Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 314 - Yemen War Mosaic 314

Yemen Press Reader 314: Hölle Jemen – Emirate im Jemen: Verhaftungen und Folter – Blackout der Medien – Al Kaida im Jemen – Kriegstote in Städten – Prinz Salman wird saud. Kronprinz – Cholera

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Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

You see how Cholera is spreading, even as figure is outdated already (185,300 cases and 1255 dead on June 22)

Yemen hell – UAE backs detention and torture in Yemen – Yemen crisis news blackout – Al Qaeda in Yemen – War Deaths in cities – Prince Salman gets Saudi crown prince – Cholera – and more

Schwerpunkte / Key aspects

Klassifizierung / Classification

cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important

cp1a Cholera

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

cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries

cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis

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

cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

22.6.2017 – Bild (** B H K)

HÖLLE JEMEN: Was die Saudis mit diesen Kindern zu tun haben

Journalisten sollen nicht über Hunger, Krieg und Krankheit berichten

Der Jemen versinkt im Krieg, wachsende Armut, Hunger und Krankheiten machen den Menschen dort das Leben zur Hölle...

Nun berichtet der US-Nachrichtensender CNN, dass es Saudi-Arabien Journalisten und Fotografen immer schwieriger macht, über die schrecklichen Bedingungen im Jemen zu berichten.

Laut CNN versuchen die Hadi-Regierung und ihr Bündnispartner Saudi-Arabien Lieferungen mit Nahrungsmitteln und Medikamenten zu stoppen und eine Berichterstattung zu unterbinden.

Auch die Huthi-Miliz behindere immer wieder eine freie Berichterstattung und nehme willkürlich Reporter fest.

Umso wichtiger, dass diese Bilder gezeigt werden (Photos)

http://www.bild.de/politik/ausland/jemen-krise/was-saudi-arabien-mit-dem-schicksal-dieser-kinder-zu-tun-hat-52281000.bild.html

Mein Kommentar: Das ist der Film von CNN: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-a5GcGVupP8. Einerseits muss man „Bild“ dankbar sein, dass es diese Fotos endlich einmal zeigt und auch klare Worte findet. Allerdings: Hier fallen Bild die eigenen Versäumnisse und die eigene Mitschuld an eben dem, was im Jemen geschieht, krachend auf die Füße. Eine Zeitung bzw. ein ganzes Medienhaus, das 1967 unter seinen Grundsätzen erklärt: „3. Wir zeigen unsere Solidarität in der freiheitlichen Wertegemeinschaft mit den Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika“ (http://nachhaltigkeit.axelspringer.de/de/grundsaetze/unternehmensgrundsaetze.html) hat sich damit durch eine entsprechende Berichterstattung / Propaganda an allen außenpolitischen Verbrechen der USA vom Vietnamkrieg bis zum Jemenkrieg mitschuldig gemacht. „Solidarität“ mit dem unter den Staaten größten Kriegsverbrecher der jüngeren Zeit und der Gegenwart bedeutet eben genau das – seit 1967.

22.6.2017 – Human Rights Watch (*** B P)

Yemen: UAE Backs Abusive Local Forces

Resolve ‘Disappearances’, Grant Access to Detention Sites

The UAE supports Yemeni forces that have arbitrarily detained, forcibly disappeared, tortured, and abused dozens of people during security operations, Human Rights Watch said today. The UAE finances, arms, and trains these forces, which ostensibly are going after Yemeni branches of Al-Qaeda or the Islamic State (also known as ISIS). The UAE also runs at least two informal detention facilities, and its officials appear to have ordered the continued detention of people despite release orders, and forcibly disappeared people, including reportedly moving high-profile detainees outside the country.

Human Rights Watch has documented the cases of 49 people, including four children, who have been arbitrarily detained or forcibly disappeared in the Aden and Hadramawt governates of Yemen over the last year. At least 38 appear to have been arrested or detained by UAE-backed security forces. Multiple sources, including Yemeni government officials, have reported the existence of numerous informal detention facilities and secret prisons in Aden and Hadramawt, including at least two run by the UAE and others run by UAE-backed Yemeni security forces. Human Rights Watch documented people held at 11 such sites in the two governorates.

“You don’t effectively fight extremist groups like Al-Qaeda or ISIS by disappearing dozens of young men and constantly adding to the number of families with ‘missing’ loved ones in Yemen,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “The UAE and its partners should place protecting detainee rights at the center of their security campaigns if they care about Yemen’s long-term stability.”

Human Rights Watch researchers interviewed family members and friends of detainees, former detainees, lawyers, activists, and government officials. Human Rights Watch also reviewed documents, videos, and pictures provided by lawyers and activists, as well as letters sent by lawyers or family members to various Yemeni and coalition authorities.

The UAE has led counterterror efforts against AQAP and ISIS’s local affiliate (IS-Y), including by supporting Yemeni forces carrying out security campaigns in southern and eastern parts of the country. Human Rights Watch has documented abuses by some of these forces – including forces known as the “Security Belt” that operate in Aden, Lahj, Abyan, and other southern governorates and the “Hadrami Elite Forces” that operate in Hadramawt.

The Security Belt and Hadrami Elite forces have used excessive force during arrests and raids, detained family members of wanted suspects to pressure them to “voluntarily” turn themselves in, arbitrarily arrested and detained men and boys, detained children with adults, and forcibly disappeared dozens. As one former detainee said he was told by another detainee in one of Aden’s many informal detention facilities: “This is a no-return prison.”

The UAE is reported to run some of these detention facilities and to have moved high-profile detainees outside the country, including to a base it has in Eritrea.

Former detainees and family members also told Human Rights Watch that some detainees had been abused or tortured inside detention facilities, most often through heavy beatings with officers using their fists, their guns or other metal objects. Others mentioned electric shocks, forced nudity, threats to the detainees or their family members, and caning on the feet.

Houthi-Saleh forces have also arbitrarily detained and disappeared scores of people in northern Yemen. Human Rights Watch has separately documented abuse in Houthi-Saleh run detention facilities.

Yemeni human rights groups and lawyers have documented hundreds of cases of people arbitrarily detained or forcibly disappeared in areas of Yemen formally under the control of the internationally recognized government of President Hadi. Other security forces – beyond those that are UAE-backed – have also been implicated in abuses. The southern port city of Aden, for example, is currently home to multiple, often competing, security forces and militias. While technically under the Interior Ministry, these forces operate with separate command and control structures, with units aligned to Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. These forces are arresting and detaining people, and operating unofficial detention sites, local activists, journalists, and lawyers say.

One man described to Human Rights Watch a recent protest calling on the UAE and Hadrami Elite Forces to reveal the whereabouts of the disappeared: “There were small kids saying release our dads. We were writing on the posters that we are against terrorism, but terrorism is also taking people in this way.”

There are multiple informal and secret detention facilities in Aden, Hadramawt, and the areas of the country under Houthi-Saleh control to which independent monitors, lawyers and families of detainees have not been granted access.

Possible Transfers Outside Yemen

Human Rights Watch was not able to verify these claims, but according to lawyers and activists, as well as relatives of men who had been disappeared, the UAE was transferring high-level detainees outside of Yemen. According to one of the activists, about 15 people accused of being members of AQAP or IS-Y had been transferred to the base the UAE has been developing in Eritrea’s port city, Assab, over the past two years. A man whose relatives had been disappeared said at least five officials told him the UAE transferred the men outside of Yemen, including three who said the men were being held in Eritrea.

The UAE-Backed Security Belt in Aden

In Aden, many of those arbitrarily detained or forcibly disappeared were arrested by the Security Belt, a force created in spring 2016. It is officially under the Interior Ministry but is funded, trained, and directed by the UAE, said several activists, lawyers, and government officials. The UN Panel of Experts on Yemen and a Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC) report found that the Security Belt operated largely outside the Yemeni government’s control.

In dozens of interviews, people detained by the Security Belt or detainees’ family members said Security Belt officers claimed they were following UAE orders in detaining terrorism suspects and that they lacked the authority to release detainees without specific UAE authorization. A former detainee said a high-ranking Security Belt Commander told him he had initially trusted the UAE was detaining suspects based on strong intelligence but he had increasingly come to believe not everyone they arrested was in fact linked to extremist groups.

The Security Belt has arbitrarily arrested and abused dozens of people. Several families reported that the security forces, including the Security Belt, had used excessive force when carrying out arrests, including beating men with their guns and forcing entry into homes. The Security Belt has also arrested suspects’ family members when unable to find the person they hoped to arrest to pressure the actual suspect to turn himself in.

Human Rights Watch has documented multiple allegations that various security forces in police stations and in official and secret detention facilities are mistreating detainees. One man detained in the Central Prison said that he and a few other detainees were blindfolded, handcuffed, and taken to a separate room in the prison. He said he was given multiple electrical shocks. He said he also heard the other three men with him being beaten and given electrical shocks. One of them fell over him, and he could hear the man screaming in pain.

Human Rights Watch documented four cases of children arbitrarily arrested or forcibly disappeared in Aden who were held with adults in the Central Prison and Camp Tariq, a military camp controlled by Aden’s Security Administration.

Multiple sources, including government officials, confirmed that the UAE ran at least one detention facility for terrorism suspects they deemed to be high-value or sensitive cases in Aden.

Multiple people in Aden also alleged that the Security Administration, which falls under the Interior Ministry but whose top official is UAE-supported, also ran informal detention facilities and secret prisons

The UAE and Hadrami Elite Forces

The Hadrami Elite Forces are formally a part of the Yemen Army, specifically the Second Military Zone, which covers parts of Hadramawt governorate. But activists, lawyers, and family members of detainees said that the UAE provides salaries, training, weapons, and direction to the Elite Forces.

The Hadrami Elite Forces have arbitrarily detained and forcibly disappeared dozens of people. Human Rights Watch met members of a committee representing family members of the disappeared who collected the names of 87 people disappeared in Hadramawt’s coastal area.

The UAE runs unofficial detention facilities in Mukalla.

https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/06/22/yemen-uae-backs-abusive-local-forces = http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-uae-backs-abusive-local-forces and abridged http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-4628466/UAE-runs-informal-prisons-Yemen-HRW.html

and

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

22.6.2017 – AP (*** B P)

U.S. questions detainees in Yemen prisons rife with torture

Hundreds of men swept up in the hunt for al-Qaeda militants have disappeared into a secret network of prisons in southern Yemen where abuse is routine and torture extreme - including the "grill," in which the victim is tied to a spit like a roast and spun in a circle of fire, an Associated Press investigation has found.

Senior American defense officials acknowledged Wednesday that U.S. forces have been involved in interrogations of detainees in Yemen but denied any participation in or knowledge of human rights abuses. Interrogating detainees who have been abused could violate international law, which prohibits complicity in torture.

The AP documented at least 18 clandestine lockups across southern Yemen run by the United Arab Emirates or by Yemeni forces created and trained by the Gulf nation, drawing on accounts from former detainees, families of prisoners, civil rights lawyers and Yemeni military officials. All are either hidden or off limits to Yemen's government, which has been getting Emirati help in its civil war with rebels over the last two years.

The secret prisons are inside military bases, ports, an airport, private villas and even a nightclub. Some detainees have been flown to an Emirati base across the Red Sea in Eritrea, according to Yemen Interior Minister Hussein Arab and others.

Several U.S. defense officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the topic, told AP that American forces do participate in interrogations of detainees at locations in Yemen, provide questions for others to ask, and receive transcripts of interrogations from Emirati allies. They said U.S. senior military leaders were aware of allegations of torture at the prisons in Yemen, looked into them, but were satisfied that there had not been any abuse when U.S. forces were present.

None of the dozens of people interviewed by AP contended that American interrogators were involved in the actual abuses. Nevertheless, obtaining intelligence that may have been extracted by torture inflicted by another party would violate the International Convention Against Torture and could qualify as war crimes, said Ryan Goodman, a law professor at New York University who served as special counsel to the Defense Department until last year – By MAGGIE MICHAEL and MAAD AL-ZIKRY

https://apnews.com/4925f7f0fa654853bd6f2f57174179fe = http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/ML_YEMEN_TORTURE_SITES_ABRIDGED?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2017-06-22-01-44-46 = http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ap-us-questions-detainees-yemen-prisons-torture-abuses/ and abridged https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/international/middle-east/148542-170622-us-aware-of-interrogation-in-secret-prisons-in-yemen-report and film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPT0bZWGNsc and images:

https://twitter.com/AP/status/877828530901585920 and https://interactives.ap.org/yemen-prison/

21.6.2017 – IUVM Press (** B P)

Yemen crisis news blackout amid Arab diplomatic row

What is considerable is the ongoing Saudi fighter jets strikes across Yemen amid unfolding political crisis with Qatar. Perhaps one of the major instruments contributing to this campaign is the Saudi Arabian media game. Riyadh counts on media as one of its regional policies’ main instruments. Such news channels as Al Arabiya and Al Hadath, both owned by Saudi Arabia, are among the most-watched regional news outlets as the kingdom spends millions of dollars on them for more viewer attraction. They, the analysts suggest, are the top contributors to Riyadh in its pursuit of policy in the region. The Rotana television group, the largest Saudi-run media group in the Arab world, is another powerful arm serving the Saudi policy. Other media outlets like Asharq Al-Awsat and Al-Hayat newspapers with their millions of readers across the Arab world are providing the same service to the Saudi Arabian strategies in the region.

Over 700 Saudi-funded media outlets are existing, with aim to serve the Riyadh interests, including a promotion of the Saudi views rather than simply giving information, through shaping the public opinion across the Arab world in a desired fashion. This issue is glaringly apparent in reactions to the Yemen conflict. What is currently going on in Yemen amounts to a humanitarian disaster, however, it is overshadowed by the Saudi-Qatari political row. Along with running a campaign to meet their owners’ objectives amid a political crisis with Doha, these media are pushing in news blackout the daily pounding of various Yemeni cities from air and ground.

The Saudi dealing with Yemen and Qatar crises is directed by a combination of media and power. To put it differently, Saudi Arabia– along with the allied UAE– a country producing influential media material, is pushing for its agenda among the regional public opinion. This is observable in the recent Persian Gulf crisis in which the rift with Qatar received the major concentration and the tragic Yemen conditions are pushed to the sidelines in terms of media coverage. This media blackout of Yemen plight greatly helps the Arab kingdom to easily rain down bombs on the capital Sana’a and other major provinces like Taiz.

http://iuvmpress.com/11123

20.6.2017 – Critical Threats (*** B T)

Al Qaeda's Base in Yemen

In Yemen, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) seeks to strengthen and build its support base through a focus on the local fight.

AQAP’s expansion of a popular base and its safe havens threatens U.S. national security.

The Yemeni civil war created conditions that enabled AQAP to expand

Counterterrorism operations against AQAP slowed and governance began to break down in Yemen’s south as the Saudi-led coalition and Hadi government prioritized the civil war. AQAP took advantage of the focus on the fight against the al Houthi-Saleh bloc and seized control of Yemen’s third-largest port city for over a year.[4] An Emirati-led operation compelled AQAP militants to withdraw from the port city and the territory it controlled. The protracted civil war and absence of a national political resolution to the conflict fuels the conditions that allow AQAP to reemerge, however.

AQAP fights alongside and supports local militias against the al Houthi-Saleh faction in order to insinuate itself into local populations. Local tribes and militia forces reject the al Houthi-Saleh bloc and seek to prevent a northern government from controlling their territory. AQAP is active alongside these groups on the frontlines in Taiz and al Bayda governorates. AQAP is participating in a Hadi government offensive that began May 2017 to seize eastern Taiz city from the al Houthi-Saleh bloc.[5] AQAP concentrates its resources on al Bayda governorate, critical terrain for AQAP since at least 2012.[6] There it helps tribal militias seize territory from al Houthi-Saleh forces. The U.S. Department of Treasury listed the governor of al Bayda, Nayif Salih Salim al Qaysi, as a specially designated global terrorist in 2016 for facilitating the expansion and settlement of AQAP in al Bayda.[7] The provision of support to the local militias creates a relationship that has permitted AQAP to operate in new areas, like Taiz, and to deepen its presence in others areas of central Yemen.

The increasingly sectarian nature of the war drives support toward AQAP and strengthens the group’s narrative that it is the defender of the Sunni in Yemen.

The group provides shadow governance and basic services to populations behind the war’s frontline, which also build its popular support. AQAP is likely operating some public institutions in Taiz city in areas it helped seize from al Houthi-Saleh forces.[10] Some residents reported that AQAP is the de facto ruler in these neighborhoods.[11]

AQAP is conducting a campaign to prevent security forces from establishing control that would limit its freedom of movement. AQAP primarily conducts two types of attacks in southern Yemen: overt attacks on Emirati-backed security forces and covert assassinations of public officials.

AQAP portrays its actions as in the interest of the local population and operates through customary practices in order to limit the alienation of the tribes. AQAP carefully selects targets and plans attacks in order to decrease civilian casualties so its operations are tolerable to the local population.

American and Emirati counterterrorism tactics may create a backlash within certain Yemeni populations. Tribes view U.S. counterterrorism operations as overly costly for their communities and frequently express frustration for the lack of support they receive to combat AQAP.[20]

A military campaign against AQAP will not defeat the group. AQAP’s source of strength is not its control of terrain or its ability to conduct attacks, the target of ongoing counterterrorism operations. Rather, AQAP draws strength from its sustained relationship with the local population and remains focused on protecting this relationship.AQAP draws strength from its sustained relationship with the local population and remains focused on protecting this relationship.[25]

The U.S. must orient on changing the conditions set by the civil war that AQAP exploits in order to put the group on course to permanent defeat – by Maher Farrukh

https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/al-qaedas-base-in-yemen

20.6.2017 – Inter Press Service (** B H K)

Half of World’s Civilian War Deaths Occurred in Syria, Iraq and Yemen

Between 2010 and 2015, nearly half of all civilian war deaths worldwide occurred in Syria, Iraq and Yemen, a major independent, neutral organisation ensuring humanitarian protection and assistance for victims of war and armed violence informs.

According to a new report ‘I Saw My City Die‘ by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), five times more civilians die in offensives carried out in cities than in other battles.

“Over the past three years, our research shows that wars in cities accounted for a shocking 70% of all civilian deaths in Iraq and Syria”, said the ICRC’s Regional Director for the Middle East, Robert Mardini.

“This illustrates just how deadly these battles have become. This is all the more alarming as new offensives get underway in cities like Raqqa in Syria, or intensify in Mosul, Iraq. A new scale of urban suffering is emerging, where no one and nothing is spared by the violence.”

The research findings are based on preliminary analysis of battle trends and data over the past three years in Iraq and Syria.

The report includes testimony from residents in Syria’s Aleppo, Iraq’s Mosul and Yemen’s Taiz, and expert analysis. It vividly illustrates the effects of siege warfare, the use of explosive weapons and the extensive damage caused to key infrastructure.

The conflicts in these countries have resulted in internal displacement and migration levels unprecedented since WWII, says the Geneva-based ICRC.

http://www.ipsnews.net/2017/06/half-worlds-civilian-war-deaths-occurred-syria-iraq-yemen/

My comment: All three wars are not just “civil wars”. And all three wars have been caused and fueled by US intervention, regime change, supporting local proxies. And which ones would be the next countries on the list? Libya, Afghanistan, Ukraine… It’s the same for them.

