Jan. 7, 2018: UN cannot bring peace – Nearly 500 cases of diphtheria – Saudi blockade continues – UN: Humanitarian situation a catastrophe – US wars – Saudi air raids, victims
Schwerpunkte / Key aspects
Klassifizierung / Classification
Zuerst: Verschleppte der Huthis / At first: Houthi detainees
cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important
cp1a Am wichtigsten: Seuchen / Most important: Epidemics
cp1b Huthi-Raketen / Houthi missiles
cp2 Allgemein / General
cp2a Allgemein: Saudische Blockade / General: Saudi blockade
cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation
cp4 Flüchtlinge / Refugees
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
cp7a Saudi-Arabien und Iran / Saudi Arabia and Iran
cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia
cp9 USA
cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms Trade
cp13b Wirtschaft / Economy
cp13c Khat / Qat
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)
? = Keine Einschatzung / No rating
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
Zuerst: Verschleppte der Huthis / At first: Houthi detainees
(* A P)
Houthis have referred 78 abducted activists to the public prosecution that the extremist rebel militia controls in Sana'a. The militia brought them to the prosecution on Thursday in preparation for trying them. The abductees have been kept by the militia in forced disappearance for two and a half years. #Source: Al-Moshahed website.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-14371
My comment: No other reports found. Al-Moshahed website not found.
(A P)
General Union of Arab Writers condemns Houthis' detention of Yemeni poet
The General Union of Arab Writers has condemned the detention of Yemeni poet Mohamed Al Louzi by the Houthi militia on the back of his peaceful anti-coup statements.
In a statement on Saturday, Union Secretary-General Habib Al Sayegh said the arrest of Al Louzi contravenes all human rights and international conventions that guarantee peaceful freedom of expression, noting that such criminal acts fit within the extremist approach adopted by militant Islamists against their oppositionists.
http://wam.ae/en/details/1395302658443
My comment: The “General Union of Arab Writers” looks like a propaganda tool, the statement (and f. i. another on Qatar) makes this probable. – But of course the fact of the detainment remains. No other reports exist.
(* A P)
Hamid Haydara is a prisoner of conscious, prosecuted for peacefully practicing his beliefs. We call on the Huthi authorities to quash the death sentence and for the immediate and unconditional release of Hamid Haydara.
https://twitter.com/amnestygulf/status/948834950522048513
Unfair trials, trumped-up charges, credible allegations of ill-treatment in detention, and now this death sentence- this id all part of the #Huthi| s’ pattern of repressing dissent, targeting activists, journalists and like Hamid Haydara, members of the #Bahai minority.
https://twitter.com/lynn_maalouf/status/948838629593493504
Remark: Earlier reporting: YPR 373.
cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important
(*** B P)
Why can’t the United Nations bring peace to Yemen?
By 2011 the international community had concluded that the Saleh regime needed to be replaced by one which would both implement the neo-liberal economic agenda and focus on counter terrorism.
Yemenis, speaking to journalists and other camera-bearing strangers, like many others facing disaster and the collapse of the world around them from war or environmental catastrophes, often ask ‘where is the International Community? Why isn’t the world helping us?’ While it is difficult to completely grasp what people in extreme distress mean by the phrase, for many the ‘international community’ is embodied in the United Nations and its institutions, ranging from political entities, primarily the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to its more independent development and humanitarian assistance organisations such as the World Food Programme, UNICEF, WHO etc…. But the UN has lost considerable credibility in recent years and its reputation has suffered as a result of many failures. Yemen is a case in point.
The roots of UN involvement: 2011-14
In Yemen, unlike other countries of what was optimistically called the Arab Spring, the UN’s political institutions have been actively involved since 2011.
From early 2010, with the creation of the Friends of Yemen, including all the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, the main western States, the EU and the UN, a group of resident ambassadors met regularly in Sana’a to monitor and influence developments and in April 2011 the UN Secretary General appointed a Special Advisor on Yemen. This coincided with a fundamental change in the momentum of the popular uprisings, when military confrontations started. The international community, represented by these ambassadors, concluded that the Saleh regime was no longer viable and needed to be replaced by a regime which would both implement the neo-liberal economic agenda and focus on counter terrorism.
The transition initiated by the GCC Agreement was due to last two years, starting with the election of Vice President Abdo Rabbo Mansour Hadi to the post of President on 21 February 2012.
The transition and the war
While Hadi may still be interested in being re-instated, the attention of his international supporters is now focused elsewhere. In rhetoric at least, this war has been reduced to being no more than one element of the US-Israeli-Saudi anti-Iranian campaign. The Huthi are described as mere pawns of the Iranian regime, ignoring both their internal political dynamics and the (up to now) very limited involvement of Iran in their support. Yemeni concerns are neglected in pursuit of geopolitical policies which are of limited, if any, concern to them. But they suffer the consequences: bombing, shelling and a deadly blockade causing disease and starvation.
So how has the UN addressed the Yemeni war? On 14 April 2015, three weeks after the start of Decisive Storm, UNSC resolution 2216 was approved by 14 of its members (Russia abstained). Ten days later, a new Special Envoy was named, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, in the hope that a new face would facilitate the UN’s work, given that his predecessor had, by that time, lost credibility among all Yemeni parties.
Constraints imposed by UNSC Resolution 2216
Resolution 2216 determines UN actions in Yemen to this day, despite the fact that, more than 1000 days into the war, the UN has been unable to achieve any progress. Hence the need to understand both the constraints imposed by the resolution and the environment in which the UN operates. What does 2216 say?
A rapid analysis of this resolution demonstrates why it can’t be the basis for a solution.
By insisting on the return of Hadi as President in Sana’a, Resolution 2216 ignores some basic facts:
Second, as discussed above, his ‘legitimacy’ is open to debate and third, his government simply does not govern as most of the ‘liberated’ areas are under the control of a wide range of community-based local authorities, including jihadis in some cases.
What the UN and the international community could do better
For any negotiations to be successful, all Yemeni forces must participate and their concerns be addressed. Second, as discussed above, currently neither of the two officially recognised parties is willing to compromise. Hadi’s insistence on the ‘three references’[5] is a formula to prevent negotiations from even starting, while the Huthis are not facing defeat. Third, the UK is the ‘pen holder’ for Yemen at the UNSC and is very responsive to Saudi positions, thus giving Saudi Arabia undue influence in this forum – by Helen Lackner
(** B K P)
Leaked Documents : UAE Asks Us for Direct Military Intervention in Yemen
Highly-informed Yemeni sources based in the Egyptian capital Cairo revealed that United Arab Emirates (UAE) and United States of America (USA) are intensively planning secretly to carry out military actions against Yemen in coincidence with the military field escalations of Saudi-led coalition in the western coast of Yemen.
The Sources also revealed to the Yemeni Arabic news outlet “Al Massa’a Press” that the UAE has asked the Americans to intervene directly in Yemen and that its request was accepted by US President Donald Trump asking it to finance the military operations on land, sea and air, but after the approval of the US Congress.
The anonymous sources, who asked not to be identified, said that Emiratis are currently working to persuade members of Congress to approve a US military operation directly alongside the Saudi-led coalition forces fighting in Yemen, pointing out that Abu Dhabi uses the institutional forces to pressure so it can achieve this plan, and that many members of Congress are still rejecting even moment of the UAE’s demands while it was able to influence other members and ensure their approval of the decision of US intervention In Yemen.
The sources added, according to leaked information, that the military commanders in the Pentagon, “the Department of Defense,” are currently studying the possibility of direct military intervention in Yemen to prevent losses of people and material, and that most leaders prefer limitation of the direct intervention in the open areas without land operations due to mountainous geographical areas, and that the direct intervention in the highlands should be for military air forces.
The sources revealed at the same time that the American intervention will be under the title of fighting “Iranian influence and its affiliated militia in Yemen,” and that American advice directed to the Emiratis to spread the term “militia Houthi Iranian” to all media and intensify the term during this period, noting that the UAE informed Saudi Arabia to spread this term in all the media of the coalition countries and their media outlets in Yemen.
Al-Masa’a Press also received heavy information that American and British experts recently asked the coalition to ban the entry of goods, including ” motorcycle, agricultural fertilizers, carbon materials and pipes”, which means that the recent request came in coincidence with the movements of the UAE to persuade US officials and decision-makers to intervene directly in Yemen.
In the same context, local political sources predicted that any direct US military intervention in Yemen would be preceded by a political escalation against “AnsaruAllah” Houthis and their allies inside the international community to justify direct military intervention.
http://www.newnewss.net/leaked-documents-uae-asks-us-for-direct-military-intervention-in-yemen/
(** B H)
Yemen war: Corruption stops food aid reaching us, say desperate families
Millions of people are in need of food aid in Yemen - but not all of it is reaching the most desperate
Desperate Yemenis have complained that international food donations are failing to reach those most in need in the war-torn nation, forcing them to buy free supplies from market stalls.
Saeed Abdul Hamid, 35, an unemployed father of five children, has lived with his family inside a tent in Taiz's al-Shimayateen district since January 2017. He depends on his children to beg for food, either at the nearest market or else from house-to-house.
But what he discovered, he told MEE, shocked him. "I tried to look for aid from organisations, but they declined to help."
Abdul Hamid said that the local World Food Programme (WFP) committee in al-Safia told him that no new names could be added to the list of aid recipients.
"But the committee could not stop three armed men entering the store and taking six baskets by force," he recalled of his visit in October.
The WFP's monthly aid packages consist of 75kg of wheat, 10 litres of vegetable oil, 10kg of pulse beans, 0.5kg of salt and 2.5kg of sugar per person per month.
But the method of their distribution has drawn anger and accusations. Throughout 2017, protests frequently broke out in Taiz's central Jamal Street, as groups of poor people and activists demonstrated against what they say is a corrupt system.
Abdul Rahim said that aside from gangs taking food by force, richer Yemenis with contacts among the aid committees have also benefited.
"WFP provides rich people with food, and they sell it to markets, while we have to beg for this food from people. Usually they help us with some wheat from WFP."
Fatima Saleh, a 40-something widow with six children who lives in Taiz city, values the monthly deliveries – even if she does not receive any herself. "My rich neighbour receives three food baskets from WFP each month, and he sells them to the market, while I do not receive anything." Sometimes, she said, she is fortunate enough to receive free food from her neighbours.
Some of the WFP aid appears at markets in Taiz and other locations, as traders buy it from wealthier homes and then sell it on to the poor.
"All of us know that favouritism and corruption of aid distribution deprive needy people from aid and end up with registering the names of some rich people who do not need aid as beneficiaries."
My comment: Pro-Saudi propaganda likes to blame the Houthis for this sort of corruption; this article tells how it really is: It’s a general phenomenon. This report is from the Hadi-government part of Taiz.
(** B K)
Significant shift in targeting amid 67 percent rise in air raids - December 2017
December 2017 saw a significant shift in targeting along with an uptick in the number of air raids in the Saudi coalition air campaign in Yemen.
The Yemen Data Project recorded more than twice as many Saudi coalition air raids targeting non-military sites (195) than military sites (77) in December. This change contrasts with the overall pattern of air raids since the start of the air campaign. From March 2015 to December 2017 almost one third of all targets (31%) were non-military and 38% military. In December, 36% of air raids targeted non-military sites with just 14% targeting military sites. In 50% of air raids in December the target category was categorised as unknown.
The end of 2017 also saw a spike in the number of air raids with 541 recorded by YDP in December 2017, up by 67% from the previous month and the highest number of bombings in a single month since January 2017.
Amongst this rise, air raids in Hudaydah increased almost four-fold with 61 air raids in the governorate compared to 17 in November 2017. This increase coincided with a new ground offensive - launched after the death of former president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, on 4 December - and territorial gains made by coalition-backed, anti-Houthi forces in Hudaydah governorate.
A total of 541 Saudi coalition air raids targeted Yemen in December, 218 more than in the previous month of November 2017 and 17% above the monthly average of 464 air raids per month since the Saudi-led air campaign began in March 2015. Air raids targeted 15 of Yemen's 22 governorates in December.
The highest number of air raids recorded in a single month remains September 2015, at 920.
In the sub-categories of targets in December 2017:
65 air raids targeted residential areas
25 targeted vehicles and buses
20 targeted farms
8 targeted markets
5 targeted schools
4 targeted social gatherings
3 targeted medical facilities
http://mailchi.mp/1ded71edb8ff/monthly-yemen-data-project-update
(** B H K)
Film: Floortje naar het einde van de wereld: Yemen
Floortje Dessing, Ambassador of the Red Cross, recently visited #Sanaa.
Here is her video testimony [in Dutch and interviews in English]
https://www.npo.nl/floortje-naar-het-einde-van-de-wereld/04-01-2018/BV_101385629?ttype=choice&tevent=%7B%22spvid%22%3A%220%3AwQEpZXC0n9~o85HJa5gUgM4CSmwmG9aB%22%2C%22comScoreName%22%3A%22npo.franchise.floortje_naar_het_einde_van_de_wereld%22%2C%22brand%22%3A%22npoportal%22%2C%22section%22%3A%22franchise%22%2C%22broadcaster%22%3A%22npo%22%2C%22subBroadcaster%22%3A%22npo%22%2C%22brandType%22%3A%22zenderportal%22%2C%22platform%22%3A%22site%22%2C%22platformType%22%3A%22site%22%2C%22avType%22%3A%22video%22%2C%22consent%22%3A%5B%22implicit%22%2C%22necessary%22%2C%22analytics%22%5D%2C%22panel%22%3A%22laatste-afleveringen%22%2C%22type%22%3A%22editorial%22%2C%22offerId%22%3A%22f7c8b1d2-f998-4114-abbf-251dfb97e6f4%22%2C%22destination%22%3A%7B%22contentId%22%3A%22BV_101385629%22%2C%22index%22%3A0%2C%22numberDisplayed%22%3A1%2C%22recommender%22%3A%22laatste-afleveringen%22%7D%2C%22sourceContentId%22%3A%22laatste-afleveringen%22%7D and if the original link does not work: https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1607380169315007 and interview after return: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4mTqorL7jM
(** B H K)
Jürgen Todenhöfer über den Jemen: „Überall sah ich halb verhungerte Kinder“
Der Publizist Jürgen Todenhöfer spricht im Interview über seine Reise ins Bürgerkriegsland Jemen, die Nöte der Menschen und die Mitschuld des Westens.
