Crimes?
If the United States and United Kingdom (have) become not just supporters of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen but instead “co-belligerents,” is there a special duty on the US and British governments to investigate potential war crimes by the Saudis and their partners? This question is even more salient today given concerns raised about the quality of the Saudi coalition’s own investigations clearing itself of wrongdoing. It is also more relevant than ever given recent US military bombing of Houthi targets in Yemen.
While the US and UK provide arms and other support to the Saudis, their officials have been at pains to stress that their governments are not party to the Saudi-coalition’s armed conflict with the Houthis.
That line has become increasingly hard to draw with the recentexchanges of fire between the US and Houthi forces. It was a hard line to maintain in the first place. For an independent legal analysis, see Just Security’s Nathalie Weizmann’s post applying the legal test of co-belligerency to ongoing US and UK assistance (including arms sales and refueling) to the Saudi-coalition.
Becoming a party to an armed conflict has many implications. One of those may include the duty to investigate fully and independently alleged war crimes by your allies—and not just to defer to them in the process. So what might those duties entail?
In a Written Ministerial Statement, a senior U.K. official appeared to acknowledge that his government’s duties to investigate would be different if the UK were a party to the conflict. He wrote: – By Ryan Goodman
20.10.2016 – Critical Threats (* A K P)
Gulf of Aden Security Review
[Events day by day, from Oct. 20 backwards]
http://www.criticalthreats.org/yemen/gulf-aden-security-review
19.10.2016 – Fuad Rajeh (A H)
When I see her sleeping like this, I say in myself: if I were able to smash heads of US, UK & Saudi govts, I wouldn't hesitate for a second (photo)
https://twitter.com/fuadrajeh/status/788528375400898560
Comment by Judith Brown: This is a Yemeni baby. They look just like your babies. They don't have two heads or evil eyes. They are just like all babies - beautiful, innocent, inspiring love. So why oh why do we sit back when day after day bombs are dropped on them - sold to the bomb dropper by our U.K. government. The photos you see of grey dusty babies with messy hair after a house has fallen on them is just how YOUR baby would look if someone dropped a bomb on your home. It isn't a special breed from Yemen. And Yemeni parents adore their children - they would do anything to protect them. Imagine how you would feel if bombs shook your house day after day, night after night. Imagine how your children would react. This is what it is like to be a Yemeni parent.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154823921308641
20.10.2016 – Mohammed Al-Asaadi (A E P)
Things in #Yemen change everyday, unfortunately for the worst. Just imagine millions of govt staff go without salaries for months now.
https://twitter.com/alasaadim/status/789189948893122565
Comment by Judith Brown: This is true. No salaries. Bank notes wearing out. No jobs. And Hadi has taken away the bank.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154827642348641
19.10.2016 – Abdulrahman ALEryani (A E P)
#Yemen 's banking sector is facing a crippling liquidity crisis. Over 1.3 trillion YER is circulating outside the banking sector (image)
https://twitter.com/eryaniar/status/788788509016518656
19.10.2016 – Beaver Online (* B K)
Where is the outrage for Yemen?
The urgency to learn from past mistakes and ensure that all relevant actors are held accountable has never been stronger. And yet, following the tragic incident in Sana’a, the United States decided to launch their own air strikes, consolidating the support they were already providing to the coalition. While the US National Security Council issued a statement noting that it was “deeply distressed” by the civilian casualties in the Sana’s attack, it has now become clear that the US does not intend to seriously reconsider its strategy in Yemen. This is particularly alarming given that the conflict does not lend itself to neat dichotomies between “good” and “evil” actors. A brief overview of the country’s troubled history provides a more nuanced understanding.
The protracted and multifaceted conflict in Yemen keeps claiming thousands of innocent lives, often forgotten or glossed over under the convenient label of ‘’collateral damage”, whilst the rise of al-Qaeda and ISIS shows no signs of regressing. To add to the already hopeless situation – Saudi Arabia is running for re-election to the Human Rights Council at the United Nations, after their current term expires this year, a position that the country has numerously used as a tool to obstruct any international inquiries on unlawful attacks against civilians in Yemen. With various media outlets calling Yemen ‘’the next Syria’’ the question remains – where is our outrage in Yemen, and why are we so willing to close our eyes to the war crimes committed? – By Elizabete Aunia
http://beaveronline.co.uk/where-is-the-outrage-for-yemen/
19.10.2016 – Al Araby (B K P)
What you need to know about Yemen's 'forgotten conflict'
As the nation awaits a UN-brokered ceasefire at midnight, we take a look back at some key moments in Yemen's two year brutal conflict.
[abridged overview]
18.10.2016 – ARWA Rights (B K P)
Film: Watch Senator@ChrisMurphyCT: This is not a proxy war in#YEMEN.#Irandoesnt have a command & control relationship over Houthis
https://twitter.com/arwa_rights/status/788498478649446400
cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation
21.10.2016 – TRT (* B H)
War in Yemen has produced countless silent victims
Aid organisation MSF says common illnesses are turning deadly in the absence of basic healthcare.
Eric Jeunot, a program director at MSF who is currently based in Sanaa, the capital of Yemen, spoke to TRT World over the phone. He called for the urgent mobilisation of resources to address the humanitarian crisis in the country.
Patients arrive at the health centres in critical condition. People can’t move. They stay indoors until their diseases or injuries turn deadly. Plus, the war has destroyed the infrastructure, the roads and the bridges. It’s very difficult for people to travel. Even MSF has been hit four times.
What MSF is worried about is the rising number of silent victims — the silent people who are hidden and staying in their homes with chronic diseases. These are people who meet road accidents, who need dialysis because of kidney failure, who have cancer. They cannot afford public transportation since the economy has collapsed.
http://www.trtworld.com/mea/war-in-yemen-has-produced-countless-silent-victims-211401
21.10.2016 – Basheer Alhanash (* B H)
Film: Starving in Hodeida province
https://www.facebook.com/basheer.alhanash/videos/1094247020696059/=https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154831195578641
Comment by Judith Brown: Oh how can the world leaders sit back when they know this is going on? A man made famine causing widespread suffering happened in Bengal in the last century and in Ireland the century before, but even in these days of mass communication things have not improved. This is the disaster that is Hodeida today. This video shows some aid being delivered; the problem is that it is so little and there is so much need. Only a cessation of hostilities will reverse this terrible catastrophe (see upper link)
21.10.2016 – UN High Commissioner for Refugees (* A H)
UNHCR makes new aid delivery push in Yemen, welcomes 72-hour ceasefire
This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today's press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.
In a new aid push, UNHCR is delivering emergency supplies to more than 125,000 displaced people, including in the embattled southern town of Taizz.
Aid distributions have been part of the humanitarian response since Yemen’s conflict began in March 2015, but access has often been difficult
UNHCR plans to reach more than 125,000 individuals under the aid push. Already this month and prior to the ceasefire we have reached some 12,309 people (in Al Hudaydah, Amanat Al Asimah, Amran, Hajjah, Sa’ada and Sana’a governorates).
An additional 21 convoys are on the move or being prepared for Taizz as well as five other governorates (Ibb, Amanat Al Asimah, Amran, Hajjah and Al Hudaydah) governorates. These areas are host to 65 per cent (1.427 million people) of Yemen’s 2.21 million conflict-displaced population.
The aid UNHCR is delivering is non-food aid. Included in it are tarpaulins, sleeping mats, blankets, kitchen sets and buckets for hygiene and sanitation. Shelter repair kits will help about 25,760 people. Much of this assistance had either been prepositioned in UNHCR’s warehouses in Sana’a and Al Hudaydah governorates or shipped to Al Hudaydah port through recent deliveries totalling 1,475 tons. The latest aid push follows weeks of preparation for the movement of convoys.
UNHCR has been advocating with parties to the conflict for regular, sustained and unimpeded humanitarian access to those most in need.
http://www.unhcr.org/en-us/news/briefing/2016/10/5809e8247/unhcr-makes-new-aid-delivery-push-yemen-welcomes-72-hour-ceasefire.html =http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/unhcr-makes-new-aid-delivery-push-yemen-welcomes-72-hour-ceasefire andhttp://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=55366#.WArms-CLSUk
Comment by Judith Brown: They are rushing air to Taiz. But what about the famine in Hodeida and the many displaced people with no income and no humanitarian aid in Sanaa and Saada ? They bombed the airports in Sanaa and Saada the day before the ceasefire to stop aid getting in.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154831131183641
21.10.2016 – Middle East Monitor (* A H)
Militias loot Taiz hospitals as diseases spread
Doctors in Yemen’s besieged city of Taiz have warned that the humanitarian situation is deteriorating as militias are targeting hospitals while various epidemics are spreading across the province.
Hospitals in Taiz are routinely shelled by militia forces, mainly Houthi and forces loyal to former Yemen President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Armed groups looting hospitals is becoming more common.
The director of the Tuberculosis Control Centre Dr Yassin Athuri told Aden Ghad that the hospital has been looted by gunmen who leave nothing behind. The hospital has been unable to function since the start of the war because it was looted by Houthis and Saleh forces.
Athuri stated that that there have been 182 cases of tuberculosis in the province since the start of the year. “The average death rate for those diagnosed with tuberculosis in Taiz is 50 per cent,” he said. Tuberculosis is not the only disease that is on the rise, cholera, which is prevalent in Aden, is also on the rise across the whole province.
In Taiz’s port city of Mocha, there are already 65 suspected cases of cholera alone. The siege executed by Houthi and pro Saleh militias on Taiz means there is a severe shortage in water. When water is available, even in areas that are not besieged, it is usually contaminated.
Dengue fever and malaria are also spreading fast in Taiz. The outbreak of dengue fever began last year when the siege on Taiz began. The lack of medical supplies meant the outbreak has grown significantly. Because Taiz’s climate is ideal for mosquitos, both malaria and dengue fever were spread considerably faster.
In the last three months alone, 150 cases of dengue fever and malaria were documented by Al Thawra Hospital, Taiz’s largest hospital.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20161021-militias-loot-taiz-hospitals-as-diseases-spread/
Comment by Judith Brown: Hospitals in Yemen are suffering so badly. They are repeatedly bombed by Saudi Arabia, staff are terrified of working there, the Saudi led embargo leads to shortages, and militias loot them and sell the goods on the black market. And yet there is do much need.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154831093918641
21.10.2016 – Oxfam (A H)
Safa, 10 years old, lives in a camp in Abs, in Hajjah governorate. As the only girl of her family, she has go collect water every day from the distribution points inside the camp.
“I started my studies when we were living in Haradh. But when the war started, we ran away here and I had to stop because all my documents and certificates are still in our old house.
I hope that when the war is over I’ll be able to go back to my town and complete my studies.” (photo)
21.10.2016 – Hisham Al-Omeisy (A E)
On top of skyrocketing unemployment & inflation, the lucky to still be employed go for months w/o salary. #Yemen
https://twitter.com/omeisy/status/789471639369023488
21.10.2016 – Fatik Mohammed Hanif (A H)
These photos to be spreaded all over the USA ..
In Aden / Yemen the kids sleep outside because of no electricity and the poor eat from the garbage !
https://www.facebook.com/fmhanif/posts/10207935701252813=https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154829785293641
21.10.2016 – WHO (A H)
Salim, 7, is ready to be discharged from @WHO-supported therapeutic feeding centre in Hudaydah, #Yemen, after remarkable recovery (photos)
https://twitter.com/WHOYemen/status/789487120633192448
Comment: But many thousands are further starving.
20.10.2016 – World Food programme (A H)
Map: Yemen Access Constraints Map - 20 October 2016
http://www.logcluster.org/map/yemen-access-constraints-map-20-october-2016
This map shows how absurd it is to bring human assistance into the country within a 72 hours truce. Delay at Hodeidah port: 27 days is just one point the whole story would start with.
