Ahmed Alghobary, a student from Yemen, had founded his own charity organisation http://yemenhopeandrelief.org/ bringing starving children to special treatment. He had documented earlier cases, donation would be a good human investment
Jan. 31, 2018: Fighting at Aden, victory of separatists, Yemen to be devided? – Saudi air raid killing 17 – Humanitarian crisis – African refugees drowned – Yemen, making of a chaos state – and more
Schwerpunkte / Key aspects
Klassifizierung / Classification
cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important
cp1a Am wichtigsten: Seuchen / Most important: Epidemics
cp1b Am wichtigsten: Separatisten, Kämpfe in Aden / Most important: Separatists, Fighting in Aden
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
cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia
cp9 USA
cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms Trade
cp13b Wirtschaft / Economy
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
cp15 Propaganda
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
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
cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important
(** A K PH)
17 civilians killed, 20 injured in airstrike in Yemen's Amran
17 civilians were killed and twenty wounded on Wednesday when US-backed Saudi-led aggression coalition warplanes launched two strikes on Saada province, Security director of Saada told Saba.
The security director, Mohammed al-Mutawakel said that one of the strikes hit Abarat bridge and Mefkhad market, Which is located at the beginning of the bridge of Qaflah district, and the warplane of aggression resumed with another strike after the citizens rushed to aid the injured and recover of victims, which led to the deaths of 17 citizens and injuring more than 20 others.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486451.htm
(** B H K)
The Humanitarian Crisis in Yemen: Beyond the Man-Made Disaster
This report assesses the humanitarian situation in Yemen, including the impact of the country’s conflicts on its healthcare system, economy, and infrastructure, as well as the resulting population movements. It also examines current humanitarian actors and responses in Yemen and in neighboring countries. It concludes by exploring several challenges and opportunities for humanitarian actors in Yemen. These include:
Enhancing respect for humanitarian norms and principles: A strong and unified initiative aimed at enhancing respect for international humanitarian law could not only protect populations at risk but also ease tensions among different communities within and outside of Yemen. The UN Security Council could help in this area by playing a more proactive role. Humanitarian actors also need to strengthen the perception of their neutrality.
Strengthening the humanitarian response: The many actors involved in the humanitarian response should improve coordination, adopt existing tools for publishing and sharing data, and explore innovative uses of technology. International humanitarian actors should also directly involve local private sector actors in humanitarian action and include local humanitarian actors in coordination and decision making. In addition, humanitarian organizations could push blockade authorities to facilitate access for both humanitarian and commercial shipments.
Looking beyond immediate humanitarian needs: While it remains critical to invest in the humanitarian response, the international community also needs to invest in prevention in order to stem humanitarian needs and prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian crisis. This includes supporting Yemen’s healthcare facilities to prevent their total collapse and addressing the economic and financial impact of the lack of liquidity. A gender-based approach to the humanitarian response is also needed, reflecting women’s roles as potential peacemakers – by Giulio Coppi
https://www.ipinst.org/2018/01/humanitarian-crisis-yemen-response = https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/humanitarian-crisis-yemen-beyond-man-made-disaster and full report at https://www.ipinst.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/IPI-Rpt-Humanitarian-Crisis-in-Yemen.pdf and https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/IPI-Rpt-Humanitarian-Crisis-in-Yemen.pdf
(** B H)
Survivors of capsized refugee boat say traffickers fired at passengers
People traffickers fired automatic weapons at refugees to force them to jump into heavy seas off the coast of Yemen, according to survivors of the incident that killed dozens last week.
The boat capsized after the shooting prompted panic. The death toll is currently 30, but is expected to rise.
Khadija Abdirahman, a 25-year-old Somali who lost two relatives, said the smugglers had demanded additional payments from passengers after six hours at sea. “The [smugglers] asked for some more money before we reached our destination. When the people on the boat argued, they ordered us to jump out of the boat but we refused. One of them then started shooting. Some of the people died in the boat while others started to jump out of the boat before it overturned,” Abdirahman said.
Many of those on board had come from the Kharaz refugee camp near Aden, and were hoping to reach Djibouti, where they believed aid agencies were offering help to refugees. The final destination of others was Egypt, or Europe.
The smugglers charged $350 (£249) for the journey, survivors said.
Muse Dhubow Omar, 29, was travelling with his pregnant wife, who is now missing. He said: “I do not know if she has died or [is] still alive. When the commotion inside the boat started, there was gunshot. A man near me was hit then I jumped out but my wife was not close to me. I could see the boat capsized and the water was everywhere. No one could help another person.”
Moulid Ali Ibrahim, 32, says he was put in touch with the smugglers by middlemen who visit the refugee camps in Yemen and urban neighbourhoods where migrants live.
“The boat was a small fishing boat. Some of us were sitting on top of others like animals. The three smugglers were armed with guns and sticks. I saw two people hit with bullets. One was a woman and the other was a young man. I knew how to swim so I was first to jump and swam toward the coast but two of my friends died,” he said – by Jason Burke
(** B H P)
A Treacherous Crossing
In 2017, more than 55,000 African migrants arrived in Yemen, many of them teenagers from Somalia and Ethiopia where there are few jobs and severe drought is pushing people to the verge of famine. It’s difficult to arrange or afford transit beyond Yemen. Migrants become trapped in the poorest country in the Arab peninsula.
Maalouf called on the international community to “halt arms transfers that could be used in the conflict.” To heed Maalouf’s call, the international community must finally thwart the greed of transnational military contractors that profit from selling billions of dollars of weapons to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and other countries in the Saudi-led coalition.
Another dangerous crossing happened in the region last week. U.S. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-WI) arrived in Saudi Arabia, along with a congressional delegation, to meet with the monarchy’s King Salman and subsequently with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman who has orchestrated the Saudi-led coalition’s war in Yemen. Following that visit, Ryan and the delegation met with royals from the UAE.
“So rest assured”, said Ryan, speaking to a gathering of young diplomats in the UAE, “we will not stop until ISIS, al-Qaeda, and their affiliates are defeated and no longer a threat to the United States and our allies. Secondly, and perhaps most importantly, we are focused on the Iranian threat to regional stability.”
Beyond the simple well-recorded fact of lavish Saudi financial support for Islamist terrorism, Ryan’s remarks overlook the Saudi-led coalition military assaults and “special operations” in Yemen, which the U.S. supports and joins.
Ryan omitted any mention of the starvation, disease, and displacement afflicting people in Yemen.
Ryan implied the only security concerns worth mentioning are those that threaten people in the U.S. He pledged cooperation with brutally repressive dictators known for egregious human rights violations in their own countries, and in beleaguered Yemen. He blamed the government of Iran for meddling in the affairs of other countries and supplying militias with funds and weapons. U.S. foreign policy is foolishly reduced to “the good guys,” the U.S. and its allies, versus “the bad guy,” – Iran.
The “good guys” shaping and selling U.S. foreign policy and weapon sales exemplify the heartless indifference of the smugglers who gamble human life in exceedingly dangerous crossings – by Kathy Kelly
https://dissidentvoice.org/2018/01/a-treacherous-crossing/
(** B H K P)
The War in Yemen and the Making of a Chaos State
The dangers have gone regional.
The main conflict inside Yemen — there are several — is a U.S.-backed, Saudi Arabia-led intervention to unseat a group of rebels called the Houthis.
The outlook is grim, and for a much larger area than just Yemen.
But why? And is there any sort of way out?
In this special feature, Defense One’s Ben Watson traces the roots of conflict:
Part One: Old lines and fallen empires
Part Two: The Saudi-led intervention
Part Three: What lies ahead
Audio interviews: Go beyond the quotes withOxford University’s Elisabeth Kendall, the Atlantic Council’s Aaron Stein, and more. Listen to them explain how Yemen got here, here (or just scroll down).
And don’t miss this animated, historical review of the conflicts in Yemen, and how the country’s dangers have gone regional.
http://www.defenseone.com/ideas/2018/01/war-yemen-and-making-chaos-state/145379/
The War in Yemen and the Making of a Chaos State
[from Introduction]
The thousand-day war in Yemen has embroiled nearly a dozen nations, most allied closely with Saudi Arabia. That means most of them are, by extension, allied against Iran, which stands accused of arming the Houthis.
A few of those Saudi allies are wondering how to proceed, now that the Saudi-led war on the Houthis has largely stalemated in a horseshoe around Yemen’s western highlands. And even though the Saudis have succeeded in some respects along the southern coast, the broader fighting has accelerated the country’s descent from failed state into a “chaos state.”
“Yemen more closely resembles a region of mini-states at varying degrees of war with one another, and beset by a complex range of internal politics and conflicts, than a single state engaged in a binary conflict,” wrote Peter Salisbury, a researcher with the London-based Chatham House policy institute, in a December report on the country.