And this is the full report:

6.2017 – International Red Cross (** B H K)

“I SAW MY CITY DIE”

VOICES FROM THE FRONT LINES OF URBAN CONFLICT IN IRAQ, SYRIA AND YEMEN

War is back in cities. This new report from the ICRC vividly shows how we are witnessing a profound change in the history of armed conflict which sees towns and cities locked in entrenched patterns of urban warfare for years at a time. Government forces and non-State armed groups are fighting street-to-street in a mix of aerial bombardment, artillery, smart weapons, infantry assault, suicide bombing, car bombs and improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Civilians are in the middle of it all.

Today, civilians in cities are in the middle of war once again – trapped, wounded, hungry, impoverished, held as hostages, used as human shields and often prevented from fleeing. Essential urban services like water, health care, electricity and schools are damaged, degraded and sometimes deliberately attacked. The ancient strategy of siege has returned. Tunnels, booby traps and snipers meet drones and digital warfare in the new form of protracted urban conflict which looks set to be the new normal in the years ahead.

These new urban wars can prove indecisive for years at a time as armed groups now hide under cover of the city rather than the bush, and guerrilla warfare becomes profoundly urban. Victory eludes each side and urban conflict becomes a chronic part of life for millions of people. We have reached another turning point in the history of warfare – described so well in the civilian voices in this report. As the fighting in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Libya already indicates, the principal battlegrounds of the future are not going to be in open terrain. They are going to be in towns and cities.

What do the stories of the people living through urban warfare tell us? That the human toll of urban warfare is far too high. Everyone involved in these egregious, protracted conflicts, either politically or militarily, must take stock of all the potential costs – shortand long-term – and take immediate action to eliminate or reduce them.

First and foremost, they must work harder to find political solutions to their grievances. Beyond that, warring sides must come to terms with the full impact the fighting has on the people they ultimately hope to govern. Otherwise, what will be left for them to control, after people have lost so much and suffered so deeply, and the services that keep them alive are heavily damaged or lie in ruins? Will the victors be able to keep the peace if people feel they have respected neither the law nor the basic humanity of local citizens?

Outside support has helped spawn myriad armed groups, exacerbating the effects of conflict and making peaceful settlements even more elusive. The States that support parties to the armed conflict – be they State forces or non-State armed groups – must bring their influence to bear for the benefit of the victims of armed conflict. They must not encourage or assist with violations of IHL and they must do everything reasonably in their power to ensure respect for IHL.

“MEMORIES OF A CITY ONCE FULL OF LIFE”

The story of Taiz, Yemen’s former cultural capital. Page 26

Hanan’s story: “That day, my life came to an end”. Page 29

Located an hour’s drive from the Red Sea in south-western Yemen, the mountainous and ancient city of Taiz was once the country’s industrial base, centre of coffee production and cultural capital.

Today, parts of the city lie in ruins, including a number of the city’s trademark brown-andwhite bricked buildings. Streets are littered with burned-out cars and debris.

The city’s inhabitants – more than half a million people12 – have suffered deeply, enduring shelling, sniper fire, street-to-street combat and aerial bombardment. While hundreds of thousands are thought to have fled the city,13 around 200,000 remained during the 15 months when the city was almost totally under siege. See Compounding effects: Cities under siege, page 40.

The relative stalemate between the opposing forces means the front lines have not moved significantly in months – putting the population in the middle of a protracted, bitter standoff.

Though the siege has been partially lifted, the humanitarian situation in the city today remains catastrophic: there is no food, and public services – including medical care and education – have virtually collapsed. Oncevibrant city streets have become places of fear. See Hanan’s story later in this section.

(PDF download from I Saw My City Die and abridged version with photos: http://cityatwar.icrc.org/?utm_campaign=Urban%20Warfare%20-%20EN%20-%202017%20-%2006%20-%20June

21.6.2017 – RT (** A P)

Putsch von oben: Architekt des Jemen-Kriegs und Trump-Freund wird neuer Kronprinz Saudi-Arabiens

Der bisherige Kronprinz Muhammed bin Nayif, der sich gerne als mächtiger Anti-Terror-Zar und Freund der USA präsentiert hatte, sieht sich hingegen mit sofortiger Wirkung aus der Linie der königlichen Erbfolge ausgeschlossen.

Der Journalist Ahmed al-Burai vom Sender TRT World nannte in einem Fernsehinterview den neuen Kronprinzen einen "Hardliner, der keinen Schritt zurückweicht". Der Grad an Aggressivität in der saudischen Außenpolitik unter bin Salman sei allerdings stark von den USA abhängig.

"Den Krieg in den Iran tragen"

Über die konkreten Aussichten einer künftigen saudischen Regionalpolitik sagte al-Burai:

Kürzlich schwor Muhammed bin Salman, den Krieg gegen den Iran auf iranischen Boden zu bringen. Er ist der größte Hardliner innerhalb der al-Saud-Familie gegenüber dem Iran. Er glaubt, dass er auf diese Weise der Regierung Trump helfen wird, die richtige Strategie im Nahen Osten zu finden.

Der neue Kronprinz der autokratischen Monarchie in Riad gilt zudem als Architekt des desaströsen Kriegs im Jemen.

Als jüngster Verteidigungsminister der Welt mit wenig militärischer Erfahrung führte Muhammed bin Salman den Jemen in eine humanitäre Katastrophe.

Der König verdrängte Muhammed bin Nayif auch von seinem einflussreichen Posten als Innenminister. Diesen übernimmt künftig der 34-jährige Prinz Abdulaziz bin Saudi bin Nayif.

Der neue Kronprinz bleibt Verteidigungsminister und hat bei dieser Gelegenheit auch das Amt des stellvertretenden Premierministers an sich gerissen. Muhammed bin Salman ist es damit gelungen, seine Macht zu konsolidieren. Parallel zu seinen neuen Aufgaben ist er für die Modernisierung der stark Öl-abhängigen saudischen Wirtschaft zuständig. Er stellte das Riesenprojekt "Vision 2030" auf die Beine.

Analysten hatten den Aufstieg des neuen Kronprinzen schon lange vorhergesagt. Der Zeitpunkt, wann dieser einsetzen würde, war jedoch lange unklar. Das junge Alter bin Salmans, so hieß es stets, würde diesem im Weg stehen. Der nunmehrige Schritt kommt für viele unerwartet.

Muhammed bin Salman gilt als enger Ansprechpartner der US-Regierung unter Präsident Donald Trump

https://deutsch.rt.com/der-nahe-osten/52749-putsch-salman-erbfolge-saudi-trump/

Bemerkung: Mehr zur Ernennung von Prinz Salman unter cp8.

21.6.2017 – Middle East Eye (** A P)

Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's prince of chaos

The final act of the palace coup I have been writing about since King Salman took over has just been completed. Everyone was waiting for a coup against Qatar. In fact, the coup was within the kingdom itself.

Bin Salman is now king in all but name.

Step by step, the last obstacle to bin Salman's vertiginous rise to power, his cousin, Mohammed bin Nayef, has been stripped of his power. There was little he could do to stop it, but he fought all the way.

All the levers of power are now in the hands of a young, inexperienced and risk-taking man, who in his short time in power as defence minister has established a reputation for recklessness.

He launched an air campaign against the Houthis in Yemen and then disappeared on holiday to the Maldives. It took days before the US defence secretary could reach him.

Each file bin Salman has picked up has found its way into the office shredder.

He first introduced austerity by rolling out deep pay cuts to government employees, warning the country would be bankrupt in five years. Then he reversed the cuts, claiming financial stability had been created. Then he committed himself to up to $500bn of military purchases from America.

Now all Saudis, in the austerity-driven kingdom, will get an extra week Eid holiday, a total of around two weeks.

The fine detail of any of his impulsive decisions, like how any of them will actually be achieved, is missing.

Under bin Salman, the kingdom has gone from micromanaging the Syria opposition to losing interest in the rebels altogether. As a Saudi ally, you can be hung out to dry at any time.

Be it in Yemen, Syria or Qatar, the crown prince has already earned another title: the prince of chaos.

Bin Salman's mentor

He has, however, followed instructions. As Middle East Eye reported at the time, the young prince's mentor, Mohammed bin Zayed, the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, gave him two words of advice to speed him on his way to the throne.

The first was to open a channel of communication with Israel. This he has now done, and under his command, the kingdom is closer than it has ever been to starting trade links with Tel Aviv. Both the Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir and Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the UN, are reading from the same script on attempting to blacklist Hamas.

The second instruction was to diminish the power of the religious authorities in the kingdom.

Although bin Salman has reduced the influence of the religious establishment on the daily life of the Saudis, he is using it to bolster his authority. A series of tweets by the Ulama, the Saudi Committee of Senior Scholars, demonstrates how religion has been pressed into the service of politics.

More important is this tweet:

"There is nothing in the Book and the Sunnah that permits the multitude of (political) parties and groups. To the contrary, they both censure such a thing."

The message from this is brutally clear. Political parties are not allowed. We are not giving you democracy, but theocracy and autocracy.

This is not a king in waiting who intends to neutralise the role of religion in the affairs of state. He is using it to establish his own autocratic rule.

Yemen next

This is the Trump effect in action. Bin Salman's ambitions to seize the Saudi throne and Bin Zayed's plans to impose dictatorship on the entire Gulf world predated the arrival of the most dangerous president in modern US history. But Trump's visit to Riyadh fired the starting pistol.

Within days, the tanks of the bin Salman-bin Zayed axis started rolling, first against Qatar and then against bin Nayef.

Yemen is their next target. As we have reported, there has been a major fallout between the Yemeni president in exile, Hadi, who is in Riyadh, and local forces in Aden controlled by the Emiratis. The two major partners in the campaign against the Houthis are backing sides that are at war with each other in southern Yemen.

This, I understand, will shortly be resolved. Bin Salman has met Tahnoon bin Zayed, the brother of Mohammed bin Zayed and also his security chief, to tell him to calm the situation down in south Yemen.

Bin Salman told Tahnoon that once he becomes the crown prince, he will ditch Hadi and replace him with Khaled Bahah, who is close to the Emiratis.

Bahah has visited Riyadh recently to reconnect with the new Saudi administration. A full-scale offensive against Islah, the Muslim Brotherhood-related faction in Yemen, will then proceed.

This then is the new dawn that awaits not just the Saudis, but millions in the region. If these plans go ahead, it will subject the region to decades more of turmoil, civil war, proxy conflict and bloodshed.

Thick as thieves?

However, thieves have a habit of falling out with each other. Bin Zayed, the architect of this campaign against political Islam and all forces promoting democracy in the region, has suited bin Salman's purpose until now. He has put him in pole position to become king.

Once, however, bin Salman has come to power, it may no longer suit the young king to be advised by the crown prince of a much smaller state. Their interests may easily diverge – by David Hearst

http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/saudis-prince-chaos-205606563

Comment by Judith Brown. A very interesting 'what if?' story about the way that the infamous Mohammed bin Salman has thrust himself to power in Saudi Arabia and created chaos everywhere in the Middle East. His 'reforms' it seems are to increase his theocratic and autocratic base and shove democracy completely out of sight.

https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10155647140798641

Remark: Many more articles on Prince Salman in cp8.

cp1a Am wichtigsten: Cholera / Most important: Cholera

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

22.6.2017 – World Health Organization (** A H)

Weekly update - Cholera in Yemen, 22 June 2017

The Ministry of Public Health and Population of Yemen has recorded a total of 37 079 suspected cholera cases and 196 associated deaths during the period 13 June to 19 June 2017.

A cumulative total of 185 301 suspected cases of cholera and 1233 associated deaths have been recorded as of 21 June during this outbreak, which started in October 2016. The overall case-fatality rate is 0.7%; however, it is higher among people aged over 60.

WHO and health partners are actively supporting the Ministry through a cholera task force to improve cholera response efforts at the national and local levels. This includes the establishment of 18 diarrhoea treatment facilities and 28 oral dehydration centres, training of health workers to manage cases, water purification in communities, deployment of rapid response team to manage cholera cases investigations and respond to the outbreak, enhancement of Yemen’s disease early warning surveillance systems, and provision of emergency medical supplies to treatment facilities.

Cholera has affected around 268 districts in 20 governorates across the country. While cholera is endemic in Yemen, the country has experienced a surge in cholera cases since 27 April 2017.

http://www.emro.who.int/surveillance-forecasting-response/outbreaks/weekly-update-cholera-in-yemen-22-june-2017.html = http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/weekly-update-cholera-yemen-22-june-2017

21.6.2017 – Doctors Without Borders (* A H)

Khawla Saleh is two and half years. She is one of the patients admitted at MSF cholera treatment center in Al-Kuwait hospital, Sana’a. Her mother says “ My daughter was vomiting, had diarrhea and she refused to eat or drink anything. I couldn’t hospitalize her when she started feeling sick. We did not have the money for her treatment. Our living conditions are hard and we barely find food and water. When I knew there is a free of charge cholera treatment center in Al-Kuwait hospital, we came here. My child stopped vomiting and she is getting better but she is still under treatment.”

Khawla is one of 41,000 patients treated for #cholera by #MSF since March 30th in #Yemen. Since the beginning of the current war in March 2015, many hospitals have stopped working due to the conflict (photos)

https://www.facebook.com/MSF.Yemen/posts/1360815104026774

21.6.2017 – Grasswire (** A H)

Funding and aid access remain dismal as cholera and famine sweep across Yemen

Aid agencies are racing to stop the cholera outbreak in Yemen from getting any worse, as the disease continues to spread through the country while clean water and life-saving supplies remain out of reach.

The World Health Organization said on Tuesday, June 20, that it is trying to stop the spread of cholera from the worst-hit areas to the rest of the country. Already 20 out of 22 governorate are affected, and the WHO estimates 1,200 people have died in the current outbreak.

Sara Tesorieri, the Norwegian Refugee Council’s Advocacy and Policy Advisor in Yemen, told Grasswire that the NRC has pivoted its response in several places, including Sana’a, Hudaydah and Aden, to focus more efforts on combating cholera.

WHO has said the current cholera outbreak can be traced back to one in October. Cases of the disease spiked in December and then dissipated but never fully went away, and Yemen’s capacity for dealing with a disease like cholera has been ravaged by more than two years of war.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, more than 8 million people in Yemen have no access to clean water or proper sanitation.

Tesorieri said the resurgence of cholera is exponentially worse than it was during the previous outbreak over the winter, due mostly to the deterioration of public services and infrastructure caused by the ongoing conflict.

“I myself have seen overflowing treatment centers where staff are overworked and exhausted, and that is in the cities where such specialized treatment centres have been set up for the humanitarian response; in rural areas there is less spread but also a lot less information about the extent of the outbreak and much less access to treatment,” she said. – by Joanne

https://www.grasswire.com/2017/06/aid-agencies-funding-medicine-to-contain-cholera-outbreak-in-yemen/

21.6.2017 – Kurier (** A H)

Jemen stibt den hässlichen Tod

Als hätte die jemenitische Bevölkerung nicht schon genug unter dem Bürgerkrieg gelitten, breitet sich nun auch noch der Cholera-Erreger aus. Bernadette Schober ist für "Ärzte ohne Grenzen" im Kriegsgebiet und fürchtet, dass die Zahl der Toten steigen wird.

Seit Ende April 2017 starben im Bürgerkriegsland Jemen knapp 1200 Menschen diesen Tod, rund 160.000 sind an dem Magen-Darm-Erreger erkrankt. Die Zahl wird weiter steigen, um das Doppelte vielleicht oder sogar um das Dreifache. Täglich kommen 3000 bis 5000 Fälle dazu, bis September könnten 300.000 Menschen infiziert sein, schätzen Hilfsorganisationen.

Die Epidemie traf die Jemeniten nicht unerwartet. Nach zwei Jahren blutigem Bürgerkrieg ist das Gesundheitssystem völlig kollabiert, zahlreiche Krankenhäuser wurden zerbombt, Gehälter werden seit Monaten nicht bezahlt. Hinzu kommt, dass zwei Drittel der Bevölkerung keinen Zugang zu sauberem Trinkwasser haben, es mangelt an Sanitäranlagen und in einigen Gebieten stapelt sich der Müll an den Straßenrändern, weil Benzin für die Transporter fehlt. Dadurch konnte sich die "Krankheit der Armen" im geschundenen Jemen rasant ausbreiten.

"Die Infrastruktur hat unter dem Bürgerkrieg extrem gelitten", sagt Schober, die Qualität der medizinischen Versorgung nehme täglich ab. Während in vielen Städten Krankenhäuser nicht funktionieren, stoßen andere Spitäler an ihre Grenzen. "Der Zuständigkeitsbereich einzelner Krankenhäuser wird immer größer", erklärt die MSF-Koordinatorin telefonisch aus einem Spital im Südwesten des Jemen. Bis ein Patient ins Cholera-Zentrum eingeliefert wird, können Stunden vergehen, teilweise sogar ein ganzer Tag. Aber wenn Infizierte nicht schnell genug behandelt werden, sterben sie.

Die meisten Erkrankten sind ohnehin schon geschwächt, weil sie zu wenig zum Essen haben. Viele Berichte deuten auf den Ausbruch einer Hungersnot hin.

Wie auch Schober verlangt Stillhart, dass die internationale Gemeinschaft mehr für die Infrastruktur tun muss, für die medizinische Versorgung und für sanitäre Anlagen. Aber wegen der geringen öffentlichen Aufmerksamkeit fehlt es vermutlich am entsprechenden Druck auf die Konfliktparteien, um entsprechende Hilfe zuzulassen – von Jürgen Klatzer

https://kurier.at/politik/ausland/cholera-epidemie-in-jemen-geraet-ausser-kontrolle-eine-oberoesterreichin-ist-fuer-msf-im-einsatz/270.605.455

21.6.2017 – Doctors Without Borders (* A H)

Yemen: cholera continues to spread

From the escalation of the cholera outbreak in Yemen in early April 2017 to 17 June, the number of suspected cholera cases reported by World Health Organization (WHO) and national health authorities had reached 151,400, with 1,054 deaths registered.

Cases are now being reported from 19 out of 22 governorates, four more than during the last outbreak of the infection. Between early April and 18 June, MSF received 41,479 patients with cholera and acute watery diarrhoea. Of the more than 41,000 patients seen since 30 March, over 17,000 people sought treatment between 4 and 18 June.

Health workers and all relevant authorities need to work hand in hand to control the epidemic.

http://www.msf.org/en/article/yemen-cholera-continues-spread = http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-cholera-continues-spread

My comment: Figures are already outdated.

20.6.2017 – World Health Organization (* A H)

Yemen: Cholera Attack Rate Per 10,000 Population (From 27 April - 20 June 2017)

http://reliefweb.int/map/yemen/yemen-cholera-attack-rate-10000-population-27-april-20-june-2017 and in full https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/system/files/documents/files/200617_attackrate.pdf

20.6.2017 – UN News Service (** A H)

Aid workers race to contain Yemen cholera outbreak, UN agencies report

A “race” is under way to contain the cholera epidemic in Yemen where 20 out of 22 governorates are affected, United Nations agencies said today.

The disease is endemic in Yemen and is characterized by severe watery diarrhoea and fever.

Nearly 1,200 people have died in the latest outbreak and there are more than 172,000 suspected cases in the crisis-torn country, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Together with the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), WHO says it is attempting to stop cholera being “exported” from the worst-affected areas.

In Raymah in western Yemen, mortality rates are almost twice the national average.

“We see that the numbers are going up, it's really trying to race against the spread and try to get treatment and water and sanitation measures to every corner, especially to those corners that are basically exporting the bacteria to other places” Tarik Jasarevic a spokesperson for WHO told reporters at the regular bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.