20.10.2016 – Oxfam (A H)
"People have begun to eat trees, begun to eat leaves" Cardiff resident Ahmed Ali on the war back home in #Yemen
https://twitter.com/oxfamgbpress/status/789031151503548416and http://www.itv.com/news/wales/update/2016-10-18/yemeni-community-in-wales-fear-for-the-future-of-their-homeland-after-18-month-civil-war/
20.10.2016 – WAM (A H)
ERC delivers medical assistance to WHO in Yemen
Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) has moved quickly to save lives in Yemen by delivering oral rehydration solution (ORS), which is used to treat diarrhoea, as well as cholera.
The ERC delivered the rehydration solution to the coordinator of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Yemen, Dr. Mohammed Cleese.
The move is part of the UAE efforts to improve the performance of vital sectors, including the medical sector.
http://uaeinteract.com/docs/ERC-delivers-medical-assistance-to-WHO-in-Yemen/77501.htm
20.10.2016 – Living in Yemen on the Edge (* A H)
Her name is Kifala and lives alone. She has no one taking care of her and, obviously, no job, no money, no hopes. No running water, no medicines, no other clothes. She is so thin she does not even feel the hunger bites as at first.
She just sits. Waiting.
Kifala has faith in Allah and told us that, Inshallah, the war will end one day and to be strong.
We hope to see her soon, our Kifala of the heart (photo)
We want to denounce the #Saudi-led Coalition and whoever was on the Apache helicopter trying to block us from delivering aid to STARVING families
This happened to our team and what hurts the most is that we could not reach some families, we could not help.
But we are coming back
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1140967732622922/?type=3 and see alsohttps://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1141134482606247/?type=3
20.10.2016 – Julien Harneis, UNICEF (A H)
With little money for education in Yemen, in the rehabilitated school @UNICEF repaired old furniture rather than buying new, before & after
https://twitter.com/julienmh/status/788817709513469952
Across #yemen mains electricity is blacked out, so for the school rehabilitation @UNICEF added solar panels using German govt funds
https://twitter.com/julienmh/status/788818539285282816
20.10.2016 – WHO (A H)
WHO has provided Al-Thawra Hospital in Hudaydah, #Yemen, with 30 medical beds, 5 infant radiant warmers and 1 trauma kit.
https://twitter.com/whoyemen/status/789042076860223488
Comment by Judith Brown: There is so much that needs doing. But with the ports blocked at Hodeida progress is slow. Except of course for products via Saudi Arabia - does that remind you of Gaza?
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154827640193641
20.10.2016 – Southern Movement (A H)
Urgent: All aid agencies, help needed to prevent further already widespread Cholera pandemic in #SouthYemen Its real & children are dying
https://twitter.com/SouthHirak/status/789095008355880960
20.10.2016 – Southern Movement (A H)
.@emiratesrc delivers chlorine to #Aden water department to combat Cholera disease #ThanksUAE. It's not enough, other agencies need to help.
https://twitter.com/southhirak/status/789156767473229824
Comment by Judith Brown: The Emirates are sending in chemicals to combat cholera in Aden, but in the north it's much more difficult to get water treatment in.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154827662563641
20.10.2016 – Living in Yemen on the Edge (* A H)
We are back from a mission to #Tihama region, Western#Yemen, where hunger, diseases, lack of water, have driven 80% of the local population on the abyss of a slow, merciless, announced death.
We joined Yemeni 'Your Ability Organiz' NGO to deliver rice, flour, powder milk, oil to 100 families of Dakhnan Village.
What we saw in the journey will stay with us forever: total destruction, injured and maimed children, skeletons instead of human beings.
The people in these pitcures have all asked to have their photos taken as a message to the world, a reminder that in those huts death flies low (photos)
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1140952429291119=https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154827426593641
19.10.2016 – Agency for Technical Cooperation and Development – ACTED (** B H)
The human face of water shortage and deteriorating sanitation in Yemen
To mark the close of two OCHA-funded ACTED water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) projects in Yemen, ACTED talks to beneficiaries in Al Dhale’e and Al Jawf about their experiences and highlights some of the project’s key successes.
Yemen has had terrifying humanitarian indicators for years, including in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). The last year and a half since the conflict began has compounded and exacerbated these pre-existing issues. Up to 20.4 million people are now in need of assistance related to WASH. Up to 9.4 million have suspended, reduced, or disrupted access to water largely as a result of fuel shortages. Around 2 million children are at risk of diarrhea because of poor access to water and poor sanitation environments. In response, ACTED launched interventions centred on providing comprehensive emergency WASH assistance with the following objectives:
On the other hand, ACTED’s intervention in Al Dhale’e governorate reached 22,404 beneficiaries with water filter distribution, hygiene kits and hygiene training, community water point rehabilitation, and WASH infrastructure rehabilitation in health facilities.
Lina is a 26-year-old computer scientist, who lives with her husband and two young boys in a small village in Jahaf district. Lina tells ACTED that the “impact of the crisis has been devastating” for her family. She has a BA in computer sciences, but since the war started in 2015, both she and her husband lost their jobs, leaving them without money for food and other basic items. As a result she sees her family’s health deteriorating. Lina tells ACTED that most people in her village are in a similar situation; they’ve also lost their jobs and their financial situations are dire. Equally, she says there is a shortage of water in the village and a shortage of fuel that is needed to run generators. Lina knows the water her family was drinking was not clean, but she also had no other options.
Until ACTED provided hygiene promotion training, hygiene kits and water filters to members’ of Lina’s community in late 2015 and early 2016, she says that there had been no other humanitarian assistance in the village.
Zahra lives with her family in a small village in Jahaf district. She has six sons and three daughters, although sadly, she tells ACTED that one of her sons was killed during the fighting in Al Dhale’e governorate. Zahra says that she has no formal education, and neither does her husband. Zahra tends cows and sheep for a living, and her husband gets his income from ad-hoc manual labour jobs, when he can find work.
Zahra says that since the war started, people in her village have experienced a severe water shortage, and that the water that is still available is not safe to use. Furthermore, Zahra reports that most people lost their jobs during the crisis, and that the price of staple food has risen a lot. Zahra mentions that because her and her husband don’t have enough money to meet her family’s basic needs, that diseases are spreading, and that her children often have diarrhea.
Before ACTED began trucking water to his community, Abdo says people were obligated to travel far distances to collect water for their homes on unsafe routes.
http://www.acted.org/fr/node/13512 =http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/human-face-water-shortage-and-deteriorating-sanitation-yemen
Comment: That’s why cholera is spreading… Thank you, Saudi.
19.10.2016 – WHO (A H)
Only 45% of all health facilities in #Yemen remain functional due to shortages in health staff, medicines and medical supplies
https://twitter.com/whoyemen/status/788795125136781312
19.10.2016 – WHO (A H)
WHO has trained epidemiological surveillance coordinators in 16 governorates on reporting, control & prevention of #cholera outbreak.
https://twitter.com/whoyemen/status/788076316180570112
More than 7.6m people are living in the affected areas, and over 3m IDPs are especially vulnerable to the #cholera outbreak in#Yemen (photo)
https://twitter.com/whoyemen/status/788387128837308416
Comment: Do not wonder about cholera if you see how people must take their drinking water.
19.10.2016 – Doctors Without Borders (* A H)
Om Halima of Osman valley, Amran, holding her malnourished two-month-old baby in her hands. She says that she does not find things to eat most of the time. Her husband has no regular income except for his daily work in markets. “He is not lucky much of the time. If he manages to find work, he comes back home carrying food, otherwise he comes back empty handed. This has happened many times." She adds "We couldn't hospitalize our baby when she started feeling sick but days later; we managed to borrow some money so we could bring her to the hospital." Halima has now been admitted to the malnutrition unit in Al-Salam Hospital. Her nurse says that her mother does not get enough food to be able to breastfeed her baby. The baby is below weight so we are taking care of her and giving her diluted milk f10 until she gains a normal weight. (photos)
https://www.facebook.com/MSF.Yemen/posts/1109402449168042=https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154823869783641=https://www.facebook.com/SaudiArabia.war.crimes.against.Yemen/posts/1593804214248900
cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis
21.10.2016 – Saba Net (A P)
SPC: Int’l community retreat to issue UN resolution to stop aggression on Yemen disregards Yemeni blood, justifies Saudi crimes
President of the Supreme Political Council Saleh Al-Sammad has said that the withdrawal of the international community to issue a UN resolution for a comprehensive and permanent end of the aggression on Yemen is a disregard of the Yemeni blood and a justification of the crimes of the Saudi regime.
In a statement to Saba on Friday, Al-Sammad said that “The retreat of the international community to issue a UN resolution for a comprehensive and permanent end of the aggression on Yemen and to interrogate crimes against Yemenis as a response to Saudi pressures is considered a disregard of the Yemeni blood and a justification for the crimes of the Saudi regime,” adding that “This also allows the Saudi regime to keep on its aggression.”
SPC President noted that “The claimed ceasefire by UN envoy comes as an international cover for the Saudi crimes.”
He pointed out that this disregard is a new escalation as took place in previous rounds and as was expected this time concealing ill-intent.
It is clearly understood by the transfer of the Central Bank by the USA, UK, Saudi regime and Emirates to Aden in order to harm every Yemeni through targeting their sustenance as hundreds of thousands of Yemenis are suffering since they have not received their salaries for three months so far.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news444403.htm
19.10.2016 – Living in Yemen on the Edge (* A H)
This is ten o'clock in the morning of Wednesday, October 19, 2016.
This market is usually congested with people. Even during the war: Yemenis are not afraid of going out to run errands.
Yemenis move, fight war back with life.
Today we found something rather strange while walking.
Something frightening and scary, something disturbing, something foreshadowing: the approaching danger, something which needs to change before it is too late.
The market was empty.
We asked many shop/stall owners and they all said: ''People have no more money.''
This is #Yemen on the eve of the ceasefire: everyone has lost job, homes are bombed and government employees stopped receiving their salary 3 months ago.
Yemen is starving, broke and broken, maimed.
72 hours of ceasefire will not feed the nation. Something needs to be done or people will rise up. One against the other (photos)
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1140207009365661
cp6 Südjemen und Hadi-Regierung / Southern Yemen and Hadi-government
21.10.2016 – Al Araby (* B P)
Yemen: A country in tatters and president in exile
Yemen's internationally backed President Hadi is still living in exile, leaving the country with weak and ineffective leadership
Despite extensive efforts of the Saudi-led Arab coalition to restore President Hadi to Yemen, the man has been unable to find a safe place for a home. This puts Yemen's internationally recognised government in a weaker position and pathetic situation. Today almost all of south of Yemen is free of Houthi rebels, but one element is still missing: a president.
Bringing the 'liberated' provinces under control and establishing stability and security would help Yemen's internationally recognised government to score other victories on various fronts.
However, seemingly President Hadi remains in the dark as to how and when he will to return to Yemen.
It is no secret that the south has been plagued by al-Qaeda militants and IS operatives, an alarming security threat to Yemen and the region. Radical militants have capitalised on the lax security status, planting themselves in the several southern provinces.
To the present day, and with the exception of some flying visits to Aden, exile has been the only the option.
President Hadi is from the south, originally hailing from Abyan province. But if living in the south risks his life, where can he find safety in Yemen? The ultimate, though unrealistic dream of the beleaguered leader, is to rule from Sanaa which is currently controlled by the Iran-backed Houthi militants, and allied forces.
Sanaa and many cities have been heavily bombed by the Saudi-led Arab coalition. As the legitimate president, the sorties are being launched at Hadi's request – by Khalid Al-Karimi
20.10.2016 – Nasser Arrabyee (A T)
Yemen Qaeda/ISIS killed&injured 10 Saudi-backed soldiers in a check point in Zinjubar Abyan south where these groups dominate.
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/789036058868580352
20.10.2016 – Southern Hirak (A P)
Message from Ahmed Omar Bin Fareed
The Southern Movement (Hirak) is the voice of southerners everywhere working, fighting to revive an Independent South Yemen so our people can live in peace and dignity. I, like many of you, for many years have campaigned for our cause. Today we want to try and harness some of our energy and make it effective to reach the global community.
My dear southern brothers and sisters, we want to try to make the online southern voice reach passed our own circles and reach the wider world.
Since the start of the Southern Movement in 2007, the government in Sana'a Yemen made sure that the southern issue and southerners were sidelined and their voices silenced by stifling press freedom and using cruel methods to crack down on protesters and activists.