Yemen has been a hotbed for extremism since the Afghan civil war ended in the 1990s. For more than 15 years, the U.S. military has used drones (primarily) to kill Yemen-based descendants of those foreign fighters, now known as al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. This sustained war-within-a-war may be one of the few relative bright spots inside Yemen today, with some experts saying the U.S. military may be enjoying its most successful period against AQAP to date. For a brief time, even Yemenis changed their minds about American drone strikes in their country, thanks to improved targeting methods that have reduced civilian deaths and collateral damage.
But Yemeni attitudes began to swing back in 2017, beginning with the bloody Jan. 29 U.S. special forces raid in central Yemen. The rest of the year brought little change to the front lines of the Saudi-led war.
The persistence of the Houthi rebellion — and the fact that more than 8,000 civilians are believed to have been killed since March 2015 — has turned up the pressure on Washington. The rarely-asked question looming above it all: What does the U.S. expect the Saudis to be able to achieve in Yemen? December was a particularly bloody month for Yemeni civilians, with more than 100 killed in Saudi airstrikes in a single 10-day period. The war’s rising civilian toll has prompted tense responses from U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis. In late December, he told a Reuters reporter he’s “never okay with civilian casualties” and not to “screw with me on this.”
A review of Yemen’s recent history, however, suggests there are still many months of fighting, and many more civilian deaths, before that may happen.
[Conclusions]
THREE IDEAS FOR SAVING WHAT'S LEFT
Few governance structures have endured Yemen’s latest war to emerge in a better position than before. From the Saudi coalition perspective, Marib province is one of them. In his December report, Chatham House’s Peter Salisbury described the country as having fractured into seven regions: “the Houthi-occupied north and west of Yemen; the highland tribal territories of Al Jawf, Mareb and Al Bayda; Taiz; the separatist tribal south; Aden; Hadramawt (coastal and northern); and Al Mahra.”
The result could be a new federalism for Yemen — a process Iona Craig admits failed in 2014, but seems to offer the best hope today “in order for people to really feel there is an end to this conflict at some stage in Yemen.”
Salisbury offered a similar warning. “There is no easy way of transforming Yemen into a functioning, Westphalian model of statehood in the short time frame that many Western and foreign officials may wish for.”
Another problem is a general indifference toward the Yemeni government and those connected with it, said Kendall. “Nobody is that keen on — nobody outside the very top elites — is keen on having anything to do with any Yemeni government. Where it gets confusing is that people who are high-ranking in the regional leadership are also often involved in the smuggling trade, which has gone nuts over the last couple of years.”
This feeds into Yemen’s broader, chronic problems, said Kendall.
What she discovered: “It’s more of a negative thing,” she said. “It’s ‘Government’s doing nothing for us. International community has sponsored and helped to entrench our corrupt dictators.’” – by David Watson
http://www.defenseone.com/feature/yemen-making-chaos-state/ = https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2018/02/the-war-in-yemen-and-the-making-of-a-chaos-state/551987/
with audio, audio also via: https://twitter.com/natsecwatson/status/957405946719952899
and film:
The Making of a Chaos State: Yemen in review (1918-2018)
More than 1,000 days of fighting has turned Yemen into one of the most dangerous places on the planet. Here's a very brief overview of what remains of Yemen after 100 years of civil war. | Produced by Ben Watson; music: “Tomorrow Worlds” by Darren Leigh Purkiss via AudioNetwork.com.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nyey7gCcg0 = https://twitter.com/natsecwatson/status/957645254630494208
My comment: Somewhat pro-US biased, I think.
Comment by Judith Brown: A long an detailed look at Yemen and its prospects. It has a largely Western perspective - although it does quote an academic who is critical of the policies of selling arms to Saudi Arabia. It doesn't allude to Hadi's unpopularity, his questionable legitimacy, the weakness of the UN, the allegations of war crimes, but there are some parts that reflect views within Yemen (quoted by western academics and journalists) and it also explores some of the complexity of AQAP's position within Yemen in an interesting way.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156355016863641
cp1b Konflikt in Aden / Conflict at Aden
(** B P)
Sorgen um die Einheit des Jemen
Saudi-Arabien droht die Kontrolle über den Jemen zu verlieren. Zwei seiner Verbündeten haben sich in Aden bekämpft. Nun ist die Waffenruhe wiederhergestellt. Doch läuft es schlecht, droht eine neue Spaltung des Jemen.
Zubaidis Bewegung konnte in den vergangenen Wochen auf effiziente Hilfe rechnen: Die Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate (VAE) hatten sich entschlossen, den STC zu unterstützen. Damit nahm der Konflikt eine Dynamik an, die die Pläne Saudi-Arabiens, seit fast drei Jahren militärisch im Jemen engagiert, massiv zu stören, wenn nicht zunichte zu machen droht. Also entsandte das Königreich Unterhändler in die jemenitische Hafenstadt, die hinter den Kulisse für ein Ende der Kämpfe werben sollten. Fürs erste hatten sie Erfolg: Berichten zufolge haben beide Seiten am Mittwochnachmittag die Waffen vorerst niedergelegt.
Differenzen zwischen Riad und Abu Dhabi
Damit hat Saudi-Arabien eine Gefahr zumindest vorerst abgewendet: Hätten beide Seiten weiter gekämpft, wären aller Wahrscheinlichkeit nach noch mehr Waffen und noch mehr Gelder in das kleine Land an der Südspitze der arabischen Halbinsel geflossen. Die Folge hätte sein können, dass das wichtigstes Kriegsziel des saudischen Königreichs - der Sieg über die aufständischen, dem Iran zumindest nahestehenden Huthis - in noch weitere Ferne gerückt wäre als bislang schon.
In Riad musste man nämlich feststellen, dass die Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate (VAE), eigentlich ein Verbündeter im Jemen-Krieg, von dessen Ausgang durchaus eigene Vorstellungen haben, und die decken sich mit den saudischen nur bedingt. Denn in Abu Dhabi, der Hauptstadt der VAE, sorgt man sich vor allem um zweierlei: zum einen darum, das Bab al-Mandab, die Meerenge am Golf von Aden, zu sichern, und zum zweiten, den Einfluss der Muslimbrüder zu begrenzen. Zu deren jemenitischem Arm, der Islah-Partei, hatte Präsident Hadi zuletzt immer engere Kontakte gepflegt – by Kersten Knipp
http://www.dw.com/de/sorgen-um-die-einheit-des-jemen/a-42391882
There already is a Wikipedia article:
(* A P)
Battle of Aden (2018)
The Battle of Aden is an ongoing conflict between the Southern Transitional Council (STC) and the Yemeni government around the headquarters in Aden.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Aden_(2018)
(* B P)
Film, talk: Is Yemen on the path to inevitable partition?
Yemen appears on the verge of further disintegration as separatists seek to carve out their own state in the south.
Yemen appears on the verge of disintegration, with three major factions now battling over its fate. Most recently, the internationally recognised government has been forced from its headquarters by separatists seeking to carve out their own state in the south.
This is a major blow to President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who was already battling Houthi rebels in the north. It also signals divisions in the Saudi-led coalition, whose support is essential to Hadi's war effort.
Saudi Arabia backs Hadi, but its ally, the United Arab Emirates, has thrown its weight behind the southern separatists.
So, where do these latest events leave the ongoing war in Yemen?
Presenter: Laura Kyle
Guests:Baraa Shiban, Yemen project coordinator for the international human rights group, Reprieve.
Nabeel Khoury, former Deputy Chief of Mission with the US embassy in Yemen.
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/insidestory/2018/01/yemen-path-inevitable-partition-180131173730383.html = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsBLfY3RB0A
(* B P)
Film by Press TV Iran: Who are the separatists forces in Yemen? Who backs them?
https://www.facebook.com/100976976914141/videos/vb.100976976914141/583144548697379/?type=2&theater
(A P)
With Attendance of President Al-Zubaidy, Commander of Transportation Brigade Joins the Southern Transitive Council
(B P)
Iran-backed Houthis cheer for Aden coup attempt
The Houthi rebel militia who has been battling Yemen's government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi has cheered for Sunday's attempt by soldiers loyalist to ex-governor Aideroos Al-Zabeedi's Southern Transitional Council to overthrow that government.
The militia's spokesman Mohammed Abdusalam told the Russian Sputnik News Service that his Houthis are "following up closely on the developments in Aden and supporting the attitudes of the Transitional Council."
"The Southerners should rise against the government of the fugitive Hadi," he said.
"We share our southern brothers the rejection of Hadi's government and we will see to contact the Transitional Council in case they manage to expel Hadi. We have previous good relations with a number of figures in the south including Aideroos Al-Zabeedi. "
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-15067
My comment: By Islah Party media, which of course dislikes both Houthis and Separatists. – Do Houthis really? Read:
(A P)
Yemen’s Ansarullah Sees Plot Behind Aden Developments
Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement described the recent developments in the southern city of Aden, including clashes between the UAE-backed separatists and Saudi-sponsored militants, as part of a plot to disintegrate the Arab country.