The more than two-year conflict in the country has devastated the country's health facilities; less than half are fully functional and many public health professionals have not been paid in months.

And although cholera can be treated quickly if caught early, WHO said in a statement that getting help in a middle of a conflict “is not so easy.”

The agency added that its health, water, sanitation and hygiene partners need $66.7 million to scale up the cholera response.

To date, WHO has helped to set up 144 diarrhoea treatment centres and 206 oral rehydration points, along with more than 1,900 beds for cholera patients in 20 governorates.

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=57022#.WUnjGWjyiUl = http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/aid-workers-race-contain-yemen-cholera-outbreak-un-agencies-report

20.6.2017 – Voice of America (** A H)

Yemen Struggling With Cholera Outbreak, Currently World's Largest

The World Health Organization (WHO) reports the cholera outbreak in Yemen has spread to practically every part of the war-torn country. Suspected cases of cholera and acute watery diarrhea now top 170,000, with 1,170 deaths.

WHO reports cholera has spread to 20 of Yemen’s 22 governorates in just two months. Spokesman Tarik Jasarevic says aid agencies are scaling up their operation and refining their response.

He says it is not possible to cover the country at all times, so WHO and the United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF) workers are going to so-called hotspots - the most affected areas - to treat cholera victims who are most at risk.

He calls the situation a very challenging one.

“If you look at the numbers, we are talking close to 2,000 suspected cases a day. Cholera is endemic in Yemen. It is currently the largest cholera outbreak that we have in the world,” Jasarevic said – by Lisa Schlein

https://www.voanews.com/a/yemen-cholera-outbreak/3908018.html

15/18.6.2017 – Doctors Without Borders (* A H)

Film: #MSF calls on all actors to join their efforts and provide a comprehensive support to contain #cholera epidemic. Treatment is one fold of the response. Preventing new contamination through water and sanitation and community awareness is another fold. This is crucial in a poor hygiene conditions environment that helps the spread of epidemics.

https://www.facebook.com/MSF.Yemen/videos/1357730287668589/

Film: #MSF logistic team provided emergency rehabilitation to the building of the cholera treatment center in Al-Sadaqa hospital #Aden. The building, which had been abandoned since the early days of the war, required heavy cleaning, electricity and water system repairs as well as installing air conditions.

https://www.facebook.com/MSF.Yemen/videos/1354223338019284/

cp2 Allgemein / General

22.6.2017 – Aljazeera (B K P)

Map: Military action in Yemen: Who's for, who's against?

A Saudi-led coalition has begun hitting Houthi targets in Yemen. But who is supporting the action? And how?

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/interactive/2015/03/military-action-yemen-150326143748798.html

My comment: A bulk of countries supporting the airstrikes is missing. – And Aljazeera did take Qatar from the list – which at an older version of the map can be seen as part of the coalition: https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1410795062306853 That would be too easy for Qatar to wash away the blood on its hands.

22.6.2017 – Middle East Eye (* B K P)

ANALYSIS: Yemen, a nation destroyed by bin Salman's aggression

Mohammed bin Salman led Saudi Arabia into war in Yemen. Analysts say his elevation to crown prince will mean more devastation

Mohammed bin Salman's rise to Saudi Arabia's crown prince may have a devastating impact on Yemen, as the war he masterminded drags on, analysts say.

Analysts say his elevation and the demotion of Mohammed bin Nayef will mean a conflict that has already killed tens of thousands of people - through fighting, air strikes, malnutrition and most recently cholera - will continue unabated.

Yemeni human rights activist Baraa Shiban told MEE that the new crown prince, known also as MBS, was instrumental turning a civil conflict into a regional crisis.

"The main difference between bin Salman and his predecessor was that he put forth an active and aggressive foreign policy which no longer depends on Saudi Arabia leading from behind the curtains but instead, it's at the forefront," he said.

"The war would have happened anyway, but if it weren't for bin Salman, Saudi Arabia might have influenced the war through funding and supporting certain groups.

"Bin Salman decided to actively engage in the conflict by launching aerial bombardment which has had a devastating effect on civilians and the level of destruction."

Shiban said bin Salman's formation of a Saudi-led coalition fighting against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels gave the conflict a regional dimension that dragged in regional powers.

"It was no longer Saudi Arabia working with tribal leaders to protect its borders and allies. It became a situation where Saudi Arabia needed other countries' – mainly the UAE - involvement to wage a larger role and strategy in the conflict," he said.

Yemen analyst Nadwa al-Dawasi agreed: "The main problem with Saudi Arabia's involvement was the regionalisation of the conflict, its transition from a civil war to a regionalised crisis."

Dawasi, a senior non-resident fellow at the Project for Middle East Democracy, said Saud Arabia and the UAE's involvement means that the ongoing Gulf crisis - which has seen Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt cut diplomatic ties with Qatar since 5 June – will likely play out on Yemeni soil.

"Now with Qatar isolated, it is likely that Yemen will become the battleground for this Gulf crisis," said Dawasi – by Arwa Ibrahim

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/analysis-how-has-saudi-policy-under-new-crown-prince-impacted-yemen-1912105646

22.6.2017 – CNN (* B K P)

The images Saudi Arabia doesn't want you to see

Film: Saudi Arabia tries to block journalists from reporting on Yemen's civil war as the U.S. signs an arms deal with the Gulf kingdom. CNN's Clarissa Ward reports.

http://edition.cnn.com/videos/tv/2017/06/21/lead-ward-saudi-arabia-weapons-deal-dnt.cnn = http://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/the-images-saudi-arabia-doesnt-want-you-to-see/vp-BBD0mZE and in youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-a5GcGVupP8

Comment: I don't know what just happened at that suddenly their producers are awake to a tragedy that has been perpetrated by US for 26months..

https://twitter.com/changermindset/status/878457748081397760

Comments by Hisham Al-Omeisy / Hussam Al-Sanabani: Amusing how after over two years of war, so many suddenly aware of Saudi-led coalition's egregious acts in #Yemenand willing report by name

https://twitter.com/omeisy/status/878058367255695360

The tragedy of #Yemenis still used as a blackmail only. Without the Saudi - Qatar crisis, we won't have such density media coverage

https://twitter.com/HussamSanabani/status/878084018826346496

The sad reality of current state of affairs. Dramatic flow of coverage, will soon & as quickly ebb, while #Yemencrisis continues to worsen.

https://twitter.com/omeisy/status/878352939701551105

20.6.2017 – Ahmad Ali (B K)

it took the world 6 years to realize that #Qatar support terrorism in #MENA . to the world, KSA still sells flowers in #Yemen

https://twitter.com/jaguarofYemen/status/877255305071144960

20.6.2017 – Bloomberg (* B P)

The CIA's Secret Talks With Obama's Arab Back Channel

Diplomacy with Oman may help bridge the Saudi-Iranian divide on Yemen

One way to understand just how different President Donald Trump's policy toward Iran is from his predecessor's is through the lens of Oman.

For Barack Obama, the tiny Gulf kingdom was a diplomatic secret weapon. His administration took advantage of Oman's good relations with both sides of the Saudi-Iranian cold war.

Trump, on the other hand, has largely ignored the Omanis.

While Obama used Oman's good relations with Iran to advance his diplomacy with Iran, the Trump administration sees its ties to Iran as a problem.

According to three Trump administration officials briefed on the diplomacy, Pompeo and Waddell urged Qaboos to crack down on Iranian smuggling routes through Omani territory that deliver personnel, equipment and weapons to Yemen's Houthi rebels.

At the time, Oman's foreign minister said there was no truth to accusations that his country's territory had been used to supply the Houthis. The U.S. intelligence community however disagrees

Bruce Riedel, a former CIA officer who directs the Intelligence Project at the Brookings Institution, told me Monday that the real concern for the U.S. military and the Saudis is that Iran could be sending missile experts to Yemen to help the Houthis develop ballistic missiles. "For that you don't need to smuggle material," Riedel said. "What you need are people who have that expertise, and the Iranians have that expertise."

Simon Henderson, director of the Gulf and Energy Policy program at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told me Monday that it would be smart to take advantage of Oman's diplomatic relationships with the Houthis. "On Yemen, Washington has been very happy to use Oman for its contacts with the Houthis in the past," he said. "That still has a value."

Henderson said he thinks the only way to end the war in Yemen is through eventually paying the Houthis to break off relations with the Iranians, which the Saudis consider to be an intolerable threat – By Eli Lake, Bloomberg View

https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2017-06-20/the-cia-s-secret-talks-with-obama-s-arab-back-channel = http://www.newsmax.com/EliLake/yemen-oman-saudi-trump/2017/06/20/id/797183/

Comment: Fact is the current US Administration lacks the basics of knowledge and understanding.
(Article is not all correct putting too much emphasis on Iran's role in #Yemen, but worth a read)

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1409140449138981

20.6.2017 – Legal Center (* B K PH)

The number of markets that are targeted by the Saudi Arabia and its alliance reached #552 markets and the victims number in those markets reached #2847, including #1270 killed and injured #1577 others.
The most prominent markets that were bombed and resulted hundreds of victims
1- Saudi warplanes bombed #Shaja'a market in Zabid, Al_Hodeidah On May 12, 2015 targeted #196 civilians, including #116 killed and injured #80 others.
2- Saudi warplanes bombed #Aahem junction in Haradh, Hajjah province On July 4, 2015 targeted #132, including #46 killed and injured (86) others.
3- Saudi warplanes bombed #Al-Fayush in Tibn area in #Lahjj on July 6, 2015 targeted #309, including #84 killed and injured #225 others.
4_ Saudi warplanes bombed #Dar_Saad market in Dar Saad area in Aden on 19 July 2015, targeted #123, including #48 killed and injured #75 others.
5 - Saudi warplanes bombed #masked market in Baqim, Saada Governorate On 19 September 2015 targeted #131, including #96 killed and injured #35 others.
6 - Saudi warplanes bombed #Al_Manbah,Saada On 1 October 2015 targeted #127, including #92 killed and injured #35 others.
7 - Saudi warplanes bombed #Al_Thalooth market in Hajja province on 15 March 2016 targeted #164, including #120 killed and injured #44 others.
8 - Saudi warplanes bombed the #Indian market in Hawk area, Hodeidah On 21 September 2016, targeted #106, including #32 killed and injured #74 others.

https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/posts/845834398900260

17.6.20217 – Near Eastern Outlook (* B P)

Washington’s Dangerous Middle East Agenda

It’s clear at this point that the recent visit of US President Trump to Saudi Arabia and Israel was about setting events into motion in order to fundamentally alter the present balance of power in the entire Middle East to the greater advantage of the United States and US energy geopolitics. As with most everything that Washington tries to do to rebuild its rapidly declining global dominance, this latest move by Washington to incite the Saudi Kingdom to ignite regime change in Qatar and escalate a form of oil war disguised as a Sunni-Shi’ite power conflict already looks in serious trouble.

I share with you a recent interview with an Arabic-language Middle East magazine in question and answer format.

In my view this is a deep power struggle between Qatar and Saudi Arabia that has little to do with stated reasons regarding Muslim Brotherhood and Iran. The action to isolate Qatar was clearly instigated during US President Trump’s recent visit in Riyadh where he pushed the unfortunate idea of a Saudi-led “Arab NATO” to oppose Iranian influence in the region.

The Saudi move, clearly instigated by Prince Bin Salman, Minister of Defense, was not about going against terrorism. If it were about terrorism, bin Salman would have to arrest himself and most of his Saudi cabinet as one of the largest financiers of terrorism in the world, and shut all Saudi-financed madrasses around the world, from Pakistan to Bosnia-Herzgovina to Kosovo. Another factor according to informed sources in Holland is that Washington wanted to punish Qatar for seeking natural gas sales with China priced not in US dollars but in Renminbi. That apparently alarmed Washington, as Qatar is the world’s largest LNG exporter and most to Asia.

Moreover, Qatar was acting increasingly independent of the heavy Wahhabite hand of Saudi Arabia and threatening Saudi domination over the Gulf States.

We must keep in mind that all serious terrorist organizations are state-sponsored. All. Whether DAESH or Al Nusra or Mujahideen in Afghanistan or Maute Group in Philippines. The relevant question is which states sponsor which terrorists. Today NATO is the one most complicit in sponsoring terrorism as a weapon of their geopolitical designs. And within NATO the United States is sponsor number one, often using Saudi money and until recently, ironically, Qatari funds.

The real story behind the rise of so-called Islamic Terrorism is the increasingly desperate attempt of the Anglo-American Deep State to control the rise of Eurasia, especially of China in combination now with Russia, and increasingly with Iran and Central Asian republics as well as South Asian. Without understanding this, none of the recent events in the Middle East make sense.

Washington strategists today foolishly believe that if they get choke point control of all Middle East oil and gas, they can, as Henry Kissinger stated back in the 1970’s “control the oil and thus, control entire nations,” especially China and Russia and also Germany and Europe. Their strategy has failed but Washington and the Pentagon refuse to see the reasons for their repeated filed wars. The hidden reality of American global power is that the American “giant” today is a bankrupt superpower – by F. William Engdahl

Washington wants conflict in order to divide and rule.

http://journal-neo.org/2017/06/17/washingtons-dangerous-middle-east-agenda-2/ = https://off-guardian.org/2017/06/21/washingtons-dangerous-middle-east-agenda/

My comment: Interesting, but to my opinion the author overstresses US role and the idea of a long-run US strategy.

cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

6.2017 – Go fund me / MONA Relief (* A H)

Please help me show the children in Yemen that the world has not abandoned them. Children are all of our futures, and how they grow up will reflect their own views on what is humanity. Let us set the example by doing - and show children the world can be a kind place, and most people are not in support of blocking humanitarian aid to them. I choose to believe the world's majority feels Yemenis' pain and hardship.
The ONLY way to reach these children quickly is by donating to a charity located inside Yemen. The caring people at Mona Relief are defending children against the suffering inflicted on them. Their volunteers are delivering lifesaving packages to the hardest hit areas, and bringing smiles to little ones' faces.

You are invited to follow Mona's good works on social media: Twitter:@monareliefye Facebook: Mona Relief Yemen Website: MonaReliefye.orgContact founder of Mona, Fatik Al-Rodaini on Twitter: @fatikr Email:fatik.r@gmail.com.
The benefit of donating though GoFundMe to a Yemeni charity is that nearly 100% of your money (minus small gofundme fee) is used to purchase life-saving food and supplies, that will be hand-delivered to the families in communities where children are suffering terribly from lack of food, warm clothing and medicine.

https://www.gofundme.com/colourofwar and links to film on MONA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bG_tP8XExVM and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTt8rdH61Uo

22.6.2017 – London School of Economics and Political Science (* B H K)

Healthcare under Siege in Taiz

This memo was presented at a workshop on ‘Yemen’s Urban–Rural Divide and the Ultra-Localisation of the Civil War‘ organised by the LSE Middle East Centre on 29 March 2017.

Taiz governorate, in southwestern Yemen, has seen some of the most intense and sustained fighting since the conflict escalated in March 2015. Taiz city, once Yemen’s cultural hub surrounded by tall mountains and hills, is now divided by frontlines while the conflict, entering its third year, takes its toll on its residents. The city is a grim example of the urgent need for more medical aid, particularly basic healthcare.

Streets in the city centre now known as the ‘enclave’ are controlled by different armed groups who frequently clash among themselves. Shells are launched into and out of the city centre while the movement of people and goods in and out is severely restricted and tightly controlled.

None of the warring parties in Taiz show any respect for the protection of civilians.

Medical services have also been caught up in the violence. Hospitals have been repeatedly hit by shelling and gunfire, one clinic has been hit by an airstrike, and ambulances have been shot at, confiscated or intruded in by armed men. Medical personnel have been shot at on their way to work, harassed, detained, threatened and forced to work at gunpoint.

Two years since fighting started in Taiz, the city’s health services have largely collapsed – the result of physical damage to hospitals and of shortages of staff and medical supplies.

A crippled health system, combined with increasingly harsh living conditions, has prompted a decline in people’s health, with particularly acute consequences for vulnerable groups with low immunity such as pregnant women, new-born babies and young children. Most people have lost their jobs and the price of essentials, including food and water, has soared. Most families now live with little or no electricity and insufficient food and water. Many have been forced to flee their homes to escape the fighting, and now live in makeshift settlements in tents made from plastic sheeting, without adequate sanitation and without such essentials as mattresses, blankets or cooking equipment.

Taiz exemplifies the dire situation across the eleven governorates in Yemen where MSF works and witnesses the same issues: – by Sophie Désoulières; Doctors Without Borders

http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/mec/2017/06/22/healthcare-under-siege-in-taiz/

21.6.2017 – RT (* B H)

Film: Yemen: ‘The worst humanitarian crisis on Earth’

Yemen is in the midst of what the UN has called “the worst cholera outbreak on the planet,” with more than 170,000 cases and at least 1,100 deaths. The Saudi bombing campaign and blockade against Yemen makes addressing the epidemic immensely difficult. Almost 7 million Yemenis are on the brink of starvation without access to food or clean water. RT America’s Alexey Yaroshevsky has the details.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YLfSXEzBJ8

21.6.2017 – Grasswire (* B H)

Funding and aid access remain dismal as cholera and famine sweep across Yemen

Hudaydah port

Humanitarian organizations maintain there is no alternative to Hudaydah. In a statement published by the UN, seven aid organizations said Yemen’s commercial importers do not know how they would deliver food if the Red Sea ports were lost.

Tesorieri said things remain slow at Hudaydah, and container ships were still not able to reach it as of two weeks ago. “Only ‘feeder vessels’ bringing containers from transshipment hubs in Saudi Arabia are arriving,” she said.

In the meantime, the reduced capacity of Hudaydah is having a ripple effect. Tesorieri said the port is struggling to pay its over 3,000 employees any amount of their wages.

The situation is worse for laborers who used to work at the port and the businesses that depended on it. Relatively poor before the conflict began, they’re now destitute and unable to find work.

One man Tesorieri met feeds himself and his family by gathering stray corn grains off the ground where they fell during the unloading of shipments.

The man, who used to work at the port, is one of the few people that security officers allow the privilege of picking corn off the ground.

“They are worried that if too many people find out about it they will get flooded by desperate people who want to search through the dirt to find stray kernels,” Tesorieri said – by Joanne

https://www.grasswire.com/2017/06/aid-agencies-funding-medicine-to-contain-cholera-outbreak-in-yemen/

21.6.2017 – Fuad Rajeh (* A H)

Largest hospital in Taiz shuts down amid cholera outbreak #Yemen
Althawra Hospital, the largest in Taiz, the most densely populated city in cholera-hit and war-torn Yemen, has shut down on fund shortages, the hospital's board of directors said on Wednesday. All the hospital's departments, except the emergency department receiving support from MSF, have shut down.
The shutdown coincided with a rapid cholera outbreak which has killed more than 1.146 Yemeni people since April 27. There are around 170.000 suspected cholera cases as WHO is saying the epidemic has spread fast through 20 out of 22 Yemen's cities.

Some 37 out of the city's 45 hospitals have shut down primarily because of the lack of operational funds, according to reports quoting the local medical committee. Other reasons for the shutdowns included that some hospitals came under direct attacks by warring parties and the lack of medications, medical equipment and other supplies such as electric power and fuels amid ongoing war.

https://www.facebook.com/fuad.rajeh/posts/10208875438155424?pnref=story

21.6.2017 – Middle East Eye (* B H K)

Ramadan in a time of cholera: How Yemen is marking holy month

Parents are delaying their celebrations, demand for charity handouts is up and business in some stores is down

Dhafiri tells MEE: "We welcomed Ramadan without a proper celebration or familiar foods as usual, because the conditions are not the same as last year. Cholera has made it worse.”