They tried all methods and failed because the will of the people is more powerful than any government repression.
Our online presence is strong and to be commended.
http://www.southernhirak.org/2016/10/message-from-ahmed-omar-bin-fareed.html
and more Tweets by Southern Movement (Hirak)
#SouthYemen has clearly chosen independence. Anything less than that will not resolve the conflict in #Yemen
https://twitter.com/SouthHirak/status/789214305161969665
Southern Movement leaders in #Hadramout call on@HadiPresident of #Yemen to initiate a #SouthYemenReferendum (photos)
https://twitter.com/SouthHirak/status/788126873750474753
Southerners celebrate Oct 14 revolution in #Aden while marching for revival of independent #SouthYemen (film)
https://twitter.com/SouthHirak/status/786691306416381953see also photoshttps://twitter.com/arabthomness/status/787031606003372032and https://twitter.com/SouthHirak/status/786684730129453056 andhttps://twitter.com/amjadt25/status/786996086258925568(burning Iranian flag)
cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks
Siehe / See cp1a, 1b
20.10.2016 – Jahaf (A P)
UN shameful silence on Yemen Central Bank relocation decision is participating in Yemeni people starvation#CoalitionRobsYemenisSalaries
https://twitter.com/a7medja7af/status/789151959911636993
20.10.2016 – Nasser Arrabyee (A E P)
Yemen UN chief: We are all doing our best to keep the Central Bank function as it was
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/789340055471005697andhttps://twitter.com/yemenalaan/status/789326684478644224and film https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8sguwDr9lA&feature=youtu.be
cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia
21.10.2016 – The Times (* B E)
Lazy Saudis are on brink of bankruptcy
Civil servants in Saudi Arabia work only an hour a day and the country faces bankruptcy in three years unless austerity measures are enforced, senior officials have warned.
The bloated public sector, which employs more than 70 per cent of the workforce, is woefully unproductive, according to Khaled al-Araj, the civil service minister. He told a TV debate that state employees, many of whom had little incentive to work, barely put in 60 minutes a day at the office.
The uncharacteristically blunt and public assessment comes as the country struggles with falling oil prices. Its budget deficit was nearly $100… – by Bel Trew [subscribers only]
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/lazy-saudis-are-on-brink-of-bankruptcy-92jdvggln
21.10.2016 – Noto Wahabism (B P)
Film: Saudi people have to praising Saudi prince (Bin Talal) by some poems and beg him for favors!
https://www.facebook.com/NotoWahabism/videos/999950950133487/
21.10.2016 – Noto Wahabism (B P)
Film: A usual day in a #Saudi mosque & people still wonder how #Saudi_Arabia can produce so many extremists.
https://www.facebook.com/NotoWahabism/videos/1000175966777652/
20.10.2016 – Ali AlAhmed (D)
Touted a "liberal" #west, #Saudi monarchist Khalid AlFaisal &@HillaryClinton buddy closes @EXCS_ car show over this pic
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/789095943287214080
Comment: Bizarre.
20.10.2016 – Newsweek (B P)
THE WORLD’S TEN MOST UNSTABLE COUNTRIES
What crises could blindside the White House in the next four years?
'Saudi Arabia’s facing a perfect storm: US policy has empowered and re-resourced Iran. The price of oil has declined precipitously pushing the Saudi economy to the brink. Saudi Arabia is bogged down in a war in Yemen which seemingly has no end.
All of this would be bad in the best of circumstances, but add into the mix a king that very well may have Alzheimer’s and the Kingdom may face a crisis unlike any it has faced in decades.
Every US administration since Franklin Roosevelt’s has counted on a strong partnership with Saudi Arabia kingdom to bring stability to the Middle East and order to the world economy. If Riyadh is unable or unwilling to continue that partnership, can Washington find a substitute or fill the gap? – by Michael Rubin
http://europe.newsweek.com/world-ten-most-unstable-countries-511821
20.10.2016 – Ali AlAhmed (A E P)
#Saudi deputy minister of economy "We will go bankrupt in 3 years unless we take steps"
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/789048992650985473relating athttps://twitter.com/mbc8pm/status/788806757367721984
20.10.2016 – Noto Wahabism (A P)
Film: Watch #Wahhabi brainwashed maniac destroys statues in four churches in Rome #Italy.
This is the direct result of #Al_Saud investments throughout the world that teaches intolerance.
https://www.facebook.com/NotoWahabism/videos/999764706818778/
19.10.2016 – Living in Yemen on the Edge (A)
Mohamed bin Salman's #Vision2030 sailing away on his 550 mln USD
Comment: Saudi prince Salman bought a $ 550 million yacht in France, as reported by the NYT.
19.10.2016 – Wallstreet Journal (* A E P)
Saudi Arabia Launches $17.5 Billion Bond Sale to Global Investors
Sale could be biggest-ever emerging-market debt issue; comes as kingdom works to keep economy afloat as oil income dwindles
Banks and investors flocked to buy Saudi Arabia’s first global bonds, a milestone in the giant oil producer’s efforts to diversify its economy and embrace global financial markets.
The $17.5 billion sale, the largest-ever debt sale by a developing country, marks a crucial step for the kingdom as it undertakes an ambitious plan to move away from decades of dependence on oil revenue, which has fallen in recent years along with the global crude price, and to accelerate growth in its private sector.
Strong demand for the debt, sold primarily to U.S. investors in a private placement and to Asian institutions, allowed the Saudis to reduce the yields below initial marketing plans while reaching out to an expanding investor base.
Wednesday’s sale is the latest in a flurry of efforts to broaden the economy by Saudi officials seeking to close a widening budget gap that the government expects to reach $87 billion this year. The country in April borrowed $10 billion from a group of international banks, its first foreign borrowing in more than a decade. It is preparing to list part of its state oil giant, Saudi Arabian Oil Co., or Aramco, in 2018 and created a new sovereign-wealth fund to invest its reserves more aggressively in hopes of higher returns – By CAROLYN CUI, AHMED AL OMRAN and CHRISTOPHER WHITTALL
17.10.2016 – Bloomberg (* B E P)
Saudi Arabia: Give Us Your Money and Stop Asking About Oil
Government officials make presentations on new economic vision
They don’t give forecast for oil or discuss Middle East wars
Saudi government officials talked at length about their vision for transforming the economy. When it came to an oil price increasingly influenced by Iran and the proxy war in Yemen they were less forthcoming.
“Every time anyone in our meeting asked about oil they pushed back,” said Gregory Saichin, chief investment officer for emerging-market bonds at Allianz Global Investors.
a pivotal year for Saudi Arabia. The kingdom awoke to the reality that collapsing oil prices had made its economic model unsustainable. While the roadshow provides investors with a window on a country that’s never before had to open its books, it’s also raised questions about just how bad things might get.
The world’s largest oil exporter wants to raise at least $10 billion this week from bonds due in five, 10 and 30 years, people familiar with the plans have said.
That they are having to tap the market at all is testament to how far their finances have deteriorated. The budget deficit has swollen to the widest in more than two decades and the government has eaten into foreign currency reserves and been forced to raise about $63 billion from local bond sales.
Lurking in the background, though, is a deepening conflict next door in Yemen with Iranian-backed rebels. A Saudi-led air attack on a funeral in Yemen’s capital Sana’a that killed more than 100 people this month was based on false information, an investigation team said last week.
"The Saudi engagement in Yemen and Syria will signify higher expenses for the government," said Pictet portfolio manager Andres Sanchez Balcazar, whose colleague attended the roadshow in London. "We don’t think that’s going to be a great driver for the credit.”
There’s also the face-off with Iran over oil production, with OPEC last month backing a plan to cut output for the first time in eight years. About 70 percent of Saudi revenue comes from oil and failing to provide forecasts denies investors the chance to fully assess the kingdom’s ability to repay its debt, according to Saichin at Allianz – by Lyubov Pronina
cp9 USA
20.10.2016 – Pilot Online (* A K)
USS San Antonio leaves Red Sea after missile attack, enters Mediterranean
The Norfolk-based USS San Antonio has left the Red Sea, where its commanding officer says it came under attack from missiles fired from Yemen.
The amphibious transport dock passed through the Suez Canal on its way to the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday, according to photographs posted online by Marines aboard the ship.
The Navy's Sixth Fleet confirmed the ship's movement into its area of responsibility on Thursday in response to a question from The Virginian-Pilot.
The San Antonio was transiting through the southern end of the Red Sea last week along with the Norfolk-based USS Mason when missiles were fired against them from Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen. Neither ship was harmed – By Brock Vergakis
Comment: Another US standard propaganda plot. Anyway: Just leaving is the best option.
21.10.2016 – Smirking Chimp (* A K P)
Tonkin 2.0: 'Attack' on Ships Justifies US Escalation in Yemen
Putting aside the hoot-worthy claim that the US could be an “honest broker” in a war that literally could not be taking place without extensive involvement of the United States on behalf of the religious extremists of the Saudi tyranny, here we see — once again — the militarist extremists of the US power structure scuppering even wan attempts at a diplomatic approach. We saw this just a few weeks ago in Syria, where a ceasefire crafted through diplomacy with the Russians was suddenly shattered by an “accidental” US attack on Syrian army positions.
It’s clear — clear beyond all reasonable doubt — that America’s militarist extremists are determined to subvert or destroy any attempt at peace that does not end in total American dominance. They can at times work subtly and patiently — witness the long, steady rehabilitation of the radical neocons of the Bush era, now openly embraced by the “progressive” Obama and Clinton — and, when possible, they prefer to work by proxy, to avoid stirring up the stupid herd of rubes (aka the American people) who supply the tax money and cannon fodder for their extremist agenda. But when they must, they will act swiftly, brutally and directly to kill moves toward peace. That’s what happened this week in Yemen.
Thus another proxy war slides into direct involvement, without any declaration or debate. Thus more and more civilians are slaughtered in the name of geopolitical power games, leaving behind anguished, grieving, angry survivors, prey to anyone who offers them a venue for retribution. All this, we’re told, is done in the name of “national security.” But here’s a question no one asks in the howling hell-circus of our presidential campaign: after 15 years of this, 15 years of “counterterror war” destroying entire nations, uprooting millions of people and killing multitudes of innocent people, 15 years of bipartisan policies which our own intelligence services have repeatedly said exacerbate “radicalization” terrorism at home and abroad — is our nation more secure? – by Chris Floyd
21.10.2016 – Strategic Culture (* A L P)
US Wider Entanglement in Yemen Amid Deep Concern over War Crimes
The United States has kept warships in the region to guard a sea lane through which four million barrels of oil pass each day. Now it finds itself facing a dangerous situation in a narrow stretch of water where even small incidents run the risk of inciting a broader conflict
The sale of $1.15bn more has been approved recently by the State Department, includingair-to-ground munitions as well as tanks, to make America responsible for human suffering in the impoverished country.
The majority of this equipment is still in the pipeline, and could tie the United States to the Saudi military for years to come.
State Department lawyers had warned that the US could be implicated in war crimes for supporting a Saudi-led air campaign in Yemen. The deal went through anyway.
US partners are almost certainly committing war crimes in the ongoing conflict in Yemen, a congressman argued in a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry.
The American military presence in Yemen is illegal. Neither the Yemeni government, not the United Nations has asked America to take action. The President’s decision to intervene militarily in one more conflicts is a brazen violation of international and domestic law. According to the UN Charter, the use of force is legitimate only if undertaken in self-defense or authorized by the United Nations. The Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) that Congress passed a few days after 9/11 allows the President to use force against groups and countries that had supported the attacks. Syria, Yemen, Iraq and Libya – the countries where SOF operations are intensive – are not on the list.
The US has supported the military campaign notorious for violations of human rights and war crimes. It makes Washington responsible and tarnishes its image in the world. It also puts America into an awkward position when it tries to blast Russia for its activities in Syria.