Wie kommt man ins Land?
Wie sieht es in Sanaa aus? Dort wird gekämpft und die Stadt systematisch bombardiert.
Fast jede Nacht werden militärische Ziele bombardiert. Und oft völlig Unbeteiligte getroffen. Nachts waren immer Flugzeuge über uns. Während meines Besuchs wurde nicht weit von meinem Hotel eine Kriegsgefangenen-Unterkunft getroffen. 40 Menschen starben.
Wie sind die Auswirkungen auf die Menschen?
Überall schlimm. Auch im Süden habe ich schwerste Zerstörungen gesehen. Die Wirtschaft ist zusammengebrochen. Doch nur im Norden, wo unter der Huthi-Regierung bis zu 70 Prozent der Jemeniten leben, ist es zu Epidemien und schwerer Hungersnot gekommen. Dass im 2200 Meter hohen Sanaa die Temperaturen inzwischen nachts auf null zurückgehen, hat wenigstens die Ausbreitung der Cholera gebremst.
Wer blockiert den Jemen und warum geschieht das?
Wie haben Sie das Elend im Jemen erlebt?
Wenn wir irgendwo im Restaurant aßen, rissen sich kleine Jungen darum, unsere Tabletts abzuservieren. Auf dem Weg zur Küche machten sie sich über die Reste her. Überall sah ich halb verhungerte, bettelnde Kinder. Die Not im Norden ist unbeschreiblich. Zwar gibt es in Sanaa noch immer die an ein Märchen aus 1001 Nacht erinnernde Altstadt. Mit malerischen Gewürzläden. Doch die Händler verkaufen nichts. Oft packen sie abends wieder ihre kompletten Auslagen ein.
Sieben Millionen Menschen seien vom Hungertod bedroht, ist zu lesen.
Gibt es in Berlin eigentlich noch eine Botschaft des Jemen?
Es gibt einen Botschafter, der von seinem Wohnsitz in Berlin aus arbeitet. Er vertritt die pro-saudische Regierung Hadi. Er hat mir sehr geholfen. Ein toller Mann! Er versucht, für alle Jemeniten zu sprechen. Das ist überhaupt das Verblüffende: Nur wenige Menschen in Nord und Süd sprechen schlecht übereinander. Es gibt ja auch keinen Religionskrieg, wie oft behauptet wird.
Kann eine Rakete aus dem Jemen eines Tages Riad treffen?
Haben Sie Ihre Reise in den Jemen als gefährlich empfunden?
Was kann man tun, damit sich die Situation der Menschen verbessert?
Unsere Medien sollten mehr über diesen vergessenen Krieg berichten. Deswegen bin ich ja auch hingefahren. Wir sollten uns dafür einsetzen, dass die Bombardements aufhören und die Blockade des Nord-Jemen aufgehoben wird. Ich bekomme jetzt noch Gänsehaut, wenn ich an den Jemen denke. Man steht in einem Krankenhaus und es kommen ständig Menschen mit halb verhungerten Babys. Man sieht die Hoffnung in den Augen der Mütter und weiß doch, dass Hilfe zu spät kommt. Ohne die Waffenlieferungen des Westens und seine logistische Unterstützung wäre dieser Krieg nicht möglich. Der Westen liefert Saudi-Arabien Waffen und dem Jemen Pflaster. Das kann nicht richtig sein. Darüber sollten wir in Deutschland offener diskutieren.
https://www.ksta.de/politik/juergen-todenhoefer-ueber-den-jemen--ueberall-sah-ich-halb-verhungerte-kinder--29432906 = https://www.berliner-zeitung.de/politik/interview-mit-juergen-todenhoefer--ueberall-sah-ich-halb-verhungerte-kinder--29433300 = http://www.fr.de/politik/juergen-todenhoefer-die-not-ist-unbeschreiblich-a-1419731
(** B K P)
Norway Halts Weapons Sales in Yemen War, Citing Humanitarian Crisis, as US & Britain Continue Supply
Well, recently Nermeen Shaikh and I sat down with the journalist Iona Craig, who was based in Sana’a from 2010 to ’15 as the Yemen correspondent for The Times of London, awarded the 2016 Orwell Prize for her reporting on Yemen. I started by asking her what the world needs to know about the crisis in Yemen.
IONACRAIG: I think it’s really how man-made the humanitarian crisis is, the Saudi coalition’s policy of not just blockading the country and restricting food imports—and Yemen imports 90 percent of its food in peace time—but it’s also the bombing campaign, that I mentioned in that report for The Guardian, that has been used to systematically target Yemenis’ ability to grow their own food or supply food for themselves. So, there is a clear pattern of a strategy to bomb farmland, to target the areas where farmers are trying to grow food, and, again, as well, targeting fishermen, where people have become increasingly reliant on, you know, fish and fishermen’s supplies to feed themselves.
But I think everybody now—there is mass uncertainty of what happens next. That’s everybody’s question, is: What happens now that Ali Abdullah Saleh is dead? And his political party appears to be crumbling, those who were still loyal to him, as well. And I think, particularly in Sana’a, people, over the last 10 days, are incredibly scared.
Trying to communicate with people there is very difficult. After Saleh’s death, the Houthis cracked down on the internet.
And there has been a lot of talk of detentions in Sana’a over the last 10 days, since Saleh died, but it’s unclear how many people have effectively disappeared into the prisons in Sana’a and how bad that crackdown is, because getting information out of Sana’a is so difficult because of the restrictions the Houthis have placed on internet access over the last 10 days.
Why is the White House going to be showing this evidence [Nikki Haley’s Houthi Rocket Show]? Why is Saudi Arabia not showing that evidence, or even the Yemeni government showing that evidence? And I think the concern is about the answer to that question. Is this going to be—is this rhetoric and this narrative going to be used as some form of pretext for more U.S. involvement in the war in Yemen to support any ground operations by the Saudi-led coalition?
There have been movements, since Saleh’s death, on the Red Sea coast towards Hudaydah. A grand operation against Hudaydah port had been talked about for more than a year, but under the previous U.S. administration, they had advised the Saudi-led coalition against that. And so, the concern is that this kind of rhetoric coming out of the White House may be used as some form of way to support the coalition in any upcoming ground offensive and to increase the U.S. involvement in the war in Yemen.
And, of course, that then brings the prospect of escalation, because it’s highly likely, if that did happen, that Iran would retaliate. They may not retaliate in Yemen. They could retaliate in Syria or Iran. And that, of course, brings the prospect of an almost proxy conflict then between the U.S. and Iran.
Again, this is a lot of—you know, based on financial interests and economic interests. And this is the really disheartening thing about it, because that’s at the expense of millions of Yemenis who are literally starving to death, that the interests of those people and the lives of those people is being—is being seen as inferior to the economic interests of the U.S. and the financial interests of the Trump administration.
https://www.democracynow.org/2018/1/4/norway_halts_weapons_sales_in_yemen and full interview in film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGMZ6JArkIk and film targeting fishermen, from Press TV Iran: https://twitter.com/A_mtrz/status/949696081008394240
(** B P)
Names: Leaked documents reveal the amount of funds received by Yemeni figures from Saudi authorities during the war
Saudi authorities leaked on Thursday a list containing names of Yemeni figures who received money from the kingdom during the war.
The disclosure of the names of more than 274 Yemeni personalities in the legitimate government and the Transitional Council and reform and socialist and resistance and many Yemeni figures received sums ranging between one million Saudi riyals and 200 thousand riyals.
One of the documents said the money provided by Saudi Arabia was a Saudi honor to the participants in the Riyadh conference, which was held after the outbreak of the war in Yemen a month ago.
The talk of receiving Yemeni figures for money during the dialogue conference held in the Saudi capital Riyadh in 2015 was limited to simple political circles inside Yemen.
The published documents appear to be official, correct and stamped by a Saudi deduction issued by the Saudi Ministry of Finance and the Minister's office in person.
The reasons for the release of these documents were not known at this particular time.
The political conference was held after the outbreak of war in Yemen and stressed the need to circumvent the legitimacy of President Abderbo Mansour Hadi on the day.
The published statement showed the names of different Yemeni and southern figures.
More than 24 hours later, none of the names mentioned in these statements made any comment about their accuracy and none of them claimed to be incorrect.
http://www.adengad.net/news/296374/ and translation https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=ar&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=de&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.adengad.net%2Fnews%2F296374%2F&edit-text=
My comment: This explains not just a little bit…
(** B K P)
Giving War Too Many Chances
As the new year begins, it is important for the U.S. to acknowledge its troubling history of global war-making, especially over the past two-decades.
Once the Cold War ended, the justification for 50 years of massive military spending, global warfare and coups was finally over. Like U.S. allies, enemies and neighbors around the world, Americans breathed a sigh of relief and welcomed the “peace dividend.”
But the peace dividend was short-lived, trumped by what Carl Conetta of the Project for Defense Alternatives has dubbed the “power dividend,” the drive to exploit the end of the Cold War to consolidate and expand U.S. military power. Influential voices linked to military industrial interests had a new refrain, essentially “Give War a Chance.” But of course, they didn’t put it so plainly:
[viewing at 9 countries, among them Yemen]
Pretending we are at peace and vowing to preserve it by diverting more of our resources to the military industrial complex is not a national security strategy. It is an Orwellian deception taken straight from the pages of 1984.
At the dawn of 2018, nobody could accuse the American public of not giving war a chance. We have let successive presidents talk us into war over each and every international crisis, most of which were caused or fueled by U.S. aggression and militarism in the first place, in the belief that they may have finally found an enemy they can defeat and a war that will somehow make life better for somebody somewhere. But they haven’t.
As we look forward to a new year, surely it is time to try something different and finally “Give Peace a Chance.” – by Nicolas J.S. Davies
https://consortiumnews.com/2018/01/03/giving-war-too-many-chances/
My comment: Missing in this list: Former Yougoslavia. - And might-be we also could add Russia - a country which suffered a humanitarian desaster thanks to US influence in the 1990s:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Russia#Transition_to_market_economy_(1991%E2%80%9398)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privatization_in_Russia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yegor_Gaidar#Reforms_controversy
Because of US-inspired economic "shock therapy", GDP fell by more than 40 % (Great Depression of 1929 ff just 20 %), thus the average life expectancy fell by several years, which means several millions of deaths: http://www.economist.com/node/12972677 .
cp1a Am wichtigsten: Seuchen / Most important: Epidemics
(** A H)
Suspected diphtheria cases in Yemen near 500: WHO
At least 471 people in Yemen are believed to have been infected with diphtheria, killing one in 10 of them since the outbreak began in mid-August, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday.
Ibb and Al-Hodeidah governorates are the hardest hit by diphtheria, spread through close physical and respiratory contact, WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic said in response to a query.
“The overall case fatality ratio is 10 percent,” he said, noting that 46 fatalities had been recorded as of Jan. 2.
The Reuters Special Report, published on Dec 29, said that in the past four months, doctors across Yemen had recorded at least 380 cases of diphtheria, a bacterial disease that last appeared in the country in 1992.
The spread of diphtheria - which can be prevented by vaccine - compounds widespread hunger and one of the worst cholera outbreaks ever recorded, with more than 1 million cases and 2,227 deaths since April.
(* B H)
ERC combatting cholera in Yemen with equipment running on alternative energy
The Emirates Red Crescent, ERC, has solved the issues of limited electricity supply and transporting medical aid to areas far from the centres of Yemeni governorates, by deploying equipment that operates on alternative energy.
The limited electricity network, which was damaged by the Houthis militias, as well as the spread of many diseases in desperate areas, presented a real challenge in terms of delivering the assistance.
The ERC highlighted its desire and commitment to provide the necessary aid, to save the lives of Yemenis despite the difficulties, especially with the spread of cholera in many governorates.
The ERC provided many hospitals in Hadramaut, Aden and the West Coast with equipment, such as solar-powered refrigerators, in light of the limited electric supply, which helped to provide vaccinations against diseases and illnesses and saved the lives of tens of thousands of children and women.
The advanced solar-powered refrigerators offered a practical solution to the issue of preserving medicines and vaccines that are necessary for vaccination campaigns, considering the repeated electricity outages in many areas of Yemen, after their systematic destruction by the Houthis militias, which affected power plants and sub-stations.
http://wam.ae/en/details/1395302658213
My comment: It might be a great work which is done by ERC staff, and they might have good ideas as to be seen here – but the base of the suffering is the Saudi-Emirati bombing campaign and blockade in the first, in the second and in the third place. “systematic destruction” just can be ascribed to the Saudi / Emirati bombing campaign. In the case of electricity, the bombing destroyed 174 electrical generators and stations.
cp2 Allgemein / General
(* B P)
Iranian advisors are 'on the ground' with Houthis in Yemen, supplying weapons and intelligence
BBC reporter Nawal Al-Maghafi, speaking on the BBC World Service on Friday, said she had tracked down Saleh's closest aide, now in Aden. The aide said:
"I was with him, and he was defending his home, with his aides and nephews by his side. Three or four tanks surrounded his house. They began firing."
Al-Maghafi asked the aide about the presence of Iranians, and he said:
"There are Iranians by their side, and they tell them exactly what to do. I saw them with my own eyes. They give them weapons, but it's the information they give that is most important. I met the Iranian advisers when I was with Saleh. They were always beside the Houthi leaders."
Al-Maghafi said that while she was in Sanaa, she was able to speak with "other well-placed sources [who] all confirmed the existence of the Iranian advisers."