Dozens of parents like Dhafiri have come to al-Sabeen, each with a child suffering from cholera. None feel that they can celebrate the holy month this year.

The camp itself is a collection of yellow and beige tents near al-Sabeen Hospital, created to isolate the spread of cholera, a highly infectious condition, from the other medical facilities. Doctors and medical staff move from shelter to shelter, avoiding the guy ropes. There is no floor as such, just gravel. Patients lie in beds under canvas or else on bare earth outside, shaded by trees. Their families try to fast but there is nowhere for them to sleep during the day, as they customarily do. So they suffer.

Nurses and the patients' families try to sterilise the camp, and remove the smell of vomit and diarrhoea that permeates everywhere. Parents pray to Allah for their loved one’s lives, creating an air of spirituality. When a new patient arrives at the camp, the relatives of those already there welcome them as if they were from the same family, helping them find a fresh bed.

It’s not only the families of cholera victims who are not celebrating Ramadan this year. Many poor families hit by the war and the economic crisis have stopped observing the holy month and are now struggling to secure food and basic commodities.

One of the five pillars of Islam is the payment of zakat to help the poor. But this year, even the well-off find themselves struggling.

On the streets of Sanaa, businesses such as clothes shops and sweet stalls – which usually thrive during holy month - are struggling, a sign of how the economic crisis continues to bite – by Nasser al-Sakkaf

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/ramadan-time-cholera-how-yemen-marks-holy-month-250925305

21.6.2017 – SBS (* B H)

What it's really like to work on the ground in a humanitarian crisis

Shabia Mantoo works for UNHCR on the ground in Yemen, a country suffering one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. Mantoo tells SBS what it's really like to bear witness to happenings on the ground.

For Mantoo, working on the ground, each day is a little different. “My work covers the whole country so I make sure I get out to a different field office each month,” she says. “I work very closely with our field and programmatic units and with displaced and refugee communities, humanitarian partners, the media and the Yemeni public.”

It’s an immensely satisfying vocation, she says. “There is nothing as rewarding as being part of the collective effort to save lives and alleviate suffering of those most vulnerable in the most dire of circumstances. I believe humanitarianism is truly universal and is what defines the human condition.”

That said, she acknowledges it’s not a career for everyone. “Working in response to humanitarian crises means that at times you end up in active conflict zones like in Yemen so personal safety is always a concern. It also means extended periods away from family and friends.”

Despite the hardship faced by much of the country’s population, it remains mostly a forgotten crisis, says Mantoo. “Yemen is an inventory of misery and people are suffering abysmally. Despite the magnitude of the crisis, attention and support for the humanitarian response remains disproportionate. Many people the world over do not know what is happening in Yemen and the suffering of its people remain untold.”

Mantoo’s role is to support the humanitarian response in Yemen and the work of UNHCR in country by increasing awareness on the crisis and to make sure the situation on the ground gets out – “locally, regionally and globally”.

UNHCR’s work in Yemen - carried out in conjunction with its humanitarian partners and covering basic needs like shelter, health, food security, water, sanitation and hygiene - has been hindered by, what Mantoo says, is the international community’s limited response to the crisis. “To-date, less than 30 per cent of funding has been received which impacts on the amount of people we can reach with essential and life-saving support.”

But most importantly, she adds, she hopes that in addition to financial support, that people the world over could “have more empathy and understanding of the plight and condition of people who are affected by conflict and forcibly displaced”. – By Nicola Heath

http://www.sbs.com.au/topics/life/culture/article/2017/06/21/what-its-really-work-ground-humanitarian-crisis

21.6.2017 – UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (* A H)

Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O’Brien Remarks at the High Level Event on Famine Prevention and Response, Geneva, 21 June 2017

As the Ambassador stated, confronting the complex challenges facing the world today, including this crisis, requires a holistic approach. Our approach must be multi-sectoral, delivering food at the same time as we protect civilians, vaccinate children, restore basic services, and rebuild livelihoods. It must cut across the humanitarian-development nexus, meaning we complement immediate life-saving activities with longer-term action that reduces vulnerability and risks, and builds resilience. We must demonstrate, very clearly, that investing in preventative approaches today means reducing the very need for humanitarian assistance and thereby the long-term costs of emergency response.

A holistic approach also means stepped-up political action to end conflict, the root cause of these crises, and to promote respect for international humanitarian law. Each of us – whether we work for a UN agency, development bank, NGO, regional organization, the private sector, or indeed donor agencies – each has a critical role to play. Only by working together, with new ideas and new partnerships, can we avert famine and put people on the path to recovery, health and well-being.
Before we move to the panel discussion, I would like to share a few key points to frame the discussion.

First, despite the robust humanitarian response in north-east Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen, the situation remains, as we speak, dire. Famine has been prevented from spreading for now, but needs have not decreased and all four countries remain in crisis.

What we do know is that humanitarian assistance works and can pull people back from famine.

Second, we must immediately mobilize additional funding to support the ongoing response across all four countries.

We are already seeing the very real consequences of underfunding. In north-east Nigeria, at least 300,000 people are without food assistance and livelihoods support tonight due to funding shortages. In Yemen, lack of funds means that only 3.3 million people out of 17 million in need are receiving full assistance tonight.

Third, we must support the efforts of humanitarian and development actors as they operationalize the New Way of Working. For donors, this means providing more flexible and risk-tolerant funding for development programmes to be implemented in fragile and conflict-affected areas, and more multi-year funding for humanitarian assistance to maximize impact and build resilience in protracted contexts. For the United Nations and our partners, this means we must break down silos within and across organizations and think creatively of how to provide medium-term assistance to reduce vulnerability and impoverishment, even in areas with ongoing conflict. We need to look at new ways of sharing data and conducting joint analysis, and of reaching the most vulnerable first, within the broader framework of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Lastly, it is essential that the international community does all it can to end conflict. The crises in each of these four countries, even if exacerbated by drought, are primarily manmade and they are all preventable.

http://reliefweb.int/report/south-sudan/under-secretary-general-humanitarian-affairs-and-emergency-relief-coordinator-12 and PDF: http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/USG-ERC%20OBrien%20remarks%20at%20High-Level%20Famine%20Event.pdf

20.6.2017 – NPR (* B H)

She may be the most unstoppable scientist in the world

Dauqan is a woman scientist in what's possibly the hardest place on Earth to be just a woman: Yemen.

The World Economic Forum ranks Yemen as the worst country for women's rights. In Yemen, it's illegal for women to just leave the house without permission from a male relative.

"If she goes out with her husband or brother, that's OK. But not by herself. " Dauqan says. "Not everyone follows this. But this is our culture."

A culture where two-thirds of women can't read. About half are married by age 18 and sometimes as young as age 8.

And then there's the black veil. Many women in Yemen wear a niqab — a black veil that completely covers their faces, fromexcept for a tiny slit across the eyes.

Daquan wears a niqab when she's in Yemen. She even wore one during her TEDx talk there back in 2014. But she doesn't wear one in other countries.

"I cover my face [in Yemen] because I respect the culture," Dauqan says. "I respect the culture."

She may respect it but not blindly. For the past decade, Dauqan has burst through glass ceiling after glass ceiling with fearlessness and grace.

Even as a young girl, she was rebel. "I was a little naughty," she says with a snicker.

She liked breaking rules. And proving people wrong

'They Were Just Sleeping'

In March 2015, Dauqan's hometown of Taiz got pulled into Yemen's bloody civil war. Planes started flying over head, dropping bombs — even on homes and schools.

"They were bombing my university!" Dauqan exclaims. "They killed some of my students.

"It was really bad. Really bad," she says. "I'll show you."

Dauqan turns to her computer and brings up some photos. On the screen is a photo of several bodies laying flat on the ground. The bodies are covered in white sheets, with only their faces showing.

"This is nine person from my family," she says. "They were sleeping. And a bomb hit their house. They all died. Nine person from my family."

A few of the bodies are small.

"Those are two children in our family," Dauqan adds. "They were just sleeping."

And then they were gone — Dauqan's cousins on her father side and their sons and daughters.

"That is why I leave my country," she says.

'I Have To Be Strong. I Want To Be Strong'

After the bombings began, Dauqan had to stop her research. The university shut down. And it wasn't safe for her to leave home. She was trapped in a city where snipers target children and bombs fall on mosques, schools and markets.

During one month of 2015, doctors treatedmore than 4,000 civilians in a Taiz hospital, the nonprofit Doctors Without Borders reported. MSF hospitals have been hit with bombs four times.

Across Yemen, about 10,000 civilians have been killed in the war and more than 40,000 have been wounded. the U.N. reports. More than 370,000 children are now malnourished because they can't get food.

And then one day, after spending months in hiding, Dauqan had an idea: Maybe her science could get her out of the war – by Michaeleen Doucleff

http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2017/06/20/530803655/she-may-be-the-most-unstoppable-scientist-in-the-world

6.6.2017 – Mona Relief (A H)

Monareliefye.org delivering needy families in Bani al-Harith area 70 food baskets in Sana’a

https://www.monareliefye.org/single-post/2017/06/07/Monareliefyeorg-delivering-needy-families-in-Bani-al-Harith-area-70-food-baskets-in-Sana%E2%80%99a

cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis

21.6.2017 – New News (A K P)

Support Convoy of Dhamar for the army and the committees

Tribes of Hadaa, Jahran, Aanis and Madeena provided a financial and nutritional convoy as the first stage of the Eid caravans that will head to the fronts during the days of , Eid Al-Fitr according to al-Masirah website.

The organizers of the supportive operation confirmed that the convoy will be followed by many convoys from several other districts despite the Saudi blockade imposed by land, sea and air and the prevention of salary payments for state employees as an ongoing tough economic war is taking place.

In the communique of the convoy suppliers, they condemned the continued US-Saudi war and its war crimes against Yemeni people, stressing that “”the more aggressive the war is, the more the Yemeni people become rugged and resistant to confront and deter”.

http://newnewss.net/?p=6776

21.6.2017 – Asharq Al-Awsat (A P)

Pro-Saleh Bloc Struggles to Retain Political Weight in Yemen

Yemen’s General People’s Congress a predominantly nationalist bloc backing the ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh have been increasingly holding conferences and meetings in insurgency-held areas without their coup ally, Iran-allied Houthis.

“There is a large effort being spent on rallying supporters in local and residential neighborhoods—such as hosting Ramadan evenings in hopes of mobilizing loyalists, not only in Sanaa, but across other provinces such as Jawf, Amran and Dhamar,” said a Sanaa-based party leader.

People’s Congress Party Leader Yasser al-Awadhi, said in statements quoted by the party’s official website, that the campaign is “to bring together supporters.”

He reiterated the party’s support for the insurgency pro-Saleh loyalists staged hand in hand with Iran-backed Houthis – by Arafat al-Ahdal

https://english.aawsat.com/arafat-adhal/news-middle-east/pro-saleh-bloc-struggles-retain-political-weight-yemen

My comment: Saudi media and its wording.

20.6.2017 – Al Sahwa (A P)

Houthi-Saleh militias use new torture methods

Informed sources in Sana'a have revealed that the Houthi-Saleh militias have recently used new methods of torture against abductees and forcedly disappeared persons.

The sources spelt out that the militias dig holes and put abductees and forcedly disappeared persons to be constantly stand up and sleep inside them.

They further cited that the militias shot fire on the abductees and forcedly disappeared persons, affirming that one of them was wounded at his hand.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-7928

My comment: all sides in Yemen commit torture. This report of course can be true, but keep in mind that it’s from a biased Islah Party propaganda media.

21.6.2017 – Yemen Today (A)

Film. Heavy damage caused by torrential flooding in Ibb

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NF3m4EzQZoM

cp6 Südjemen und Hadi-Regierung / Southern Yemen and Hadi-government

22.6.2017 – Nasser Arrabyee (A T)

Huyam Nadeem,is mother of 3 daughters, principal of mixed school.She was kidnapped while shopping,killed by Qaeda/ISIS of Taiz central Yemen (graphic photo)

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/877904306006933506

This is HOW Qaeda/ISIS deals with women in Taiz central Yemen where they receive money&weapons from Trump-emboldened Saudis (graphic photos)

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/877905117273509890

21.6.2017 – Critical Threats (A)

Yemen Security Brief

Gunmen robbed al Omgy Bank in Sheikh Othman district, Aden city on June 20. Men wearing masks and military uniforms broke into the bank and stole $80,000, according to bank management. [5]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-june-21-2017 and http://almasdaronline.com/article/92185

21.6.2017 – New News (* A K P)

The Aggression Coalition Turns Civilian institutions into Military Camps for UAE soldiers and Sudanese Mercenaries in Almukha City

Military source told, US and Saudi aggression have a new camps for the Saudi mercenaries in Al Makha-west of Yemen. The source clarified that Saudi-led coalition had shifted a number of government constructions into camps for Emirates troops and sudanese’ mercenaries in Al Makha.

The source said “The residential city for electricity workers is one of the governmental establishments has used as military camps for mercenaries . Also,Almakha port has became military camp for the military tanks and vehicles.

The source pointed out that Sudanese soldiers are being camping at the headquarters of the Water Corporation in Mukha, the Electricity Corporation, in addition to the government institutions .

http://newnewss.net/?p=6767

21.6.2017 – Almasdar Online (A P)

Foreign Minister: Sudan to take care of Yemenis’ interests in Qatar

Yemeni Foreign Minister Abdul Malik al Mekhlafi announced that Sudan will take care of Yemenis’ interests in Qatar, after the Yemeni government had decided to boycott Qatar and withdraw its diplomatic mission from there.

Al Mekhlafi had called Sudan's foreign minister to arrange the Sudanese embassy in Doha to look after Yemeni interests, the official Saba news agency reported. The Yemeni diplomatic mission continued to stay in Qatar even after the government had taken the decision to boycott Qatar, and media reported that the Yemeni embassy in Doha had received a request from the Qatari government to leave within 48 hours.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/92166 and by Sudan Tribune: http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article62790

Comment: Easily explained: Sudan, part of the Coalition (bombing Yemen), will represent the interests of #Yemen's government in exile in Saudi Arabia (bombing Yemen) in Qatar after Qatar kicked out Yemen's diplomatic mission as a result of the squabble between Saudi Arabia with the UAE and Qatar. The saga continues

https://www.facebook.com/SaudiArabia.war.crimes.against.Yemen/posts/1691272984502022

21.6.2017 – Almasdar Online (A T)

Tribal leader and a civilian killed, others injured in attack on 1st Military Region commander in Hadramout

A tribal leader and another civilian were killed in an attack on the commander of the First Military Region in Shibam Hadramout city in southeastern Yemen on Tuesday evening, a statement for the region stated.

Unknown gunmen have attacked a mediation committee led by the Commander of the First Military Region General Saleh Tamis, and fired a barrage of fire at him, killing the tribal leader Awad al-Abed al-Jabri and another citizen. Added the statement.

Tamis and the Head of Operations of the Region Brigadier General Mohammad Naji al-Mahmashi were slightly wounded, in addition to one of the security personnel and another citizen. According to the statement.

The committee was working on bringing peace between two tribes of Hadramout, after the killing of a member of the al-Katheer tribe earlier," said the statement.

However, the statement did not mention who was behind the attack, which took place in Jaima area of Shibam district, where cease fire agreement between the two tribes was supposed to be concluded.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/92164

21.6.2017 – Almasdar Online (A T)

Four civilians injured by explosive device explosion west of al Dalea province

http://almasdaronline.com/article/92162

20.6.2017 – Ayad (A P)

Activist Sonia Abdo Noman is Subjected to repressive practices brutal torture #Aden prisons after lured from #Taiz (photo)

https://twitter.com/maddllock/status/877332497717018629

20.6.2017 – Critical Threats (* A K P)

Yemen Security Brief

The diplomatic rift between Saudi Arabia and Qatar weakens the internationally recognized Yemeni government’s coalition in central Yemen. Tribal forces withdrew from a battle against al Houthi-Saleh forces in al Bayda governorate on June 20 to protest the inclusion of a local leader on a terror watch list released by Saudi Arabia on June 8. The list designated Abdu al Rahman al Humayqani, the Secretary General of the al Rashad Union party and advisor to President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi, as a terrorist facilitator for providing financial support to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) [1]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-june-20-2017

20.6.2017 – Critical Threats (* A K P)

Yemen Security Brief

Emirati-backed al Hizam security forces arrested a suspected al Mihdhar Brigade militant in Sheikh Othman district, Aden city on June 20. Gunfire during the raid killed one civilian and wounded one al Hizam soldier. The al Mihdhar Brigade is a Saudi-backed Salafi militia that operates in southern Yemen. Al Mihdhar Brigade leadership denied any connection to the militant. The director of the Sheikh Othman district mediated an end to the fighting.[4]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-june-20-2017

20.6.2017 – AFP (A)

Clashes in south Yemen kill six civilians

Clashes between Yemeni security forces and gunmen in the southern city of Aden on Tuesday left six civilians dead, a security official said.

The fighting erupted when security forces stormed a house in the Omar al-Mukhtar neighbourhood and arrested a man suspected of being a member of the Islamic State jihadist group, the official said.

Shortly after the operation, unidentified gunmen from the district attacked a checkpoint, triggering clashes that lasted for around three hours.

Three other civilians were wounded in the gunfight, the official said.

http://www.france24.com/en/20170620-clashes-south-yemen-kill-six-civilians

cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks

21.6.2017 – UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (* A K P)

Statement by the Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen, Mr. Jamie McGoldrick, on the continued violations of international humanitarian law in Yemen

Targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure in Yemen continues during the holy month of Ramadan despite my repeated calls and the calls from the international community, including the UN Security Council, to all parties to the conflict to respect their obligations under international humanitarian and human rights laws.

On 17 June, at least 22 civilians, including six children, were reported killed and injured in a series of air attacks on a market in Sa’ada Governorate, near the border with Saudi Arabia. There were no reported military targets in the proximity of the market at the time of the attack, and no warning was issued to civilians in the area.

On 19 June, the power lines to the main water supply system in Dhamar City were damaged as a result of military activity, affecting one million people who rely on this water source and putting them at greater risk of death given the current fast-spreading cholera outbreak in Yemen.

Following the attacks on the market in Sa’ada, the European Union and others in the international community have expressed concern over the reported deaths of civilians, noting that this is a stark reminder that Yemeni civilians are the ones bearing the brunt of a war that has devastated their country.

The disregard for the loss of civilian lives and damage to civilian infrastructure at a time of great need, due to the combined effects of the cholera outbreak and the looming famine, continues to shock me and must end. Wars have laws and I implore that all parties to the conflict uphold their responsibilities to comply with international humanitarian and human rights laws. The warring parties must distinguish between the civilian population and combatants at all times, and between civilian objects and military objectives; and must take all feasible precautions to minimize harm to civilians and civilian objects.

http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/statement-humanitarian-coordinator-yemen-mr-jamie-mcgoldrick-continued-violations and PDF: http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/FINAL_%20HC%20Statement%20on%20Yemen_21June%2017_EN.pdf

My comment: Broad reporting on this raid YPR 314, cp1b. – Be aware that by no word is mentioned that these air raids were conducted by the Saudi coalition. There is just an appeal to all “warring parties”. Just not mentioning those who are responsible – in case it’s the Saudi coalition – fits to the general political bias of the UN, see the following:

21.6.2017 – Middle East Monitor (* A P)

The UN is playing down Saudi-UAE human rights abuses in Yemen

The UN Security Council has adopted a Presidential Statement calling on “all parties to the conflict [in Yemen] to engage constructively and in good faith to overcome obstacles and find a peaceful solution.” Although this is a positive step in what is a volatile and complex conflict, the statement seems to be one-sided to say the least. A heavy emphasis is placed on the violations of the Houthis and ex-President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s forces, without mentioning specifically the Saudi-led coalition air strikes against civilians, or the recent expose of enforced disappearances and imprisonment by UAE-backed forces.