True, this is a relatively small involvement but, as history teaches, small involvements lead to entanglements into protracted conflicts. America is on the brink of getting involved in another war but the issue does not seem to bother the presidential candidates – by Andrei Akulov
21.10.2016 – US News (* A K P)
Stop the Saudi Slaughter
The U.S. must stop fueling Saudi Arabia's war in Yemen.
The United Nation's recent announcement of a 72 hour truce in Yemen is a step forward, but it is not enough. To stop the bloodshed for more than three days, Washington must fully commit to cutting off weapons transfers if Saudi Arabia refuses to end its war on civilians there.
The U.S. is literally fueling the Saudi-led bombardment of Yemen by continuing to refuel its jet planes. Washington is also furnishing bombs, including the bombs that Saudi jets dropped on a packed Yemeni funeral hall, killing 140 civilians and injuring over 500 more
While welcome news, Saudi compliance with a temporary ceasefire is no reason to continue U.S. arms transfers. This ceasefire will only deescalate the violence in the long term if Washington follow through on its statement that "U.S. security cooperation with Saudi Arabia is not a blank check." The administration must, at a minimum, be unequivocal in its commitment to halt U.S. military support to Saudi Arabia until Riyadh agrees to a peaceful political solution for Yemen.
Fortunately, some lawmakers are already heeding the call to challenge U.S. policy on autopilot in Yemen.
Lawmakers should support the ceasefire call and encourage the administration to end military support until Saudi Arabia, at a minimum, ends its war in Yemen – By Kate Gould and Leah Muskin-Pierret
Comment by Judith Brown: Well I agree with this. Not only USA. But so many excuses to continue selling these terrible weapons. 'We are still checking the facts' or 'It was an error' or 'We need to maintain a good relationship with Saudi Arabia for our own security'. And meanwhile children are dying. Homes are destroyed. The world's amazing historic treasures in Yemen are wiped off the map. Heartbroken
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154831161108641
20.10.2016 – American Herald Tribune (* B K P)
Yemen Burns as the World Yawns and a Nightmare is Born
There is horror in ambivalence. The situation in Yemen is as worrying as Syria yet our politicians and most of the media seem fairly ambivalent towards it.
Where are the pictures of dead and dying children in Yemen? As bombs rain and women and children die this is more proof that the misery of Arab children are used by the US, UK and France to promote their nefarious end game in the Middle-East.
Let's put this horror into its proper context. The US, which has sold the Saudis $110bn worth of arms since President Obama assumed office, and recently approved the sale of $1.15bn more, has helped precipitate bloodshed since over 18 months ago
So it is not purely about the bombs but about the starvation and humanitarian cost of this geo-strategic arcade game by the Saudis. The US warships off the coast are helping to enforce the food blockade and so many Yemenis are literally starving to death.
To play devil's advocate for a moment one might posit that firing missiles into the strait is a red line and so the US will protect the trade route. It's pretty cut and dry. But there is a big but. A massive war against the civilian population of a country is the real red line that the world is missing.
Of course there is a horrible moral hypocrisy at the heart of giving the Saudis their toys of death and turning a blind eye as long as the bank transfers zip along.
Obama's policy regarding Yemen has been disastrous and will no doubt be continued by Clinton if she takes office – by Saurav Dutt
http://ahtribune.com/world/north-africa-south-west-asia/war-on-yemen/1278-yemen-burns.html
20.10.2016 – Atlantic Sentinel (* B K P)
Why the Hell Is Yemen Shooting at the United States Navy?
The war in Yemen has three dimensions, only one of which directly affects the United States.
Of course, it isn’t Yemen shooting the navy at all, but the question would be fair to a layman.
There are layers upon layers of conflict here, all of which can be seen as reasonable in and of themselves but which complicate the matter of Yemen beyond the layman. It was not a mad dog nihilistically hoping for cruise-missile-delivered paradise who fired those missiles at the US Navy, nor do such folks give form and function to the overlaying conflicts within Yemen.
#1: Houthis (north) versus the Aden government (south)
This is the struggle between two regions and more specifically two cities: Sana’a and Aden.
The conflict is thus three way: between the Houthis, Aden and the hinterland Sunnis. It’s a struggle between Yemen’s geography: mountains, coast and open desert, and the attitudes and mindsets that grew up in those distinct places.
And yet it grows more complicated still. Overlay that with recent Yemeni politics.
Taking sizeable chunks of the Yemeni military with him, Saleh’s forces supported the Houthi assault on Sana’a, delivering them the capital in 2013.
Thus the only semi-modern force in the country, the Yemeni military, was divided between factions supporting Saleh and those supporting the elected Hadi government.
Meanwhile, the age-old geographic struggles between mountain, coast and desert raged on underneath.
Layer #2: Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies versus their own people/Iran
Yemen’s geographic struggles open up doors for any ambitious elites to try to wedge a bit of power out of Arabia.
Saudi Arabia is afraid its own people will stop fearing the monarchy and turn against it. There are many Saudis who despise the regime: the hardline Wahhabist forces that give clandestine support to the Islamic State see them as apostates; the would-be modernizes who see them as corrupt kleptocrats holding back progress; and the quite reasonable grumblers.
Layer #3: America, trade and the War on Terror
Why was an American warship even near Yemen to begin with?
The US needs a government on the ground that will allow it to continue to hunt down Al Qaeda and now the Islamic State.
This layer ensures the Saudis continue to get access to high tech weapons from the United States.
So what now? Will America go in?
Unlikely.
Regardless, the conflict will carry on as Syria sucks down world attention. When it ends, it will be because one sponsor or another loses interest or is unable to carry on. In the short term, that could be Iran. In the long term, it will certainly be Saudi Arabia. Its society is just not built to survive much war weariness. But regardless, America’s warships will remain tempting targets for anyone seeking the prestige of shooting at the superpower.
http://atlanticsentinel.com/2016/10/why-the-hell-is-yemen-shooting-at-the-united-states-navy/
Comment: Iran is not a major sponsor of this war, so it’s behavior will nit be of great influence on the conflict.
20.10.2016 – Dep. of State (A P)
Film: Secretary Kerry and Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir Discuss their Meeting
Secretary Kerry and Saudi Arabia Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir discuss their meeting at a camera spray at the Department of State on October 20, 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-14xe9ibPSg and as transcript:
Remarks With Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir After Their Meeting
Kerry: Finally, we talked about Yemen, and we want to emphasize – both of us – that the ceasefire that was entered into at midnight last night remains in place, contrary to some comments or other statements out there. The foreign minister can speak for himself, but he was on the phone to his people back in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. They confirmed to him their willingness to live by the ceasefire, but it is essential that the Houthi, who have said they will support this ceasefire, live by it. And regrettably, there were two civilians – Saudi civilians – killed by a missile that came from the Houthi into Saudi Arabia.
So any such breaches of this put at risk the entire possibility of getting back to talks. And I have talked today with the UN Special Envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, who is in touch directly with all of the players, with our ambassador in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere, to make sure that parties understand the stakes here. I talked with Yusuf bin Alawi, the foreign minister of Oman, and he will be in touch with other players. And I talked also earlier today with Foreign Minister Lavrov, who has – Russia is also supporting the idea of a ceasefire, and they have indicated their willingness to enforce this.
But let me make it clear: Saudi Arabia has a right to be free from missiles being launched from Yemen into Saudi Arabia. And the Houthi – we would call on them to draw their troops back, to draw their missiles back, which ultimately will have to be negotiated within the context of negotiations when they begin. But it is important for this ceasefire to be given time to try to take hold. And so there will be an infraction here or there. We all know that. But by and large today, violence has been significantly reduced, and the parties have indicated their willingness to try to live by this.
There is a center that has been arranged to be created, and the Saudis are already manning that center. We’re waiting for the Houthi to show up.
Jubeir: we discussed the situation in Yemen. As of this morning Washington time, there had been more than 150 violations by the Houthi-Saleh side in Taiz alone, which is an escalation in the violence rather than a reduction. After the cessation was announced and accepted by both Yemeni sides, there has been a missile launched into Saudi territory that – with casualties being a man and his daughter.
The de-escalation and coordinating committee that was set up in southern Saudi Arabia in a town called Dhahran South, to be manned by the two Yemeni sides and the United Nations to coordinate the de-escalation and the withdrawals and the disarmament has been manned by the Yemeni Government for weeks now, if not months, and we are still waiting for the Houthis to arrive. The legitimate Government of Yemen made this one of their requirements for a cessation of hostilities, so we hope that the Houthis and Saleh will send representatives there so they can begin the process of coordinating how to de-escalate and how to drop.
We, of course, reserve the right to protect our borders and to defend ourselves. We hope that the two sides in Yemen will continue to – will move towards the negotiating table in order to arrive at a negotiated settlement.
http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2016/10/263368.htm
Comment: Kerry said Saudi Arabia “has a right to be free from missiles being launched from Yemen”. And Yemen should not have the right to be free of Saudi air strikes???? A lot of odd propaganda by both, I lack the time for a longer discussion.
21.10.2016 – KUNA (A P)
Kerry, Al Jubeir Discuss Ways to ‘Fix’ JASTA
Secretary of State John Kerry has met with Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al Jubeir and discussed ways to “fix” the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA) and a possible continuation of the ceasefire in Yemen.
JASTA is the recently passed bill that allows US citizens to sue foreign governments believed to sponsor or participate in terrorism.
“We discussed ways to try to fix this in a way that respects and honors the needs and right of victims but at the same time does not expose American troops and American partners who may be involved in another country,” Kerry said alongside the Foreign Minister, following the meeting late on Thursday.
http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=2540218&language=en =http://nationalyemen.com/2016/10/21/kerry-al-jubeir-discuss-ways-to-fix-jasta/
?2016 – Code Pink (A K P)
Petition: END ALL WEAPON SALES TO SAUDI ARABIA!
We, the undersigned, call on President Obama and his administration to end ALL weapon sales to Saudi Arabia. The recent decision by the administration to block the sale of cluster bombs to the kingdom is a welcome development and a step in the right direction. But the U.S. must end ALL weapons sales to the Saudis in order to end our complicity with the horrific deaths of thousands of innocent civilians in Yemen.
20.10.2016 – Reuters (A P)
U.S. discusses JASTA with Saudi
Speaking after he met Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, Kerry said the two had discussed ways to try to "fix" the U.S. Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act, known as JASTA, which grants an exception to the legal principle of sovereign immunity in cases of terrorism on U.S. soil, clearing the way for lawsuits seeking damages from the Saudi government.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-usa-idUSKCN12K2L1
20.10.2016 – Neopresse (A P)
Jemen: Kommt jetzt ein direktes Eingreifen der USA?
Tötete Washington im Jemen bislang mit Drohnen, so hat sich mit letzter Woche das Bild gedreht. Mit dem Abschuss mehrerer Raketen auf die jemenitische Küste, auf Radar- und Kommandozentralen der Houthis, zeigt das politische Amerika einmal mehr sein häßliches Gesicht als Kraft des Bösen und der Zerstörung.
Und wieder ist die Begründung für den Raketenangriff mehr als nur zweifelhaft. Sie zeigt auf wie arrogant, überheblich und aggressiv die US-Außenpolitik gegen den Rest der Welt betrieben wird – im Besonderen gegen jene Länder, die sich den US-Interessen nicht beugen wollen.
Natürlich stimmte die Hochleistungspresse im Westen in gewohnter Manier der US-Position zu, dass dieser Angriff gerechtfertig ist und er nichts anderes war als eine Reaktion auf die von niemanden provozierten Raketenabschüsse der „iranischen Proxies“, die im Jemen gegen das „demokratische Königreich Saudi-Arabien“ kämpfen.
Mit klassischer Framing-Technik wird der Vorfall so dargestellt, dass die Houthis zuerst ihre Raketen abschossen und dass daraufhin die USA quasi in einem Akt der Selbtsverteidigung zur Vergeltung greifen mussten. Zu diesem Framing gehört auch, dass die USA jedwedes Recht haben, dass ihr US-Zerstörer vor der Küste des Jemens liegt (was bzgl. der internationalen Gewässer natürlich richtig ist).