Al-Maghafi's reporting provides the first on-the-ground proof of the Iranian support.
http://www.generationaldynamics.com/pg/xct.gd.e180106.htm
I will be talking to @BBCNuala about my recent trip to #Yemen, the difficult circumstances we had to work under and more on the presence of #Iranian advisors on the ground in #Sanaa. Listen at 1650GMT @BBCOS on BBCWSradio
https://twitter.com/bbcnawalmaghafi/status/949296316311638017
I think this is not gospel. The persons who claim that the Houthis have close Iranian ties are survivors of the Houthi fatal attack on Saleh and part of his regime in Yemen. Saleh and his cronies have long claimed this - from as far back as 2004 - and these claims have not had strong foundations but when Saleh was president he used these claims to get backing from Saudi Arabia when he was fighting the Believing youth - who then took the name of their leader Hussein Houthi after he was matryred. Sadly the situation with the Houthis has since then been worsened because of the assassination of moderate, liberal and far sighted leaders replaced with those with less vision for the future, who have returned to visions of the past and a fundamentalist form of religion. For example - the Houthi representatives at the NDC pushed for more liberal, representative and democratic institutions in government - but now those in charge in the north are repressing women in the same way that Wahhabism does - the very religious practices that they once saw as abhorrent. And this is the sad thing. Even if all foreign armies leave now Yemen has gone backwards and it will take centuries before it can even get back to what it had before. And the struggles between factions will inevitably go on and on. It's heartbreaking.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156269980883641
(* B H K)
'War that will destroy generations': Author of 'Yemeni Bride' graphic novel to RT
An Italian journalist who traveled to Yemen to take in its culture and architecture, and who ended up documenting the horrors there, says the conflict is not only killing thousands now, but will ruin several generations to come.
"Sadly what's happening right now is something that will destroy generations. Not only those who are now in their 20s and 30s, but even those who are around 15 are forced to participate in the war, to fight on the front lines. All their hopes are destroyed, and they don't see any future," author of 'The Yemeni Bride,' Laura Silvia Battaglia told RT.
"Yemen is dying because this war is not so fast, but grew in a way that people are in a siege. If they don't die from bombs or in clashes, they die because of cholera, malnutrition, and because they don't have access to food or good water," she said.
Despite all the horrors, the conflict in the Arab country is one of the most "underreported" events today, Battaglia noted.
Back in Italy, she teamed up with cartoonist Paola Cannatella. In 2016, the pair published 'The Yemeni Bride,' a graphic novel based on Battaglia's personal experiences and impressions of the Arab country, as well drawing from vast research and interviews with locals. It was reprinted in 2017 and is set to be published in English this year.
The picture stories which illustrate daily life in Yemen at the beginning of the 21st century, are both about the country's rich traditions and culture, and the current horrors afflicting one of the poorest countries in the Middle East. It touches on terrorism, child trafficking, kidnapping of foreigners, child marriages, drugs and the complexities of Islam.
https://www.rt.com/news/415185-yemen-book-author-destroyed-generations/ with film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHyfdAipf0Q&t=18s
(A K PH)
Yemeni cameraman killed in Saudi airstrike on Jawf province
One of the cameramen of Yemen’s Arabic-language al-Masirah television network has lost his life while producing a report on the damage caused by Saudi Arabia’s devastating aerial bombardment campaign in the country’s northern province of al-Jawf.
Al-Masirah said in a statement that Safir Talib al-Shami was reporting from Khabb and Sha'af district in Jawf, located approximately 110 kilometers north of the capital Sana'a, on Friday evening when Saudi fighter jets struck the area.
http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/01/06/548027/Yemeni-cameraman-killed-in-Saudi-airstrike-alJawf and film:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=556B3SL9iY4 = https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1764025763628480/
(A P)
Yemen denounces Saudi aggression airstrikes on Al-Masira TV, cameraman killed
"Attacking journalists violates all international conventions and human rights treaties," the minister said.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483973.htm
(? B K P)
»Das Volk unterstützt die Huthis«
Jemen: Fehler Saudi-Arabiens und der Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate stärken die Rebellen. Gespräch mit Ali Al-Ahmed
Nach der Erschießung des langjährigen (Anfang Dezember, jW) zu den Saudis übergelaufenen, jemenitischen Exdiktators Ali Abdullah Saleh durch Huthi-Rebellen gab es eine heftige Reaktion aus Riad. Erleben wir jetzt das Ende der Huthi-Bewegung Ansarollah?
Das glaube ich nicht. Saudi-Arabien und die Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate haben große Fehler begangen, und die Huthis besitzen großen Rückhalt in der Bevölkerung. Abu Dhabi hat versucht, unter Einbeziehung Salehs einen Ausweg aus dem Konflikt zu finden, brauchte aber lange, um Riad davon zu überzeugen. Als es den Emiraten gelang, war es zu spät. Niemand hat die Verankerung der Rebellen im Land begriffen, auch die Vereinigten Staaten nicht, die bis vor kurzem das Potential der Bewegung nicht berücksichtigten.
Die alten Stammeslogiken sind fast vollständig verschwunden. Man ist von einer tribalistischen Gesellschaftsstruktur zu einer von der Ideologie geprägten übergegangen (Nur Abonennten)
https://www.jungewelt.de/loginFailed.php?ref=/artikel/324787.das-volk-unterstützt-die-huthis.html and on Ali Al Ahmed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali_al-Ahmed
(* B K P)
Western complicity is fuelling Yemen’s humanitarian crisis
A besieged and starved population has been pushed to the brink of famine and is already subject to malaria, dengue fever, diphtheria, and cholera. This is a moment when the UK, US and France should re-evaluate its relationship with Riyadh and the diplomatic and humanitarian poisoning caused by their trade in arms. [Overview]
https://www.opendemocracy.net/north-africa-west-asia/stephen-mccloskey/western-complicity-yemen-humanitarian-crisis-famine-saudi-arabia-UK-France-USA = https://www.commondreams.org/views/2018/01/06/western-complicity-fueling-yemens-humanitarian-crisis
(* B K P)
Yemen a Pawn in Regional Struggle for Influence
Yemen has become a playground for Saudi and Emirati foreign policymaking. The death of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, once an ally and then a foe of the two regimes, has left a vacuum and may change the course of events in the war-torn country.
The Saudis will therefore stick to their current man in Yemen, President Hadi, who is actually in exile in Saudi Arabia. The Emiratis will continue to empower different southern factions in Yemen against the Houthis and al-Qaeda. Some disagreements have emerged publicly between the Saudis and Emiratis, with the UAE increasingly interested in controlling the Bab al-Mandab strait and, by extension, the Red Sea, thereby encroaching on Saudi Arabia’s traditional sphere of influence.
But due to (still relatively small) Iranian influence in Yemen, the Saudis and Emiratis will be obliged to work together in the medium term. As the Brookings Institution’s Bruce Riedel put it, ‘The war costs Tehran a few million dollars per month, while it costs Riyadh $6 billion per month.’ Any disagreement between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi could increase Iran’s influence.
https://fanack.com/yemen/history-past-to-present/regional-struggle/
(* B K P)
Don’t dare mention Yemen
This is typical of how public discussion on Yemen is avoided. A glance at Pakistan’s TV channels and Urdu newspapers confirms the absence of news or critical discussion. While English language newspapers occasionally take a potshot, our obedient media generally echoes the civil and military establishment — which fully sides with fabulously rich Saudi Arabia against its desperately poor neighbour, Yemen.
Pakistan’s Foreign Office made its position perfectly clear on Dec 19.
We can be amazed by Theresa May criticising Saudi Arabia for using the £4.6bn worth of weapons Britain sold to it after the Yemen war began. And it’s almost unbelievable that Donald Trump had actually demanded that Saudi Arabia end its blockade of Hudaydah port. Even this vicious white supremacist does not relish starving Yemenis en masse. These might be pangs of guilt or perhaps a reluctant move to appease international opinion.
Trump and May are, at best, hypocrites. But what shall we say about Pakistan’s damning silence on Yemen’s grade-3 humanitarian catastrophe
What explains Pakistan’s support? Pakistan supports Saudi hegemony simply because bags of riyals will buy you everything, including the allegiance of politicians and generals.
Cash is really what speaks.
Remaining a Saudi vassal state and siding with those who deliberately seek to starve Yemen’s children has degraded Pakistan’s moral status
https://www.dawn.com/news/1381055/dont-dare-mention-yemen = https://www.thestatesman.com/opinion/pakistan-mum-yemen-1502558964.html
My comment: It’s not just Pakistan…
(B H K)
My Wish List for Yemen
What people in Yemen wish for as 2018 approaches? They wish they can sleep without worrying about the future. They want to live a peaceful life, where normalcy and stability, not fear and hunger are dominant. They wish to have electricity, access to safe water, they wish that their children can go to school. They wish to walk the streets without being afraid of an airstrike or sudden clashes. They simply wish to be able to dream again.
Everywhere I have been here in Yemen this year the situation is catastrophic. In the north, in the south, in the city and in the villages people are struggling and they are desperate for peace – by Hind Abbas, CARE Yemen
https://www.care-international.org/news/stories-blogs/my-wish-list-for-yemen
(* B K P)
Joyce McMillan: World is turning blind eye to its biggest catastrophe
Diphtheria is easily preventable but in war-ravaged Yemen it is now a death sentence as the United Nations and the world turns a cynical blind eye, writes Joyce McMillan.
troubling questions about the utter failure of our governments and global institutions, 70 years on from the founding of the United Nations, to protect those who most desperately need their help.
And in truth, it’s this web of financial and commercial dependence that makes it impossible for our global institutions to function as they should. The UN has, in theory, the power to take the situation in Yemen out of the hands of those who treat the welfare of the country’s people with contempt; but the fact that the permanent Security Council nations are so complicit with the forces that have neglected the impact of climate change, over-armed the entire region, and then decided to use this suffering country as an arena for their power-games, renders them almost useless as protectors of the weak, and champions of the people. In the end, only pressure from their own citizens will ever change that balance of power. If we want international institutions that work, we need national governments that will take international law seriously, and act to uphold it. If we want to protect the weak, we need national governments that will resist the temptation always to ally themselves with the economically strong, while ignoring the humanitarian cost. And in the meantime, we need to support those organisations that are in a position to act, and to uphold the basic human values our governments so often neglect – by Joyce McMillan
(* B K P)
Want to understand the structure of Yemen's "chaos state"? Why not check out @CH_MENAP's online interactive map, which you can find here:
https://yemen-map.chathamhouse.org/
(B H P)
„Alles könnte sehr viel einfacher sein“
Im Jemen ist seit 2014 Bürgerkrieg. Das Land wird von der Cholera heimgesucht und JemenitInnen dürfen weder in die USA noch in Marokko einreisen.
Kürzlich habe ich in der Türkei einen alten Freund besucht. Er stammt aus dem Jemen. Das Land wird seit 2014 vom Bürgerkrieg und seit 2015 durch die von Saudi-Arabien geleitete internationale Militärintervention in Schutt und Asche gelegt.
„Wir sind im Jemen wie eingesperrt, dabei könnte es alles sehr viel einfacher sein.“ Selbst die UNO verweist untätig immer nur auf den zerstörten Flughafen der Hauptstadt Sana’a, anstatt sich um die vier funktionalen Flughäfen zu kümmern, die sich, wie Aden, in Städten unter der Kontrolle der Regierung befinden.
https://www.taz.de/Kolumne-Globetrotter/!5468255/
(A P)
Saudi-led coalition is providing safe passage to officials previously loyal to late former president Ali Abdullah Saleh. Major General Ali Saleh al Ahmar, former commander of the Republican Guard and half brother of late former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, arrived in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on January 4. [2]
(* B K P)
The Yemen Fallacy – Letter to the Editor of NYT
The continuation of the current war means further human misery, poverty, hunger, malnutrition, extremism, radicalism, famine, diseases and regional insecurity. It is indeed ridiculous to think that slaughtering Yemenis will alleviate suffering, bring peace in the Middle East and persuade Iran to stop its expansionist ambitions and nuclear program. The sooner the international community realizes this, the better - by MUNJED FRAID AL QUTOB, LONDON
http://www.akhbarye24.net/news/1028335/
(* B P)
10 Conflicts to Watch in 2018
U.S.-Saudi-Iran Rivalry
This rivalry will likely eclipse other Middle Eastern fault lines in 2018. It is enabled and exacerbated by three parallel developments: the consolidation of the authority of Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s assertive crown prince; the Trump administration’s more aggressive strategy toward Iran; and the end of the Islamic State’s territorial control in Iraq and Syria, which allows Washington and Riyadh to aim the spotlight more firmly on Iran.
The contours of a U.S./Saudi strategy (with an important Israeli assist) are becoming clear. It is based on an overriding assumption that Iran has exploited passive regional and international actors to bolster its position in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Lebanon. Washington and Riyadh seek to re-establish a sense of deterrence by convincing Tehran that it will pay at least as high a price for its actions as it can inflict on its adversaries.
With so many flashpoints, and so little diplomacy, the risk of an escalatory cycle is great
Yemen
Saudi Arabia and its allies — believing that the Houthi/General People’s Congress split opens new opportunities and still convinced a military solution exists — will likely intensify their campaign at a huge cost to civilians. Iran will keep finding ample opportunity to keep the Saudis bogged down, and the more anarchic Yemen’s north becomes, the more likely that violence is to bleed across the border. The Houthis will continue to take the fight to the Saudi homefront, firing missiles toward Riyadh and threatening other Gulf states.
Negotiations, already a distant prospect, have become more complicated.
https://www.crisisgroup.org/global/10-conflicts-watch-2018
(* B P)
Can the General People's Congress in Yemen preserve its clout after the death of Saleh?
The General People's Congress (GPC) has been Yemen's most popular and influential political party for decades. Its head is dead now, and the remaining leading members have scattered since early last month; the future of the party is uncertain.
In the course of Saleh's rule, the GPC capitalised on its clout as the ruling party in the country for decades. With this privilege is gone, it is unguaranteed the party's vast popularity will not decline.
On the contrary, hope still has room that the GPC can survive and maintain its leading political presence in Yemen. Nowadays, the GPC has more friends than adversaries. When the GPC declared a revolution against the Houthis in early December, internal and external voices welcomed this initiative.