(* A P)
#Yemen Prime Minister Bin Daghr reportedly still holed up in #Aden's Presidential Palace, now in hands of southern separatists who had demanded he be sacked. Described as either house arrest or negotiations depending on source. Note that, unusually, he hasn't tweeted for 2 days
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/958664987198869504
(* A H P)
Clashes in Yemen's Aden leave 40,000 displaced without aid: UN
More than 40,000 internally displaced people are without aid in Yemen’s second city Aden in the wake of a fight between separatists backed by the United Arab Emirates and rival forces loyal to Yemen's former President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, the UN says.
The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Wednesday that it had been unable to distribute aid since the separatists seized most of Aden at the weekend.
"UNHCR emergency aid distributions and humanitarian assessments planned this week for vulnerable, displaced Yemenis have now been postponed and UNHCR humanitarian cargo remains at Aden port unable to be released," the UNHCR tweeted.
"We are also particularly concerned for those newly displaced in Aden who have fled other areas in Yemen. More than 40,000 people fled to Aden and nearby governorates since December and we anticipate more displacement as people continue to flee from hostilities in the west coast," the agency added.
http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/01/31/550825/UN-Aden-displaced-Yemenis-aid
(* B P)
Report: What Is Fueling Clashes in Yemen’s Aden?
The STC is widely attempting to get bin Daghr removed. Historically, the south has looked at Saudi Arabia as an enemy and aggressive neighbor. In the 1960s, Saudi kingdom went to great lengths to defeat the southern secessionists. Meanwhile, in the recent months, the Saudi and Emirati goals in Yemen moved towards further contradiction and confrontation. Now they are touching their climactic point, leading to fierce fight of the proxies.
In the meantime, Hassan Baum of the STC has called on the southern Yemenis to do their best to confront the “foreign occupiers.” Calling the troops of the Arab coalition the occupying forces, he said that the attempts to push them out of the country are meant to settle the crisis and internal problems. He decided that a Yemen without foreign forces will have fewer troubles in the future.
When it comes to seeking the root causes of the escalation in Aden, some point fingers at Saudi Arabia and the UAE which are believed to be colluding to split Yemen. Abu Dhabi and Riyadh might be purposely accentuating their disputes over the spheres of influence in a bid to embolden their local allies to clash. Intensified battles will prepare the ground for implementation of the partition scenarios.
http://alwaght.com/en/News/122890/What-Is-Fueling-Clashes-in-Yemen%E2%80%99s-Aden = http://en.abna24.com/news/report/report-what-is-fueling-clashes-in-yemen%E2%80%99s-aden_880100.html
One partition scenario here:
(* A P)
Retired Saudi general: Hadi should head federal government in Yemen
Former Saudi General and the head of the Middle East Centre for Legal and Strategic Studies, Dr. Anwar Eshki, has proposed federal rule with two governments one in the north and the other one in the south to solve the Yemen war.
“The government in the north would be headed Ahmed Ali Saleh and the government in the south would be headed by Aidarous Al-Zubaidi. Both governments will be under the federal leadership of Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi,” Eshki said in an interview with Quds Press.
According to Eshki: “Aidarous Al-Zubaidi is accepted in the south, and Ahmed Ali Saleh is co- founder of the Republican Guard in Sana’a and is accepted in the north and not rejected by the south.”
“The federal solution calms the situation in the south, because the southern movement rejects the government of [Prime Minister Ahmed] Bin Dagher, but does not reject the rule of Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, and therefore a solution of this kind can temporarily contribute to peace and after achieving stability we can ask the Yemenis about the type of rule they want,” he said.
My comment: This will not stop the war, as the Houthis are in the North. And there is a (Houthi) government in the North already. And Hadi’s legitimacy ended on February 27, 2015.
(* A P)
South Yemen clashes abate as separatists cede bases
Three days of deadly clashes between southern Yemeni separatists and an internationally recognized government based in the port of Aden subsided on Wednesday after fighters handed back two military bases they had seized, residents said.
The detente followed mediation by a Saudi-led military coalition, which is trying to halt the worst infighting yet among its allies in a wider war against the Houthi movement.
“Government institutions were handed back and the (southern) militias withdrew,” a government source told Reuters.
Residents reported that banks and businesses reopened on Wednesday as traffic resumed on the streets after many people spent days indoors fleeing from combat which killed at least 20 fighters.
The separatist leader Aidaroos al-Zubaidi, speaking on Tuesday to France 24 Arabic TV, said his side remained loyal to Hadi and had no plans to quit the battle against the Houthis.
“We’ve asked the president ... to fire the government and appoint a caretaker government in its place,” Zubaidi said. “We ask the Arab coalition to take control and assume its duty to this people and these bad conditions.”
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security/south-yemen-clashes-abate-as-separatists-cede-bases-idUSKBN1FK1LW and also http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/yemen-separatist-leader-pledges-loyalty-hadi-after-routing-his-forces-1935714603
and
(* A P)
Yemen govt, 'Southern Council' swap captives in Aden
The government and Yemen's self-styled Southern Transitional Council (STC) on Wednesday carried out a prisoner swap in the coastal city of Aden after three days of clashes, a local military source said.
According to the military source, who spoke to Anadolu Agency anonymously due to security concerns, presidential guard units stationed at Aden's Maashiq Palace released 70 STC-linked captives on Wednesday in return for "dozens" of captured government fighters.
http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/yemen-govt-southern-council-swap-captives-in-aden/1049948
and
(* A P)
South #Yemen press claims progress on military aspects of "negotiations" between PM Bin Daghr & separatists: -#Aden military bases are being handed from Presidential Protection Force to #Salafi fighters -16 Presidential Protection soldiers held 2 days by separatists now released (images)
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/958753653451644933
(** A P)
1/6 #UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council and #Saudi-led coalition ALLEGEDLY reached a settlement with 6 main points after STC consolidated control over #Aden, according to Russian news sources. This is UNCONFIRMED but if true appears to establish a #SouthYemen within #Yemen
First 2 points are unsurprising. 1. Security belt (Hizam) forces deploy throughout #Aden and are responsible for its security. 2. The STC is a political entity representing the southern people and their cause and is a partner of the Saudi-led coalition.
3.The dismissal of the bin Daghir government and the formation of a competent government. Third point also unsurprising, considering the bin Daghir government is trapped in the presidential palace and STC blamed his government for the need to seize
4.The STC proposes governors & ministers to run the south which are approved by President Hadi. Appears to set up a more autonomous #SouthYemen that is nested under a Hadi presidency, though the exact distribution of power and extent of Hadi's control is still unclear.
5.#UAE will reform a national army of the #SouthYemen with specific security and military functions and that have no political differences.
6.#UAE is responsible for restoring life in #Aden & reparations to the martyrs of the recent events of Aden from both sides & supervising services in cooperation with the STC. Essentially putting Aden (officially) under the the UAE's influence.
https://twitter.com/MaherFarrukh/status/958552491129561088 (thread, with longer Arabic texts in images)
(** A P)
Separatistische Rebellen in Aden umstellen Palast von Jemens Präsident
Die Menschen in dem Gebäude seien "de facto unter Hausarrest", sagt ein Militärvertreter. Präsident Hadi hält sich allerdings in Riad auf.
Die Offensive südjemenitischer Separatisten bringt die Regierung des Jemen in immer größere Bedrängnis. Die Rebellen umstellten am Dienstag den Präsidentenpalast in Aden, teilte ein hochrangiger Militärvertreter mit. "Sie kontrollieren nun den Hauptzugang, und die Menschen drinnen sind de facto unter Hausarrest", sagte der Militärvertreter. Rebellenkommandant Saleh al-Sejjad sagte, seine Kräfte hätten die Präsidentengarde in Aden unter ihre Kontrolle gebracht.
Die Kämpfe in Aden fügen dem ohnehin schon verfahrenen Bürgerkrieg eine neue Dimension hinzu: Während die Interimsregierung von Saudi-Arabien unterstützt wird, stehen die Rebellen unter dem Einfluss der Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate (VAE). Diese versprechen sich von der Unterstützung besseren Zugang zu den strategisch wichtigen Häfen im Süden des Landes.
https://derstandard.at/2000073305444/Separatistische-Rebellen-in-Aden-umstellen-Palast-von-Jemens-Praesident und auch http://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/jemen-praesidentenpalast-umzingelt-1.3846928
(* A P)
Süd-Jemen will unabhängig werden: Seit Tagen toben Kämpfe – schon über 50 Tote
Nach übereinstimmenden Berichten arabischer Fernsehstationen konnten die radikalislamistischen Rebellen des «Hirak» (Bewegung für einen unabhängigen Süd-Jemen) die Truppen von Präsident Hadi aus allen wichtigen Stellungen in der strategisch wichtigen Hafenstadt vertreiben. Mehr als 50 Menschen sollen bei den seit Sonntag tobenden Kämpfen ums Leben gekommen sein. Auch der Präsidentenpalast in der provisorischen Hauptstadt des Jemen wurde von den Separatisten umzingelt, die Angestellten der Regierung unter Hausarrest gestellt.