Die Aussagen Cooks und die Geschichte der USA, dass man „Angriffe“ nutzte, um Militäreinsätze gegen andere Länder zu rechtfertigen, im Hinterkopf behaltend, müssen wir die Frage stellen, ob dieser „Raketenangriff“ wirklich stattgefunden hat und nicht nur wer ihn durchgeführt haben könnte.
Mag es Zufall sein, dass der „Angriff auf die USS Mason und der anschließende Vergeltungsschlag der USA“ just zu dem Zeitpunkt erfolgte, wo erste internationale Stimmen im Westen laut wurden, dass im Jemen von Riad Kriegsverbrechen begangen werden und dass der Krieg gegen den Jemen ein Angriffskrieg ist? – von Michael Lehner
http://www.neopresse.com/politik/jemen-kommt-jetzt-ein-direktes-eingreifen-der-usa/
Kommentar: Dass Jemen ein Partner von Russland ist, ist Unsinn. Und es müsste auch geklärt werden, von welchem der beiden Jemen man überhaupt redet.
19.10.2016 – Salon (* A P)
Congressman continues pressuring U.S. to stop fueling “civilian carnage” in Saudi-led war in Yemen
U.S. is likely complicit in "horrifying" Saudi war crimes in Yemen, Rep. Ted Lieu warned John Kerry in a new letter
Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., sent Kerry a letter last week calling for the U.S. to “cease immediately the aiding and abetting of” Saudi forces.
“The continuing civilian carnage caused by the Saudi Arabia-led military coalition in Yemen is horrifying,” Lieu wrote in the letter, a copy of which Salon received.
“It appears that either the Saudi coalition is intentionally targeting civilians or they are not distinguishing between civilians and military targets. Both would be war crimes,” he stressed.
“The frequency and scale of the civilian killings by the Saudi military coalition make it difficult to come to any conclusion other than that war crimes have been and are continuing to be committed in Yemen,” Lieu wrote.
“The repeated and frequent strikes on civilians show that the issue is not the gross incompetence of the Saudi military coalition,” he said. “Apologists for the Saudi coalition can perhaps defend a few errant bombs, but not over 70 unlawful airstrikes.”
In his letter, Lieu warned that the atrocities could help extremists. The U.S.-backed war has helped al-Qaida grow in Yemen, and even Islamic State forces have entered the country, seizing on the chaos.
“The aiding and abetting of Saudi airstrikes on civilians is a potential recruiting tool for terrorists,” Lieu wrote. “Every U.S. assisted bomb that kills children, doctors, patients, newlyweds and funeral mourners has the potential to amplify hatred towards the U.S.”
On Tuesday, Rep. Lieu released a statement condemning the attack on the funeral. “The Saudi-led military coalition has now essentially admitted to committing war crimes,” he said. “The civilian funeral ceremony was the intended target of the Saudi coalition.”
Lieu pointed out that even if rebel leaders had been present, “that would not justify an airstrike that targeted more than 650 civilians.” According to the law of armed conflict, military force cannot be used if it will cause disproportionate civilian casualties.
“This airstrike is yet another example of a disturbing pattern where the Saudi coalition drops bombs on civilian targets nowhere near military targets, or drops bombs killing a disproportionate number of civilians,” Lieu wrote. – by Ben Norton
19.10.2016 – “White House Press Corps” (A E P)
National Debt on Jan 20, 2009. Obama's Inauguration. $10,626,877,048,913 RT @NationalDebt: $19,766,580,028,249.41 (+)
https://twitter.com/whpresscorps/status/788865865559203840
Comment: Great, warmongers, great.
19.10.2016 – Ali AlAhmed (A P)
actually #Saudi Monarchy interfered in #US elections by giving @HillaryClinton millions of dollars.
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/788916239779426305
Comment: Compare to conspiracy theories of Russia wanting to influence elections, even risking WW3
19.10.2016 – US News (* A K P)
Lawless Entanglement in Yemen
U.S. military intervention in Yemen is unconstitutional and very unwise.
Yemen is the much-ignored third (or maybe fifth?) wheel of the American imbroglio in the Middle East, but recent days have seen a marked escalation of hostilities in the impoverished country, and with it, an escalation of U.S. entanglement. What has not escalated is the Obama administration's authority to wage this imprudent war, which is by no possible stretch of legal imagination permitted by the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force the White House claims as flimsy legal cover for its other undeclared and endless conflicts.
The newest development of American intervention is a series of skirmishes between Shiite Houthi rebels (the militants the Sunni Saudi-led and U.S.-supported coalitionopposes) and two U.S. Navy Destroyers.
In light of what is happening in Yemen, the ongoing U.S. alliance with Saudi Arabia deserves serious reconsideration, particularly if there is any truth to the claim in leaked emails from Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman that the Saudi government is "providing clandestine financial and logistic support" to the Islamic State group based on shared Sunni loyalties. The war those jets are waging has taken a brutal toll on Yemeni civilianswhile allowing al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, nowconsidered the deadliest branch of the terrorist organization, to flourish in a power vacuum the Saudi-led hostilities have created. These twin unintended consequences are dangerous for innocents in Yemen and U.S. security alike.
As it stands, legal clarity and accountability to the American people look very far off indeed. "The U.S. is trying to look at what kind of a response would be appropriate in this situation," a Defense official told Military.com following the Destroyer incident. "There's no sort of a timeline for when a response will come." Apparently there's no timeline for following the Constitution or ending a cruel and counterproductive intervention, either – by Bonnie Kristian
19.10.2016 – Jamie Weinstein (A E P)
Trump has a golf course in the UAE. Ivanka has said they intend to open hotels in Saudi Arabia
https://twitter.com/Jamie_Weinstein/status/788923316492832769
cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain
20.10.2016 – Press TV Iran (* A P)
UK should be ashamed of its support for Saudi atrocities'
The British government should be “ashamed” of its unconditional support of Saudi Arabia despite the kingdom’s many atrocities against the people of Yemen, Syria and Bahrain, says a British scholar.
Dr. Rodney Shakespeare made the remarks on Thursday, a day after Tobias Ellwood, the British minister for the Middle East, passed off Saudi Arabia’s attack on a funeral in Yemen as a “deliberate error.”
Ellwood played down the tragic massacre as an “error” by “an individual who needs to be disciplined.”
Shakespeare fumed at the minister’s comments, saying it displayed nothing but the UK’s full support for the Saudi regime and its complicity in the crime.
“The purpose of the onslaught is to suppress any sort of democratic activity because Saudi Arabia… is a cruel autocracy and hates ordinary people; it even hates its own people,” the scholar said.
Shakespeare said Ellwood’s remarks were unacceptable and London should have called the Saudis out on their war crimes instead.
“Why don’t they say it was a ferocious deliberate attack and the UK government is part of that attack because we are hand in glove with Saudi Arabia,” Shakespeare noted.
Referring to the Riyadh regime’s “barbarous” actions against the people of Bahrain and Yemen, Shakespeare stressed that the UK supports the Saudi monarchy “in its wholesale promulgation and propagation of Daesh or ISIL.”
“Daesh gets no only its philosophy—its arrogant Takfiri ‘only I can exist and I can kill anybody’ philosophy —it gets its financing and its arming and everything else essentially via Saudi Arabia,” he continued.
“My UK government can say what they like about error [but] the fact of the matter is that Saudis deliberately bombarded the funeral, they have killed thousands and thousands of women and children and they are slaughtering the civilian population,” Shakespeare added.
Concluding his remarks, the British professor said the British government should be “ashamed” of its support for Saudi Arabia.
http://presstv.com/Detail/2016/10/20/489962/UK-Saudi-Yemen-Ellwood-Shakespeare
Comment by Judith Brown: Absolutely true. I don't know who this scholar is, I have not seen any of his work, but I agree with him totally.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154827460483641
cp11 Deutschland / Germany
20.10.2016 – MM News (* A P)
Mainstream-Absturz geht weiter: Bild, Welt, F.A.S. verlieren über 10%
Zeitungen finden immer weniger Käufer. Nachdem es schon in den Vorquartalen deutlich bergab ging, geht der Absturz nun weiter. Laut neuesten Quartalszahlen der IVW büßten Bild, Welt, sowie die Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung jeweils mehr als 10% ein.
Die Bild verlor in den beiden wichtigsten IVW-Kategorien Abos und Einzelverkauf erneut deutlich: ein Minus von 248.540 Käufern entspricht satten 12,2%. Für Die Welt und Welt kompakt ging es um 10,8% nach unten, die verkaufte Auflage in den beiden Kategorien liegt nur noch bei weniger als 94.000 Exemplaren.
Auch für die Süddeutsche Zeitung und die F.A.Z. ging es im dritten Quartal wieder spürbar nach unten – um 4,7% und 5,1%. Vergleichsweise geringe 0,5% verlor das Handelsblatt – erneut wegen eines Zuwachses bei den ePaper-Abos. Im Einzelhandel und bei den Papier-Abos ging es auch hier deutlicher nach unten. Die kleineren Blätter taz und Neues Deutschland verloren 5,9% bzw. 9,3%.
http://www.mmnews.de/index.php/politik/86194-ivw-zahlen
19.10.2016 – American Herald Tribune (* A P)
No One Supports, Defends Saudi Arabia without Taking Bribe: German Chancellor Angela Merkel
“I don’t know anyone in the world who supports and defends Saudi Arabia without taking bribe,” this was declared by German chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday.
“Everyone who supports Saudi Arabia receives his money in advance. Everyone who sells weapons to Saudi Arabia has received double-fold.” Merkel added. “I was surprised that the Saudi Arabia’s money could not prevent the passage of US Congress bill but Republican and Democrat parties have hoped to offset their costs by Saudi Arabia’s princes in US Presidential Election 2016.”
“Germany will be the first country which will prefer its interests and national security to Saudi Arabia’s bribes.” Merkel declared.
Saudi Arabia has been accused of funding radical extremism across the globe by one of Germany's top politicians.
Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel told the German newspaper Bild am Sonntag that it should be made clear to the kingdom that the time for looking the other way has passed.
"Wahhabi mosques are being funded by Saudi Arabia all over the world. Many dangerous Islamists come from these communities in Germany," Gabriel said, bundesergierung.de reported.
In a statement, the Saudi Arabia embassy in Berlin said the Kingdom was interested in countering the radicalization of young people and referred to a previous statement in which it denied wanting to build 200 mosques in Germany, Reuters reported last year.
http://ahtribune.com/world/europe/1277-saudi-angela-merkel.html
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
20.10.2016 – National Post (Canada) – (A P)
Turning the spotlight on a complex, brutal and largely forgotten war in Yemen
Ottawa must not remain silent on Yemen, says Grant Kippen, who probably tracks the situation there more closely than any other Canadian.
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade
21.10.2016 – Control Arms (B K)
Arms transfers to #SaudiArabia fueling civilian suffering and causing a humanitarian catastrophe in #Yemen -#ArmsTreaty needs to be upheld (image)
https://twitter.com/controlarms/status/789532746037198848
20.10.2016 – Reuters (A K P)
Exclusive: Iran steps up weapons supply to Yemen's Houthis via Oman - officials
Iran has stepped up weapons transfers to the Houthis, the militia fighting the Saudi-backed government in Yemen, U.S., Western and Iranian officials tell Reuters, a development that threatens to prolong and intensify the 19-month-old war.
The increased pace of transfers in recent months, which officials said include missiles and small arms, could exacerbate a security headache for the United States, which last week struck Houthi targets with cruise missiles in retaliation for failed missile attacks on a U.S. Navy destroyer.
Much of the recent smuggling activity has been through Oman, which neighbors Yemen, including via overland routes that take advantage of porous borders between the two countries, the officials said.
That raises a further quandary for Washington, which views the tiny Gulf state as a strategic interlocutor and ally in the conflict-ridden region. A senior U.S. administration official said that Washington had informed Oman of its concerns, without specifying when.
"We have been concerned about the recent flow of weapons from Iran into Yemen and have conveyed those concerns to those who maintain relations with the Houthis, including the Omani government," the official told Reuters.