The role of the political parties have weakened in Yemen as they are no longer in control of the political arena in the country. But movements have tremendously risen in the north and south – by
Khalid Al-Karimi
(A P)
After a month of silence and death rumors, Tareq Saleh returns to twitter.
https://twitter.com/adammbaron/status/948832828602634240 referring to https://twitter.com/tarikyemen/status/948711378608709633
Remark: But the photos showing him in hospital are no proof of his survival; they are from an earlier date, as other photos show Sanaa government president Salam at his bed : https://twitter.com/JosephJo1221/status/948940073197801477
cp2a Saudische Blockade / Saudi blockade
(B H P)
[Google-Luftbild vom Hafen Hodeidah / Google Maps aerial image of Hodeidah port]
https://www.kreuzfahrtberater.de/hafen-h414-hodeidah
Mein Kommentar: Zum “Kreuzfahrt-Berater” passt das wohl nicht so recht.
(* A H P)
Wikipedia article: Blockade of Yemen
The blockade of Yemen refers to a sea, land and air blockade on Yemen which started with the positioning of Saudi Arabian warships in Yemeni waters, although it was further constricted following the November launch of a missile from Houthis in Yemen towards Riyadh. The blockade of Yemen has been the cause of a critical situation for Yemenis, and it is worsening to the extent that United Nations mentioned Yemen is confronting with the worst global famine.[1][2] The World Health Organization announced that the number of suspected persons to cholera in Yemen reached approximately 500,000 people.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockade_of_Yemen
(* A H P)
#Yemen #ports Despite commercial vessels being cleared by the UNVIM, many continue to be refused permission to berth by the coalition. Subsequently imports remain well below pre-06 November levels (with map)
https://twitter.com/riskstaff/status/949203657723203584
(* A H P)
Film: Invisible Change: Saudis reopen key port in Yemen, but locals see no ships arrive
Saudi Arabia finally succumbed to international pressure last month to temporarily reopen a key port in Yemen, to allow in supplies of food and fuel. The blockade had been seen as worsening what, the UN calls, the world's biggest humanitarian crisis, but, as far as locals are concerned, little has changed since the port reopened.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnHCQ0S_pow
(* A H P)
S Arabia Still Intercepts Aid and Commercial Vessels
The Yemeni Red Sea Ports Corporation (YRSPC) denied reports published by media of the Saudi-led aggression claimed that it had allowed commercial ships and oil vessels to dock in the port of Hodeidah.
The “YRSPC” stressed that these claims are not true and comes within the framework of the campaign of fabrication that media of aggression used to do, a thing has been used to exaggerate the international community and falsify the facts.
The deputy chairman of the Red Sea Ports Corporation, Yahia Sharafuddin, revealed in a press conference held yesterday at the docks of the port of Hodeidah, the falseness of the remarks made by countries of aggression, which announced for the third time the opening of the port of Hodeidah for the entrance of the ships while nothing has happened.
He stressed that the port has not been opened since the first announcement, citing that the port is free of any commercial vessel or even relief ships.
http://www.newnewss.net/report-s-arabia-still-intercepts-aid-and-commercial-vessels/
cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation
Siehe / Look at cp1
(A H)
Food aid packages to be delivered by @monarelief's ground crew in Sanaa tomorrow based on a fund came from an NGO in Poland. @monareliefye received first donation to purchase food baskets to be distributed to IDPs and vulnerable families in #Yemen
https://twitter.com/Fatikr/status/949782489521901571
(* B H)
A total of “51,848.95 USD” was spent in 2017 to help about "15,000" needy people in #Yemen with various humanitarian assistance such as foods, water, education and health supplies.
Thank you for wholeheartedly being a part of our movement! (photos)
https://twitter.com/HndOrgYE/status/949719197705297920
Human Needs for Development-HND Organization is a non-profit Yemeni registered charity number: 275/2016. HND sole goal is to alleviate the starving and suffering faced by populations in Yemen
HND has launched tens of projects in Yemen through funds we receive from personal donors and charities. All of HND staffs are volunteers, so all funds go directly to purchase the food items for needy people in Yemen.
- WHAT IS SAVE A FAMILY IN YEMEN?
Save A Family In Yemen is Human Needs Development-HND's relief appeal that aims to help the most war affected families in Yemen with food baskets. Every food basket contains the following:
HOW WILL THE FUNDS BE USED?
With your $30, you will help all members of ONE Yemeni hungry family with food items sufficient ONE month
PROJECTS WE SUCCESSFULLY ACHIVED:
https://www.generosity.com/emergencies-fundraising/save-a-family-in-yemen
(* A H)
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock – Statement on the humanitarian situation in Yemen, 5 January 2018
In the past month, there has been progress in opening Yemen’s critical Red Sea ports to commercial fuel and food shipments as well as the resumption of humanitarian shipments and flights. However, I remain deeply concerned by the deterioration in the humanitarian situation – a catastrophe made worse by recent increases in fighting and airstrikes.
With 22 million people in need of humanitarian assistance in Yemen and more than eight million of them a step away from famine, I approved today the largest-ever allocation by the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) – $50 million – to rapidly bolster the response. These funds will help to save lives, but to roll back the unfolding catastrophe, three things need to happen:
First, there must be reduction both in fighting on the ground and airstrikes, which have greatly intensified in recent weeks.
Second, we need all ports to remain open without interruption.
Third, we need faster and more generous donor financing.
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/under-secretary-general-humanitarian-affairs-and-emergency-relief-coordinator-mark-1 and as reported by Aljazeera, with film: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/01/yemen-worst-humanitarian-crisis-50-years-180105190332474.html
Comment: Well this desperate and clear statement surely must make sense to the whole world. This is Yemen's Holocaust. More people may die from hunger than in the concentration camps of the Second World War.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156266974818641
and
(* A H)
United Nations approves $50 million for relief in Yemen in largest emergency aid
The UN had earlier warned that the war-torn country is staring at the ‘largest famine the world has seen for many decades’.
The United Nations on Friday approved $50 million (Rs 317 crore) in emergency aid for Yemen, as it said fighting on the ground and airstrikes in the country had “greatly intensified” in recent weeks.
(* A H)
Director of Water Supplies and Agriculture in Yafea Appeals for Urgent Help
Motea Al-Shabhy, director of water supplies and agrrculture in Yafea, called for urgent help from all Yafea’s task forces including Work & Achievement Group, Yafea Ally and other southern charities, to rescue Yafea’s citizens from the current disaster of lack of fresh water. Al-Shabhy indicated that all official bodies and international organizations failed Yafea and didn’t respond to his calls.
http://en.smanews.org/director-of-water-supplies-and-agriculture-in-yafea-appeals-for-urgent-help
Remark: On Yafea, look at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yafa
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lower_Yafa
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yafa%27a_District
(* B H)
Global Early Warning – Early Action Report on Food Security and Agriculture: January - March 2018
Early Action (EWEA) report on food security and agriculture is developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
Yemen
Yemen faces further deterioration due to a blockade imposed on critical imports and disease epidemics. The worst affected areas were reported in the southern and western part of the country.
If disruption to humanitarian access continues, a further deterioration in already the largest humanitarian crisis in the world is expected. In a worst-case scenario, those most vulnerable could suffer famine-like conditions (IPC Phase 5). The Food Security and Agriculture Cluster (FSAC) estimates that more than 10.4 million people are likely to be severely food insecure if access restrictions continue.
To address the risk of famine in the worst-case scenario, access to vulnerable communities is urgently required to support humanitarian efforts. If restrictions are lifted and access is granted, the following actions are recommended:
https://reliefweb.int/report/world/global-early-warning-early-action-report-food-security-and-agriculture-january-march-0 and in full https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/i8343en.pdf
(A H)
Monareliefye.org delivering food aid & hygiene kits to 60 Dhamar families & IPDs
Monareliefye.org delivered today 60 food aid baskets to most vulnerable families and IDPs funded by our great donors in Kuwait, along with 60 hygiene kits in Dhamar funded by IOM Yemen. (photos)
https://www.monareliefye.org/single-post/2018/01/05/Monareliefyeorg-delivering-food-aid-hygiene-kits-to-60-Dhamar-families-IPDs and https://twitter.com/Fatikr/status/948859437250437120
(* B H)
Yemen: 2018 Humanitarian Needs Overview
More than two and a half years since the escalation of the conflict, Yemeni people continue to bear the brunt of ongoing hostilities and severe economic decline. People are increasingly exhausting their coping mechanisms, and as a result the humanitarian crisis remains extremely widespread: an estimated 22.2 million people in Yemen need some kind of humanitarian or protection assistance, including 11.3 million who are in acute need – an increase of more than one million people in acute need since June 2017. The escalation of the conflict since March 2015 has dramatically aggravated the protection crisis in which millions face risks to their safety and basic rights.
KEY HUMANITARIAN ISSUES
Protection of civilians
Collapse of basic ser vices and institutions
Basic survival
Millions of people in Yemen need humanitarian assistance to ensure their basic survival. An estimated 17.8 million are food insecure, 16 million lack access to safe water and sanitation, and 16.4 million lack access to adequate healthcare. Needs across the country have grown more acute since June 2017, with 11.3 million in acute need of humanitarian assistance in order to survive – this is an increase of 15 per cent in five months
Loss of livelihoods and impacted private sector
The economy has contracted sharply since the conflict escalated, and imports and internal movement of goods have become more difficult and costlier as a result of restrictions imposed on the economy. In this situation, even Yemenis not directly affected by the conflict may be in need of humanitarian assistance due to a lack of livelihood options and sharp economic decline. Enterprises have on average reduced operating hours by 50 per cent, leading to layoffs that are estimated at 55 percent of the workforce. The agriculture and fishery sectors, which employed more than 54 per cent of the rural workforce and was the main source of income for 73 per cent of the population prior to the escalation of conflict has been severely impacted. Consequently, the livelihoods of 1.7 million rural households engaged in crop and livestock production has been seriously compromised. An estimated 8.4 million affected people require livelihood assistance.
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-2018-humanitarian-needs-overview and in full https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-2018-humanitarian-needs-overview
cp4 Flüchtlinge / Refugees
(A H)
Security Forces Arrest a Gang of Africans Doing Drugs in Etqu [Southern Yemen]
criminal investigations led to the arrest of 12 women and 26 men in a residential block in Etqu
http://en.smanews.org/security-forces-arrest-a-gang-of-africans-doing-drugs-in-etqu
(* B H)
UN Migration Agency Helps Nearly 3,000 Migrants Get Home from Yemen in 2017
During the final days of 2017, IOM, the UN Migration Agency succeeded in completing two movements of stranded Somalis and Ethiopians out of Yemen, despite immense security challenges and difficult sea conditions. Two boats were deployed, one headed to Aden to evacuate Somali refugees, while the other went to Hudaydah to evacuate Ethiopians, who were considered especially vulnerable due to the dangers of rising violence near that port city.
The 27 December operation was the 19th assisted voluntary humanitarian return conducted by IOM out of the city of Aden sea port, taking 138 Somali men, women and children home in cooperation with UNHCR. With this final movement in 2017, IOM Yemen helped a total of 2,241 Somali refugees through its sub-office in Aden. The total number of Ethiopian migrants helped return home through Hudaydah seaport via Djibouti reached 746 people during 2017.
(A H)
Yemen: Passengers Transport Overview - Djibouti - Aden - Djibouti, December 2017
(* A P)
Joint Military and Security Forces Arrest Africans by Rada Coast – Ahwar
In an accurate qualitative joint operation, soldiers of brigade 111 infantry, Al-Majamea Al-Abtal Post and security belt forces arrested several Africans by Rada coast in Ahwar. The arrested persons were being trafficked by big fishing boats coming from Ethiopia. This illegal immigration that continues under a complete governmental silence, is the main source of criminal gangs and mercenaries in Yemen, especially in Abian with its open coasts. Till Wednesday January 3rd, 2018, 197 Africans less than 25 years old, including 45 women, were arrested in this area.
http://en.smanews.org/joint-military-and-security-forces-arrest-africans-by-rada-coast-ahwar
cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis
(A P)
Houthi extremists killed an old civilian man in Maqbanah west of Taiz city. After their control of al-Mukaymel area in Maqbanah the militants shot dead Seed Abdul-Razzaq, 75. #Source: Several media
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-14371
(* A P)
Houthis Claimed to Hamper Yemen's Dead Ex-President's Party
The Yemeni rebels from the Shiite Houthi movement, also known as Ansar Allah, have hampered holding the congress of the General People's Congress (GPC) party of former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh
"The congress of the [GPC] central committee, that was scheduled for Sunday morning, has been delayed due to the threats by the insurgents [Houthis] to attack the site of the congress' holding. They are trying to hamper the congress' holding for fear of making important decisions such as the break with the Ansar Allah movement," the source said on Saturday.
The GPC was supposed to choose the acting head of the party and to decide on the further cooperation with the Ansar Allah movement at the YemeniSupreme Political Council, the source added.
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801071060563313-houthis-yemen-party-hamper-congress/
(A P)
31 leading members ( hereunder) of Yemen General People Congress ( GPC) donated cash to cover expenses of holding meetings to elected new leadership replacing the departed Saleh and Zooka, both killed last month after switching sides. All those donors, member, are based in Sanaa (photo)
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/949246334346907648
(A K T)
Aggression-linked criminal elements arrested in Baidha
The security media published new confessions of several criminal elements linking to the aggression in Baidha province, a security official told Saba on Saturday.
The arrested were working on implementing the aggression schemes that target citizens and the homeland’s security and stability, the official added.
The crimes of those elements included making explosive devices and detonating them and monitoring the army and popular forces movements and collaborating with the enemy and providing its warplanes with coordinates.