Bereits am Montag hatte der «Hirak» seinen «grossen Sieg» verkündet, welcher von der Bevölkerung mit einen grossen Feuerwerk gefeiert wurde. Eine formelle Unabhängigkeitsproklamation liegt aber nicht vor.
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Aufmarsch in Aden
Der Konflikt im ärmsten Land der arabischen Welt eskaliert: Separatisten übernehmen die Kontrolle in der Interims-Hauptstadt und stellen den Premier unter Hausarrest.
Diese neue Eskalation könnte zum neuerlichen Auseinanderbrechen des ärmsten Landes der arabischen Welt führen, das wie Deutschland seit 1990wiedervereinigt ist. Zugleich steht auch das Bündnis zwischen Saudi-Arabien und den Vereinigten Arabischen Emiraten auf der Probe
http://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/jemen-aufmarsch-in-aden-1.3848457
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Film: Separatisten erobern Regierungssitz in Jemen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LhWwgmA8_M
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Film: Im Bürgerkriegsland Jemen werden die Kämpfe zwischen den Regierungstruppen und den Separatisten heftiger. Seit Sonntag sind 36 Menschen getötet worden.
https://www.zdf.de/nachrichten/heute-sendungen/tote-bei-kaempfen-im-jemen-100.html
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Jemen - Einstige Verbündete bekämpfen sich
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9B8ttNyyRzU
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Yémen : les séparatistes Houtis encerclent le palais présidentiel à Aden
My comment: LOL. They don’t get it. “les séparatistes Houtis“, joke of the day.
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Al-Zubaidy to France 24: What Comes After January 30th is not Like What Was Before it
In his interview with France 24 TV channel, Aidarous Al-Zubaidy, president of the Southern Transitional Council, expressed the council’s point of view about current situation in Adan. The following points summarize Al-Zubaidy’s point of view:
We warned against the government corruption and requested president Hady to change it several times but in vain.
• Crowds gathered peacefully, and we were astonished by using force against them. they were shot, injured and killed in the square.
• Security forces and southern resistance protected the people and defended them against the government’s acts.
• We are committed with our cooperation with the Arab Ally to achieve its strategic goals
• We are committed with restoring the southern state as a public option that can never be abandoned
• We appreciate peace and we will be part of any future negotiations. We want are rights fully through peaceful solutions
• We will not hesitate to participate with the Arab Ally in his war in the north and we will support the northern resistance supported by the Ally’s countries. If the Ally supported Tarek Mohamed in the north we will support him, but we will never accept northern troops on our national soil
We are the strategic ally to the Arab Ally and our troops are now in the west coast and can reach anywhere.
Our right in self-determination is granted by the international law.
We will go together till our people’s goals of freedom and independence are achieved
Comment: Southern separatist leader al-Zubaydi's interview earlier on France 24 reveals contradictions that are hard to reconcile: Affirmed his Council's support for #Saudi-led coalition & "legitimate" government BUT also its resolve for southern state free of any northern forces
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/958399570643423232
and
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UAE-backed separatists support ex-president’s party in north Yemen
The leader of Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council (STC) has publically advocated support for the General People’s Congress (GPC) party, Aden Times has reported. “We stand by Tariq Mohammed Saleh and his supporters,” confirmed General Aidarous Al-Zubaidi, President of the UAE-backed STC. Al-Zubaidi added that he will support Saleh, the nephew of the late former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in defeating the Houthi group in northern Yemen.
“The announcement of Zubaidi’s support for Saleh is seen as him joining the Arabs in the battle against Iran’s project in the region,” said Murad Abdu, a youth activist in southern Yemen. “The Southern people will stand with the Arabs against Iranian-backed Houthis, who pose a danger not only to Yemen but to the whole region.”
and
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By the head of the Southern Transitional Council al-Zubaydi:
We will not hesitate to provide full support to Tariq Saleh to fight the Houthi project until every inch of the northern territory is released. This support comes in the context of our support for the Arab alliance in fighting the Iranian tide.
https://twitter.com/EidrosZubaidi/status/958397539178426368
My comment: This seems to be said to keep the support of the Saudi/UAE coalition which is labeled as the “Arab Ally” by the separatists. – But what do they want? A separate Southern Yemeni state? Or a united greater Yemen as it was since 1990? Just in that case, “to fight the Houthi project until every inch of the northern territory is released” would make any sense for them. So what?
And also
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Al-Zubaidi: We stand by Tariq Mohammed Saleh and his supporters
President of the Southern Transitional Council, Eidros Zubaidi, said that his forces and political entity headed by Tariq Mohammed Saleh will support him.
He told Zubaidi that his southern transitional council will implement all the objectives of the Arab alliance in Yemen.
He said he would not accept the presence of northern troops in the south.
"As for Tariq Mohammed Saleh, we stand by him and support him until the liberation of the north.
Tariq Mohammed Saleh's recent presence in Aden has sparked widespread political debate.
Political observers say the latest clashes in Aden were caused by a political row over Tariq Mohammed Saleh between the UAE and the Yemeni government.
http://abarahpress.com/ye-news/story45133 and translated https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=ar&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=de&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fabarahpress.com%2Fye-news%2Fstory45133&edit-text=
Comment: With the #UAE-backed STC in #SouthYemen, and Emirati-backed Tariq Saleh in northern #Yemen, is #SaudiArabia willing to hand over the war to the UAE?
https://twitter.com/MaherFarrukh/status/958397685962366976
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Elisabeth Kendall: For analysis of latest developments in #Aden, listen to my interview tonight on @BBCWorldService NewsHour http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w172vr1lp841nxb#play
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Welcome Back To The Map, South Yemen!
There’s practically no way that Hadi’s Administration will ever regain legitimacy in any part of the nominally unified country after being forcibly removed from its Northern and now Southern halves, with the latest events made all the more symbolic because the twice-ousted government is ironically led by a native Southerner.
The resultant stalemate over the past couple of years, however, showed the Southerners that the coalition wasn’t powerful enough to reinstate Hadi’s rule throughout the country, thus opening up the opportunity for them to more assertively push the weakened government into concessions in an attempt to reassert their regional rights in the face of what they have long alleged is Northern oppression and even occupation.
At this moment in time, the Southerners are seeking international support for the restoration of their independence since they want to return to the community of nations like they previously were.
The reason why Southerners are so strongly against the Houthis is because they view them as the complete antithesis of all that they themselves stand for. Whereas the Houthis are North Yemeni Shiite-Zaidi tribesmen aligned with Iran and fighting to impose what some fear would be a shadow form of right-wing Islamic governance over the entirety of unified Yemen, al-Hirak and its supporters are mostly South Yemeni secular or Sunni city folk aligned with the UAE and fighting to restore their left-wing Cold War-era government in South Yemen only.
Prospective Solutions
Hadi is no longer a symbolically relevant factor in the national equation, the Houthis have no hope whatsoever of conquering all of Yemen, and the Southerners have just de-facto restored their Cold War-era country’s independence, meaning that the entire reason for the Saudi-led military intervention has collapsed and the superficially unified country is now ruled by two distinct governments in its constituent halves that are once again at irreconcilable odds with one another. The only logical path forward for all actors under these conditions is to accept this state of affairs and formalize them in terms of international law, which might require a transitional period that sees North and South Yemen each holding their own UN-supervised independence referenda and going through the formal procedures of their institutional disengagement with one another, hence the option of implementing a broad system of “Identity Federalism” between the two parts during this time – by Andrew Korybko
http://www.eurasiafuture.com/2018/01/30/welcome-back-map-south-yemen/
My comment: The separatists are “fighting to restore their left-wing Cold War-era government”?? There is nothing to be seen of any “left-wing”.
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In Yemen, a Coalition Cracks
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are the most important members of the anti-Houthi coalition, of which the Southern Transitional Council is a part. The STC's moves threaten that fight at a critical time, directly contradicting Saudi Arabia's long-term goal of restoring Hadi's rule to the whole of Yemen. Despite this, the coalition will not be easily distracted from the gains it is finally making against the Houthis after months of stalemate. In fact, it will reluctantly accept the seizure of Aden by one of its partners. It will not, however, so easily accept an independent South Yemen.
The STC's seizure of Aden gives it control of Yemen's largest port, vital to coalition military supply lines. As a result, the group is positioning itself as a critical partner in the anti-Houthi war effort. Still, it is not declaring southern independence just yet. If independence were its intent, it would be taking action in Mukalla, another port city it partially controls. The Southern Transitional Council knows that declaring independence would spark greater retaliation against it, so, for now, it is content with the gains made so far.