Oman denies any weapons smuggling across its border – By Yara Bayoumy and Phil Stewart
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-iran-idUSKCN12K0CX and by Al Araby:https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2016/10/20/us-yemen-houthi-rebels-obtaining-iranian-weapons-via-oman
Comment: This objection is not new. Why it is warmed up now? One alleged photo was identified to be from 2013. As so often, any proofs stay missing. And they even do not know what they tell. 40 warships of the Iranian navy should have come to Yemeni waters to supply arms to the Houthis, we were told by Asharq Al-Awsat. Well, what do we care for the fact that the Iranian navy does not have so much vessels at all, that there had sailed just 2 into Yemeni waters, and that they did not land so far to unload anything? Did anyone think about how absurd some trucks having loaded arms crossing the AQAP and Hadi army hold desert, when 40 warships having loaded arms are on their way? It seems to be just another propaganda fairy tale, as we got so much of.
Comment: Where is the siege? Where is the intelligence to stop all this? These are prefabricated news which do a lot of harm
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1140878609298501
Comment by Judith Brown: Isn't it amazing who is chosen to be believed. Al Jubair and Tobias Elllwood - always right. Oman reported as if there is a suspicion they are telling big fibs. The Houthis not quoted at all.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154827693043641
Comment by Hisham Al-Omeisy: And now that Oman stepped in & helped victims of deadly airstrikes, Saudi backed #Yemenofficials trying to slander.
https://twitter.com/omeisy/status/788997359581728768
and also
21.10.2016 – Middle East Eye (* A K P)
Oman denies arms smuggled through border to Houthis
Foreign ministry says allegations Iranian arms reached rebels via Oman are 'baseless' and that smugglers are delivering directly to Yemeni coast.
Oman has strongly denied claims that Iranian arms are being smuggled through its border with Yemen to Houthi rebels, saying traffickers were using unmonitored areas of the war-torn nation's coast.
"This is baseless," the sultanate's foreign ministry said in a statement on its website late on Thursday. "There are no weapons passing through the sultanate's territory" to Yemen.
The denial came in response to a report about the alleged smuggling route by the Reuters news agency citing diplomatic sources.
Oman, one of the few Arab states which have good relations with Iran, a backer of the Houthis, has used its links to mediate peace talks between the rebels and Yemen's UN-recognised government.
The foreign ministry said the issue of arms smuggling "has been proven false after being discussed with member states of the (pro-government) Arab coalition, the United States and the United Kingdom".
"Yemeni shores that are close to Oman's coast are not subjected to the control of any government authority in Yemen. Therefore, these shores are open to arms smugglers," it added.
http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/oman-denies-arms-smuggled-through-border-houthis-1610957718
On this subject,
20.10.2016 – Al Bab (* A K P)
Oman blamed for Iranian weapons in Yemen
Over the last 10 days or so we have seen an increase in media reports highlighting the "Iranian threat" in Yemen, and the latest story from Reuters fits that pattern.
While it's true that the Houthis have Iranian backing, the extent of Iran's tangible support is unclear and media coverage is often alarmist and based on very slender evidence.
The effect of this coverage has been to divert attention from the most horrific event of the Yemen war so far: Saudi Arabia's bombing of a funeral on October 8 which is reported to have killed at least 140 people and injured more than 500.
The most notable feature of the Reuters story is that it goes beyond other recent reports by alleging that Oman is complicit in supplying Iranian weapons to the Houthis. The timing of this allegation is especially significant because it could undermine Oman's role as a mediator in the Yemeni conflict at a crucial moment – just as the 72-hour ceasefire is getting under way.
The suggestion in the Reuters story is that Oman has not been as diligent as it might have been in preventing "anti-ship missiles, explosives, money and personnel" from crossing into Yemen. There's a long history of commercial smuggling on the Omani-Yemeni border which predates the war, but its use as a possible supply route for the Houthis' weaponry does raise some questions.
The distance from the Omani border to the nearest Houthi-controlled territory is about 500 miles as the crow flies, and considerably more overland (see map). This vast area between the border and the Houthis is sparsely populated but controlled, at least in theory, by the Saudi-backed anti-Houthi forces and, in a few places, by al-Qaeda who are no friends of the Houthis either.
If Iranian weapons are indeed getting through to the Houthis by this route it would seem that the Saudi-led coalition and local security forces are missing a lot of opportunities to intercept them – by Brian Whitaker
http://al-bab.com/blog/2016/10/oman-blamed-iranian-weapons-yemen
14.10.2016 – Hermius (* B K)
Countries supplying arms to Saudis to kill civilians in #Yemen(map)
https://twitter.com/hermius1/status/787036572319354880
Comment: Missing: Norway, Bosnia, Croatia, Belgium.
cp13b Flüchtlinge / Refugees
21.10.2016 – UN High Commissioner for Refugees (A H)
2016 Yemen Situation - Regional Refugee and Migrant Response Plan - Funding snapshot as at 20 October 2016
19.9.2016 – UN High Commissioner for Refugees (A H)
Map: Yemen: In-Country Stocks and Pipelines (as of 19 September 2016)
https://www.sheltercluster.org/sites/default/files/docs/shelter_nfi_cccm_cluster-_stocks_and_pipelines-_19_september_2016-_full.pdf =http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/shelter_nfi_cccm_cluster-_stocks_and_pipelines-_19_september_2016-_full_0.pdf
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
21.10.2016 – Reuters (A Z)
U.S. says it killed 8 al Qaeda-affiliated militants in Yemen
The U.S. military killed eight al Qaeda-affiliated militants in two strikes in Yemen this month, U.S. Central Command said in a statement on Friday.
Two militants associated with al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) were killed in a strike on Oct. 6 in a remote area of the Shabwa Governorate and six AQAP militants were killed in a strike on Oct. 18, also in Shabwa, Centcom said.
The statement did not say how the strikes were carried out.
www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-usa-idUSKCN12L2MR
Comment by Judith Brown: When the US says 8 militants, it usually means 8 men. It is impossible to verify from the air the status of victims. And the more drones they drop on Yemen, the more people join extremist militias.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154831143298641
Comment: Over and over again. There is never any certainty people droned are actually terrorists.
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1141866682533027
20.10.2016 – The Australian (A T)
Australian soccer coach kidnapped in Yemen in ransom video
An Australian soccer coach kidnapped in Yemen has appeared on a video, apparently produced by his captors, pleading with the Australian government to pay a ransom for his release.
Craig McAllister was abducted by unknown assailants in a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen, sparking fears that he may fall into the hands of one of the country’s violent Islamist groups.
In the 24-second video Mr McAllister, who appears to be unharmed, said that he had been kidnapped by an unnamed group.
‘’I have been working as a football coach … At the moment I am kidnapped by a group here.
“They are requesting that the Australian government send the money they have requested.’’ – by Paul Maley and Jenine Khalik
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/foreign-affairs/australian-soccer-coach-kidnapped-in-yemen-in-ransom-video/news-story/d627164d836882546b32f28b743e84dc and also http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2016/10/21/australian-man-kidnapped-yemen-appears-ransom-video andhttp://www.ibtimes.co.uk/australian-football-coach-abducted-yemen-appears-video-appeals-government-pay-ransom-1587501
cp15 Propaganda
19.10.2016 – The Independent (* A P)
Saudi Arabia: No country is more committed to fighting terrorism than us
Saudi foreign minister also says Britain should not apologise for selling arms used in Yemen
No country is more committed to fighting terrorism than Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom's foreign minister has said.
Presenter Matt Frei then presses Mr Jubeir on whether Isis' brand of Sunni extremism could morph into another form after the group is defeated, prompting the foreign minister to reply: "We are doing everything we can to fight extremism.
"I don't believe there is any country in the world that is more committed or more determined or has expended more resources and more effort to do this than the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia."
He added: "We cannot allow people to hijack our faith. We cannot allow people to take a peaceful religion — all religions are peaceful — and turn it into a way to justify violence.
"At the end of the day, Saudi Arabia is at the cross hairs of these extremist organisations because Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam and the Two Holy Mosques."
Mr Jubeir also said Britain should not be expected to apologise if it supplied the arms that killed more than 140 mourners at a funeral in Yemen.
"Because we're the client and we're the customer," he said. "We purchased the equipment from Britain and the equipment was used in a legitimate war in accord with international law.
"A terrible mistake happened and the mistake is being investigated and we will make amends."
Comment: LOL. “We cannot allow people to hijack our faith”: That were the Wahabists who had hijacked it. – “We cannot allow people to take a peaceful religion — all religions are peaceful — and turn it into a way to justify violence”: That exactly is what Wahabism did. – “Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam and the Two Holy Mosques." No, it is not. Arabia, not Saudi Arabia is. This is a great difference. Islam might be happy that “Saudi Arabia” not yet existed in the year 1 AH. – “a legitimate war in accord with international law”; not at all, had already been often explained, it simply is a WAR OF AGGRESSION. – also look at the comments in The Independent and be aware that Saudi Arabia is the greatest promotor of terrorism worldwide.
Comment: Would be hilarious but far too many Yemenis are dying under Saudis' lies and violence and we are just outraged by the monstruosity of the claim.https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1140991429287219
Comment by Judith Brown: This is a amazing bit of propaganda - after all it is well documented - including in Hillary Clinton's recently released emails - that Saudi Arabia and Qatar have been supporting ISIS. Saudi Arabia with its forms of Islam, internationally known as Wahhabism, and extremist militias have such similar ways of operating - the beheadings, the anti-Shiism, the curtailing of women's rights,the intolerance, the only difference is that Saudi has a monarchy and lots of oil. The funding of Wahhabi schools by Saudi Arabia all over the world has been concurrent with the rise in Islamic extremism. After all Al Qaeda was headed by a Saudi and most of the 9/11 operators were from Saudi. Saudi has a selective world view of 'terrorism'.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154829900563641
21.10.2016 – Arab News (A P)
Yemen’s hour of truth
For Washington, though, the attempted attack by the Houthis on the US Navy and Washington’s counter-strike this week is a clear and present wake-up call: The Yemen campaign has never been a “war of choice.” Riyadh and its GCC partners, with Washington’s support, didn’t intervene in Yemen because it was a convenient incursion. It was critically a war of self-defense after the Houthis and Ali Abdullah Saleh and his forces overran the legitimate government of Yemen.
This is an inconvenient truth that frankly Iran and the Houthis have capitalized on in terms of both inflating casualty figures and reporting misinformation. This narrative has received traction among some commentators in the US and members of Congress (notably Sen. Rand Paul and Sen. Chris Murphy) who see the conflict in Yemen as purely a humanitarian crisis that Washington is aiding and abetting without seeing the bigger picture.
The myth that somehow the US could do more to bring an end to the conflict is naïve and distracts from the immediate challenge for Washington, the Houthis aren’t purely a challenge for the GCC but for the US. They are also a group Iran could use to their advantage with their conflict with Washington.
While the Houthis existed long before Iran, their position today in Yemen isn’t purely because of their collaboration with Ali Abdullah Saleh. This militant group continues to be armed and supported by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and Hezbollah – by Andrew J. Bowen
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1000341/columns =http://www.thefrontierpost.com/article/412926//
Comment: This really is hardcore propaganda from an US point of view, having internalised the whole Saudi propaganda. Of course, this is article an anti-Iran blame game. And much more: The Saudi war on Yemen is NO war of self-defense (Houthi attacks against Saudi territory started 10 weeks AFTER the Saudi air raids against Yemen); toppling a government in a neighbouring state does not create the scenario for any “war of self-defense” as the author suggests here. Why Turkey did not start bombing Athens after the 1967 Papadopoulos coup, or why did the Greeks not bomb Istanbul after the 1980 Evren coup? What about Russia would have bombed Kiew in February 2014? A really strange logic the author shows here.
Comment by Judith Brown: This is a very one sided account of the war - ignoring the US statement on USS Mason that the report of missiles may have been a mistake - talking about the new parliament in Sanaa - something that Hadi never did - as if it is a retrograde step though it's clear that it is what Yemenis in the north want and essential too as otherwise the north is an anarchic state - but worth reading to see what the other'side' see as their truth.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154829871858641
20.10.2016 – AEI (A P)
Should the US turn the other cheek in Yemen?