According to the confessions, the so-called Al-Qaeda Organization recruited a number of misled persons and sent them to fight in the aggression ranks, and the aggression forces also trained some mercenaries and engaged them within the Al-Qaeda cells.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483923.htm
(A H K)
Houthi cemetery, said to be for child soldiers (photo)
https://twitter.com/JosephJo1221/status/949210593621368832
(A H K)
Photo: Another Yemeni child soldier who should have been in school but was sent instead by the Houthis to the battlefield. Died 1/1/2018.
https://twitter.com/YemenForEver12/status/948942205259014144 = https://twitter.com/ammar82/status/949437191226261504
cp6 Südjemen und Hadi-Regierung / Southern Yemen and Hadi-government
Siehe / Look at cp1
(A T)
#AQAP claims targeting #Balhaf LNG facility in Rudum district #Shabwa with 5 Grad rockets at 2am on Dec 06. As AQAP states in their claim the Balhaf facility is currently used as headquarters for UAE forces operating in the province.
https://twitter.com/demolinari/status/949807068168404992
(A P)
Ali Mohsen Refuses Appointing “Al-Ghareeb” as Governor of Adan and Nominates Military Persons Loyal to Him to the Office
In post on his official account on face book, Ben Aidan said: “As expected, Ali Mohsen Al-Ahmar refused the appointment of Mr. Ali Haitham Al-Ghareeb as governor of Adan”. He added: “A close source to the presidency asserted to me that Al_Ahmar wants to appoint a military person loyal to him as governor of Adan while president Hady wants Al-Ghareeb in office”.
Remark: Quarrel between president Hadi and vice president Mohsen?
(A P)
Photo: Graduation ceremony for #Aden University College of Economics on Dec 31 supported by Deputy Security Chief Abu Mashal Al-Kazemi. Adel Al-Halemi also attended.
https://twitter.com/demolinari/status/949233004194377730
(A T)
Army chief hurt by roadside bomb in northern Yemen
Chief-of-staff’s vehicle strikes roadside bomb in Yemen’s restive Al-Jawf province, according to military source
http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/army-chief-hurt-by-roadside-bomb-in-northern-yemen/1023570 and https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security/mine-blast-injures-yemeni-army-chief-of-staff-idUSKBN1EV07P
(A T)
Gunmen opened fire on the home of #Shabwa Governor Maj Gen Ali bin Rashid Al-Harthi at 2:30am this morning wounding one of the guards.
https://twitter.com/demolinari/status/949202613219688448
(A T)
Premature detonation of an IED killed a man attempting to plant the bomb near the home of Salafi imam Sheikh Salah Salem Al-Shaibani of Al-Furqan mosque in Dar Saad #Aden early this morning. (Thread following; photos)
https://twitter.com/demolinari/status/949097395677048832
(A P)
Disengagement … the Optimum Solution
Since the very beginning of that union, former president Saleh and Muslim Brotherhood (Reformist Party) conspired to nail the southern partner represented in the socialist party at that time, not after one or two years of union, not before 1994 war and the invasion of Adan with alliance of Abd Rabu Mansour Hady and other southern powers, but from the first moment.
It is true that Yemen was politically united, and division came to an end. But this conspiracy moved the division into a deeper place, directly to the hearts. While geography was united, the people was divided.
The reformist [Islah] party was established for only one specific mission: to turn over the union agreement and its constitution and to seize the south geographically while exiling his people and social and political powers.
I will be clear and say that the union was a conspiracy against the south more than a unification of one nation.
The last screw in the coffin of that union was hammered by Al-Houthi group after entering Sanaa and initiating coup against the authority when they formed a theocratic, dynastic retroactive authority that belongs in its speech, practices and awareness to the medieval ages – by Ali Al-Bukhaity, Yemeni politician
http://en.smanews.org/disengagement-the-optimum-solution
My comment: This is a southern separatists’ view, published by the Southern separatists’ news agency, as also is the following:
(A P)
The “Conference” … A Wolf in a Lamb’s Fur!!
Nearly a month ago, cries of the leaders of the General Public Conference Party reached all ears complaining about Al-Houthi acts against them as if this is a whole new fashion in politics!!! Suddenly, they complain about being imprisoned, suppressed and denied off their political, democratic and legal rights!!!
Suddenly they remembered all that but forgot that they built prisons. They invented injustice, oppression and marginalization.
They destroyed democracy by falsification and mobilizing military brigades from one place to another just to ensure elections’ results for their own good. An example of that is a university professor who lost the elections for a drug dealer in Eb.
A month ago, they started weeping on the state and its organizations. They forgot that they were the first enemy of the state when they killed the state project introduced by the socialist party after Yemeni union in 1990. They are the man cause of generalizing corruption, injustice, poverty and hunger.
http://en.smanews.org/the-conference-a-wolf-in-a-lambs-fur
(A P)
Could 2018 be the Year of Return for the State of the South?
First, I congratulate the free southern people with the new year, asking God for mercy to martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the dignity of the south.
All facts and realities about the southern transitional council and the southern national assembly and their brave decisions like establishing a center for Decision Making Support, in addition to other secret decisions for the safety and security of the south that might be taken without announcement, are all marvelous steps towards establishing the political infrastructure of the southern state.
My hope is to hear the declaration of the State of the South in 2018. Could that dream come true? I hope so – by Anwar Rasheed, Kuwaiti Journalist
http://en.smanews.org/could-2018-be-the-year-of-return-for-the-state-of-the-south
(A)
VIDEO / Photos: #Saudi-led Coalition resume civilian flights at Al Ghaydah Airport to ease air travel for #Yemenis from and to #SaudiArabia
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/949184257255264256
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/949277080759488512
My comment: After having taken full control of this place. It actually is an air force military plane! – And this seems to show what this really is about:
(* A P)
#Saudi continues to ramp up its presence in #Mahra, #Yemen's eastern-most governorate that borders #Oman. More military "support" from #Saudi drove into al-Ghayda city today citing a need to improve security (photos)
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/949012468680085504
and
(A P)
Al Mahrah Governor Rajeh Said Bakrit inaugurated multiple security sector projects aimed to strengthen services and infrastructure in al Ghaydah city, al Mahrah governorate, eastern Yemen on January 5. Saudi Arabia sent military support and equipment to al Ghayda city on January 4. Al Mahri tribal leaders reaffirmed their willingness to cooperate with the Saudi-led coalition’s anti-smuggling efforts under the condition that the coalition coordinates with local authorities and does not empower select tribes on December 27, 2017. Iran has used smuggling routes through al Mahrah to support the al Houthi movement throughout the civil war.[4]
My comment: This arms smuggle is more propaganda than fact. Oman always denied; the smuggle would have to pass Al Qaeda territory, who would have taken the arms for their own use.
(-)
Photo: Mukala at night, where peace and beauty meet! Hadramout #Yemen
https://twitter.com/HanaalShowafi/status/948972097283547141
cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks
Siehe / Look at cp1
(A P)
UN deputy envoy arrives in Yemen's rebel-held capital
UN deputy envoy Maeen Sharim arrived in Yemen's rebel-held capital Sanaa on Saturday, a security official at Sanaa airport told Xinhua.
This is his first visit to Yemen since his appointment to seek arrangements for holding talks planned by the United Nations between the Yemeni warring parties, the Iranian-allied Shiite Houthi rebels and Saudi-backed Sunni government of exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.
Sharim told reporters at the airport that he would meet officials from Houthi movement to pave the way for planned talks that is set to be held in a neutral foreign country under the management and supervision of UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-01/06/c_136876808.htm
Comment: 'Rebel held' and 'Iranian-allied Shiite Houthi rebels': the narrative of convenience.
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1608100062576351
My comment to comment: At least China could do better.
(A P)
The Yemeni political scene is more complicated in the wake of president Saleh's death; Any UN or other attempt to bring peace needs to exhibit the political skill necessary to weave together the right network to make peace possible.
https://twitter.com/khoury_nabeel/status/948957287514869761
Any solution needs to include the northern tribes and the houthies, like it or not, with or with or without the Salehs. Nothing has changed except the illusions.
https://twitter.com/oldcojote/status/949227970551414784
(A P)
Mekhlafi to Asharq Al-Awsat: Five New Conditions to Resume Yemeni Talks
Yemen's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Abdulmalik Al-Mekhlafi told Asharq Al-Awsat on Thursday that his county’s legitimate government set five new conditions to accept engaging in any new talks with the Houthis.
According to the deputy prime minister, those conditions stipulate that rebels immediately stop all crimes committed against politicians and civilians in Yemen, release all detainees without any exception, stop launching missiles, stop attacking and besieging cities and allow humanitarian aid to reach civilians without being interrupted, , in addition to clearly backing the three references for a political solution in Yemen, including the Gulf Initiative, outcomes of the Comprehensive National Dialogue and Security Council Resolution 2216.
My comment: LOL. Back to Square 1. Such preconditions obviously are set to prevent any peace talks. And end to Saudi coalition air strikes and blockade would be even more serious preconditions to be asked.
cp7a Saudi-Arabien und Iran / Saudi Arabia and Iran
(* B P)
Viele der aktuellen Kriege im Nahen Osten haben lange historische Wurzeln. Schon in der Frühzeit des Islam entstand der Konflikt zwischen Sunniten und Schiiten. Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts schließlich begannen sich Strömungen ausbilden, die in den Islamismus mündeten – als Widerstandsbewegung gegen den europäischen Kolonialismus. Bis heute sind sie Unruhefaktor in der Region. Zahlreiche ethnische Konflikte erschweren die Lage darüber hinaus, auch sie haben Wurzeln in der Geschichte. Dazu zählen die Bestrebungen der Kurden nach einem eigenen Staat.
Hintergrund: Konfliktländer im Nahen Osten
Der Konflikt zwischen Sunniten und Schiiten [kostenlos registrieren]
(* B P)
WHAT WILL SAUDI ARABIA DO ABOUT IRAN? THE CROWN PRINCE COULD NOT MAKE HIS MOVE
“I think the Saudis are sitting, waiting and watching,” Anthony Cordesman, a national security expert specializing in Persian Gulf affairs at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Newsweek.
“If it turned out the regime is indeed troubled, you may see the Saudis reach out to the Iranians who were threatening the regime,” he added.
Iran has already accused Saudi Arabia and its allies of meddling in recent events.
Saudi Arabia’s official news agency has eagerly carried news of arrests and deaths as protests in Iran turned violent, but the government has offered little commentary of its own.
http://www.newsweek.com/what-will-saudi-arabia-do-about-iran-crown-prince-not-make-move-772380
(* B P)
Saudi Arabia and Iran's rivalry is key to the Middle East in 2018
Regional chaos is set to continue with no solution in sight to Yemen crisis and power struggle over shape of post-war Syria
Another turbulent year in the Middle East has drawn to a close, but there will be no respite in 2018 from the regional chaos that is underpinned by the inflamed rivalry of Saudi Arabia and Iran.
The young crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has consolidated power, embarking on an unprecedented cultural revolution and economic reforms in Riyadh, but his foreign policy ambitions have yet to bear fruit. Instead they will continue to sap lives and resources in neighbouring Yemen, the Arab world’s poorest country, unless a political settlement is reached
cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia
(* B P)
Saudi-Arabiens Kronprinz: Der Staat bin ich
Kronprinz Mohammed bin Salman hat Saudi-Arabien bereits seinen Stempel aufgedrückt –Die einen sehen ihn als Hoffnungsträger, die anderen als aggressiven Despoten
Der Verdacht, dass MbS sich als Jupiter sieht und selbst bestimmen will, wer zu den Rindern gehört, bestand jedoch schon vor den jüngsten Großeinkäufen. In der Liste der Festgenommenen stachen Namen wie etwa jener von Mutaib bin Abdullah hervor, Sohn des verstorbenen Königs Abdullah und Chef der Nationalgarden – und bis zum Aufstieg von Mohammed bin Salman selbst ein möglicher Kandidat für die Thronfolge. Wo es Verlierer gibt, gibt es aber auch Gewinner: Indem er andere ins Abseits drängt, macht der Kronprinz Plätze für seine eigenen Loyalisten frei.
Was immer man über Mohammed bin Salman sagt, ob man ihn lobt oder verteufelt: Richtig ist, dass er derzeit die spannendste politische Persönlichkeit in einer Region ist, in der Erneuerung – zum Guten oder zum Schlechten – meist mit Gewalt einhergeht. Auch die Politik des saudischen Kronprinzen enthält ein starkes aggressives Element..
MbS wird aller Voraussicht nach der Erste aus der Generation der Enkel des Staatsgründers von Saudi-Arabien, Ibn Saud, sein, der den Thron besteigt. Das könnte bald sein und ist ein kritischer Zeitpunkt für die Monarchie: Zum ersten Mal wird vom Vater auf den Sohn – wo es auch andere Väter und deren Söhne gegeben hätte – vererbt. Wenn man sich der Großfamilie nicht mehr sicher sein kann, ist es sogar in einer absoluten Monarchie wichtig, dass die Bevölkerung die Entscheidung mitträgt. Und das erreicht Mohammed bin Salman mit einer Mischung aus Populismus und reformatorischer Begeisterung. Dem Umbau der Wirtschaft hat er seine "Vision 2030" vorangestellt.
Und da ist natürlich noch die Islam-Nummer des Kronprinzen: Mit ein bisschen Geschichtsfälschung und einem Kern Wahrheit argumentiert er, dass der ultrakonservative Islam, für den das Königreich steht, ein Missverständnis sei: eine Fehlentwicklung nach 1979, an der – richtig – die Revolution im Iran schuld sei – von Gudrun Harrer
https://derstandard.at/2000071485619/Saudi-Arabiens-Kronprinz-Mohammed-bin-Salman-Der-Staat-bin-ich
Mein Kommentar: Eine gute Charakteristik. Auf Englisch gab es reichlich über „MBS“, auf deutsch dagegen sehr wenig.
(* B P)
One of the wealthiest men on Earth is being detained, and no one is talking about it
A billionaire who is known throughout the financial world has been held in detention — for two months — by Saudi Arabian authorities. But like the billionaire, the story has disappeared.
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal was rounded up, along with about 200 prominent Saudi royals and businessmen, in a so-called "anti-corruption probe" on Nov. 8.
He is said to be the 45th richest man on earth, whose worth is estimated to be between $12 and $20 billion dollars.
And he's very high-profile. He is a frequent guest on all the major financial networks, including Novak's CNBC as well as CNN, Bloomberg and Fox.
And that may be why he was detained in the anti-corruption crackdown —not because he's necessarily corrupt or a political maverick. (After all, Alwaleed supports positions held by the Crown Prince who had him detained, such as his progressive business and social policies.)
No, says Novak — it's got to be something else.
"This could be not so much a case of him being on the wrong side of an issue or committing a crime, but just being too conspicuous and too wealthy and needing to be taken down a peg in the mind of the new Crown Prince."