The Saudi-led coalition does not need to retake Aden to ensure its military position. The STC has already made clear that it will continue to support the anti-Houthi struggle. Instead, the coalition must mitigate the damage from the clash and negotiate a truce as quickly as possible.
Once the dust settles, the consequences of the Southern Transitional Council's actions will be more fully revealed. The major concern is that differences of opinion over the group — and how to deal with it — could divide Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The Saudis have little to gain from encouraging southern secession and have made it their aim to preserve a united Yemen under Hadi's rule. They have shown little concern for al-Islah, which wants the same.
For now, there is too much at stake for the Saudis and Emiratis to push back against the STC. The Saudis won't oust Hadi, but they may work to appease the STC through a Cabinet reshuffle or the replacement of some government ministers. Riyadh might even push to replace Prime Minister Ahmed bin Daghur, who has little support in the south.
The STC will rely on the Emiratis to get the best deal they can. Control of Aden will likely fall more squarely to the Southern Transitional Council, and STC leaders may gain a Cabinet position or another prominent government post in the Hadi administration.
If there is any victor in the melee, it's the southern separatist movement, which will emerge from the struggle with more clout and increased military prestige and territory.
https://worldview.stratfor.com/article/yemen-coalition-cracks
My comment: We will see. The “legitimacy” in Yemen the Saudi coalition is based on “president” Hadi – whose legitimacy ended in Feb. 2015.
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Yemen's fast rewind into politics of the past
The official aim of the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen is to restore the "legitimate" government of the internationally-recognised but unconstitutionally-elected President Hadi. That was always something of a fantasy and events during the last couple of months have made it even more unlikely.
After a brief period in the 1990s when Yemen assumed the appearance of an emerging democracy, the country is now on a fast rewind, politically, to what it was sixty years ago. The north is once again under Zaidi rule and the south, formerly a British protectorate, is rapidly turning into an Emirati protectorate.
The war itself has caused a monstrous humanitarian catastrophe and, militarily, it's at an impasse.
The Saudi-Emirati claim to be defending "legitimacy" in Yemen is based around Hadi's presidency and it's wearing thinner and thinner. The way he became president was undemocratic though at the time it was widely accepted by Yemenis on the grounds of expediency and on the understanding that his term would last only two years. By the end of next month it will have lasted six years.
Hadi is also an uninspiring figure with no real power base in Yemen and not much of a popular following. Even in the south – his "temporary" base – his power is contested. The Saudis continue to support him but the Emiratis would probably be happy to ditch him. In a sense, though, Hadi is irreplaceable because under present conditions there is no possibility of holding a fresh country-wide presidential election.
This brings us to the second of the Saudi/Emirati dilemmas and the second recent development: the challenge from southern separatists.
For all practical purposes Yemen is, once again, two countries. This has happened more by accident than design and is largely a reflection of current battle lines, plus the way the military alliance carved up responsibilities with the Saudis focusing on aerial bombing of the Houthi-controlled north and the Emiratis, more active on the ground, trying to secure the non-Houthi south.
While the de facto partition might be viewed as temporary there are growing signs that it could become permanent. Exasperated with Hadi, the Emiratis now seem to regard the southern separatists as a better bet.
The likely effect of this struggle will be to further consolidate the north-south divide but without the independence that the separatists seek. The south doesn't have the capacity or the resources to become truly independent any time soon – there are simply too many problems, not least of them security. Its only choice, basically, is to be ruled from Sana'a or from Abu Dhabi – by Brian Whitaker
http://al-bab.com/blog/2018/01/yemens-fast-rewind-politics-past
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Rumours abound in east #Yemen's #Mahra of nascent discussions by Pres Hadi to move his govt from #Aden to al-Ghayda in Mahra. Would fit with recent #Saudi military escalation in Mahra. Note: Rumours so UNCONFIRMED. But if nothing else, this shows local doubts of govt grip on Aden
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/958348503318753280
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Südjemenitische Separatisten erobern halb Aden
Neben den schiitischen Huthis und al-Qaida hat die saudi-gestützten Sunnitenregierung nun einen dritten Gegner
Nun hat die Sunnitenallianz, die formell für den immer noch in Saudi-Arabien weilenden Ex-Präsidenten Abd Rabbo Mansur Hadi kämpft, einen weiteren Gegner im Jemen: Seit Sonntag kämpfen die vorher mit ihr verbündeten südjemenitischen Separatisten des al-Majlis al-Āntaqālī l-Janūbiyy, des "Übergangsrats des Südens" (englisch abgekürzt: STC) gegen sie. Dem im mit Saudi-Arabien verfeindeten Katar ansässigen Sender al-Dschasira nach haben sie vorgestern sogar das Regierungshauptgebäude der Hadi-Allianz in der ehemaligen südjemenitischen Hauptstadt Aden erobert.
Gestern kam es darüber hinaus zu Kämpfen zwischen Soldaten der Hadi-Allianz und Separatisten aus dem Gouvernement Abyan, die nach Aden zogen, um dort mitzukämpfen. Aus dem Gouvernement Dhale soll ebenfalls Verstärkung für die Separatisten in der ehemaligen Hauptstadt unterwegs sein.
https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Suedjemenitische-Separatisten-erobern-halb-Aden-3953711.html
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Präsident ohne Macht
Im Jemen übernehmen Separatisten aus dem Süden Aden – die provisorische Hauptstadt der international anerkannten Regierung
Milizen der südjemenitischen Unabhängigkeitsbewegung haben am Sonntag die Kontrolle über das Zentrum von Aden übernommen. Kämpfe mit einzelnen Truppen der zwar international anerkannten, aber politisch isolierten Exilregierung, die in der saudiarabischen Hauptstadt Riad residiert, dauerten bis Montag morgen an.
Damit gibt es jetzt drei konkurrierende Regierungen
Hadis Platzhalter in Aden war bis zum Wochenende Premierminister Ahmed Obeid bin Dagher.
Die Zuspitzung der Widersprüche zwischen bin Dagher und den südjemenitischen Unabhängigkeitskräften war am Sonntag vor einer Woche, dem 21. Januar, deutlich geworden: An diesem Tag hatten die Separatisten ein Ultimatum an Hadi gerichtet, bin Dagher und sein Kabinett innerhalb einer Woche zu entlassen und an dessen Stelle eine »Technokratenregierung« einzusetzen.
Die Gründe für die Zuspitzung in Aden sind nicht eindeutig zu bestimmen.
https://www.jungewelt.de/artikel/326326.pr%C3%A4sident-ohne-macht.html
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Mehrere Tote bei schweren Kämpfen in Aden
Bei schweren Kämpfen in der südjemenitischen Hafenstadt Aden sind am Montag mindestens neun Menschen getötet worden. Truppen der jemenitischen Regierung und Verbände südjemenitischer Separatisten ließen Kampfpanzer in der Großstadt auffahren und beschossen sich mit schwerer Artillerie. Nach Militärangaben wurden dabei fünf Kämpfer der Separatisten und vier Soldaten getötet.
Das Leben in der Hafenstadt war auch am Montag weitgehend gelähmt. Schulen, Universitäten und Geschäfte blieben geschlossen. In vielen Stadtteilen waren Kämpfer zu beobachten.
https://www.derstandard.de/story/2000073243819/mehrere-tote-bei-schweren-kaempfen-in-aden
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UAE-backed separatists celebrate victory in south Yemen
The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council has declared victory over the UN-backed government of Yemeni President Abd rabbuh Mansur Hadi in the southern city of Aden today.
In a tweet STC Vice President Hani Bin Brik declared victory as the separatist forces took control of the city of Aden and the gates of the Maasheeq Palace. Prime Minister Ahmad Bin Dhager’s government is still inside the palace with negotiations underway for the cabinet to leave the city.
Aden residents claimed that the STC fighters overpowered Hadi’s forces in central Aden’s Crater and Tawahi districts.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has financially and militarily assisted the STC since 2017.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180130-uae-backed-separatists-celebrate-victory-in-south-yemen/
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Film: UAE-backed separatists 'take control' of Aden
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWrJc6Yez9o
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UAE jet enables separatists to seize army base in Aden
A senior Yemeni official has told Al Jazeera that southern separatists, backed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), seized control of a key military base in the coastal city of Aden, after a UAE fighter jet bombed the facility.
The official told Al Jazeera that fighters from the Southern Resistance Forces (SRF), the armed wing of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) - a political movement demanding secession for southern Yemen - seized the base early on Tuesday
In a post on Twitter, Mukhtar al-Rahbi, an official in Yemen's government, said: "A plane from the Arab coalition, that said it had come to support legitimacy [Yemen's internationally recognised government] bombed the base of the Fourth Brigade. What a farce."
Videos posted on social media showed thick plumes of black smoke billowing from the camp, which is located in Aden's northern Dar Saad district.