It seems that there is a reluctance on the part of the White House, State Department, and Pentagon to blame Iran for orchestrating the attacks [against the US warships off Yemen]. This despite the fact that Iran seems clearly responsible for providing Yemen’s Houthis with anti-ship missiles and training the militia in their use. (While Yemen has always been awash in weaponry, anti-ship missiles seldom played into tribal conflicts in its deserts and mountains).
The questions then become not only how, but against whom, should the United States retaliate? Does waiting a day or two before hitting a Houthi radar site sufficiently deter new incidents? Alternately, is the best path to peace simply to turn the other cheek to forestall a cycle of violence?
Back to the present: Simply turning the other cheek — whether against Islamist militants or against state sponsors of terror — does not bring peace. Sometimes, the best path to peace is by convincing the masterminds of terror that the buck stops with them and the price they will have to pay for targeting American forces is too great for them to bear.
https://www.aei.org/publication/should-the-us-turn-the-other-cheek-in-yemen/
Comment: One more article of the US anti-Iran propaganda blame game, which already had been reported before, or see article below. To answer the question in the headline: No, the US should not. Well, what to do then? For Yemen, the US is like somebody who came to the terrace behind your house, peeping into your window and carrying a gun in his hand. What should he do? Just fuck off, I think. That would be enough.
19.10.2016 – Pilot Online (A P)
General suspects Iran played a role in attacks on Norfolk-based Navy ships
The head of U.S. forces in the Middle East said Wednesday he suspects Iran played a role in the recent missile attacks fired from Yemen against Norfolk-based ships in the Red Sea.
“I do think Iran is playing a role in some of this. They have a relationship with the Houthis, so I do suspect there is a role in that,” said Gen. Joseph Votel, commander of U.S. Central Command.
Votel made the statements in Washington at the Center for American Progress. They are the strongest comments yet identifying a possible Iranian connection.
“Frankly, some of the technologies that we’ve seen there, I think are things that are associated with the Iranian threat,” Votel said.
Votel said the regime of former Yemen President Ali Abdullah Saleh – who was ousted in 2012 – may also be playing a role.
“What we are trying to do is make sure we understand this as much as we can so we can properly attribute what is happening and understand how these attacks are taking place, and more importantly how the decisions are being made to launch these attacks so we can take action against that,” Votel said – By Brock Vergakis
Comment: This is more or less official: a propaganda plot trying to drag Iran onto the Yemeni scene as a major actor. Saudi Arabia and Yemen war, did there happen anything, eh???
20.10.2016 – Council on Foreign Relations (A K P)
U.S. Navy Operations in a Maritime Chokepoint
Interviewee: Captain Clint Carroll, Military Fellow, U.S. Navy
Interviewer: Jonathan Masters
The episode highlights the U.S. military presence in this volatile region and demonstrates how the Navy responds to an array of threats while patrolling the world’s waterways.
What’s the strategic significance of the Bab el-Mandeb?
Why does the U.S. Navy operate there?
The U.S. Navy and other nations’ navies have routinely patrolled the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, either as part of multinational task forces or on independent national tasking, to ensure freedom of navigation for peaceful and productive trade, given the instability in the region and the threat of piracy.
What are the rules of engagement in a situation like this?
U.S. policy is consistent with international norms for self-defense and speaks to a commander’s inherent right and obligation to defend his or her unit. The commander—in this case, the ship’s captain—does not need to ask permission to shoot down missiles or engage another unit that has committed a hostile act or is demonstrating hostile intent. Less immediate actions, such as the strikes on the coastal radar sites, are reviewed and authorized at higher levels.
These incidents demonstrate how the U.S. Navy is able to operate in contested environments, establish sea control, and deliver prompt and sustained combat power if and when necessary.
http://www.cfr.org/middle-east-and-north-africa/us-navy-operations-maritime-chokepoint/p38421
Comment: Standard US propaganda. “U.S. policy is consistent with international norms for self-defense”, LOL, this can be viewed at Kunduz for instance, in whole Iraq, in Libya, and elsewhere. – And, in general: The US is neither the policeman nor the hegemon of the world, what the interviewee is taking for granted.
21.10.2016 – The Tower (A P)
Top U.S. General: Iran Likely Behind Attacks on U.S. Ships Near Yemen
Iran is likely behind a series of attacks by Yemeni rebels on American ships in recent weeks, the top United States commander stationed in the Middle East said Wednesday.
“I do think that Iran is playing a role in some of this,” Gen. Joseph Votel, the commander of the U.S. Central Command, said in a talk at the Center for American Progress. “They have a relationship with the Houthis, so I do suspect there is a role in that.” The Houthis are Iran-backed rebels who forced the Western-backed government of Yemen from the capital two years ago.
The Hill characterized Votel’s statement as “the closest a U.S. official has come to directly attributing the missile attacks to Iran.”
http://www.thetower.org/4061-top-u-s-general-iran-likely-behind-attacks-on-u-s-ships-near-yemen/
Comment: The US propaganda just makes it by the mass…
16.10.2016 – Commentary Magazine (A P)
Obama’s Fifth War
Barack Obama entered office with a mandate to end America’s post-9/11 wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He will leave office in three months having presided over the proliferation of America’s conflicts in the Middle East and Central Asia.
Add Yemen to the list – by Noah Rothman
https://www.commentarymagazine.com/foreign-policy/yemen-obamas-fifth-war/
Comment: A good start for a bad article. Another example of the anti-Iran blame game. Most bizarre: Speaking of a “humanitarian mission” the US started in Libya 2011: “Obama undertook a humanitarian mission over the skies of Libya in 2011 that quickly transformed into combat operations against the Islamist militias that filled the void left by the defunct Gaddafi government.” LOL.
And more of this type of “reporting”
http://www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org/2016/10/19/houthi-attack-on-us-adds-to-yemen-conflict/
http://thefederalist.com/2016/10/20/yemen-pivotal-middle-east-conflict-no-one-talking/
and from Israel:
http://www.rubincenter.org/2016/10/tremor-in-yemen/
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
21.10.2016 – Khabaragency (A K PH)
#Yemen: #Saudi-led warplanes attacked areas of #Saadaprovince
#news #breaking
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1141746332545062
Comment: A breach of ceasefire.
21.10.2016 – Legal Center (** A K PH)
21-10-2016
Targeting and bombing civilians by the warplanes of Saudi Arabia and its alliance
Casualties and damage
#Marib:
(4 airstrikes)
• Two civilians were killed during the bombing of Saudi Arabia warplanes and its alliance by one airstrike on a car at the public road in AL-Khasha' area, Abeeda district.
• Three airstrikes targeted Surwah district.
#AL_Jawf:
(3 airstrikes )
• Three airstrikes targeted AL-Saqeia area, AL-Ghail district.
#Sanaa:
(4 airstrikes )
• Two airstrikes targeted the public road at Bin Ghailan Hurdle in Khawlan district.
• Two airstrikes targeted AL-Serr Valley, Bani Hushaish district.
#Shabwa:
(2 airstrikes)
• Two airstrikes targeted Osailan district.
#Saada:
( 8 airstrikes)
• Four airstrikes targeted AL-Buqe'a area, Ketaf district.
• Four airstrikes targeted AL-Maleel area, Ketaf district.
• Saudi artillery bombardment by (32) missiles targeted several areas in Munabeh district.
• Saudi artillery bombardment by (35) missiles targeted several areas in Sheda district.
• Saudi artillery bombardment by (25) missiles targeted several areas in AL-Dhaher district.
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=709824899167878&id=551288185021551
Comment: All these raids are breaches of the ceasefire.
20.10.2016 – Legal Center (** A K PH)
20-10-2016
Targeting and bombing civilians by the warplanes of Saudi Arabia and its alliance
Casualties and damage:
#Marib:
(7 airstrikes)
• Three airstrikes targeted AL-Ramdha area, Surwah district.
• Two airstrikes targeted Hailan area, Surwah district.
• Two airstrikes targeted Dhawar Valley, Surwah district.
#Amran:
(One airstrike)
• Three civilians were killed during the bombing of Saudi Arabia warplanes and its alliance by one airstrike on a car carried livestock at the public road and destroyed the car and killed the livestock in Harf Sufyan district.
#AL_Jawf:
(7 airstrikes )
• One airstrike targeted AL-Ghail district.
• One airstrike targeted AL-Masloub district.
• Three airstrikes targeted AL-Saqeia area, AL-Ghail district.
• Two airstrikes targeted AL-Maqate'a area, AL-Ghail district.
#Sanaa:
(2 airstrikes )
• Two airstrikes targeted the public road at Bin Ghailan Hurdle in Khawlan district.
#Saada:
( 5 airstrikes)
• Five airstrikes targeted AL-Buqe'a area, Ketaf district.
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=709266612557040&id=551288185021551
Comment: These are breaches of the ceasefire.
20.10.2016 – Crimes of Decisive Storm (* A K PH)
Amran martyrdom of three citizens during the flight aggression Bridge # targeting the runway, leaving considerable material damage
US Airways resumed Saudi aggression on Wednesday night targeted a bridge runway Sufian link between the provinces of Amran and Saada and the capital Sanaa, a character area.
He cited subsequently targeting three people and destroyed a number of cars in the raids have also caused the deaths of a number of cattle.
And continue the suffering of civilians in Yemen by the bombing of the Saudi American aggression systematic destruction of roads and facilities in various provinces (photos)
https://www.facebook.com/SaudiArabia.war.crimes.against.Yemen/posts/1593805220915466and film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xkf27s5V3ic =https://www.facebook.com/881240811966559/videos/1137533609670610/
20.10.2016 – Saba Net (A K PH)
Saudi aggression fighter jets launch five raids on Bani Hushish
Saudi aggression warplane waged five strikes on Bani Hushish district of Sanaa province overnight, an official told Saba on Thursday.
The strikes caused badly damage to peoples` houses and farms
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news444290.htm
20.10.2016 – Saba Net (A K PH)
Saudi aggression warplanes launch two raids on Sanaa
Saudi aggression launched two strikes on Bani Matar of Sanaa province overnight, an official told Saba on Thursday.
The strikes targeted Mount of prophet Shuaib and caused heavy damage in public properties
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news444289.htm
20.10.2016 – Breach of ceasefire: Saudi jets still over Yemen (A K)
3Yemeni civilians killed now by US-backed Saudi war criminals air bombing their house NSaada north despite fragile UN-declared cease-fire
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/789028993873969152
Also 3 civilian martyrs in Baqim, Sa'ada
https://twitter.com/commonsense575/status/789038125993627648
No truce in #Yemen, #Saudi-led coalition jets hovering on the skies of Yemen, the truce failed in the first hour. Big farce.
https://twitter.com/JosephJo1221/status/788866006735257605
US-backed Saudi war criminals' jets hovering now over Hodeida &all over Yemen despite fragile UN-declared cease-fire
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/789023707910004736
I guess drones buzzing in Sana'a sky now are not really violating ceasefire. Fighting urge to intimidate..but, hellfire missiles.
https://twitter.com/omeisy/status/788878690885177344
1hr into ceasefire now. Quite in Sana'a, fighting continues in Taiz with airstrikes in Mocha. Saudi imposed blockade still in place.
https://twitter.com/omeisy/status/788863441352200192
continue to fight Al-Saud, they are liars, we can't talk about a truce while their planes patrolling #Yemen airspace & bomb in various areas
https://twitter.com/JosephJo1221/status/788868088838119425
Apache helicopters targeted Haradh & Altiwal cities , Saudi jets flying in all parts of Yemen? So,Where is the truce?
https://twitter.com/JosephJo1221/status/788867227487436802
Planes are flying over #Sanaa #Mareb #Hajaa #AlJawfBreaching ceasefire, #Yemen
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1140266379359724
happening #Now Saudi aggression fighter jets over skies of Saada and Al-Jawf provinces
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1140257312693964and https://twitter.com/I4Yemen/status/788864601530175488
Saudi jets break the ceasefire and flying over the capital Sanaa now. No ceasefire No peace. No #Yemen anymore.