But why, Novak wonders, are so few people in the financial world asking about this missing billionaire?
Remark: This is the businessman who gave pilots bombing Yemen a Bentley each as a reward..., from 2015: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/saudiarabia/11558419/Saudi-prince-criticised-for-offering-Bentleys-to-pilots-bombing-Yemen.html
and
(* A P)
Confirmed: #Saudi clansman @Alwaleed_Talal has agreed to give up all his wealth & to all conditions by #MBS. He will also record a video statement admitting guilt & requesting forgiveness from the king. He will be freed but not allowed to leave the country. He was tortured.
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/949810258544906240
(A P)
Streit um Stromrechnung - elf Prinzen festgenommen
Weil die Öleinnahmen sinken, will Saudi-Arabien nicht länger die Stromrechnungen der zahlreichen Mitglieder der Königsfamilie begleichen. Die Wut darüber hat nun elf Prinzen ins Gefängnis gebracht.
Mehreren Medienberichten zufolge wurden elf Prinzen inhaftiert, nachdem sie in einem Königspalast gegen die jüngst verkündeten Sparmaßnahmen der Regierung protestiert hatten.
http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/soziales/saudi-arabien-prinzen-wegen-streit-um-stromrechnung-inhaftiert-a-1186535.html und auch http://www.zeit.de/gesellschaft/zeitgeschehen/2018-01/saudi-arabien-festnahmen-prinzen-koenigshaus-umbau
(A P)
Reports: Saudi Arabia arrests 11 protesting princes
Saudi Arabia authorities have arrested 11 princes after they staged a protest for non-payment of their electricity and water bills, according to media reports in the kingdom.
Members of the royal family were demonstrating against the government's decision to not pay their utility bills after they were ordered to leave the palace in Riyadh, the capital, according to the Okaz newspaper in a report by Bloomberg.
The princes were sent to Ha'ir prison, a maximum-security facility south of Riyadh, according to the Saudi news website Sabq in an Al Jazeera report.
(A P)
Watchdog group calls on Saudi Arabia to release local journalist
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called on Saudi Arabia to release a local journalist who was reportedly arrested this week after criticizing the government.
Saudi activists and media reported that Saleh al-Shehi, a columnist for Arabic-language daily al-Watan, was detained on Wednesday over various articles and television appearances, including one in which he accused the royal court of corruption in distributing land.
“Despite promises of reform and moderation from Saudi Arabia’s emerging leadership, it is clear from Saleh al-Shehi’s arrest that repression as usual continues,” Sherif Mansour, CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa program coordinator, said in a statement late on Friday.
(B P)
6 ways life in Saudi Arabia will change in 2018
Life in Saudi Arabia will look very different by the end of 2018.
The kingdom is pushing ahead with an economic overhaul aimed at ending what Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman once called its "addiction" to oil.
Change is now coming thick and fast, and several major reforms announced since bin Salman unveiled his Vision 2030 in 2016 will take effect this year.
Here are some of the biggest changes slated for the coming 12 months:
Comment: Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia is still bombing and starving millions of women and children to death in Yemen. But, of course, CNN didn’t think it was important enough to mention this in its piece.
https://twitter.com/sahouraxo/status/949322504509820928
(A P)
#Saudi CP #MBS will start a tour in February that will take him to #Washington, #London, #Paris & #Germany, his war crimes in #Yemen are apparently OK with these governments. So no more lectures on human rights
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/949388124605513728
(A E P)
Film: #Saudi man burns down gas station in protest. Several attempted attacks have occurred due to anger at raising of gas prices & new 5% tax on goods. Among angry voices many are asking "Why does the royal family live in wealth while we live under austerity measures?"
https://twitter.com/AlSuraEnglish/status/949385283757330434
(A E P)
Saudi announces bonuses and tax breaks to offset cost of living increase
Decree aims to support civil servants, military in Yemen and first-time homebuyers after state hiked gas prices and introduced VAT
Saudi Arabia's King Salman issued a decree on Friday that gave Saudi state employees, military personnel in Yemen and first-time homebuyers a set of bonuses and tax breaks.
One portion of the decree gave all state employees a monthly bonus of $266 for one year. Another ordered Saudi’s government to give a 5,000 riyal ($1,333) bonus to all Saudi military personnel fighting in Yemen. It remains unclear whether that bonus constitutes a monthly increase or a lump sum.
http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/saudi-issues-decree-bonuses-and-tax-breaks-countrys-budget-expands-1724682090 and https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-decree-economy/saudi-king-orders-new-allowances-to-offset-rising-cost-of-living-idUSKBN1EU254
(A E K P)
Cash-strapped Saudi Arabia raises wages of forces fighting reluctantly in Yemen
Various international outlets, including The Financial Times and Bloomberg, meanwhile, have suggested that after falling short of its goals, Saudi Arabia has started pumping more money into the war.
The Financial Times wrote that retaliatory missile attacks by Yemen, especially the counterattack that targeted the al-Yamamah palace in Riyadh, had scared investors away from the kingdom, further straining Saudi Arabia financially.
This is while Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has hoped to lure foreign investors into the country.
The move by the Saudi king to raise allowances for the military personnel has now been seen as an incentive in monetary form — as is typical of the Saudi government — to keep the reluctant forces in the war zone.
http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/01/06/547981/Saudi-Arabia-Yemen-monetary-incentives-war
(A E P)
Saudi Arabia changes Aramco status to joint-stock company -official bulletin
cp9 USA
Siehe / Look at cp1
(A P)
TRUMP ON SAUDI LEADERSHIP SHAKE-UP: “WE’VE PUT OUR MAN ON TOP!”
WHEN SAUDI ARABIA’S Mohammad bin Salman effectively launched a coup and unseated his political rival in June, President Donald Trump took private credit. “We’ve put our man on top!” Trump told his friends, writes Michael Wolff in his forthcoming book, “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House.”
Trump, for his part, is outraged by the book, which contains damning passages about him and his family, attributed to the president’s former chief strategist Steve Bannon.
Bannon, speaking at a Washington think tank in October, made a connection between Trump’s Saudi visit and the change in succession. “If you look at Saudi Arabia, they’ve had a pretty big fundamental change since the summit,” Bannon said.
https://theintercept.com/2018/01/04/trump-saudi-arabia-fire-and-fury-michael-wolff/
cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain
(B K P)
Flick Drummond: Our Government must lead to help end the crisis in Yemen
While this is ongoing, our Government must push to ensure that the blockade of Hodeidah Port is not re-imposed after 30 days.
If we lift our foot of the pedal, it is the children that will continue to beat the brunt of this conflict. There has to be an immediate peace deal before even more of Yemen’s children and their families suffer and die, and I urge the British Government to make this a priority at the beginning of 2018.
(* B P)
HUMAN SECURITY CENTRE
(Website: Human Security Centre)
“The HSC aims to promote and help create an international society in which individuals and communities everywhere are able to live free from fear, free from want and free from indignity.”
A mix of the Henry Jackson Society’s new colonialism, the UK Defence Journal’s arms industry porn and Breitbart’s divisive exclamations of prejudice, the Human Security Centre (HSC) promotes worldwide imperialist economic control via the use of military force.
In its Mission Statement HSC says it believes that “the international community must be willing and prepared to protect the lives of innocent people with all necessary means, including force as the last resort.” However, “innocent people” doesn’t include all innocent people in every country.
However, these innocent civilians in Yemen do not appear to be within the caring remit of HSC. In August in Lenarz on Yemen the HSC executive director Julie Lenarz tried to justify the continuous targetting of Yemeni civilians by stating that every act against them was a response to actions taken by or sponsored by Iran. Her main source of (dis)information for the recent history of the conflict in Yemen was Benjamin Weinthal from Foundation for Defense of Democracies, an extremely biased and discredited far-right think-tank in the USA. Nowhere in the article did Lenarz criticise the Saudi tactic of targetting civilians and civilian infrastructure. In their HSC bios both Lenarz and fellow director Dwayne Menezesare described as “lead Coordinator of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Yemen in the UK Parliament.
The HSC could be dismissed as just a mob of bog-standard right-wing screaming heads and professional trolls but its infestation at the APPG on Yemen means it must be challenged constantly and aggressively.
https://ducksoap.wordpress.com/2018/01/04/human-security-centre/
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
Siehe / Look at cp1 (UAE)
(A K P)
UAE-backed Egyptian forces arrive in Eritrea
The military presence in Eritrea may be a response to Sudan allowing Turkey to take over Suakin Island in Sudan temporarily last year
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180104-uae-backed-egyptian-forces-arrive-in-eritrea/
(* A P)
I urge all members of the #UnitedNations Security Council to support emergency briefings and meetings on #Bahrainprotests (film; 2011 bahrain protests)
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/948980255779368960 and full video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqPoeLlHnjc&feature=youtu.be
(A E P)
Saudi Arabia to Provide Oman With Rare Grant to Develop Port Hub
Oman has accepted a $210 million grant from Saudi Arabia to fund two projects at its flagship Arabian Sea port of Duqm, a rare agreement between two countries that often differ on some of the Middle East’s biggest disputes.
(A K P)
"Bombe italiane, morti yemenite"Election time in #Italy and the national Movimento 5 Stelle promises to halt the shipment of those Italian bombs on #Yemen.
'Italian Bombs, Yemeni deaths'
http://www.efdd-m5seuropa.com/2018/01/bombe-italiane-morti.html
cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade
(A K P)
VIDEO: #Ukraine unveils new short-range ballistic missile Grom-2 (Thunder-2), reportedly financed by #SaudiArabia.
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/948880946698375168
(A K P)
Boeing’s GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb Gets Boost
Contract-FMS Boeing has been awarded a $193 million US Air Force contract by the Department of Defense (DoD), to provide GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb Increment 1 (SBD-1) to several foreign partner nations. Saudi Arabia, Japan, Israel, the Netherlands, South Korea, and Singapore will all benefit from the deal, and 6,000 SDB 1 all-up-rounds are being produced under the modification to the original Lots 12-14 production order. Production will take place at St. Louis, Mo., and deliveries will be completed by December 2020.
https://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/boeings-gbu-39-small-diameter-bomb-fy-2011-orders-06630/
My comment: More bombs for Yemen.
(B K P)
A reminder from March 16, 2016, and asking: What happened then?
Netherlands votes to ban weapons exports to Saudi Arabia
The Dutch parliament cited Saudi mass executions and the bombing campaign in Yemen
cp13b Wirtschaft / Economy
(A E)
The riyal has continued to decline against the US dollar to 460 riyals to the dollar from 450 riyals to the dollar since the second half of last December and fell to 120 [Saudi] riyals from 115 in December.
https://twitter.com/Farouq1Yemen/status/948965827679834115
cp13c Khat / Qat
(* B E H)
The drug that is starving Yemen
Famine in Yemen could be avoided if the men chewed less qat
YEMEN is on the brink of famine, say aid agencies, which often blame the civil war, Saudi Arabia’s blockade of northern seaports and its bombing of vital infrastructure.
But one of the biggest causes of hunger often goes unmentioned: a leafy plant called qat.
The weed is Yemen’s most popular drug: 90% of men and over a third of women habitually chew its leaves, storing the masticated greenery in their cheek until the narcotic seeps into their bloodstream. In the past Yemenis might indulge once a week and the practice was largely confined to the north-west mountains, where qat grows. But following unification in 1990 it spread south. Now qat markets bustle all over the country.
Men spend far more feeding their addiction than their families: sometimes $800 a month. Rather than searching for weapons and other contraband, soldiers extort bribes at checkpoints to pay for their habit, jacking up transport costs. And while the country runs out of basics, such as wheat, its best farmland is devoted to producing the crop, which is more lucrative. Cultivation of qat is said to be increasing by 12% a year.
Northern Yemen is the region most under threat of famine, but the Houthi rebels who control it value their monopoly on qat as much as Mr Hadi does his hold on the country’s oil- and gasfields.
Comment by Judith Brown: The one thing I didn't like in Yemen was the chewing of Qat. I guess I am fundamentally against any substance that changes mood - such as alcohol, tobacco, drugs, and qat. But I also know that farmers use pesticides on qat that damage livers, cause cancer, the money spent on qat is one reason for the poor nutrition of Yemeni children as it reduces household income, and it is a plant that needs a lot of water in a country already suffering a dire water situation. I really can't see that it is Islamic - if alcohol is banned surely qat should be. And to top it all people look so strangely unattractive when they are chewing with green teeth and swollen cheeks. And it tastes horrible and makes your cheek sore inside your mouth.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156263542353641
Comment by Ben Norton: This is a textbook exercise in vile neocolonial victim-blaming.
Capitalist bible The Economist is blaming the mass starvation in Yemen not on US-Saudi coalition bombing and blockade — not on the tens of thousands of coalition airstrikes that have destroyed food production, not on the coalition's well-documented intentional targeting of agricultural sites, not on the coalition's disruption of humanitarian aid delivery, not on the coalition's holding food aid hostage, not on the coalition's destruction of the cranes at the port of Hodaida and blocking of replacements, not on anything the US and its allies are guilty of — but rather on the popular plant qat.
Even mainstream human rights groups have admitted the US-Saudi coalition is using hunger as a weapon, starving millions of Yemenis into submission. But US media outlets would rather pin the blame on a mild stimulant that has been a key part of Yemeni culture for hundreds of years.
I'm going to write an article about how all of the problems in the US are because of alcohol and coffee. But even an article that nonsensical would not be nearly as outrageous as this racist, condescending, neocolonial propaganda.
https://www.facebook.com/BenjaminDNorton/posts/10156067005235850?pnref=story
Comment: What the flying, flippin' f***?? Blaming victims of the world's greatest humanitarian crisis for their demise?? #Yemen @TheEconomist embarrasses itself, caving in to lobbyists & $$, yet again
https://twitter.com/RubaAlHassani/status/949011130525118464
Comment: Wow. This piece is complete dog shit. If the @TheEconomist had any sense they'd unpublish this crap and issue an apology.
https://twitter.com/faisaledroos/status/949035254374912001
Comment: Is this a #Saudi-sponsored article walla shi?
https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/949003498116575232
Comment by Ahmad Alghobary: This is a very bad headline. People here in my country r starving 3 death cause of #Saudi war backed by #US & #UK . Why don't u say the bombs that is starving Yemen? they don't have food 2 eat & u r talking about Qat ! Give me your comments please.