The seizure of the Fourth Brigade is the biggest gain for the separatists since fighting first erupted on Sunday.
and by AFP http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-5334709/South-Yemen-separatists-pin-govt-facto-capital.html and photo https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/958389649994592257
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Yemen prime minister prepares to flee Aden as separatists advance
Yemen's prime minister was preparing to flee to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday after separatists backed by the United Arab Emirates seized the area around the presidential palace in the southern city of Aden in fierce battles, security officials said.
The security officials said fighters loyal to the so-called Southern Transitional Council fought all way to the gates of the palace in central Aden, forcing Hadi's troops to abandon their positions. The officials said Hadi's prime minister and several Cabinet members would leave Yemen imminently for Riyadh, where Hadi is already based.
Saudi troops who have been guarding the palace for months stopped the separatists at the gate, preventing them from entering. A senior government official told The Associated Press that Prime Minister Ahmed Obaid Bin Daghar and several ministers remain inside.
In the northern district of Dar Saad, witnesses said coalition jets bombed a military camp of Hadi's forces before separatists took control of it.
The fighting had subsided by midday, when checkpoints run by both sides could be seen across the city.
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UAE accused of aiding overthrow of Yemen government in Aden
Commander of Aden's presidential forces says Emirati jets and armour helped southern separatist militia in rout of his men
The United Arab Emirates has been accused of actively supporting southern Yemeni separatists with air cover and heavy armour as they seized Aden from forces loyal to the Saudi-backed government of President Abd Rabbuh Hadi.
The accusations, if true, would throw into question motivations inside the Saudi-led coalition backing Hadi, which includes the UAE, and its ability - or desire - to support him as his country's legitimate leader.
A third day of fighting on Tuesday ended with the "Security Belt" - the UAE-backed armed wing of the breakaway Southern Transitional Council - controlling all public institutions in Aden, and the capitulation of the Fourth Brigade of the Presidential Guard, the last remaining Hadi force in the city.
The remnants of the Hadi government, including the prime minister, Ahmed Obaid Bin Daghar, found themselves surrounded and besieged in the city's hilltop presidential palace.
The accusations of UAE support came from the commander of the Fourth Brigade, Mahran Qubati, who escaped an assault on his base on Wednesday.
He told the Belqees television network: "Emirati armour and forces took part in the overthrow of the Fourth Brigade. Saudi officials promised to return the camp to its leadership in the next hours."
The comments were in addition to those on Tuesday, where he said Security Belt forces had used Emirati armoured vehicles to storm Aden's public institutions, "while the Emirati warplanes were hovering over our military camps".
http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/aden-uae-hadi-southern-separatists-866823770
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Yemen separatists seize de facto capital as charity suspends work
Separatists in war-ravaged Yemen have seized all but one district of the government's de facto capital Aden, also laying siege to the isolated presidential palace on the city's southern outskirts on Tuesday.
A number of ministers fled the port city by boat on Monday night, docking in the district of Brega further west, a military source told AFP.
A port official confirmed their arrival, saying they were transported to a base of the Saudi-led coalition which backs Yemen's government.
But the ministers returned to Aden before dawn, after receiving guarantees from the coalition that the presidential palace would not be stormed, a government source said.
The source said Saudi Arabia and its coalition allies are now in talks with southern separatists and with Yemen's government
Forces loyal to the government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi hold the large northern district of Dar Saad, while ministers remain in the besieged presidential palace near the coast.
Save the Children on Tuesday said it was suspending critical humanitarian work in Aden out of fear for the safety of its staff.
more articles:
http://www.dw.com/en/yemen-separatists-surround-presidential-palace-in-aden/a-42374374
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Film: The War in Yemen: Separatists turn on government in Aden
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_d17eAW3OLE
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Yemen separatists capture Aden, government confined to palace: residents
Southern Yemeni separatists took control of the port city of Aden after two days of fighting, residents said on Tuesday, confining the internationally-recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to the presidential palace.
Residents said forces loyal to the Southern Transitional Council (STC), formed last year to push for the revival of the former independent state of South Yemen, seized the last stronghold of Hadi’s Presidential Protection Forces in the Dar Saad area of northern Aden, in battles that at times involved heavy artillery and tank fire.
Activists shared photos on social media of the flag of the former independent Southern Yemen state flying over the base’s gate. Southern Yemen was united with Northern Yemen in 1990.
Aden residents said STC fighters had earlier overrun Presidential Protection forces outposts in central Aden’s Crater and Tawahi districts.
They stopped outside the al-Maasheeq palace, where Prime Minister Ahmed bin Daghr’s cabinet is based, they said.
Witnesses said hundreds of people danced and sang as they celebrated the STC victory with fireworks that lit the night skies over Aden. The crowd chanted slogans demanding restoration of the southern state.
Mosques also mixed their calls for prayers with victory claims in Crater, residents said.
Sources at the STC said negotiations were underway to allow bin Daghr’s government to leave the city safely, but a government source said bin Daghr had no intention to leave Aden.
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Yemen PM to flee, separatists seize Aden presidential palace
Yemeni security officials say the country's prime minister is preparing to flee after separatists seized the presidential palace in the southern port city of Aden in fierce battles overnight.
The officials say fighters loyal to the so-called Southern Transitional Council fought all way to the gates of the Palace of Maashiq - Arabic for "lovers" - in the district of Crater in Aden. The palace is the seat of Yemen's internationally backed government.
They say Prime Minister Ahmed Obaid Bin Daghar is to leave the country imminently. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity under regulations – By: AHMED AL-HAJ, Associated Press
http://www.wjhl.com/news/yemen-pm-to-flee-separatists-seize-aden-presidential-palace/945195927 = http://www.heraldcourier.com/news/yemen-pm-to-flee-separatists-seize-aden-presidential-palace/article_53032511-3744-5f5f-9726-07e812d2904b.html
and another version
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However, a senior government official told The Associated Press that Prime Minister Ahmed Obaid Bin Daghar and several ministers remain inside and that the separatists have not seized the palace itself.
The official declined to say whether the prime minister was to leave Aden. The security officials and the government official spoke on condition of anonymity under regulations.
http://time.com/5124508/yemen-separatists-storm-government/
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Yemen Separatists Form Blockade Around Pro-Govt. Camp in Aden
Southern separatists captured the biggest camp of presidential guards amid fighting with government forces in Yemen's coastal city of Aden on Tuesday, according to a pro-government commander.
Forces loyal to the so-called Southern Transitional Council (STC) have imposed a blockade around the camp of the 4th Brigade in Dar Saad district in northern Aden since Monday, Abdullah al-Shaabi said.
"STC forces have intensively pounded the camp and detonated the arms depot inside," he said.
https://www.albawaba.com/news/yemen-separatists-form-blockade-around-pro-govt-camp-aden-1082006
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[Saudi] Cabinet urges Yemeni parties to stop fighting
The Council of Ministers on Tuesday called on all stakeholders in Yemen to show restraint and end the fighting in the interim capital of Aden.
The weekly session of the Cabinet, chaired by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh, urged them to fulfill their responsibility, along with the Coalition forces, in completing the liberation of all Yemeni territories and defeating the Iranian-backed Houthi militias.
The Cabinet highlighted the two recent statements issued by the Coalition Command in this respect.
http://saudigazette.com.sa/article/527334/SAUDI-ARABIA/Cabinet-urges-Yemeni-parties-to-stop-fighting and also https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1160421/efforts-reinforce-ceasefire-aden
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Aden’s violence and restoring Yemen’s national consensus
The reference to the national dialogue outcomes is important to the Aden clashes because those outcomes are a key framework that represents consensus among Yemenis, including on how to deal with southern issues.
One of those outcomes dealt with the “Southern Question” i.e., grievances by the southern part of Yemen about unequal representation in government institutions. The document also dealt with governance and ensuring an equal share for the South of government services, development projects, and the exploitation of natural resources.
Ever since, the transitional government of President Hadi has tried to implement these provisions to increase the participation and representation of southerners in the government, wherever possible, to the chagrin of some northerners.
Restoring full southern confidence in the national government is important after decades of neglect and unfair practises by the previous regime. It requires honest, peaceful dialogue between all parties. Not just the STC, but all credible groups in the South should take part, including those groups and individuals who signed the “Southern Question” accord as part of the NDC outcomes.
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1236181
My comment: This is the position of the Saudis who back the Hadi government, but it’s totally void to hold on Hadi’s National Dialogue Conference, which already had failed in 2014. Hadi’s time is over.
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Aden crisis: alliances of convenience unravel across Yemen
Fracturing of complex bonds risks making a stalemated war even more intractable
The alliance of convenience that held together former enemies in Yemen’s civil war is fracturing, as various bonds within the warring sides come unstuck.
Last month, there was a similar break in another unlikely alliance, albeit on the other side of the conflict in the rebel-held north.