https://twitter.com/Fatikr/status/788913784324820992
Saudi-led coalition aircraft recorded the first breach of the truce raid targeted a house in Mokha Alsah
https://twitter.com/abcdaee198/status/788870806528983040
The forces of aggression on Yemen violated the truce within minutes of force and targeting aviation house in Mokha .
https://twitter.com/abcdaee198/status/788873570671820801
We said, clashes may happen, but let's jets stop first, then we can judge, No ceasefire while jets bombing
https://twitter.com/JosephJo1221/status/788872391267090433
Truce deception by a new aggression The instigation of until this moment and say a truce is a military tactic is not
https://twitter.com/abcdaee198/status/788876940996407296
#SaudiBreakCeasefire ,that they have called a temporary ceasefire N #Yemen for72h,its jets R hovering over #sanaacity 4:36 am
https://twitter.com/weideweideali/status/788917976527405057
See newest at Hashtag:https://twitter.com/hashtag/SaudiBreakCeasefire?src=hash
20.10.2016 – Legal Center (* A K PH)
19-10-2016
Targeting and bombing civilians by the warplanes of Saudi Arabia and its alliance
Casualties and damage (full list):
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=709223902561311&id=551288185021551
19.10.2016 – Sanaa in the evening / at night (A K)
We are reaching the ceasefire under heavy airstrikes, North of#Sanaa
https://www.facebook.com/SaudiArabia.war.crimes.against.Yemen/posts/1593388860957102
19.10.2016 – Jennifer (A K)
#Yemen - Explosions targeted #Sanaa International Airport & Al-Dailami Air Force Base
https://twitter.com/teddy_cat1/status/788816922913738753
Comment by Judith brown: I thought Saudi Arabia was going to open sanaa airport in order to move some of the casualties who are in a serious condition. But no they thought it was a better idea to bomb it again.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154823767458641
Reports #Hodeida International Airport has been hit by an airstrike: the 3rd airstrike on #Hodeida since 7:17 p.m.
https://twitter.com/teddy_cat1/status/788066934667567109
Comment by Judith Brown: What's this? A 3 day ceasefire to let in aid and SAUDI ARABIA BOMBS THE AIRPORTS!!!!!! Why???
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10154824017003641
Comment to comment: That’s why? Because exactly that NO help can come in. And, other reason: During the ceasefire, the Houthi / Saleh government could have the idea to start passenger and cargo flights for at least three days. The bombings should prevent this: Whether by further damaging the airports or just as a warning what would happen if really passenger and cargo aircraft would head for or from Sana and Hodeidah.
19.10.2016 – Hisham Al-Omeisy (A K)
Not sure why Saudi bombed Sana'a airport tonight & ahead of ceasefire if wasn't going to allow opening anyway.
https://twitter.com/omeisy/status/788863875429101569
19.10.2016 – Yemen Today TV (A K PH)
Film: Airline Saudi aggression bomb crusher Amran cement plant with 3 vacuum bombs internationally prohibited 19-10 – 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P5gnF_uCqA
19.10.2016 – Legal Center (* A K PH)
18-10-2016
Targeting and bombing civilians by the warplanes of Saudi Arabia and its alliance
Casualties and damage (full list):
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=708638389286529&id=551288185021551
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
21.10.2016 – MbKS (A K PS)
Some of the Houthi ceasefire violations today, firing into civilian areas in the Saudi border area (photos)
https://twitter.com/FaisalbinFarhan/status/789583681849524225
20.10.2016 – MbKS15 (A K PS)
#Yemen's National Army supported by the Coalition opened a new front from Alp Land Port into Sa'dah & killed the #Houthileader AlSharfi
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/789403054369976320
Comment: #Yemen's National Army = President Hadi’s army. This attack is an evident breach of the ceasefire, committed by the Hadi army.
20.10.2016 – Middle East Monitor (A K PS)
Yemen ceasefire violations
Violations of the Yemeni ceasefire are said to have begun as soon as the truce was implemented at 23:59 local time yesterday evening.
According to local resistance sources in Yemen’s besieged city of Taiz, Houthi rebels were shelling the Hasnat and Tha’abat neighbourhoods in the east of the city.
Houthi and Saleh militias then continued to shell positions of opposition forces who consist of local resistance units and forces loyal to current Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi.
Taiz has been besieged by the Houthi rebels and forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh for the past 18 months.
Sana’a
There were further reports of ceasefire violation in Yemen’s capital city Sana’a, which has been under Houthi and Saleh control since September 2014. Pro Houthi and Saleh forces bombed the Nehm area, which is where local tribes and pro Hadi forces made significant gains at the beginning of this month.
Marib
At around 01:30, Houthi and Saleh forces shot at national army and resistance positions in Al-Mekhdera area with machine guns. No one was reported to have been hurt in any of the attacks.
It appears that these were isolated attacks by the fighters themselves.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20161020-yemen-ceasefire-violations-2/
Comment: It’s strange that this article gives the impression that there would only be violations by the Houthi / Saleh side. I commented the article as below, “waiting to be approved”:
That is a strange article claiming that only one side is committing cease fire violations. That's just not true.
Saudi coalition air raids after Thursday 0:00 here
20-10-2016
Targeting and bombing civilians by the warplanes of Saudi Arabia and its alliance
Casualties and damage:
#Marib:
(7 airstrikes)
• Three airstrikes targeted AL-Ramdha area, Surwah district.
• Two airstrikes targeted Hailan area, Surwah district.
• Two airstrikes targeted Dhawar Valley, Surwah district.
#Amran:
(One airstrike)
• Three civilians were killed during the bombing of Saudi Arabia
warplanes and its alliance by one airstrike on a car carried livestock
at the public road and destroyed the car and killed the livestock in
Harf Sufyan district.
#AL_Jawf:
(7 airstrikes )
• One airstrike targeted AL-Ghail district.
• One airstrike targeted AL-Masloub district.
• Three airstrikes targeted AL-Saqeia area, AL-Ghail district.
• Two airstrikes targeted AL-Maqate'a area, AL-Ghail district.
#Sanaa:
(2 airstrikes )
• Two airstrikes targeted the public road at Bin Ghailan Hurdle in Khawlan district.
#Saada:
( 5 airstrikes)
• Five airstrikes targeted AL-Buqe'a area, Ketaf district.
Source: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=709266612557040&id=551288185021551
and see also
https://twitter.com/teddy_cat1/status/789206152055697408
and see photos from the air raid at Harf Sufyan:
https://www.facebook.com/SaudiArabia.war.crimes.against.Yemen/posts/1593805220915466
Please make journalism, not propaganda
Even softened, just listing up the violations by the Saudi coalition, was not accepted by the website and removed.
20.10.2016 – Breaches of ceasefire by Houthi / Saleh side (A K PS)
20 Houthi/Saleh projectiles into Saudi territories, 17 other violations in the first few hours of #YemenCeasefire!
https://twitter.com/meshaluk/status/789076468764643328
Coalition's Air Defense Units inside #Yemen intercept a ballistic missile fired by the #Houthis towards Ma'rib
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/789164310127751168
Coalition's Air Defense Units intercept the second ballistic missile fired by the #Houthis over Ma'rib
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/789218120405778433
20.10.2016 – Reuters (A K)
Civilians injured in Saudi Arabia by missiles fired from Yemen - Saudi civil defense
A number of civilians in the southern Saudi Arabian province of Jazan have been injured by missiles fired from Yemen, the Saudi civil defense unit was quoted as saying by the Saudi-owned television news channel Al Arabiya on Thursday.
It was not immediately clear when the attack happened, but Yemen's Houthi movement said on Thursday it had launched attacks on military targets in Saudi Arabia over the last two days.
"The violations happened along on the border between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, and specifically in the regions of Najran and Jazan," a civil defense official said. "A variety of weapons were fired, including rockets and projectiles."
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-ceasefire-missiles-idUSKCN12K1PQ
20.10.2016 – Saudi Press Agency (A K PS)
Civil Defense Directorate Spokesman in Jazan region: a Citizen and His Daughter Injured by Projectiles from Yemeni Territories
The Spokesman of the Directorate of Civil Defense in Jazan region Major Yahya bin Abdullah Al-Qahtani said that at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, the civil defense teams dealt with a report regarding a fall of military projectiles launched by Houthi elements from the Yemeni territories towards Al-Harth Governorate, resulting in injuring a citizen and his daughter who were admitted to a hospital for treatment.
The relevant authorities started to implement the necessary procedures in such cases.
http://www.spa.gov.sa/viewstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1550571
20.10.2016 – Al Arabiya (A K PS)
Saleh’s special forces commander killed in Yemen
Five senior commanders from Yemen’s Houthi militia movement, including a high rank officer loyal to deposed President Ali Abdullah Saleh, were killed during clashes in Marib and Saada provinces, according to sources.
The sources told Al Arabiya News Channel that Aqil al Dulaimi, Hisham al Dulaimi and Kamal al Dulaimi were killed while fighting the “National Army” and “Popular Resistance” forces in Serwah, West Marib.
In addition, Abdul Latif Hatim, who is military commander from the special forces of Saleh, was also killed alongside Abu Ali Abdullah Mohammed al-Houthi, who is considered one of the field commander close to the Leader in Yemen’s Houthi rebel movement.
Both were killed in clashes north east Saada, the sources added.
Comment: An evident break of the ceasefire.
19.10.2016 – Hussain Albukhaiti (A K PH)
Weapons seized by #Houthi #Yemen-i army frm #Saudi#UAE CO backed forces n Kaahboob area n #Hajah province S#Yemen (photos)
https://twitter.com/HussainBukhaiti/status/788824619490938884
cp18 Sonstiges / Other
20.10.2016 – New York Times (A P)
Wife of American Detained in Yemen Publicly Calls for Release
The wife of an American man secretly detained in Yemen for more than a year said in a Facebook posting that her husband was being held “unjustly” by one of the country’s security agencies and expressed disappointment that the United States government has been unable to free him.
Jihan Mohamed said her husband, Wallead Yusuf Pitts Luqman, was abducted in April 2015.
This is the first time that Mr. Luqman has been publicly identified as being held by the Houthis, a Shiite rebel group, in Yemen. The family had stayed silent for fear that public discussion of his kidnapping could endanger his life.
Ms. Mohamed said late Thursday on Facebook that her husband was arrested while trying to leave Yemen. The family was on a bus headed for Saudi Arabia when he was taken – by Adam Goldman
20.10.2016 – UPI (A E)
Yemen too violent for energy work
Despite a brief halt to the fighting, the security situation in Yemen is too volatile to return to production, Austrian energy company OMV said.
Austrian energy company OMV, a player in Yemeni energy, said early this year a production rebound was possible should the national security situation clear. A spokesperson told UPI the situation there was still uncertain.
"Due to the security situation, OMV has currently no production in Yemen," the spokesperson said Thursday – by Daniel J. Graeber
18.10.2016 – Der Postillon (* A K P)
Kind in Mossul froh, von guten USA statt von bösen Russen zerbombt zu werden
Bassem Hammadi ist erleichtert: Seit er erfahren hat, dass die irakische Armee und ihre Verbündeten mit Luftunterstützung der USA eine Großoffensive auf die IS-Hochburg Mossul begonnen haben, ist der 7-Jährige froh, von guten Westmächten mit Prinzipien anstatt von bösen Russen zerbombt zu werden wie die Menschen in Aleppo.
"Das ist nämlich etwas komplett anderes", erklärt Bassem. "Während die Leute in Aleppo kaltblütig von Assads und Putins Truppen dahingemetzelt werden, werden wir hier von guten und aufrechten Soldaten befreit und sterben dabei höchstens als bedauerlicher Kollateralschaden!"
http://www.der-postillon.com/2016/10/mossul-aleppo.html
Vorige / Previous:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-216-yemen-war-mosaic-216
Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-216: / Yemen War Mosaic 1-216:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose oder / or
http://poorworld.net/YemenWar.htm
Der saudische Luftkrieg im Bild / Saudi aerial war images:
(18 +, Nichts für Sensible!) / (18 +; Graphic!)
http://poorworld.net/YemenWar.htm und / andhttp://yemenwarcrimes.blogspot.de/
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