[and more critical comments following]
https://twitter.com/AhmadAlgohbary/status/949047853112061952
Comment: Next up in this The Economist series: "Somalia's famine could have been avoided if people ate less"
https://twitter.com/SameralAtrush/status/949225944841117696
Comment: This is the same kind of tired trope we've heard for YEARS about various communities, blaming them for their plight, ignoring the systemic and societal challenges that lead to drug use in the first place, saying if only they just made better choices they'd all be fine
But, what @TheEconomist does that's so damned offensive and disgusting here is blame millions of people literally starving to death right now because of climate change, a famine induced by the Saudi/UAE/US war, and horrific diseases for their fate.
Did qat bomb the cranes and factories that provide food to Yemen? Did it block the country's fuel supplies starving infrastructure of its most basic necessity? Did it bomb hospitals and sewer systems leading to the largest outbreak of cholera in history?
By declaring "Famine in Yemen could be avoided if the men chewed less qat" as @TheEconomist places the blame for Yemen's problems squarely on the victims of all of these tragedies, none of which they had a hand in. It is disgusting, immoral, and they should be ashamed.
https://twitter.com/SPMiles42/status/949067806565437440
My comment: Well, qat actually IS a problem for Yemen, and the food situation could be better without it. The headline” Famine in Yemen could be avoided if the men chewed less qat” (which had been criticized by Ahmed Alghobary) evidently is a try to whitewash the Saudi blockade. But, the article and all criticism seem to lack this: facts. How many % of agricultural cultivated area are used for crowing qat? How many % of available water for agriculture is used for qat? How many money is spent a year for buying qat? How fast has been the increase during the last decade?
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
(A T)
#Yemen: Significant discrepancy in op claims of #AQAP formal wire & #alQaeda support wires. Formal wire claims 4 al-Bayda' ops in past 11days. Support wires claim min.13. May mean: 1 Some Ansar al-Shari’a have splintered from AQAP 2 Deteriorating comms between AQAP & sub-groups
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/949730437311664128
(A T)
#AlQaeda in #Yemen's official wire has just broken its 11-day silence, claiming it launched 5 Grad rockets vs Balhaf #Gas Terminal in Shabwa at 2am today "which #UAE forces are using as a base". #AQAP also claimed 4 further attacks over past 2 weeks, all vs Houthis in al-Bayda'
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/949659411143905280
(A T)
#AlQaeda #Yemen is definitely down (no posts on its formal wire since 26Dec) but it's not out. #AQAP support wires show Ansar al-Shari'a still active, esp in al-Bayda' with frequent mil ops & an "outreach center" (photo)
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/949390494353821696
(A T)
#AQAP support wires record a steady stream of martyrs recently. One laments "It's painful to see the departed race to Paradise..one after the other." (image)
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/949302350166089728
(A T)
The U.S. Department of State and Department of Treasury sanctioned senior al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) official Muhammad al Ghazali as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist on January 4. Al Ghazali is responsible for AQAP’s internal security and training AQAP militants and has previously fundraised for AQAP. Al Ghazali helped plan the failed assassination attempt on former Saudi Deputy Interior Minister Muhammad bin Nayef in August 2009.[3]
https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-january-5-2018
(A T)
#AQAP claimed its militants are attacking al Houthi forces on Mount al Tha'ajib and Mount Jamida in northwestern al Bayda governorate, central #Yemen. (Map)
https://twitter.com/MaherFarrukh/status/949347783001112576
cp15 Propaganda
(A P)
UAE will always stand by Yemen
Emirates Red Crescent provides humanitarian relief and assistance as part of the country’s long-standing commitment to reach out to our Arab brothers.
For almost three years now, the people of the Shabwa Governorate of Yemen have endured misery and deprivation while enduring the wrath and rule of Al Houthi rebels. The rebels have seized power, overthrowing the legitimate and internationally recognised government of President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi and in the process thrown our Arab brothers into an abyss of violence and uncertainty.
The challenge has been a difficult one, but the UAE will neither abandon its Arab brothers there, nor will it and the other coalition partners allow the nation to become a hegemony of Tehran through its Al Houthi minions.
Emirates Red Crescent’s urgent intervention comes as part of the long-standing commitment of the UAE to provide humanitarian relief.
http://gulfnews.com/opinion/editorials/uae-will-always-stand-by-yemen-1.2152131
My comment: Recycling the same propaganda again and again.
(A P)
Yemen - Bin Daghr: We Succeeded In Stopping The Deterioration At All Security And Service Levels.
Yemeni Prime Minister Ahmed bin Daghr said that despite the difficult circumstances in light of the scarcity of resources and possibilities and the lack of support in services, Yemeni government has succeeded in stopping the deterioration at all levels of security and service, adding that the Houthis should provide all revenues to the Central Bank in Aden, where the provinces of Aden and Hadramout and other provinces cannot bear the budgets of all Yemeni provinces.
(A P)
UAE’s charitable yen for Yemen
The UAE, represented by the Emirates Red Crescent (ERC), has intensified its humanitarian giving campaign in Yemen during 2017, by contributing to the development of the country’s six primary sectors: education, health, security, relief, infrastructure and housing, after the wave of destruction inflicted by the Iran- backed Houthi militias on the nation’s economy.
http://gulftoday.ae/portal/420e89f6-4b66-4212-be5c-e88716009781.aspx
My comment: LOL. “wave of destruction inflicted by the Iran- backed Houthi militias”?? Let’s look at the “six primary sectors” for which the Emirates boast of “its humanitarian giving”: Education: 827 Institutes and Schools, 118 University Facilities destroyed / damaged by Saudi/Emirati bombing; Health: 301 Hospitals and health Centers, 524 Stations and water net works destroyed / damaged by Saudi/Emirati bombing, to be added the effects on health of lack of food, of medical care, of clean water, of medication, caused by the bombing campaign and by the blockade; Security: How could daily bombings increase the security of the population, how could bombings and blockade could increase the food and health security?; relief: Saudi blockade blocks relief, and what about relief when bombing first? Saudi / Emirati relief is like setting fire to a neighbour’s hose and afterwards placing a water crate at his front door; Housing: 409.356 residential houses destroyed / damaged by Saudi/Emirati bombing: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/a.551858951631141.1073741828.551288185021551/943703152446717/?type=3&theater . These figures are two weeks old and have increased already.
Comment: They forgot about the secret prisons (torture theme parks) in South #Yemen, the siege starving millions, the Mirage bombing for over 1000 days, the occupation/colonisation of #Socotra, the 'pushing' AQ here and there but never addressing the problem.
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1606377716081919
(A P)
Superiority in Yemen still with Coalition: Al-Malki
The Arab Coalition forces still has superiority in the battlefield within Yemen and on its border with Saudi Arabia, according to Col. Turki Al-Malki, spokesman of the coalition. Addressing the weekly press conference at the headquarters of King Salman Air Base in Riyadh, he said the legitimate government in Yemen enjoys superiority at the grass roots and political levels.
(A P)
Yemen’s Aden set to receive diplomatic missions and news agencies
Yemeni Interior Minister Ahmed al-Maysari revealed plans to reorganize the security situation in Yemen in cooperation with the countries backing up the coalition forces to support the restoration of legitimate rule in the country.
He pointed out that his ministry is determined to regain control over the performance of the security services under the constitution and the law in coordination with the coalition to extend control in turn to Sanaa.
My comment: Might-be Aden is even lass save than Sanaa. The diplomats could enjoy.
(A P)
Shirin Ebadi to Asharq Al-Awsat: Military Spending in Yemen, Syria Spread Poverty in Iran
My comment: Shirin Ebadi might be right, but it’s a bad joke that a Saudi media is publishing that. Ebadi walksingt he streets of Riyadh as shown in the photo to this article, would be arrested very soon. – And, more relevant: Iranian spending in Yemen might be a few millions, what about the ca. 200 billion which the Saudis had spent for the Yemen aerial war, and the billions they spent for arming islamist „rebels“ in Syria?? Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
(A P)
Yemeni Official: The Situation in Iran Will Negatively Affect Houthis
The current situation inside Iran will undoubtedly reflect negatively on Houthi militias in Yemen, with the Iranian regime being their main supporter, according to Yemeni ambassador to Saudi Arabia Shaya al-Zindani.
The legitimate government counts on the Yemeni people, said the ambassador, adding: "It is only natural that we count on our people and their will of living, and certainly the unrest inside Iran will negatively reflect on the militias situation since Iran is their main backer.”
(A P)
Coalition: Houthis Lost Control of more than 444 Sites in 9 Days
Arab Coalition forces in support of legitimacy in Yemen announced that Iran-backed Houthi militias lost control of more than 444 sites, arms and ammunition between December 25, 2017 and January 3.
The official spokesman for the coalition forces Colonel Turki al-Maliki said that the permits granted to aid agencies and ships since the beginning of the military operations amounted to 17,293 permits, including 2,749 through sea ports and 7,590 for humanitarian and relief assistance coming to Yemen through the airports.
https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1132791/coalition-houthis-lost-control-more-444-sites-9-days
My comment: Propaganda of great figures as it seems they love it.
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
Siehe / Look at cp1
(* A K PH)
Saudi coalition air raids, day by day
(A K PH)
Film: Aggression continues to commit heinous crimes in Sa'ada 06-01-2018
https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1765396350158088/ = https://twitter.com/Hona_Almasirah/status/949768001552834560
and by international media:
Film: [A fruit market was hit, 1 killed, at least 3 injured]
http://on.aol.ca/video/fruit-market-in-yemen-targeted-in-coalition-led-strikes-5a51079188420b426223a377?context=PC:news:PL5941:1510670862353 = http://www.dailymail.co.uk/video/news/video-1602622/Saudi-led-coalition-airstrikes-targeted-market-Yemen.html = https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/videos/1608982165821474/
Photos: https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/949953968733597696
(A K PH)
US-Saudi aggression warplanes hit Saada, injured woman
The US-Saudi aggression artillery and missile forces hit several places in Razah district in Saada province, a military official told Saba on Saturday.
This attack injured a women seriously.
Also the enemies hit western areas in Monbeh district, causing large losses in the residents' farms and properties.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483915.htm
(A K PH)
Saudi aggression launches 18 airstrikes on Yemen
The US-backed Saudi aggression warplanes targeted provinces of Saada, Jawf, Marib and Najran with 18 airstrikes during the past few hours
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483912.htm
(A K)
Audio: This student was recording his Doctor's lecture n the faculty of dentistry n Dhamar university #Yemen,while he was n the lecture,suddenly #Saudi bombed a building ,Students were so scared&terrified. Listen to this audio and put your self in their shoes.
https://twitter.com/AhmadAlgohbary/status/949386221360439298
(A K PH)
Child injured in Saudi airstrikes on Saada
A child was wounded on Friday when the US-backed Saudi-led aggression coalition warplane launched a raid on civilian's water-drill in Sehar district of Saada province, a security official told Saba.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483892.htm
photos:
https://twitter.com/AhmadAlgohbary/status/949367191618629634
film: The Saudi-American brutal aggression targeting a water rig in Al-Shilil district of Saada province, where the targeting led to the destruction of the water rig and wounding a woman
https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1764033523627704/ = https://twitter.com/Hona_Almasirah/status/949395258944688134
(A K PS)
VIDEO: #RSLF AH-64 Apache Attack helicopters strike #Houthi militias assembly points & movements near the #Saudi southern borders
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/949010813196668928
My comment: Videos of this style claim to proof everything, but really proof nothing at all. “Houthi militias assembly”. You just see a few persons standing around – whether “Houthi militias” or truck drivers or school teachers or grandfathers – you simply cannot see.
(A K PS)
VIDEO: #Saudi-led Coalition strike several caves used by #Houthis to store ballistic missiles and associated equipment in Al-Nahdain mountain & Al Amad Military Camp in #Sanaa.
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/948789425668087810
(A K PH)
Film: The aggression targeted residential neighborhoods in Saada city 04-01-2018
https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1762575350440188/ = https://twitter.com/Hona_Almasirah/status/949018949210996736
(* A K PH)
Update: Death tolls of Saudi airstrikes on Hodeidah rises to 11 citizens
The death tolls in Saudi airstrikes hit Zabid district of Hodeidah province on Wednesday evening rose to 11 citizens and eight others wounded, an official told Saba on Thursday.
The strikes hit a popular restaurant in the districts
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483782.htm
film: https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1762572000440523/ = https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1762572000440523/
This Yemen young man was in his way to take his aged ailing father to hospital. Both were in taxi cab driving next to restaurant Father was killed, son injured, when US-Saudi war criminal bombed a restaurant filled with customers killing 19 at least, Zabaid, Hodeida west
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/949147160351657985
(* A K PH)
Report: 9 Yemeni civilians killed, 9 injured in 25 airstrikes in one day
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483774.htm
(*A K)
Fast 50 Rebellenkämpfer und Zivilisten bei Luftangriffen im Jemen getötet
Im Jemen sind nach Angaben von Rettungskräften bei Luftangriffen der von Saudi-Arabien angeführten Militärkoalition fast 50 Rebellenkämpfer und Zivilisten getötet worden. Die neun Luftangriffe in der Nacht und am Donnerstagmorgen hätten sich gegen Stellungen der Huthi-Rebellen in der Provinz Hodeida am Roten Meer gerichtet, teilten Vertreter von vier Krankenhäusern in der gleichnamiger Provinzhauptstadt mit. Neben 36 Rebellenkämpfern seien auch zwölf Zivilisten getötet worden.
http://www.zeit.de/news/2018-01/04/jemen-fast-50-rebellenkaempfer-und-zivilisten-bei-luftangriffen-im-jemen-getoetet-04115602 = https://www.derstandard.de/story/2000071468196/fast-50-rebellen-und-zivilisten-bei-luftangriffen-im-jemen-getoetet
(* A K PH)
Saudi-led strikes on Yemen kill dozens: medics
Saudi-led air strikes have killed dozens of rebels and civilians in the past 24 hours in Yemen's flashpoint province of Hodeida, medical sources said on Thursday.