The fracturing of the STC-Hadi alliance in Yemen’s south and the Houthi-Saleh alliance in the north is pitting former allies against each other in a country known for its complex tribal factions.
This risks making an already stalemated war, which has caused the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, even more intractable.
Adam Baron, a visiting fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, told the Guardian: “There’s this theory that if the conflict drags on and on and on, it will develop into a situation where the Houthis will make massive concessions. But what we’re seeing is fracturing and weakening on all sides.
“After today, after the last few days, it’s going to be quite hard for the international power brokers, and this includes the Yemeni government themselves, to marginalise the STC to the extent that they’ve been marginalising them before.”
Baron said tensions over longstanding divisions had been rising between the STC and Hadi’s government. The STC wants a return to an independent south like that which existed before 1990, but the unity of Yemen is a red line for Hadi.
The government of the United Arab Emirates had been supporting STC financially, but Baron believes “it’s foolish to think of the STC, as many view them, simply as Emirati puppets”.
“While the geopolitics of this might have its own significance, I think it’s crucial to remember that we’re talking about a group with domestic Yemeni aims and these are tensions that would exist regardless of whether regional powers would get involved,” he said.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jan/30/aden-crisis-alliances-convenience-unravel-yemen
(** B P)
Yemen's war within a war: What does new fighting mean?
The new split brings more uncertainty and violence in a nearly 3-year-old conflict that has created the world's worst humanitarian crisis. Here is a look at what's happening.
Forces loyal to the Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi have largely been defeated in Aden by a separatist group calling itself the Transitional Southern Council and its forces known as the Security Belt, which was formed, financed and armed by the United Arab Emirates
Hadi has been at odds with the UAE for most of the past two years. The Emirates has taken advantage of the war to seal domination over southern Yemen, taking over oil and gas facilities and ports, setting up militias and creating a network of secret prisons. Hadi and his aides have complained publicly and privately that the UAE is acting like an occupier. The UAE considers Hadi and his circle as corrupt and incompetent and is angered by Hadi's alliance with the Emirates' nemesis, the Muslim Brotherhood's branch in Yemen, known as the Islah Party.
The AP has reported earlier that Hadi, his sons, and a number of his aides and commanders, now in Riyadh, were banned from returning to Yemen as Saudis put them under virtual house arrest to appease the UAE.
If the power struggle within the coalition drags on with fighting in Aden or spreads to other cities, the vacuum could allow extremists like al-Qaida and the Islamic State group to surge and allow the Houthis to advance.
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/yemens-war-war-fighting-52707830
(* A P)
Yemen PM 'holed up' as Aden palace surrounded
Southern Yemeni separatists have surrounded the presidential palace in the city of Aden following clashes with previously allied government forces. [Overview article]
Why are the separatists and government fighting?
How did the clashes in Aden start?
What's being done to end the fighting?
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-42877851
(* A P)
Yemen's Saudi-backed government 'to flee from Aden'
Fighters seeking independence for southern Yemen have seized much of the city
[Overview article]
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jan/30/yemens-saudi-backed-government-to-flee-from-aden
and another: https://www.afp.com/en/news/23/yemen-separatists-surround-aden-presidential-palace-doc-yb6wn1
(A P)
The Presidential Guards have taken a quick control over the sites of the southern separatists who sparked clashes with government forces in the temporary capital Aden on Sunday. The presidential guards who were deployed across the city seem to have seized much of the secessionists' sites.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-15042
Remark: Claim by pro-Hadi Islah Party media, contradicts separatists’ reports (see below), seems to be far from reality.
(* A P)
#Yemen: Both #Saudi & south Yemen press are reporting that 4th Brigade military base (loyal to #Saudi-backed Pres Hadi) has been taken over forcibly by #UAE-backed Security Belt forces (loyal to southern separatists) in Dar Sa'd in north #Aden.
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/958310435949809664
(* A P)
Via its proxy, UAE proudly declares victory over Saudi Arabia in the occupied south Yemen. With all leaders of Saudi proxies locked up, in the Presedential Palace of Masheek,UAE declares the end of military operations against "terrorists"
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/958233153046491137 referring to https://twitter.com/HaniBinbrek/status/958145523982192640
(* A P)
Breaking News: Southern Resistance Troops Control the Gates pf Haidan Camp and Blocks Reinforcement Line
Special sources confirmed that the gates of the third presidential guards’ brigade are now under control of the southern resistance. Sources affirmed that the southern resistance blocked all reinforcement lines to the camp completely. At the same time, sources confirmed that special forces camp (central security) loyal to Fadl Baesh, and Al-Soulban camp, loyal to Al-Anboury, are now under control of the southern resistance.
(* A P)
Maasheek Palace Under Control of Southern Resistance Loyal to the Southern Transitional Council
Field and military sources indicated that armed clashes are underway now between the military troops loyal to the southern transitional council and other troops loyal to the so-called Yemeni legitimacy government near the main gate of Maasheek palace, official residence of the government. Sources confirmed that clashes are now near the department of passports, the last line separating the palace gate from the neighboring residential district. Troops of the southern transitional council advanced quickly during the past few hours and controlled several posts that were under control of the presidential guard’s troops that either escaped or surrendered.
http://en.smanews.org/maasheek-palace-under-control-of-southern-resistance-loyal-to-the-southern-transitional-council and somewhat earlier http://en.smanews.org/president-al-zubaidy-directs-his-troops-to-siege-maasheek-place-guard-it-gates-and-not-to-disrupt-its-contents
(* A P)
Hadi-headed meeting says Aden Separatists coup unforgivable
A meeting that President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi headed in Riyadh on Monday over the "steps to coup" in Aden on Sunday said those steps will not be forgivable.
Hadi convened a meeting on Monday in response bringing together the presidential advisors, the Vice President, the Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister and the heads of the country's political parties. The meeting described STC's sparked clashes in Aden as "a rejected act for coup and irresponsible behavior."
The meeting warned the survival of the Iranian agenda threatens not only Yemen, but the whole Arab world and the global peace.
It called on the STC militants to give up the narrow personal ambitions and cooperate in fixing any mismanagements and issues instead of using them as a pretext to implement a coup.
The meeting warned that any attempts to deflect the course of the nation's battle against the main threat, Houthi insurgency, would be countered with heavy-handedness.
http://almasdaronline.com/article/96785
My comment: President Lackland.
(A P)
Political parties call for merging rival militaries in temporary capital
Yemen's major political parties have called for the rival military units to be merged under one command as separatists long threatening to topple the government begun on Sunday to realize that militarily.
The parties warned that Sunday's unrest "plays into the Iranian agenda" which the Arab Coalition spent years of war effort to counter in the battle against Houthis in Yemen's north.
The parties said they understand all the issues and drivers of conflict in the country but they can all be resolved by a state that implements the outcomes of the National Dialogue of 2013-2014.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-15040
Comment: By Islah Party media. These are just the parties backing president Hadi, fully repeating his propaganda.
(A P)
Arab Coalition Says Will Take All Necessary Measures to Restore Stability in Aden
The Arab coalition on Tuesday called for an immediate ceasefire in Yemen's interim capital of Aden, saying it will take all necessary measures to restore security.
"The coalition renews its call to all parties to ceasefire immediately and end all forms of armed conflict," it in a statement cited by the Saudi SPA agency.
"The coalition affirms that it will take all necessary measures to restore security and stability in Aden," the statement said.
It regretted that all sides did not respond to its earlier calls for restraint and calm.
It also called on the Yemeni people to focus on the principal goals of restoring legitimacy in the country and safeguarding the state.
(* B P)
Now #UAE & its puppets are fighting the "internationally recognised gov.", which was the reason for the embargo against #Ansarullah. Logically then, #UAE & Co. should be embargoed as well! The #UNSC actions in #Yemen make a mockery of International Law.
https://twitter.com/otwilight/status/958020905439031297
(* A P)
Cautious calm in Aden south Yemen since early morning After UAE took complete control over the city. Headquarters of Saudi-backed government,Masheek, is under UAE forces,with all cabinet members locked in. UAE occupation defeated Saudi occupation. Yemen remains occupied
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/958204306662023168
Aden city, #Yemen: Maashiq Palace on verge of takeover by Southern forces. Pro-Saudi Yemeni PM Bin Daghr & ministers evad'd from it by helicopter to Marib city.
https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/958111503995064320
In other words, the UAE is about to expel the Saudis from Aden city. This will get interesting.
https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/958111782463246336
Once the blood dries and dust settles down in Aden, the action should shift to the Hadhramaut axis, incl Shabwah and Al Mahrah. Same tensions, same issues, same preps.
https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/958112503669641216
Aden city, #Yemen: Southern (& northern) Salafis (and Al Qaeda) fighters who were fighting Houthis on the western coast are now set to face off against STC forces in Aden & Abyan. Suicidal blondes, all of 'em.
https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/958124854288506880
(A P)
Saudi Arabia reaaaaaally needs to get itself tuned to the correct frequency about Aden, and actually about what's what in Yemen, generally. Just a thought. (see image)
https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/958119461516664832
(** B K P)
Yemen's complicated war just got more complicated
The STC has blamed Prime Minister Ahmed bin Daghr for the violence and urged Hadi to sack him and his cabinet.