The Security Council places far too much attention on the Houthi-Saleh alliance, and fails to make mention of Saudi Arabia’s indiscriminate air strikes in Houthi territory

The release of such a statement by the Security Council may be perceived by parties to the conflict as adopting a one-sided position on Yemen. This can have dangerous consequences.

The Security Council called upon forces allied with former President Ali Abdullah Saleh and the Houthis to “cease all attacks at Saudi Arabia”, without taking into account the rationale behind the attacks.

The conflict in Yemen will only be resolved with an “inclusive political process”, according to the Presidential Statement. There’s no denying that the conflict has reached stalemate, with parties involved fighting an endless war without any military achievements in the past few months.

Thus a political settlement is the only way forward, dependent upon it being “inclusive” in its entirety. The main actors in the conflict must be included: the Houthis in the North, the Hirak movement in the South wishing to secede from the North and central Yemen, and the transitional government led by Hadi. The Saudi-led coalition must not be in a position to influence the future governance structure of Yemen, as has been seen with the UAE in southern Yemen – by Khalil Dewan

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20170621-the-un-is-playing-down-saudi-uae-human-rights-abuses-in-yemen/

My comment: Absolutely true.

cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia

Prinz Salman: Auch in cp1 / Prince Salman: Also at cp1

22.6.2017 – M Rafique (* A P)

Film: #Rohingya who are behind the bars in #Saudi Arabia appeal for their release. Many are for many years without trial or legal representative.

https://twitter.com/Rafiquerhg/status/876211425710153738

21.6.2017 – Reuters (* A P)

Modernisierer wird neuer Kronprinz in Saudi-Arabien

Saudi-Arabiens König Salman hat mit der Ernennung seines erst 31-jährigen Sohns Mohammed bin Salman zum neuen Kronprinzen die Machtfrage im Herrscherhaus geklärt und den Modernisierungskurs festgezurrt.

In einem königlichem Dekret bestimmte der 81-Jährige den Verteidigungsminister und Chefaufseher des weltgrößten Öl-Konzerns Aramco am Mittwoch zu seinem ersten Erben und Vize-Regierungschef. 31 der 34 Mitglieder des Nachfolgeeausschusses der Herrscherfamilie Saud hätten der Regelung zugestimmt, hieß es in dem Dekret. Der bisherige Kronprinz Mohammed bin Najef, der aller Ämter enthoben wurde, schwor Mohammed öffentlich Treue. Der Neffe des Königs hatte unter anderem seit Jahren die Terrorismusbekämpfung geleitet.

Mohammed bin Salman war bereits als Vize-Kronprinz zuständig für den Kriegseinsatz im Jemen. In der Energiepolitik stellte er die Weichen, um das Königreich unabhängiger vom Erdöl zu machen. Mit der Entscheidung legte der König zusätzliche Macht in die Hände seines neuen Kronprinzen - seine bisherigen Ämter behält Mohammed. Ein neuer Vize-Kronprinz wurde nicht mehr ernannt.

Das saudiarabische Fernsehen zeigte Bilder, wie Najef kniend Mohammed die Hand küsste. "Ich bin zufrieden", wurde Najef zitiert. Der Kronprinz antwortete, er setze weiter auf den Rat seines Cousins. Unterstützung erhielt Mohammed auch vom Rat der religiösen Gelehrten. Der Sender Al-Arabija berichtete, der König habe für den Abend in Mekka ein öffentliches Loyalitätsbekenntnis für seinen Sohn angeordnet.

Die Ernennung Mohammeds zum designierten Nachfolger des als gesundheitlich angeschlagen geltenden Königs war erwartet worden. Allerdings kam der Schritt wegen des vergleichsweise jungen Alters des Erben überraschend schnell. Experten zufolge gelang es dem König, einen Machtkampf zu verhindern, der angesichts des Konflikts im Jemen, der Spannungen mit dem Iran und mit Katar sowie der wirtschaftlichen Lage höchst ungelegen gekommen wäre.

Als Verteidigungsminister verfügt der neue Kronprinz über einen der größten Militäretats der Welt. Zudem steht er in der Hauptverantwortung für das saudiarabische Eingreifen in den Bürgerkrieg im Jemen – Von Stephen Kalin und William Maclean

https://de.reuters.com/article/saudi-arabien-kronprinz-idDEKBN19C0RZ

Mein Kommentar: Mit „Modernisierer“ singt Reuters in Überschrift wie dann auch im Tenor des Artikels ein Loblied auf den Prinzen. Dass er der Hauptverantwortliche für die wesentlich aggressivere Außenpolitik seines Landes ist, fällt bis auf einen knappen Hinweis auf den Jemenkrieg ganz unter den Tisch. Da lobe ich mir mal wieder RT (s. cp1). Interessant ist, inwieweit sich die deutsche Reuters-Version von der deutlich kritischeren englischen unterscheidet (s. unten)

21.6.2017 – T-Online (* A P)

Saudi-Arabien: König bringt Thronfolger in Stellung

In Saudi-Arabien hat der König einen neuen Kronprinzen bestimmt. Sein 31-jähriger Sohn Mohammed bin Salman soll irgendwann die Geschicke des Landes lenken.

Mohammed bin Salman ersetzt Mohammed bin Najef, der bislang die Stellung als erster Erbe der Thronfolge innehatte. Dies geht aus einem königlichen Erlass hervor, den die staatliche Nachrichtenagentur Spa veröffentlichte. Die Entscheidung kommt nicht ganz überraschend: Mohammed bin Salman wurde von seinem Vater seit dessen Thronbesteigung 2015 in Stellung gebracht.

Der vorher weitgehend unbekannte junge Mann wurde Verteidigungsminister des Landes, kümmert sich federführend um das Riesenprojekt "Vision 2030", das die Wirtschaft des Landes umbauen soll, und vertritt seinen gebrechlichen Vater bereits bei wichtigen Auslandsreisen. Nur sein Alter wurde als mögliches Hindernis für eine Nachfolge gesehen.

Dem arabischen Nachrichtenkanal Al-Arabija zufolge wurde die Entscheidung des Königs vom Nachfolgeausschuss des Landes mit 31 von 34 Stimmen bestätigt. Die Einführungszeremonie solle am Mittwochabend gehalten werden.

http://www.t-online.de/nachrichten/ausland/id_81476266/koenig-saudi-arabiens-erklaert-seinen-sohn-zum-kronprinzen.html

Mein Kommentar: Damit ist der lang schwelende Machtkampf zwischen den beiden entschieden. der jüngere, dynamischere und aggressivere hat sich durchgesetzt. Entscheidend auf Prinz Salman geht die entschieden aggressivere Außenpolitik Saudi-Arabiens zurück. Sie wird jetzt noch aggressiver werden. Was der Artikel gar nicht erwähnt: Auch der Jemenkrieg ist von Prinz Salman angeschoben worden, vor allem deswegen, um sich durch einen schnellen Erfolg (der dann nicht kam) im internen Machtpoker zu profilieren: Ein Mann, der im wahrsten Sinne des Wortes über Leichen geht.

21.6.2017 – Tagesspiegel (* A P)

Der ehrgeizige Prinz - was die neue Thronfolge bedeutet

Mohammed bin Salman gilt als starker Mann Saudi-Arabiens. Jetzt steigt er zum Thronfolger auf. Der 31-Jährige will das Land modernisieren und zur Führungsmacht der arabischen Welt machen. Eine Analyse

Nun ist der Weg frei für einen Mann, den viele Beobachter für besonders ehrgeizig halten. Einige sehen in ihm sogar eine regelrechte Gefahr. Denn er gilt als geltungssüchtig und übermotiviert. Das wirkt sich vor allem auf die saudische Außenpolitik aus. Schon Ende 2015 stellte der Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND) dem neuen Thronfolger ein wenig schmeichelhaftes Zeugnis aus.

In einer internen, gleichwohl an die Öffentlichkeit gelangten Analyse heißt es unter anderem: „Die bisherige vorsichtige diplomatische Haltung der älteren Führungsmitglieder der Königsfamilie wird durch eine impulsive Interventionspolitik ersetzt.“ Im Klartext: Die Behörde warnt vor einem aggressiven außenpolitischen Kurs Riads.

Gerade mit Blick auf Saudi-Arabiens Kriegseinsatz im südlichen Nachbarland Jemen wird laut dem deutschen Auslandsdienst deutlich, dass die Golfmonarchie bereit ist, beispiellose „militärische, finanzielle und politische Risiken einzugehen, um regionalpolitisch nicht ins Hintertreffen zu geraten“.

In der Tat gehört Mohammed bin Salman als Verteidigungsminister zu den vehementen Verfechtern der Intervention.

Mohammed bin Salman verwendet viel Mühe darauf, sich selbst als entschlossener Gegner Teherans zu inszenieren. Erst Anfang Mai erteilte er jedem Dialog mit dem Iran eine Absage.

In ihrer „Iranoia“ dürften sich die saudischen Herrscher wohl auch von US-Präsident Donald Trump bestätigt fühlen – von Christian Böhme

http://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/saudi-arabien-der-ehrgeizige-prinz-was-die-neue-thronfolge-bedeutet/19962554.html

21.6.2017 – Huffington Post (* A P)

5 Gründe, warum ihr den neuen Kronprinzen Saudi-Arabiens kennen müsst - und warum er so gefährlich ist

Der 31-Jährige spricht viel von wirtschaftlicher und gesellschaftlicher Liberalisierung - ist aber auch ein unbarmherziger Kriegstreiber

Tatsächlich aber ist Mohammed bin Salman ein äußerst gefährlicher Mann, der das Pulverfass im Nahen Osten endgültig zur Explosion bringen könnte.

Hier sind 5 Dinge, die ihr über den zukünftigen Herrscher Saudi Arabiens wissen solltet.

1. Er plant den wohl ambitioniertesten Wirtschaftsumbau der Gegenwart

2. "Der gefährlichste Mann der Welt"

Bill Law, Nahost-Experte und Journalist beim "Independent", bezeichnete Mohammed bin Salman Anfang in einem seiner Artikel als den "gefährlichsten Mann der Welt".

Knapp ein Jahr zuvor, im März 2015, hatte bin Salman Saudi-Arabien als damaliger Verteidigungsminister in einen brutalen Krieg im Nachbarland Jemen gestürzt.

3. Der BND hat schon 2015 vor Mohammed bin Salman gewarnt

4. Bin Salman führt einen Schattenkrieg mit dem Iran

Mohammed bin Salman "will sich und Saudi-Arabien als unangefochtenen Führer im Golf-Kooperationsrat und in der arabischen Welt präsentieren", sagt Experte Sons der HuffPost. Der harte Kurs des Landes gegen den Iran sei so auch ihm geschuldet - das zeige nicht nur der Stellvertreterkrieg im Jemen, sondern auch die Katar-Krise.

Der aufmüpfige Nachbar Katar und der Rivale Iran sollen in die Schranken gewiesen werden", sagte Sons der HuffPost. Unter Mohammed bin Salman habe es deshalb eine "Abkehr von der saudi-arabischen Scheckbuch-Diplomatie, hin zu einer aggressiven Außenpolitik" gegeben.

5. Bin Salman ist für den Westen und die Weltgemeinschaft schwer ausrechenbar

Außenpolitisch ist Mohammed bin Salman relativ unerfahren", sagt Experte Sons. "Er will eine stärkere Rolle für Saudi-Arabien, präsentiert sich aggressiv. Aber er ist unberechenbarer als die ältere Generation der Herrscher in Saudi-Arabien."

Und das wird dramatische Folgen haben. Für den Nahen Osten - und die ganze Welt – von Josh Groeneveld

http://www.huffingtonpost.de/2017/06/21/5-grunde-warum-ihr-mohammed-bin-salman-kennen-musst---und-warum-er-so-gefahrlich-ist_n_17238960.html

21.6.2017 – NTV (* A P)

Das ist der künftige König der Saudis

Erst 31 Jahre alt ist Mohammed bin Salman - und bereits einer der einflussreichsten Männer in Saudi-Arabien. Vater und König Salman befördert den machthungrigen Prinzen nun zu seinem Nachfolger.

Rasch wurde Beobachtern klar, dass sein Vater den erkennbar machthungrigen Sprössling gerne als seinen Nachfolger sehen würde.

Bin Salman nutzte seinen direkten Zugang zum Thron, um dem Land seinen Stempel aufzudrücken. Es gibt seit 2015 kaum eine politische Initiative der Saudis, die nicht auch die Handschrift des neuen starken Mannes am Golf trägt.

Die deutlichsten Akzente setzte er als Verteidigungsminister – diesen Posten übernahm bin Salman mit der Thronbesteigung seines Vaters. Bin Salman will dem Königreich militärisch in der Region Achtung verschaffen. Als Vehikel dazu dient ihm der Bürgerkrieg im Jemen. Er stellte bereits nach wenigen Wochen eine Koalition zusammen, die die vom Iran unterstützten, schiitischen Huthi-Rebellen im Jemen bekämpfen sollte.

Militärisch gilt die Operation als gescheitert. So sehr der ausbleibende Erfolg im Jemen bin Salmans Regierungsbilanz zu schmälern droht - er versteht es, die Intervention als höhere Mission darzustellen. In einem TV-Interview beschwor er die Notwendigkeit, den in der Ära von Ex-US-Präsident Barack Obama aufs diplomatische Parkett zurückbeförderten Iran zu bekämpfen. Es sei das Ziel des Iran, "die islamische Welt zu kontrollieren" - ein Vorwurf, der ebenso gut den Saudis gemacht werden könnte.

Der Machtwechsel in Washington stärkte bin Salmans Position jedenfalls auch in diesem Zusammenhang beträchtlich. Entscheidend dabei war der Besuch bin Salmans im Weißen Haus im März dieses Jahres. Dass der König seinen Vizekronprinzen zu diesem wichtigen Termin schickte und nicht den nun düpierten bin Nayef, sprach schon damals Bände.

Dass Trump nach seinem Gegenbesuch vor wenigen Wochen öffentlich seine Ächtung für den Nachbarn Katar äußerte, darf als Trophäe bin Salmans gewertet werden. Die Initiative für diesen Schritt geht Beobachtern zufolge von bin Salman und einem seiner engen Vertrauten, dem Kronprinz von Abu Dhabi, Muhammad bin Zayid, aus.

Profil gewann bin Salman dagegen auch schon früh auf dem ökonomischen Sektor. Er erkannte, dass die Zukunft des ölreichen Saudi-Arabiens bedroht ist, wenn das Land sein Schicksal weiter im Wesentlichen an diese eine Ressource bindet. Sein Vater erhob ihn nach seinem Amtsantritt zum Vorsitzenden des neu geschaffenen Hohen Wirtschaftsrats. In dieser Funktion betreibt er seither konsequent den wirtschaftlichen Umbau seines Landes.

Im April 2016 verkündete bin Salman den weitreichenden Plan "Vision 2030". Salman will die Wirtschaft seines Landes diversifizieren.

Parallel zu dem wirtschaftlichen Reformkurs betreibt bin Salman eine sanfte Öffnung des bislang in sich verschlossenen und traditionellen Königreichs. – Von Johannes Graf

http://www.n-tv.de/politik/Das-ist-der-kuenftige-Koenig-der-Saudis-article19900557.html

und weitere Artikel auf Deutsch:

http://www.faz.net/aktuell/politik/ausland/saudi-arabien-kronprinz-mohammed-bin-salman-15070906.html

https://web.de/magazine/politik/mohammed-salmanfast-koenig-kriegsherr-32389518

http://www.tagesanzeiger.ch/ausland/asien-und-ozeanien/lieblingssohn-und-volksunterhalter/story/23252682

21.6.2017 – AP (* A P)

Major Saudi Shakeup: King Salman Replaces Crown Prince With Son Mohammed Bin Salman

The newly announced Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who also serves as Saudi Arabia's defense minister and oversees a vast economic portfolio, had previously been second in line to the throne.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman on Wednesday appointed his 31-year-old son Mohammed bin Salman as crown prince, placing him firmly as first-in-line to the throne and removing the country’s counterterrorism czar and a figure well-known to Washington from the royal line of succession.

In a series of royal decrees carried on the state-run Saudi Press Agency, the monarch stripped Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, who had been positioned to inherit the throne, from his title as crown prince and from his powerful position as the country’s interior minister overseeing security.

The newly announced Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman already oversees a vast portfolio as defense minister and heads an economic council tasked with overhauling the country’s economy. He had previously been the second-in-line to the throne as deputy crown prince, though royal watchers had long suspected his rise to power under his father’s reign might also accelerate his ascension to the throne.

The royal decree issued Wednesday stated that “a majority” of senior royal members from the so-called Allegiance Council supported the recasting of the line of succession. Saudi Arabia’s state TV said 31 out of 34 of the council’s members voted in favor of the changes.

The Allegiance Council is a body made up of the sons and prominent grandsons of the founder of the Saudi state, the late King Abdul-Aziz, who vote to pick the king and crown prince from among themselves.

Over the weekend, the king had issued a decree restructuring Saudi Arabia’s system for prosecutions that stripped Mohammed bin Nayef of longstanding powers overseeing criminal investigations, and instead ordered that a newly-named Office of Public Prosecution and prosecutor report directly to the monarch.

The royal decree issued Wednesday stated that “a majority” of senior royal members from the so-called Allegiance Council supported the recasting of the line of succession. Saudi Arabia’s state TV said 31 out of 34 of the council’s members voted in favor of the changes.

The Allegiance Council is a body made up of the sons and prominent grandsons of the founder of the Saudi state, the late King Abdul-Aziz, who vote to pick the king and crown prince from among themselves.

Over the weekend, the king had issued a decree restructuring Saudi Arabia’s system for prosecutions that stripped Mohammed bin Nayef of longstanding powers overseeing criminal investigations, and instead ordered that a newly-named Office of Public Prosecution and prosecutor report directly to the monarch.

Mohammed bin Nayef was not believed to have played a significant role in Saudi and Emirati-led efforts to isolate Qatar for its support of Islamist groups and ties with Iran.

The prince had appeared to be slipping from public eye as his nephew, Mohammed bin Salman, embarked on major overseas visits, including a trip to the White House to meet President Donald Trump in March.

The newly-minted crown prince also raised eyebrows when he ruled out any chance of dialogue with Iran.

http://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/1.796934

21.6.2017 – AFP (* A P)

Yemen war, Qatar ban and Saudi’s economy: 3 things to watch as Mohammad bin Salman is named heir to throne

Mohammed bin Salman, named Saudi crown prince on Wednesday at the age of 31, inherits a historically conservative nation facing challenges at home and turmoil abroad.

Here are three key areas to watch as the prince becomes first in line to the most powerful throne in the Middle East.

- Yemen -

Prince Mohammed retains his position as defence minister, a post he held when Riyadh joined the war in neighbouring Yemen in 2015.