Saudi-led coalition warplanes carried out nine air raids overnight on positions of the Shiite Huthi rebels in the Red Sea province, local sources told AFP.
The strikes killed 36 rebels and 12 civilians, sources at four hospitals in the provincial capital said.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-5234855/Saudi-led-strikes-Yemen-kill-dozens-medics.html = http://www.france24.com/en/20180104-saudi-led-strikes-yemen-kill-dozens-medics and http://www.ansamed.info/ansamed/en/news/sections/generalnews/2018/01/04/saudi-coalition-airstrikes-kill-50-in-yemen_eadb5248-0689-4e5b-99f3-24f87bbb5ce5.html
More reported air strikes on:
Jan. 6:
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483974.htm Saada prov.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483978.htm Stone crusher in Bajel, Hodeida prov.
Jan. 5:
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483893.htm Najran, Saudi Arabia
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483886.htm Marib prov.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483873.htm Bayda prov.
Jan. 4:
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483835.htm Marib prov. and photos https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1606408036078887
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483834.htm Jawf prov.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483829.htm Saada prov.
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
(A K PS)
Three civilians onboard a car were killed as they ran over a Houthi landmine north of Yakhtel in al-Khawkha in western Taiz.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-14371
(A K PS)
Houthi militia plants landmines in Dhamar
In bracing for the arrival of the army, Houthis have begun planting hundreds of landmines in Dhamar.
Local sources said the rebel militia is planting landmines in the military camp of Samah and large areas surrounding it for the second day as the army's advances in Beidha province signal a possible march on the neighboring province, Dhamar.
The locals witnessed Houthi rebels transporting the mines on big lorries and planting them in separate areas in the camp and around it.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-14369
(A K PS)
Houthis fired a Qaher M2 ballistic missile into Al-Khokha town #Hodeidah on the morning of Jan 05 heavily damaging May 22 school for girls and nearby homes. Missile was reportedly fired from the camp of 10th Saiqa (Lightning) Special Operations Brigade in Bajil town. (photos)
https://twitter.com/demolinari/status/949854484540227584
(A K PS)
Giants’ Forces and Heis Resistance Advance to Arfan Bridge – South of Heis on the West Coast Front.
The troops controlled over 15 kilometers and caused Al-Houthi militias tens of killings and injuries.
(A K PS)
Al-Houthi Militias Ambushes Director of Al-Makha General Hospital in the West Coast
Local sources indicated that the ambulance transporting Dr. Al-Hadiany stuck in the middle of gun fire and RBG bombard between Al-Khoukha and Al-Makha. Dr. Al-Hadiany is the supervisor of UAE Red Crescent Teams on the west coast fronts.
(* A K PS)
Yemen war: Senior Houthi and his fighters surrender to army in Hodeidah
The Yemeni army has been making rapid advances in the port city, hoping to cut off the last main route used by the rebels to smuggle in weapons from Iran
A senior Houthi fighter and 50 of his men surrendered to the Yemeni army in the port city of Hodeidah on Saturday.
The surrender came after Ebrahim Adabu and his fighters were besieged by army troops in Hyais district, Aseel Al Sakladi, a journalist on the ground there, told The National.
The army has been making rapid advances in Hodeidah, hoping to cut off the last main route used by the rebels to smuggle in weapons from Iran.
Some of the Houthis who surrendered were children, Al Sakladi said, adding that they had been taken to the government-held city of Aden for psychological assessments.
Earlier in the day, tens of Houthis were killed by army shelling in Taez province's Al Salw district, said Tariq Al Mulaiki, a journalist working for the military-run 26 September news site. He added that government troops had encircled military sites controlled by Houthis in the district.
My comment: The saudi coalition attempts to reach and occupy Hodeida city and harbour – which will lead to a humanitarian catastrophe for the people of Hodeida and for the supply of the Northern Yemeni population. – These Houthi fighters did not surrender “in the port city of Hodeidah”, but in southern Hodeida province – the front line still is more than 100 km away from Hodeidah city.
(A K PH)
Child killed in mercenaries artillery attack in Jawf
A child was killed on Saturday when the US-backed Saudi-led aggression coalition mercenaries faired mortar shells at a citizen's house in al-Ghail district of Jawf province
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483914.htm
(A K)
In addition to the #Houthi missile fired at #SaudiArabia today, al Houthi forces also fired a Qaher-M2 ballistic missile at al Khawkhah city in al Hudaydah, along #Yemen's western coast. Anti-al Houthi sources claimed the missile landed on the northeastern outskirts of the city (image)
https://twitter.com/MaherFarrukh/status/949295709928509440
(A K PS)
Map: West Coast front lines (Arabic)
https://twitter.com/JosephJo1221/status/949210255958921216
(* A K)
Saudi-Arabien fängt Rakete aus dem Jemen ab
Das Militär in Saudi-Arabien hat erneut den Abschuss einer Rakete gemeldet. Das Rebellengeschoss wurde angeblich an der Grenze zum Jemen abgefangen. Riad beschuldigt Iran, in die Attacke involviert zu sein.
Der Angriff galt laut Medienberichten der Stadt Nadschran im Südwesten des Landes: Die saudi-arabische Armee hat nach eigenen Angaben eine von Jemens Huthi-Rebellen abgefeuerte ballistische Rakete abgefangen. Der von den Huthi kontrollierte TV-Sender Al-Masirah meldete, die Rakete sei auf eine Militärbasis abgefeuert worden.
http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/saudi-arabien-faengt-rakete-aus-dem-jemen-ab-a-1186425.html = https://www.n-tv.de/ticker/Saudi-Arabien-faengt-erneut-Geschoss-aus-Jemen-ab-article20215851.html
(* A K)
Yemen successfully tests firing new ballistic missile on enemy Saudi target
Yemen on Friday successfully fired a new short-range ballistic missile on an enemy Saudi military target, an official of the missile force told Saba.
The missile targeted Wajib military Camp in border province of Najran.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483908.htm
(* A K)
Saudi Arabia intercepts ballistic missile fired from Yemen and blames Iranian-backed rebels
Saudi Arabia intercepted a ballistic missile near the border with Yemen, state media reported, hours after Yemeni rebels said they had launched an attack.
The Shiite Houthi rebels, currently at war with the Saudi-led government coalition, said they fired a missile Friday targeting a military camp in the southwestern Saudi city of Najran.
Saudi Arabia claims that the kingdom's air defences intercepted the ballistic missile over Najran, while the Houthis announced that the 'successful' firing hit its target with 'high accuracy.'
The kingdom's official news agency SPA said that the only destruction was 'minor damage' to the private property of a Saudi citizen due to missile parts that dispersed once the missile was intercepted, and added that there were no deaths.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5238443/Yemens-rebels-say-fired-missile-Saudi-military-camp.html and by Sputnik https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801051060532622-houthis-saudi-coalition-target-missile-launch/
and
(* A K)
Saudis 'intercept' Houthi missile near Yemen border
State-owned TV channel Al Ekhbariya reported on Friday that Saudi defence forces intercepted the missile over Najran, a region straddling the kingdom's southern border with Yemen, before it could hit its intended target.
Al Masirah, a TV network run by the Houthi rebels, said the group claimed responsibility for the attack via Twitter, saying it had a "successful launch of a short range ballistic missile at a military target in Saudi Arabia".
It said the the rebels fired a Qaher-2M missile of Soviet origin towards a military installation in Najran. The missile has a range of up to 400km.
Al Masirah also said that within hours of the missile attack, the Saudi coalition bombing Yemen retaliated with several air raids on Saada, an impoverished Houthi stronghold.
(A K)
Film: Video purportedly showing the interception of a ballistic missile over #Najran Province
https://twitter.com/Miriam411/status/949224753084223488
and
(A K PS)
Coalition forces intercept ballistic missile fired toward Najran
THE Air Defense Forces of the Arab Coalition intercepted on Friday a ballistic missile fired by the Houthi militias from the Yemeni territory into the Kingdom. The scattered fragments of the shot down missile caused minor damage to private property of a citizen in the Najran region while there was no loss of life, according to Col. Turki Al-Malki, spokesman of the Coalition forces.
He said that at 7:56 a.m., the Air Defense Forces spotted a ballistic missile launched from Yemeni territory towards Najran in the southern region of the Kingdom. He said that the missile was deliberately launched targeting civilian populated areas, but was intercepted and destroyed by the Patriot anti-missile system over the Najran skies.
Al-Maliki said that this hostile action by the Iranian-backed Houthi militias proves the continued involvement of the Iranian regime in supporting the Houthi armed militias in clear and explicit defiance of the UN resolutions 2216 and 2231.
“These (missile launch) are aimed at threatening the security of not only Saudi Arabia but also the region and the world as firing of ballistic missiles targeting densely populated cities and villages is contrary to international humanitarian law,” he said in Riyadh.
http://live.saudigazette.com.sa/article/525505/World/Mena/Coalition-forces-intercept-ballistic-missile-fired-toward-Najran and https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2018/01/05/Arab-Coalition-Ballistic-missile-launched-from-Yemen-intercepted.html
My comment: Of course he blames Iran – which obviously has nothing to do with this attack. – The Houthis said to have targeted a military target. Anyway, no military or civilian target actually was hurt. It’s rather ridiculous then that the Saudi spokes man tells they would be “targeting densely populated cities and villages is contrary to international humanitarian law,” when Saudi Arabia daily targets and really hits civilian densely populated cities and villages”, what, as Mailiki tells here, “ is contrary to international humanitarian law”
(A K PS)
Explosion during disposal of extracted mines and IEDs planted by the Houthis in Usaylan martyred four #Bayhan Resistance on Jan 04 (photos)
https://twitter.com/demolinari/status/949245212198449152
(A K PH)
Child injured in Saudi shelling in Saada
A child on Thursday was injured in missile and artillery shelling by the US-backed Saudi aggression coalition which targeted Razeh border district in Saada province, a security official told Saba.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news483829.htm
(A K PS)
Photos: death Houthis after fighting at the West coast
https://twitter.com/YNN2018/status/948908800635031552
(* A K PS)
Yemen’s Houthis fail in their bid to launch missile on Saudi Arabia
The Arab Coalition’s spokesperson in Yemen, Colonel Turki al-Maliki, has said that Houthi militias failed to launch a ballistic missile targeting Saudi Arabia last Friday.
(A K PS)
Vanguards of Yemeni Army Arrive in Saada
A commander in Yemeni army has confirmed the arrival of vanguards of the army in directorate of Kataf, one of the directorates of Saada province.
http://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1705369
My comment: There had been claims that pro-Saudi forces had invaded Saada province a long time before, and president Hadi also had appointed a governor lackland for Saada province.
cp18 Sonstiges / Other
(* A P)
The city of Sayoun witnessing the process of honoring science and scientists
As part of the celebration of the annual yearbook held in the city of Sayoun on the sixth anniversary of Imam Mujadid Nur al-Din Ali, son of Mufti of Mecca, Mohammed bin Hussein al-Habashi.
The convoy took off from his house in the southeast of the Riyadh Mosque in Siyoun, headed by Ali bin Abdul Qadir bin Muhammad al-Habashi [the Grand Sheikh] with the flag of the city of Sayoun and a number of scholars, sheikhs and preachers. Of the students of science and a large number of citizens who came from various cities and villages of Wadi Hadramout and the directorates of the coast, calling for the recitation of the remembrance and forgiveness for his tomb, listening to the two chants with the most eloquent voices that expressed the importance that should be in obedience to God and And the provision of science and knowledge and respect for scientists and the presence of councils of male and the disclosure of peace and love and brotherhood and compassion.
In a speech to the Sheikh, Amid and Mayor of Rabat, Sayyid Ali bin Abdulqader Al Habashi said that this celebration to honor science and scientists in Wadi Hadramout for the legacy of science in religion and life. (photo)
http://www.7adramout.net/aden-time/1657883.html and https://twitter.com/7adramout_net/status/949613325234487296
My comment: Remarkable and interesting.
(* A H K)
Job offer: Danish Demining Group Head of Programmes, Yemen
DRC has been providing relief and development services in the Horn of Africa since 1997. Using a human rights framework, the DRC East Africa and Yemen (EAY) operation focuses mainly on people who are affected by displacement, including refugees, internally displaced, and migrants in Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Uganda, Tanzania and Yemen. The EAY Regional office also supports non-operational initiatives, focusing on mixed migration issues, civil society engagement, and advocacy and policy initiatives related to displacement.
The Yemen operation falls under the EAY Regional Office based in Nairobi. DRC began working in Yemen in 2008 in response to the mixed migration flows from the Horn of Africa. Since then, DRC expanded its sectors of intervention and is now providing humanitarian assistance in ten governorates throughout the country. There are currently over 150 staff working in the Sana’a main office, two hub offices in Aden and Hodeida, and six field offices. Current programme sectors include protection (mixed migration, IDP, child), food security, WASH, shelter, and livelihoods. DDG Yemen started activities in January 2012 with two projects delivering Mine Risk Education (MRE) and Conflict Management Education (CME) in southern Yemen. DDG is currently embarking on three main areas of intervention that are Mine Risk Education and supporting the capacity development and deployment of stand-by Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) teams from the Yemen Executive Mine Action Center (YEMAC).
https://www.impactpool.org/jobs/319165
(B P)
Photo: Traditional #women clothes.. Colors and colors only.. Yes to colors, No to black!
https://twitter.com/HanaalShowafi/status/948974013212131328 referring to photo https://twitter.com/alialsonidar/status/948969879293571074
(-)
Joke: Donald Trump Praises Saudi Reforms as First Branch of Hooters Opens in Riyadh (photo)
(-)
Joke: Saudi Reforms Hitting Hardline Cleric Industry
Fatwas are down more than 300% year-on-year, according to reports.
http://www.panarabiaenquirer.com/wordpress/saudi-reforms-hitting-hardline-cleric-industry/
Vorige / Previous:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-373-yemen-war-mosaic-373
Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-373 / Yemen War Mosaic 1-373:
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
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