- Saudi economy -

Prince Mohammed is the chief architect of an ambitious plan to transform the Saudi economy by 2030 to reduce its dependence on oil and develop the private sector.

Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest exporter of oil, was dealt a serious blow when oil prices plummeted in 2014.

Under the “Vision 2030” plan, unveiled in April 2016, Saudi Arabia will sell nearly five percent of state-owned Aramco -- the world’s largest oil company reportedly worth between $2 trillion and $2.5 trillion.

- Qatar crisis -

Prince Mohammed is one of the prime movers behind Saudi Arabia’s decision earlier this month to isolate Qatar, accusing the gas-rich emirate of ties to Shiite rival Iran and of facilitating the financing, and function, of extremist groups.

As crown prince, and deputy prime minister, he will oversee the aftermath of what Qatar has called a “blockade” by Saudi Arabia and its allies the UAE and Bahrain.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/yemen-war-qatar-ban-and-saudi-s-economy-3-things-to-watch-as-mohammad-bin-salman-is-named-heir/story-Bx9hPzitSjrFPTX0tov1zH.html

21.6.2017 – Reuters (* A P)

Saudi king empowers young reformer son in succession shake-up

Saudi Arabia's King Salman made his son next in line to the throne on Wednesday, handing the 31-year-old sweeping powers as the kingdom seeks radical overhaul of its oil-dependent economy and faces mounting tensions with regional rival Iran.

Although Mohammed bin Salman's promotion to crown prince had long been expected among those who follow the royal family closely, the timing was a surprise, and puts the kingdom's future in relatively untested hands

His appointment may make Saudi policy more hawkish against arch-rival Iran and other Gulf rivals such as Qatar, increasing volatility in an already unstable region, analysts say.

"Under his watch, Saudi Arabia has developed aggressive foreign policies (Yemen, Qatar) and he has not been shy about making strong statements against Iran," said Olivier Jakob at Switzerland-based oil consultancy Petromatrix.

"It is not really a question of if, but rather of when, a new escalation with Iran starts," he added.

Iran, Saudi Arabia's main rival for regional influence, called Prince Mohammed's appointment a "soft coup" – By Stephen Kalin and William Maclean

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-succession-son-idUSKBN19C0AN and by Al Araby: https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2017/6/21/yemen-war-architect-set-to-be-next-saudi-king

21.6.2017 – Sputnik News (* A P)

Saudi Power Struggle Ends With King Promoting His Son to Be Heir

"The Saudi family may witness some disparity, but in the end they become very homogeneous when the throne is threatened. I don’t expect deep division and now Mohammad bin Salman is already in charge of Saudi Arabia," Hassan Nafaa, professor of political science at Cairo University, told Sputnik.

Saudi specialist Stephane Lacroix said two years ago that although Nayef's seniority made him next in line, King Salman’s son had been "acting as if he was the heir apparent, so this obviously creates tensions."

Prince Mohammed bin Salman will continue in his role as defense minister, despite the controversy surrounding Saudi Arabia's involvement in the civil war in neighboring Yemen.

King Salman may have acted in an attempt to defuse the tensions which were building up within the House of Saud.

In the past they have been known to end in violence and usurpation.

Prince Mohammed bin Salman will continue in his role as defense minister, despite the controversy surrounding Saudi Arabia's involvement in the civil war in neighboring Yemen.

King Salman may have acted in an attempt to defuse the tensions which were building up within the House of Saud.

In the past they have been known to end in violence and usurpation.

Prince Mohammed bin Salman has made a meteoric rise and is said to be popular with young Saudis, who believe he will reform the country and bring much-needed changes.

Despite being defense minister he has received little blame for Saudi Arabia's ineffective military campaign in Yemen, partly because of a heavily censored Saudi press. Professor Nafaa told Sputnik:

"The war in Yemen is not presented to the Saudi public as a failure. It is generally perceived as a defensive war because there was a direct threat to the Saudis by the infiltration of Iranians in Yemen's domestic affairs. He [Mohammed bin Salman] is not perceived as someone who has committed a great mistake. He might be able to find a political solution to that war. Once he becomes a king, he will no more need to make tough decisions and might be willing to find a political solution. The same with the Qatar crisis."

Commenting on bin Salman's position towards Iran, Professor Nafaa told Sputnik:

"I think he will continue to be very tough with Tehran. Iran is generally perceived as the main threat in the region. As far as the Arab-Israeli conflict is concerned, maybe Saudi Arabia will be more willing to cooperate with Israel against the Iranian threat. So with Iran, he will be tough and even tougher, while with Israel, he might be much more moderate."

https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201706211054833598-saudi-arabia-heir-change/

21.6.2017 – TASS (* A P)

Expert says new Saudi crown prince ready for compromise on Syria and Yemen

Prince Muhammad bin Nayef was considered to be pro-American, an expert points out

The appointment of Saudi Arabian Prince Mohammed bin Salman as crown prince marks "the logical conclusion of the period of changes in the highest levels of the country’s government," Lebanese expert on inter-Arab relations Nidal Sabi told TASS on Wednesday.

"It is obvious that King Salman’s decision to appoint his son as a crown prince, which was approved by the majority of the Allegiance Council members, had been agreed on with Washington during US President Donald Trump’s visit to Riyadh in May," the expert explained. He did not rule out that "increasing the role of the king’s son may have been the precondition for making multi-billion dollar deals with the US."

"In fact, the king’s move has put an end to the diarchy which was the result of a rivalry between Prince Muhammad bin Nayef and Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is the Defense Minister," Sabi added. In his opinion, the sudden crisis in Saudi Arabia’s relations with Qatar was some kind of a distraction aimed at paving the way for the replacement of the crown prince.

"In any case, it is clear that Saudi Arabia has left behind the 80-year old succession system stipulating that power is handed over to the sons of the country’s founder King Abdulaziz," Sabi noted. "This is a natural move, as otherwise Prince Mohammed bin Salman would have been the 14th in line to the throne," he added.

According to the Lebanese expert, with the new crown prince’s appointment, Saudi Arabia "will further toughen its policy towards Qatar and supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood." As for the international stage, Riyadh "will maintain its union with Cairo and Abu Dhabi." "Prince Mohammed bin Salman will implement the program for the liberalization of the country’s domestic life which he mentioned two months ago during his first meeting with US President Donald Trump in Washington," Sabi said.

"Making the country stronger and strengthening its position on the international level will be a priority for the crown prince," he stressed. "It can well be said that in order to achieve this goal, he would be ready to reach compromises concerning complex regional issues - the crises in Syria and Yemen."

http://tass.com/world/952701

My comment: Prince Salman is not less pro-American than is ousted cousin. And I doubt he will be willing to make any foreign policy compromises in Syria and Yemen – quite the contrary.

21.6.2017– Atlantic Council (* A P)

Expert Commentary on the Appointment of Mohammed bin Salman as Saudi’s New Crown Prince

Rafik Hariri Center experts were asked to comment on the crown prince’s appointment. Their answers are below.

Ambassador Frederic C. Hof
“The change in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's succession plan places on Washington the urgent and heavy responsibility to exercise assertive leadership in the Gulf region. The new Crown Prince accords great weight to the Saudi-American bilateral relationship and has invested heavily in building ties of trust and confidence with President Trump. No doubt he was counting on that relationship to generate support when he and his Emirati partners recently moved against Qatar. No doubt he counts on that relationship to help sustain a military campaign in Yemen whose catastrophic costs to the people of Yemen mount daily.

Dr. H.A. Hellyer

What that means for Saudi foreign policy is unclear—will the new power consolidation mean an escalation in terms of Saudi policy in Yemen, with Qatar or Iran? There is no certainty in that regard. This change appears to be fundamentally driven by domestic considerations—but it has impacts on Western policy particularly as Mohammed bin Nayef was seen as a reliable ally by many Western capitals, and he has now departed from the scene.

Richard LeBaron

“In the opaque clouds of Saudi decision-making, the predictable yet nonetheless surprising anointment of Mohammed Bin Salman doesn't offer any clear indicators of changes to Saudi policy.

He also might want to reflect on the tragedy of Yemen. Yemen is his problem, and it is going from bad to worse. Nothing the Saudis have done recently has improved their strategic position related to Iran.

Mohammed Alyahya

We're likely to see a continuation of policy.

http://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menasource/expert-commentary-on-the-appointment-of-mohammed-bin-salman-as-saudi-s-new-crown-prince

21.6.2017 – New York Times (* A P)

Saudi King Rewrites Succession, Replacing Heir With Son, 31

In favoring his son over Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, who is respected for his security acumen, the king, who is 81, also marginalized a large cadre of older princes, many with foreign educations and decades of government experience that the younger prince lacks. If Prince Mohammed bin Salman does succeed his father, he could give Saudi Arabia what it has not seen in more than a half-century: a young king with the potential to rule for decades.

“A lot of people are happy that a younger generation is coming to power, but those who are upset are the older generation,” who are not used to such dramatic change, said Joseph A. Kechichian, a senior fellow at the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, who has extensive contacts inside the family.

“This is a time when we really need some quiet diplomacy,” said Maha Yahya, the director of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut. “We need coolheaded politicians who are able to defuse tensions rather than inflame them. There has been a far more aggressive stance in Saudi foreign policy under King Salman, and now it might get worse.”

Prince Mohammed bin Salman faces great economic challenges, with low oil prices continuing to sap the state budget, scarce job opportunities for the kingdom’s youth and declining consumer confidence.

Prince Mohammed’s increasing power over the world’s largest oil exporter could have far-reaching consequences.

Traditionally, the Saudi royal family largely left the operation of the energy industry to technocrats, but Prince Mohammed has taken a more direct role – by Ben Hubbard

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/21/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-crown-prince-mohammed-bin-salman.html?smid=tw-share

21.6.2017 – Middle East Eye (* A P)

Four ways Mohammed bin Salman's rise will change Saudi Arabia

The annointed one is not a firefighter, nor a statesman. He will rule by iron fist, run erratic economic policies and likely light more fires in the region

The new appointment means a lot of things for the future of the kingdom - and all point to uncertainty brought about by the erratic Mohammed.

First, rule by a continuous iron fist at home will be entrenched. Mohammed bin Salman will silence any dissident voices while allowing limited personal freedoms organised by his new entertainment commission in charge of keeping Saudis moderately entertained.

It is common for dictators to allow their marginalised subjects certain forms of controlled fun, lest they implode from within. Women will also be symbols of a new Saudi consumer modernity and soon may be allowed to drive cars. In the future, Saudis will enjoy themselves up to a certain level without harassment by the religious police.

Mohammed bin Salman will continue to ignore a redundant, marginalised and discredited Wahhabi religious establishment. But with the dispersal of Saudis who had joined the Islamic State (IS) caliphate, and the possible return of those from Syria, he may expect a bumpy ride in the top seat.

Second, erratic economic policies that may not deliver the desired neoliberal economy - including weaning Saudi Arabia away from oil by 2020, shrinking the welfare state, privatisation and, most importantly, floating 5 percent of the Saudi oil company Aramco in international markets by September 2017 - will continue.

So one day, Mohammed bin Salman might announce that Saudis must tighten their belts, but another day he could reward them for their acquiescence by unfreezing public sector salaries and giving them extra holidays. A successful neoliberal paradise with less working days and low productivity may require miraculous intervention.

Losing the regional struggle

Third, Mohammed bin Salman will struggle to become a serious regional power on par with Turkey, Iran, and Israel. He has already alienated Turkey and Iran - the former sided with Qatar in the latest crisis. He also promised to bring the war deep inside Iran, a statement that ultimately amounts to a declaration of war.

Mohammed bin Salman does not seem to know the implications of his flamboyant statements. But he and IS share the same sectarian outlook and may well cooperate, especially after IS runs out of targets in Syria and Iraq. IS may be instructed to move its terrorism campaign to Iran after its defeat in Mosul and Raqqa.

Trump-MBS symbiosis

Fourth, Mohammed bin Salman will continue courting US President Donald Trump, exchanging weapon contracts and investment promises for continuous support - at least in public.

Mohammed bin Salman is not a capable fire fighter or a tactical statesman. He thinks only money solves problems but this has not enabled him to claim victories in the many wars and conflicts that he started. He is more likely to light further regional fires than extinguish existing ones – by - Professor Madawi Al-Rasheed

http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/salman-s-kingdom-royal-reshuffle-brings-young-mohammed-so-close-throne-1057438643

21.6.2017 – Voice of America (* A P)

Analysts: Appointment of New Saudi Crown Prince Is No Surprise

The appointment of Saudi King Salman's son, Mohammed bin Salman, to be the new crown prince, replacing his cousin, Mohammed bin Nayef, had long been rumored, but may have been precipitated by acute regional tensions, including the war in Yemen, the intensifying regional struggle with Iran, and the recent crisis with Qatar.

As the torch-bearer for a new generation, the new crown prince is reputed to have a more modern, less traditional outlook on governing the kingdom.

Riad Kahwaji, who heads the Dubai-based Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis (INEGMA), tells VOA that observers in the Gulf are expecting Mohammed bin Salman to continue most of the same Saudi foreign policy goals that he has been responsible for pursuing.

"The recent changes internally and with respect to Saudi foreign policy have largely had Mohammed bin Salman's influence in it, and therefore I don't expect to see any real changes with respect to Saudi foreign policy," he said.

He argues that analysts in the Gulf believe Saudi Arabia will "continue to take a hard line stance on Iran's [aggressive posture] in the region, especially in meddling in Arab affairs ... in Yemen, Syria, Iraq and elsewhere."

Hilal Khashan, who teaches political science at the American University of Beirut, calls the naming of Mohammed bin Salman to be Crown Prince a "palace coup," stressing that it marks not just the continuation of the status quo, but "an escalation in Saudi regional policies.

"We were expecting the ouster of Mohammed bin Nayef since last April, after the sweeping changes in the Saudi administration, [but] the fact that the transition happened officially [now] means that Saudi Arabia is facing a very tough regional situation and the crisis with Qatar is very demanding and very difficult and is not easy to win," said Khashan.

Well known Egyptian political sociologist Said Sadek tells VOA that King Salman may have been worried about "dying suddenly" and leaving behind a "power struggle." He suspects that the king may also have been concerned about ousted Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef's relations with Qatar – by Edward Yeranian

https://www.voanews.com/a/appointment-of-new-saudi-crown-prince/3909856.html

21.6.2017 – Stratfor (* A P)

Saudi Arabia's 'Mr. Everything' Is Now Crown Prince, Too

The move is a controversial one, considering it cuts large and powerful segments of the royal family out of the succession plan. And should the young bin Salman ascend the throne, it could mean Saudi Arabia will be ruled for six decades by father and son.

Today's announcement has several important implications. But none is as important as the amount of trust being placed in bin Salman, who has already amassed enough power to be dubbed "Mr. Everything" by some Western governments. As bin Salman has concentrated his power, bin Nayef has been increasingly sidelined. Today's reshuffle will only remove him from power even further, ousting him from his position at the head of the Interior Ministry and from all other leadership roles.

If bin Salman becomes king, he will be the youngest Saudi ruler in modern history, able to potentially preside over decades of policy and reform in the kingdom. The crown prince is known for spearheading the country's economic reform, an agenda he will likely continue to push, and he may well turn his attention to effecting social change as well.

Perhaps more important, bin Salman has a vested interest in trying to solve Saudi Arabia's long-term economic and social challenges, including its overreliance on the oil sector and growing calls for more social liberties.

Still, change will come at a price. Any effort to push the boundaries of social reform in the kingdom risks ruffling the feathers of the conservative clerical establishment, which many in the royal family view as the foundation of the House of Saud's legitimacy and support.

Bin Salman has also worked hard to build a close relationship with the United States. But bin Nayef's unseating removes a known partner to U.S. counterterrorism efforts. Bin Salman has skillfully portrayed himself as someone who is fully aligned with the United States in fighting terrorism.

With a long-term vision for reform, bin Salman has quickly risen within the halls of power.

https://worldview.stratfor.com/article/saudi-arabias-mr-everything-now-crown-prince-too

My comment: And again we see the propaganda bias emphasizing him to be a “reformer”. Salman’s aggressive foreign policy and the dangers it implies for the region and world-wide nearly totally are omitted.

21.6.2107 – Haaretz (* A P)

Saudi Arabia's New Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Is Good News for Israel and U.S.

Saudi crown prince Bin Salman agrees with U.S. on Russia, Assad, Iran and ISIS and according to some reports, he's also met with top Israeli officials

Until now, Mohammed bin Salman has been good news for Israel and the United States, as his firm anti-Iranian positions make him an important partner – and not only in the struggle against Iran. Bin Salman agrees with America on the need to thwart Russian influence in the region; to topple President Bashar Assad’s regime in Syria; and to act firmly against ISIS and other radical organizations, from the Muslim Brotherhood to Hezbollah. During the last two years, several Arab websites have reported that bin Salman also met with top Israelis.

According to these reports, one such meeting took place in Eilat in 2015; another on the margins of the Arab summit in Jordan this March, and there are regular meetings between Saudi and Israeli officers in the joint war room where Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United States coordinate.

In a series of tweets this week, the Saudi blogger known as “Mujtahidd” revealed a “plot” by Crown Prince bin Salman and the heir to the Abu Dhabi throne, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, to stage a coup in Qatar.

Mujtahidd – many of whose tweets have proven accurate, and who apparently relies on whispers from the Saudi Arabia monarchial court – wrote, among other things, that the two heirs intended to send Blackwater mercenaries (of Iraqi notoriety) to Qatar, together with forces from the UAE, to seize the government. After that, somebody from the ruling Al-Thani family who would be loyal to them would be appointed. Thusly, according to Mujtahidd, the two thought to reduce the crisis and bend Qatar to Saudi Arabia’s will. Based on these tweets, it was the United States that pressed, indirectly, to torpedo the notion.

By the way, this information has not been verified, and there is no certainty that these tweets rely on any actual fact.

Arab leaders like Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi and King Abdullah have felt the whip of Saudi foreign relations. Both have been lashed over their “behavior” – and they were punished, too.

The new crown prince was the living spirit behind all these decisions, which required no more than a formal nod from his father.

Potential opponents have already been “summoned for a chat” in the king’s court. The new interior minister, Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Nayef, is another youngster, just 34, and is very close to Mohammed bin Salman. From now on, he will be the one responsible for managing the struggle against internal terrorism. He will also be the crown prince’s partner in oppressing subversion – by Zvi Bar’el

http://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/.premium-1.797007

My comment: “Good news for Israel and the US” – mainly because Salman is expected to fuel tensions with Iran, that’s just crazy. In case he “succeeds”, this will just mean a terrible blowback for Israel in special. – Also interesting: the regular Israel Saudi consultations and the mentioned US-Israel-Saudi-Jordan “war room”. I ask: For which war should this be? Syria? Iraq? Yemen? Palestine?

21.6.2017 – Middle East Institute (* A P)

Saudi Prince’s Elevation Triggers Alarm in Tehran

Saudi King Salman’s appointment of his son Mohammed bin Salman to be first in line to the throne has sent shockwaves in Tehran. While the Iranian government has not officially reacted to the announcement yet, the country’s state media warn that the 31-year-old prince will pursue a more aggressive policy vis-à-vis Iran – pointing out that bin Salman has made explicit threats against the Islamic Republic, has cultivated close ties with the Trump administration, and has not shied away from confronting Iran’s proxies in Yemen, Syria and the broader region. These outlets predict that tension between Saudi Arabia and Iran will further increase and express the worry that Riyadh will work more closely with Washington and regional states to counter the Islamic Republic and its allies.

The most alarmist reports and opinion pieces were published in outlets affiliated with the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (I.R.G.C.). Tasnim News Agency, for example, called the succession announcement in Riyadh a “soft coup” and claimed it was approved by Washington, adding that the Trump administration is pleased with bin Salman’s anti-Iran stance. Fars News Agency, also an I.R.G.C. mouthpiece, called it a “political earthquake in Riyadh.” Another Fars article said President Donald Trump and bin Salman have developed a close rapport – citing the latest arms deal between Riyadh and Washington and the creation of a U.S.-backed “Arab NATO” to counter Iran’s regional ambitions. “Trump’s footprint is apparent in these decisions,” it alleged.

Implications for Iran

Iranian media also examined potential ramifications of the leadership change in Riyadh to Iran’s internal security and geopolitical interests in the Middle East – by Ahmad Khalid Majidya

http://www.mei.edu/content/article/io/saudi-prince-s-elevation-triggers-alarm-tehran

21.6.2017 – Hakim Almasmari, Yemen Post (A P)

Last year, I said that changes in Saudi Royal family will lead to end of #Yemen war. Now that it happened, hopefully end of war is near...

https://twitter.com/HakimAlmasmari/status/877579340388589568

My comment: This would be great but I really do not think so…

21.6.2017 – Reuters (A P)

Saudi restores civil service allowances retroactively as Crown Prince appointed

Saudi Arabia's government has restored financial allowances to civil servants and military personnel retroactively to mark the appointment of Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the post of crown prince.
Its budget pressured by low oil prices, Riyadh slashed the allowances last September to save money, but announced in April that it was restoring them to stimulate economic growth and because its first-quarter deficit was smaller than expected.
A royal order published by state news agency SPA on Wednesday, and which accompanied the announcement of Prince Mohammed's promotion, took the further step of restoring the allowances retroactively back to September.

https://www.zawya.com/mena/en/story/Saudi_restores_civil_service_allowances_retroactively_as_Crown_Prince_appointed-TR20170621nL8N1JI3BQX2/

Comment by Haykal Bafana: All Saudi 'reforms' now over.

https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/877564257285656576

21.6.2017 – The National UAE (A P)

Saudi royals head to Mecca to pledge allegiance to new crown prince

Amid regional tensions and economic uncertainty, an unprecedented generational power shift in Saudi Arabia was solidified on Wednesday with the promotion of Prince Mohammed bin Salman to crown prince.

Members of the royal Al Saud family and other prominent officials travelled to Mecca on Wednesday evening to pledge their allegiance to the new heir to the throne, after the ascension and other decrees that placed a number of young princes in prominent positions were announced early in the morning.

http://www.thenational.ae/world/middle-east/saudi-royals-head-to-mecca-to-pledge-allegiance-to-new-crown-prince

and some more articles:

https://news.vice.com/story/saudi-arabia-reformer-mohammed-bin-salman-is-behind-yemen-war

http://ahtribune.com/world/north-africa-south-west-asia/1737-coup-in-saudi-arabia.html

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jun/21/saudi-king-upends-tradition-by-naming-son-as-first-in-line-to-throne

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/06/saudi-arabia-appoints-king-salman-son-crown-prince-170621033707437.html

http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21723832-muhammad-bin-salman-should-curb-his-impetuousness-abroad-and-concentrate-reform-home

and this was just a few day before Salmans appointment:

16.6.2017 – Middle East Eye (* A P)

Salman vs Nayef: Rumours and ramblings in Saudi's game of thrones

Whispers abound about power grabs, comebacks and plots in the Saudi royal family. If they happen, they will have serious repercussions beyond the kingdom

rumours circulating that he is plotting to jump the queue to kingship and oust his cousin, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, with the approval of King Salman.

When he became king in 2015, Salman completely ignored the Committee of Allegiance, established by the late King Abdullah to regulate succession, and the latter’s wish that Salman respect the succession plan that he had put in place before he died.

With no legal restrictions on royal prerogatives in an absolute monarchy, Salman reshuffled the royal household with no challenges, but this prompted ramblings and rumours about current royal rivalries.

One rumour focuses on the rivalry between the two Mohammeds – by Madawi Al-Rasheed

http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/rumours-and-ramblings-saudis-kingdom-cousins-1179520440

and Prince Salman to become the next king was predicted already more than one year ago:

13.1.2016 –Institute for Gulf Affairs (*B P)

Exclusive: Saudi King to Abdicate to Son

Saudi King Salman Al-Saud plans to abdicate his throne and install his son Mohammed as king, multiple highly-placed sources told the Institute for Gulf Affairs.

According to sources familiar with the proceedings, Salman told his brothers that the stability of the Saudi monarchy requires a change of the succession from lateral or diagonal lines to a vertical order under which the king hands power to his most eligible son – by Ali AlAhmed

https://www.gulfinstitute.org/exclusive-saudi-king-to-abdicate-to-son-2/ and another article from Jan. 2016, “Thee clown prince” by Brian Whitaker: http://al-bab.com/blog/2016/01/clown-prince

21.6.2017 – Ali AlAhmed (A P)

Leading #Saudi political satirist & leaker says ousted Saudi CP MBN under arrest in undisclosed place

https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/877544897968033792

referring to https://twitter.com/ghanemalmasarir/status/877542819308744706

20.6.2017 – Ali AlAhmed (A P T)

#Saudi terror master order release of #ISIS recruits "to spend holidays with their families" expect terror attacks

https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/877349931198984192

referring to

20.6.2017 – SaudiNews50 (A P T)

Crown Prince grants the beneficiaries of the Mohammed bin Nayef Center for Counseling # Riyadh and Jeddah # holiday to spend Eid al-Fitr with their families from today until 7 Shawwal.

https://twitter.com/SaudiNews50/status/877169521504792576

20.6.2017 – Moudi Aljohani (A P)

#FreeMariamAlotaibi #StopEnslavingSaudiWomen Mariam is in prison because she left her abusive family ! (Film)

https://twitter.com/Moudhi90/status/877354727331254272

17./25.5.2017 – Power of Word (* A P)

Film. What's happening in Awamia 2017

*Awamiah is under attack*
For the last 8 days the Saudi regime has been sieging the whole town of Awamiah with too many armored trucks and special forces ( heartless killers) keeping all the people inside the town without food or water resources. And been attaching, bumping and heavy bullets shooting all around the neighborhoods day and night
Just now on may 18, 2017 at 12:30 am , they kept firing and attacking the area called Musawara with heavy pumps and RBGs rocket ,They burned the whole city. This is real war on those poor humans ... please find attached videos and pictures.
*brief about the town*
Awamiah is a small town in qatif city in the eastern province of The Arab land ( called Saudi Arabia for now ) with a population of about 30,000 people, the Saudi regime been discriminated against those people because they are Shiya and has taken all there rights ,,,
No one , no media no human right or any other organizations around the glob talked or act about this matter because the Saudi regime bought them all with $$$$$$$
I'm sharing this because I'm from this town and my family and friends are still there and all of them are in danger

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0W5z-6zKt8 and part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3U8jHg-HNA

cp9 USA

20.6.2017 – BBC (* A P)

Trumplomacy: Is there a Mideast strategy beyond arms sales?

The bigger question is whether this administration has a strategy for the Middle East beyond flooding it with weapons.

Arms sales were the centrepiece of President Donald Trump's recent visit to Saudi Arabia.

The bottom line, though, is that the Sunni states are not going to use these weapons against Iran directly.

Yes, deterrence and defence are a big part of the military build-up, but the active use of arms will be in messy proxy wars like the one in Yemen.

Which brings us back to the precision-guided missiles.

There's concern over potential American complicity in possible violations of international humanitarian law, in a conflict that's plunged the country into famine.

Others [in Senate] talked about the apparent disconnect between the desire to sell more arms in the region, and an articulated strategy on ending the conflicts there.

"It's very confusing to world leaders and members of Congress when the Trump administration does two exactly opposite things" on Qatar, Democratic Congressman Ted Lieu said at a recent congressional hearing on foreign weapons sales – By Barbara Plett Usher

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-40349261

20.6.2017 – Reuters (* A P)

U.S. State Department questions Gulf motives on Qatar boycott

The U.S. State Department bluntly questioned on Tuesday the motives of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates for their boycott of Doha, saying it was "mystified" the Gulf states had not released their grievances over Qatar.

In Washington's strongest language yet on the Gulf dispute, the State Department said the more time goes by, "the more doubt is raised about the actions taken by Saudi Arabia and the UAE."

"At this point, we are left with one simple question: Were the actions really about their concerns regarding Qatar's alleged support for terrorism or were they about the long-simmering grievances between and among the GCC countries," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said, referring to the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council.

The State Department's comments came in contrast to the language taken by U.S. President Donald Trump who has accused Qatar of being a "high level" sponsor of terrorism.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar are key American allies. The fact the State Department bluntly questioned Riyadh and Abu Dhabi's actions in public suggests Washington was keen for the parties to end the dispute.

"We've just said to the parties involved: Let's finish this. Let's get this going," Nauert said – By Yara Bayoumy.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-gulf-qatar-usa-idUSKBN19B2SR

My comment: LOL. You need a whole US State Department just to realize what others already had realized four weeks ago.

21.6.2017 – War is Boring (* B P)

The Saudi Regime Is Playing the U.S. Government

The Trump-Saudi love affair risks destabilizing the Middle East even more

On arriving home, Trump jumped at the chance to embrace a fierce Saudi attempt to blockade and isolate its tiny neighbor Qatar, the policies of whose emir have long irritated them.

The Saudis claimed to be focused on that country’s alleged role in financing terrorist groups in the region—a category they themselves fit into remarkably well. More likely, however, the royal family wanted to bring Qatar to heel after it failed to jump enthusiastically onto the Saudi-led anti-Iranian bandwagon.

Trump, who clearly knew nothing about the subject, accepted the Saudi move with alacrity and at face value. In his normal fashion, he even tried to take credit for it, tweeting, “During my recent trip to the Middle East I stated that there can no longer be funding of Radical Ideology. Leaders pointed to Qatar—look!” And according to Trump, the historic impact of his travels hardly stopped there. As he also tweeted: “So good to see Saudi Arabia visit with the King and 50 countries paying off … Perhaps it will be the beginning of the end of the horror of terrorism.”

Bruce Riedel of the Brookings Institution hit the nail on the head when he commented that “the Saudis played Donald Trump like a fiddle. He unwittingly encouraged their worst instincts toward their neighbors.”

And then came Trump…

And what precisely are the Saudis’ instincts toward their neighbors? The leaders in Riyadh, led by King Salman’s 31-year-old son, Saudi Defense Minister and Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, are taking the gloves off in an increasingly aggressive bid for regional dominance aimed at isolating Iran. The defense minister and potential future leader of the kingdom, whose policies have been described as reckless and impulsive, underscored the new, harsher line on Iran in an interview with Saudi-owned Al Arabiya T.V. in which he said, “We will not wait until the battle is in Saudi Arabia, but we will work so the battle is there in Iran.” – by William Hartung

http://warisboring.com/the-saudi-regime-is-playing-the-u-s-government/

A long and serious article on Trump’s Middle east politics and the alliance with the Saudis, concentrated on the Trump visit to Riyadh and its consequences.

cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain

20.6.2017 – Simon Shercliff, UK ambassador to Yemen (at Riyadh!)

What is the UK doing in search of peace in Yemen? Many people asked that in our FB Q&A. Here's the answer in a clip

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1445904912114556&id=186812134690513

Comment by Haykal Bafana: Jesus Christ... I'm fasting, and I have to put up with this????

https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/877463158935482368

cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries

21.6.2017 – Bloomberg (* A P)

Iraq Looks Like Saudi Arabia's Next Target

Saudi regional policy under Prince Mohammed has been characterized by a far harder stance against Iran and its spreading influence. That's unlikely to change.

Mohammed bin Salman's ascension as Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia could lead to a more assertive Saudi oil policy within OPEC, as the kingdom puts its own needs first. Expect Iraq to follow Qatar as its next target.

There's another big country falling under Tehran's sway: Iraq. Iran-backed militias, along with Kurdish counterparts, have been at the forefront of driving back Islamic insurgents in the country. Bilateral Iraqi-Iranian trade has increased every year since 2003, according to a report in the Tehran Times.

By chance, Iraq is also the OPEC member that's most exceeding its agreed crude output target. That puts it in line for stronger criticism from Saudi Arabia as oil prices languish near levels not seen since the group adopted its output target back in November – by Julian Lee

https://www.bloomberg.com/gadfly/articles/2017-06-21/after-qatar-is-iraq-next-for-the-saudis

21.6.2017 – The News Pakistan (A P)

PM's adviser says Raheel Sharif cannot be recalled from Saudi Arabia

Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz on Wednesday told the Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs that former chief of army staff Raheel Sharif had taken command of the 41-nation Saudi-led military coalition in his personal capacity and was not sent by the government and thus could not be called back.

The adviser was briefing the committee on the on-going diplomatic rift in the Middle East that began after Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Yemen and the Maldives severed their ties with Qatar.

During the committee's session, PPP Senator Kareem Khawaja had voiced his dissatisfaction with Pakistan's role in the Gulf crisis and added that the former army chief should be asked to return to Pakistan voluntarily.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf Senator Shibli Faraz pointed out that if Sharif was asked to return back to Pakistan, relations with Saudi Arabia would be negatively affected – by Naveed Siddiqui

https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/212236-Gen-Raheel-cant-be-called-back-Sartaj = https://www.dawn.com/news/1340884

20.6.2017 – Middle East Eye (A P)

Egypt court rules against Red Sea islands transfer to Saudi Arabia

An Egyptian administrative court on Tuesday ruled that previous judicial decisions in favour of transferring two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia were invalid, a judicial official and a lawyer said.

"The ruling (on Tuesday) signifies that the land is Egyptian," said Khaled Ali, a lawyer who argued in the administrative court that the islands belonged to Egypt.

The verdict would affirm that any attempt to transfer the islands would be considered unconstitutional "even if the president ratified the agreement", Ali said.

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/egypt-court-rules-against-red-sea-islands-transfer-saudi-arabia-2007970267

20.6.2017 – Press TV Iran (A P)

Bahrain Court Gives Death, Jail Sentences to Two Dissidents

A court in Bahrain has handed down death sentence to an anti-regime activist and sentenced another to life in prison as the ruling Al Khalifah regime presses ahead with its heavy-handed clampdown on political dissidents and pro-democracy campaigners in the Persian Gulf kingdom.

http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2017/06/20/525943/Bahrain-court-defendants-death-sentence-life-imprisonment

cp12a Katarkrise / Qatar crisis

22.6.2017 – RT (* A P)

US-Außenminister Rex Tillerson zur Katar-Blockade: „Lasst uns das beenden“

Das Außenministerium verlangt Beweise für die katarische Unterstützung des Terrorismus. Die Krise zwischen den engsten Verbündeten am Golf solle so schnell wie möglich beigelegt werden, so eine Sprecherin von Rex Tillerson.

https://deutsch.rt.com/international/52799-us-aussenminister-rex-tillerson-zur/

20.6.2017 – AP (* A P)

Report: Turkish troops arrive in Qatar amid Gulf tensions

https://apnews.com/d465377cbf2348afaf6a1351c1470586

21.6.2017 – The Independent (A P)

Saudi Arabia deports Qatari camels and sheep as diplomatic feud continues

Livestock grazing across the border from tiny Qatar on rented land ordered back as diplomatic spat shows no signs of abating

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/saudi-arabia-qatar-diplomatic-tensions-camels-sheep-livestock-deported-a7800776.html

20.6.2017 – Middle East Eye (A P)

Nomads no more: Camels break Saudi-led blockade of Qatar

Thousands of camels cross Qatar border after being stuck in Saudi Arabia for week due to blockade

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/nomads-no-more-camels-break-saudi-led-blockade-qatar-1485836939

20.6.2017 – Foreign Policy (A P)

Saudi Arabia Deports 15,000 Qatari Camels

http://foreignpolicy.com/2017/06/20/saudi-arabia-deports-qatari-camels-gulf-diplomacy/

cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade

22.6.2017 – MbKS15 (A K)

VIDEO: #Saudi-Ukrainian #An132D flight demonstration at #PAS17

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/877802198855331840

Remark: Saudi-Ukrainian joint venture.

21.6.2017 – RT u.a. (* B K P)

Film: Jemen: Deals der USA mit Saudi-Arabien & Katar / US Rüstungspolitik

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xy9C8Iu-eac

21.6.2017 – Disarmo (A K P)

“Stop alle forniture militari all'Arabia Saudita. Si salvi il lavoro in Sardegna”

L'appello ai parlamentari italiani presentato oggi alla Camera da Reti e associazioni della pace, dei diritti umani e dell'intervento umanitario.
Le bombe italiane fanno stragi di civili in Yemen, alimentando uno dei conflitti più drammatici e gravi al mondo

Presentata oggi a Roma, in una partecipata conferenza stampa alla Camera dei Deputati, la proposta di Mozione parlamentare predisposta da alcune organizzazioni e reti della società civile italiana a riguardo del conflitto in Yemen.

“Si fermino le forniture militari verso Arabia Saudita e propri alleati” è il punto principale della proposta, lanciata da Amnesty International Sezione Italiana, Fondazione Finanza Etica, Movimento dei Focolari in Italia, Oxfam Italia, Rete Italiana per il Disarmo, Rete per la Pace. Il testo di mozione riprende e rilancia quello della Risoluzione votata dal Parlamento Europeo (a febbraio 2016 e a metà giugno 2017) che per ben due volte ha richiesto di “avviare un'iniziativa finalizzata all'imposizione da parte dell'UE di un embargo sulle armi nei confronti dell'Arabia Saudita, tenuto conto delle gravi accuse di violazione del diritto umanitario internazionale da parte di tale paese nello Yemen”.

http://www.disarmo.org/rete/a/44504.html

cp13b Flüchtlinge / Refugees

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

21.6.2017 – World Food Programme, Logistics Cluster (A H)

Yemen: Passengers Transport Overview - Djibouti – Aden - Djibouti, May 2017

The Logistics Cluster continues to coordinate and facilitate passenger movement via sea on a WFP-chartered vessel, which also serves as an emergency rescue and evacuation vessel. Additionally, staff accommodation and cargo transportation on board of the same vessel are facilitated. Since May 2016, a regular schedule and booking system have been in place, with weekly rotations between Djibouti and Aden. The schedule has been designed so as to allow passengers to easily connect with UNHAS ights between Djibouti and Sana’a.

http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-passengers-transport-overview-djibouti-aden-djibouti-may-2017 and in full http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/logistics_cluster_yemen_passenger_service_overview_may_20170621.pdf

20.6.2017 – UN High Commissioner for Refugees (A H)

Yemen Situation - 2017 Funding Update as of 20 June 2017

114.6 M required for 2017 including special situations

34.9 M contributions received, representing 30% of requirements

79.7 M overall funding gap for Yemen

All figures are shown in USD

http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-situation-2017-funding-update-20-june-2017 and in full http://reporting.unhcr.org/sites/default/files/Yemen%20Funding%20Update%2020%20June%202017.pdf

31.5.2017 – UN High Commissioner for Refugees (A H)

Yemen IDP Response: Core Relief Items (CRIs), Shelter and Cash Assistance (1 January to 30 May 2017)

Individual and Households assisted by type of item

CRI Kits 138,313 (21,963 households)

Shelter Kits 39,312 (5,616 households)

Returnee Kits 6,609 (944 households)

Cash Assistance 4,347 (621 households)

http://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-idp-response-core-relief-items-cris-shelter-and-cash-assistance-1-january-30-may and in full http://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/CRIs%20distribution%20vJune2017%20-%204.pdf

cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism

Siehe / Look at cp1

22.6.2017 – Reuters (* A T)

U.S. military says kills al Qaeda leader in key Yemen province

The U.S. military said on Thursday it carried out an air strike in Yemen that killed Abu Khattab al Awlaqi, the emir for al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula's Shabwa province, along with two other militants.

"Al Awlaqi was a senior leader responsible for planning and conducting terrorist attacks against civilians," the U.S. military's Central Command said in a statement.

"He had significant influence throughout AQAP's terrorist stronghold, had ties and access to the group's other senior leaders, and was implicated in planning and leading efforts to exacerbate instability in southern Yemen."

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-yemen-strike-idUSKBN19D2EA

21.6.2017 – Critical Threats (* A T)

Yemen Security Brief

The U.S. State Department amended the designation of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) to include additional front groups on June 21. AQAP’s proxies include Sons of Abyan, Sons of Hadramawt, Sons of Hadramawt Council, Civil Council of Hadramawt, and National Hadramawt Council. The U.S. State Department stated that AQAP uses these proxies to provide governance in areas under its control. [2]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-june-21-2017

21.6.2017 – Elisabeth Kendall (A T)

Latest #alQaeda paper just out: looks back at #AQAP rule in Mukalla #Yemen with nostalgia, claims coalition is failing to provide services (image9

https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/877444071349944320

21.6.2017 – Live UA Map (A T)

Jemen: Islamischer Staat veröffentlicht Bilder, die Zusammenstöße mit Houthi-Kämpfern in AlBayda zeigen (photos)

https://yemen.liveuamap.com/de/2017/21-june-yemen-islamic-state-releases-pictures-showing-clashes

21.6.2017 – Critical Threats (A T)

Yemen Security Brief

The Islamic State in Iraq and al Sham (ISIS).Wilayat al Baydareleased a photoset on June 20 depicting attacks on al Houthi-Saleh forces in Laqah village, northwestern al Bayda governorate on June 18. One photo shows an ISIS fighter firing a truck-mounted weapon and the other displays a collection of weapons, ammunition, and food supplies seized from al Houthi-Saleh forces. ISIS militants cooperated with al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants during the attack. [4]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-june-21-2017

relating on

20.6.2017 – Elisabeth Kendall (A T)

#IslamicState #Yemen issues photos of Qayfa battle 18June. Weak evidence of 15 dead Huthis esp given no of guns seized. Thx @SaladinAlDronni (photos9

https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/877257043861753856

20.6.2017 – Critical Threats (* A K P)

Yemen Security Brief

AQAP militants killed an al Houthi-Saleh fighter in al Jamajimarea, southern al Bayda governorate on June 19. AQAP militants last attacked al Houthi-Saleh forces in al Jamajim area on June 12 as part of a joint offensive with local tribal forces. AQAP seeks to control access to the main road that passes through southern al Bayda governorate into Abyan governorate, where AQAP also maintains a presence.[3]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-june-20-2017

cp15 Propaganda

22.6.2017 – World Health Organisation (A H P)

King Salman Centre for Humanitarian Aid and Relief supports cholera response in Yemen

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the King Salman Centre for Humanitarian Aid and Relief have signed an agreement for almost US$ 8.3 million to support the ongoing health response to the cholera outbreak in Yemen.

This support from the King Salman Centre will ensure that 7.3 million people in 13 priority governorates are reached with life-saving health services as part of coordinated efforts by all health partners to conduct prevention activities and provide treatment.

http://www.emro.who.int/media/news/king-salman-centre-for-humanitarian-aid-and-relief-supports-cholera-response-in-yemen.html

My comment: WHO, depending on everybody to get funds to do its work, is used by Saudi propaganda which wants to present a Saudi Arabia as humanitarian benefactor – and WHO willingly is playing this game by its own statements. 4(.3 million – that’s the sum which Saudi Arabia since 819 days now is spending for one hour of bombing war against Yemen – all around the clock, for ca. 19.650 hours since the beginning of the bombing war.

21.6.2017 – CNN (A P)

Film: Dissecting Saudi Arabia's role in Yemen

Ali Shihabi of the Arabia Foundation think tank, tells Clarissa Ward that accusing Saudi Arabia of blocking media access to Yemen is "unfair and not correct."

http://us.cnn.com/videos/world/2017/06/21/intv-amanpour-ali-shihabi-saudi-arabia.cnn/video/playlists/amanpour/

My comment: LOL.

21.6.2017 – Al Riyadh (A P)

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman receives congratulations

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Premier and Minister of Defense, received a cable of congratulations from President of Yemen Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi on the occasion issuance of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud order, appointing him as Crown Prince and Deputy Premier, in addition to his position as Minister of Defense.

According to the Yemeni News Agency, Hadi stressed that the Yemeni people with their successive generations will not forget the noble and sincere attitudes of the leadership of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia towards Yemen and its people.

Hadi wished Prince Mohammed bin Salman all the best to serve his country and to achieve further progress and prosperity.

From Yemeni Vice President:

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Premier and Minister of Defense, received a cable of congratulations from Yemeni Vice President Ali Mohsen Saleh on the occasion of his election as Crown Prince and his appointment as deputy premier .

Al-Ahmar stressed that the Yemeni people trust the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, noting the Kingdom's efforts and support for legitimacy under the leadership of President of the Republic, Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi.

He wished Prince Mohammed bin Salman success to achieve further progress and prosperity for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

From Yemeni Prime Minister:

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, received a cable of congratulations from Yemeni Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr on his appointment as crown prince, deputy prime minister and minister of defense.

The Prime Minister wished the Crown Prince success in his duties to serve his religion and homeland.

http://sites.alriyadh.com/en/article/1160068/Crown-Prince-receives-congratulations and by an Emirati media: http://www.khaleejtimes.com/region/saudi-arabia/dubai-kuwait--yemens-rulers-congratulate-saudi-crown-prince

My comment: Praising their puppet master.

20.6.2017 – Al Sahwa (A P)

Saudi Arabia: Target of relief-loaded trucks threaten humanitarian acts in Yemen

The Saudi cabinet said that the bombing of trucks carrying relief for the Yemeni people threaten the humanitarian act in Yemen, affirming that the Houthhi-Saleh militias work to besiege the Yemeni people.

In a meeting held on Tuesday, the cabinet reiterated that such act will not affect the wok of the King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Aid, asserting that it will continue providing assistances for the Yemeni people.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-7929

My comment: The three King Salman Center trucks had been bombed while unloading. The Saudis blamed the Houthis but the whole attack looked like AQAP. – Whoever did it, “the humanitarian act in Yemen” mostly is threatened by Saudi air raids and blockade.

20.6.2017 – Ali Omer (A P)

Infographic: Human Rights Violations in Yemen

https://twitter.com/aliomer1983/status/877352486360694784

My comment: Downsizing the Saudi coalition air raids and the violations by the Saudi / UAE / Hadi forces and blowing up those by the Houthi / Saleh forces: Propaganda.

cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

22.6.2017 – Legal Center (* A K PH)

The Violations and Crimes that are committed by #Saudi_Arabia and its alliance in #Yemen 21 June 2017 (full list):

https://twitter.com/LCRDye/status/877953144356876288

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

21.6.2017 – Legal Center (* A K PH)

The Violations and Crimes that are committed by #Saudi_Arabia and its alliance in #Yemen 20 June 2017 (full list):

https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/a.551858951631141.1073741828.551288185021551/846170185533348/?type=3

21.6.2017 – Saba Net (A K PH)

Citizen martyred in US-Saudi air strike on Hajah market

A citizen was martyred when US-backed Saudi-led aggression coalition warplanes hit the entrance of a popular market in Hajah province, a local official told Saba. The Alkhamis market locates in Mastaba district.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news467447.htm

22.6.2017 – Almasdar Online (A K PS)

Air raids bomb Houthis vehicles north of Saada province

The aircrafts of the Saudi-led Arab Coalition launched a number of raids on the positions of the Houthi militants and forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh in the northern province of Saada, local residents said on Wednesday. Residents told Almasdaronline that three raids had targeted military vehicles for the Houthis-Saleh forces in the Shada district on the Saudi-Yemeni border. They pointed out that the raids have resulted in deaths and injuries among the militants, but did not provide a specific casualties toll.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/92187

21/22.6.2017 – Saba Net (A K PH)

US-Saudi aggression wages ten raids on Mareb

The US-Saudi aggression warplanes waged on Wednesday ten air raids on civilians' house and their agricultural farms in Serwah district of Mareb province.
A local official told Saba that the hostile warplanes targeted al-Rabe'ah areas, Souk Serwah, Hilan Mount and al-Makhdra in Serwah, causing huge damage to civilians' properties.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news467493.htm

21.6.2017 – Ayad (A K PH)

Saudi coaltion crimes continues bombing a none military Telecommunication network #Yemen Lahj (photos, from film, below)

https://twitter.com/maddllock/status/877698947707531264

21.6.2017 – Al Masirah TV (A K PH)

Film: Targeting the aggression of communications towers in the province of Lahj

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQ17yQbSojk = https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/vb.1127621230602273/1554622267902165/?type=2&theater

21.6.2017 – Saba Net (A K PH)

Aggression warplanes wage 3 strikes on Marib

US-backed Saudi aggression coalition warplanes launched three airstrikes on separate areas in Marib province overnight, an official told Saba on Wednesday.
The strikes targeted districts of Serwah and Harib Nehm west of the province.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news467453.htm

21.6.2017 – Saba Net (A K PH)

American-Saudi air strikes hit Dhamar

American-Saudi aggression warplanes resumed air striking Dhamar province, an official told Saba on Tuesday.
The strikes targeted for several times the Bab al-Falak area in Ans district near the entrance of Dhamar.
Previous air strikes on the same area a day before injured a number of passengers on the regular road.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news467445.htm

21.6.2017 – Saba Net (A K PH)

Aggression warplanes launch 2 strikes on Khokha, Hodeidah

US-Saudi aggression warplanes launched two airstrikes on Khokha district of Hodeidah province on Tuesday, an official told Saba.

and what the other side claimed:

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news467446.htm

21.6.2017 – Almasdar Online (A K PS)

Houthi casualties by Coalition airstrikes in Dhamar and al Khokha

The aircrafts of the Saudi-led Arab Coalition launched on Monday evening two air raids on a check post of the Houthi militants and Saleh's forces at the entrance to Dhamar city in central Yemen. A local source told Almasdaronline that a raid had targeted a check post of the Houthis-Saleh militants in Bab al-Falak, which resulted in the injury of a number of militants and caused material damage in the area.

The aircrafts also launched two raids on the Abu Musa al Ashari camp of the Houthis-Saleh forces in al Khokha town south of Hodeida city in western Yemen, causing casualties and destruction of military equipment.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/92161

20.6.2017 – Ahmed Jahaf (A K PH)

16 airstrikes by Saudi-led coalition jets with U.S & UK bombs on Harid & Maydi during the past hours

https://twitter.com/A7medJa7af/status/877266828812316673

cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War

22.6.2017 – Almasdar Online (A K PS)

Government forces dismantle 10 rock-shaped improvised explosive devices planted by Houthis eastern Taiz

http://almasdaronline.com/article/92186

21.6.2017 – Critical Threats (A K)

Yemen Security Brief

Fighting between ORGANIZATIONal Houthi MovementTHE AL HOUTHIS ARE THE DE FACTO RULING FACTION IN YEMEN’S CE...al Houthi-Saleh forces and Hadi government-aligned militias escalated in Taiz city on June 21. Forces loyal to the Hadi government seized control of strategic highlands from al Houthi-Saleh forces near the village of Rahbah in southern Taiz city on June 21. Al Houthi-Saleh forces shelled a restaurant in western Taiz city on June 21, killing two civilians and wounding six others. [3]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-june-21-2017

21.6.2017 – Yemen Conflict Map (A K)

Yemen Control map in the front spots - green port

Governorate of Saada - Najran Region new update 21.6.2017

https://twitter.com/YemConfMaps/status/877477990099234816

21.6.2017 – Saba Net (A K PH)

Saudi paid mercenaries fired artillery shells on several locations in Serwah district, Marib prov.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news467453.htm

21.6.2017 – Almasdar Online (A K PS)

Two civilians killed by Houthis bombardment on al Nasefah of al Bayda

http://almasdaronline.com/article/92165

21.6.2017 – Almasdar Online (A K PS)

Two civilians wounded by Houthi militants gunfire in Dhamar city – witnesses

The eyewitnesses told Almasdaronline that the gunmen on Sunday afternoon surrounded a shop belonging to Ali Ahmed al-Nafar, a week after he entered into a verbal argument with a Houthi gunman a week earlier. “Al Nafar and the Houthi gunman both descend from to al Swaida village in Mayfaha Ans district in Dhamar province.”

http://almasdaronline.com/article/92149

Pro-Houthi / Pro Saleh reports:

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/yemeni-missiles-strike-saudi-jizan-province-hours-new-defense-minister-appointment/

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news467430.htm

cp18 Sonstiges / Other

21.6.2017 – BBC (* C)

Missing babies: Israel's Yemenite children affair

In the years after the creation of the Israeli state hundreds of babies went missing. Their parents, mostly Jewish immigrants from Yemen, were told their children had died, but suspicions linger that they were secretly given away to childless families - and newly released documents have revealed some disturbing evidence.

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-40342143

18.6.2017 – American Herald Tribune (* C)

60 Years of Cover-up: Knesset Inquiry Reveals Abducted Yemenite Babies Murdered in Medical Experiments and Exploited in Paid National Institutes of Health Experiments

The Israeli Knesset has, after sixty years of cover-up, exposed one of the most lurid scandals in the history of Israeli medicine. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, inspired by Ben Gurion’s philosophy that Israel must populate itself via Jewish immigration to compete with the Arabs, Israel airlifted tens of thousands of Yemenite Jews and resettled them. It was celebrated as a great humanitarian operation in which the Yemenites were “saved” from a life of destitution and anti-Semitic victimhood in their native land.

Within months of their arrival, reports began circulating of babies who disappeared from hospitals and medical clinics. The final count amounted to hundreds, perhaps even thousands of babies who were purportedly kidnapped from their parents or even killed. The grieving parents received no word about what had happened; no death certificate; no explanation. Even decades later, after three separate boards of inquiry spanning thirty years, the results of the investigations were sealed and victims learned nothing. The State refused to accept responsibility nor did it compensate the victims for their personal losses. It is perhaps the greatest medical scandal in Israeli history, ranking right up there with the Tuskegee syphilis experiment in its deviousness and lethality.

In addition, the scandal also involved the U.S. National Institutes of Health, which paid Israeli hospitals nearly $1-million (in current value; then it was 160,000 Israeli lira) to provide fetuses of dead Yemenite babies and corpses of adults which were used in medical experiments to determine why Yemenites did not develop heart disease. One doctor sought to prove that Yemenites were of African descent. To do so, he tested the blood of dead Yemenites to determine if they had sickle-cell anemia. He even wrote a medical paper about his claims – by Richard Silverstein

http://ahtribune.com/human-rights/1726-knesset-yemenite-babies.html

18.6.2017 – Al Madaniya

Vent

Vent is a documentary photography project that portrays Sana’a-based artists and musicians and their work. Photojournalist Rahman Taha aims to visually document artists’ lives in the hope that his work acts as an archive and a witness to Yemini artists’ activities during the war and conflict years. Taha believes that the collective Yemeni memory is unreliable, and that people are quick to forget the past. It is from this belief that his idea was born.

Rahman Taha studied general medicine in the college of veterinary medicine. He began taking photographs in 2007, and eventually it became a passion. Since 2010, Taha has held 14 group and solo exhibitions between Sana’a, Taiz, Aden and Madrid. His work has been published in The New Yorker, Forbes, and Süddeutsche Zeitung. (photos)

Rahman Taha is 27 years old and lives in Sana’a.

https://www.almadaniyamag.com/english/2017/6/15/vent

15.6.2017 – Al Madaniya (B P)

Ana Insan Madani with Nadwa al-Dawsari ‘Ana Insan Madani’ can best be translated as ‘I am a citizen’. In this regular feature, we meet prominent Yemenis from various background and fields and hear their thoughts on matters related to Yemen, being a citizen and what ‘madaniya’ means to them.

In this first issue, we meet Nadwa al-Dawsari,a researcher and conflict practitioner with more than 16 years of field experience in conflict management and civil society development in Yemen. She has specialized in informal governance, tribes and tribal conflict resolution mechanisms. Since 2008, Nadwa has conducted extensive field research focusing mainly on security and justice and governance and political transition in Yemen from a community-level perspective, thus providing profound insights into the internal dynamics of the conflict.

7. If you had the power to make one change in Yemen, what would it be and when?
Dismantle and destroy Saleh’s patronage network for good.

8. What should the world know about Yemen today?
That the patronage network that Saleh built over his 33 years in power is the root cause of Yemen's war and that it includes Hadi's government and the Houthis. In other words, the parties that monopolize the ‘peace talks’ with the blessing of the United Nations and the international community.

https://www.almadaniyamag.com/english/2017/6/15/ana-insan-madani-with-nadwa-al-dawsari

15.6.2017 – Al Madaniya (A P)

Basement: Yemen’s platform for art and peace

Art has special importance in our lives. Different forms of self-expression – be they visual, musical or physical – transform inner feelings into actions. Art provides a means for human understanding: through music, fine art, poetry and dancing, a person can reach others.

As a result of the ongoing war in Yemen, now more than two years old, many national and international organizations stopped working in the country. However, Basement Cultural Foundation (BCF) continues to hold events and workshops aimed at promoting art and culture in the community. Such cultural activities and workshops are widely accepted and welcomed by the general public. At each event held by BCF, the sound of people engaging on music and art drowns out the sound of bombardment and destruction.
At one such cultural event, there was a debate between two groups, one group prioritizing the role of art in life with the other group opposing the motion. Attended by a large audience from different community groups, the debate began with the following questions: Does art have importance in Yemeni society? Does it have a role in alleviating suffering and creating public awareness about humanitarian issues or is it merely a form of luxury and entertainment?

https://www.almadaniyamag.com/english/2017/6/14/basement-yemens-platform-for-art-and-peace

27.4.2017 – Middle East Eye

Meet the Sahrawi refugee building homes from plastic bottles in the desert

Sahrawi engineer Tateh Lehbib has designed houses for Sahrawi refugee camps that are resistant to desert heat, sandstorms and torrential rain (in Algeria)

http://www.middleeasteye.net/in-depth/features/devils-garden-plastic-houses-protect-sahrawi-refugees-algerian-sun-922503347

6.2017 – Pinterest

Photos from Yemen

https://in.pinterest.com/achba63/jemen/?lp=true

Vorige / Previous:

https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-313-yemen-war-mosaic-313

Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-313 / Yemen War Mosaic 1-313:

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 / and http://yemenwarcrimes.blogspot.de/

Dieser Beitrag gibt die Meinung des Autors wieder, nicht notwendigerweise die der Redaktion des Freitag.
Geschrieben von

Dietrich Klose

Vielfältig interessiert am aktuellen Geschehen, zur Zeit besonders: Ukraine, Russland, Jemen, Rolle der USA, Neoliberalismus, Ausbeutung der 3. Welt

Dietrich Klose

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