"The STC holds the bin Daghr government fully responsible after it violated the Arab coalition's call for calm and used weapons to prevent demonstrators from reaching the parades square," it said in a statement.
The STC has said it is willing to de-escalate the situation, but Zaid al-Jamal, al-Zubaidi's secretary, told Al Jazeera the "uprising" would continue until Hadi's government was "toppled".
International aid organisation Oxfam says the violence has forced it to close down its offices in Aden, while residents have complained of schools and government institutions being forced to shutter.
The UAE is believed to be sponsoring southern Yemen's secession to advance its interests in the region.
Despite having a relatively small army, the UAE sent a significant number of ground forces to Yemen. In contrast, Saudi Arabia was cautious to deploy troops; the Saudi National Guard and Royal Saudi Land Forces (RSLF) play minimal roles in the conflict.
The UAE's interest relates to the security of the Bab el-Mandab strait, one of the world's busiest oil and gas shipping lanes.
Protecting the flow of oil and gas shipments in the Red Sea and Egypt's Suez Canal is vital for UAE's ability to trade with Europe and North America.
The weakening of Hadi's government has gone hand-in-hand with the UAE's growing power. According to Maysa Shuja al-Deen, a non-resident fellow at the Sanaa Center for Strategic Studies, the Emiratis seem disillusioned with Saudi Arabia's plan for the country.
"The Saudis believe any talk of secession will de-legitimise the war effort, which they have repeatedly claimed is about restoring the government of President Hadi. Meanwhile, the Emiratis don't want to see any party close to Hadi and Islah anywhere near power.
"The coalition is divided and no longer knows what they want," she said.
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/01/yemen-complicated-war-complicated-180129114613553.html
(** B P)
Saudi Coalition Frays as Yemeni Allies Turn Guns on Each Other
Saudi Arabia’s offensive to restore a friendly government in neighboring Yemen is facing new turmoil, as two forces which have fought on the kingdom’s side turn their guns on each other.
The clashes in the southern city of Aden, where the pro-Saudi elected government of Yemen is based, threaten to weaken the coalition built by Riyadh in its proxy conflict with Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.
the fighting in Aden could signify growing tensions in the coalition as it appears no nearer to winning the war, said Noha Aboueldahab, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Doha Center.
“Almost three years on, it would not be surprising to see a weakening of the coalition,” she said in an email. If the U.A.E. comes under pressure to rethink it’s support, southern resistance groups that played an important role in driving the Houthis from Aden could permanently split away, according to Aboueldahab.
Clear Strategy
If another front is opening in the strategically placed port city, it’s likely to bring more misery for the millions of Yemenis facing hunger and daily violence. Persistent fighting would make it more difficult to distribute desperately needed humanitarian supplies.
Tensions in Aden indicate that Saudi Arabia and the U.A.E. have failed to develop a clear political and military strategy for the south, according to Yezid Sayigh, senior fellow at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut.
“The Emiratis and the Saudis have been operating in very different ways on the ground inside Yemen,” Sayigh said. “And they’ve ended up supporting different kinds of fighting groups.” By
Mohammed Hatem and Zainab Fattah
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-01-29/saudi-coalition-frays-as-yemeni-allies-turn-guns-on-each-other = https://thepeninsulaqatar.com/article/30/01/2018/In-blow-to-Saudi-plans,-Yemen-allies-turn-guns-on-each-other
(** B P)
Saudi Arabia, UAE caught short by separatist attacks in Aden
"We’ve always had the separatists in the south [of Yemen],” says Riad Khawaji, director of the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis in Dubai. “This is nothing new.
“But these groups have benefited from the current conflict [between the central government and] the Houthis."
“The [separatists] were armed and integrated within the Yemeni forces to be used in the fight against the Houthis,” Khawaji explains. “They drove them out of Aden and other southern provinces.
“Now, after regaining control of most of the southern provinces we see the separatist movement again."
The coalition is calling for negotiatoins but, initially, UAE troops seemed to back the separatists.
“The major problem is that the Saudi regime and the Emirati regime are both occupying the country through mercenaries and so they [the combatants] have little incentive to remain loyal to these two countries,” says Muhammad Marandi, a political scientist with Tehran University.
“And the other problem is that the agenda that drives the UAE regime and that of Saudi Arabia are different, so they are basically supporting different forces in the south of the country, because those forces support the interests of the two countries separately."
The separatists' unexpected action may reflect a split within the coalition itself, he believes– by Jan van der Made
http://en.rfi.fr/20180129-yemen-separatists-houthis-saudi-uae/
(* B P)
Yemen's Southern Movement: President Has Very Limited Influence – Analyst
Yemeni President Abdurabu Mansur Hadi ordered his troops to cease fire Sunday following the clashes with the Southern Movement in Aden. Ali Rizk, political analyst specializing in Middle Eastern affairs commented on the recent developments in the war-torn country in his interview with Radio Sputnik.
The main conclusion is that the so-called President of Yemen Abdurabu Mansur Hadi, these latest developments show how limited his influence on the ground is, how limited his support on the ground is. You have this fighting and this rejection by the members of the Southern Movement for Hadi, accusing him of corruption. So indeed this has proved once again that Hadi really has very limited leverage on the ground, has very limited support on the ground, contrary to what some countries might say when they make the statement that he is the legitimate president of Yemen. Indeed we have also conflicting agendas, I think, between different parties.
The Southern Movement for a long time has wanted to separate, I think that now it's trying to further its agenda. And I think that basically Hadi has very [limited] influence over the situation and I am not sure if this ceasefire will indeed prevail.
the UAE, in this particular case, appears to be the anti-Hadi country.
So, the UAE is the main… supporter of this Southern Movement now. Will Saudi Arabia try to broker with the UAE some kind of an agreement to help Hadi save face? That might be the only way he could be saved if Saudi Arabia and the UAE broker an agreement (with audio)
https://sputniknews.com/analysis/201801291061165894-yemen-southern-movement/
(* A P)
Bloodshed Roils Yemen's South, Further Complicating An Already Complicated War
The two sides had shared an uneasy alliance since 2014, when they were united in their opposition to the Houthi rebels.
Now, that fragile pact appears to have shattered, as well.
The new fault that has opened between Hadi and his erstwhile allies in the STC adds another dimension to a war already packed with a dizzying array of players — and a long, tortuous history dating back at least to 1990.
Yet, as the recent violence in Aden makes clear, even that complex set of alliances threatens to deteriorate into still greater complexity, for even the Saudi-led coalition is no monolith.
That's because "the UAE's military and economic interests lie in the strategic location of Aden and its port near the Bab al-Mandab Strait," the Qatar-based broadcaster notes. And that has led the UAE to focus its support on the southern separatists — a fact that threatens a rift of its own between coalition members.
(* A P)
Photos from Social media, clashes:
https://twitter.com/YemeniObserv/status/958304401499873281
https://twitter.com/YemeniObserv/status/958297609738866688
https://twitter.com/YemeniObserv/status/958285374920503297
https://twitter.com/YemeniObserv/status/958077353288138752
https://twitter.com/YemeniObserv/status/957995497473675264
https://twitter.com/YemeniObserv/status/957978453520904195
https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/958329646986219520 : Sourhern flags at camp
Film, Southern Resistance’s victory:
https://twitter.com/NajTV/status/958318903419195392
https://twitter.com/NajTV/status/958298621610549248
Film, clashes, Jan. 28:
https://twitter.com/NajTV/status/957556079440867328
(* A P)
Film: ICRC: Our head of mission in Aden, @cbatallasICRC, on the latest from #Yemen. (That sound you’re hearing is live gunfire.)
https://twitter.com/ICRC_ye/status/958062767810007042
(A P)
UN Staff "Safe" Amid Reports Of Fighting In Yemen
Amid reports of armed conflict in the streets of Yemen's major port city of Aden, a UN spokesman said on Monday that while there is concern about the clashes and closing of the airport all of its staff members are "safe and accounted for", China's Xinhua news agency reported.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-01/30/c_136934801.htm = http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v8/wn/newsworld.php?id=1431872
(* A P)
Fighting Reignites in Yemen’s Southern Port City
Roughly a year ago, my colleagues and I visited Aden. Then, there was no fighting in the city, but the scars of battles in 2015 remained: We met a child who lost both legs when his home was shelled, and a man who lost a leg while removing one of the many landmines laid by the Houthis in the city. We met many who, after the Houthis withdrew, had been arbitrarily detained or tortured, or had family members who had been abused or forcibly disappeared. Others told us they were frustrated by the lack of electricity, the stop and start of civil servant salaries, the feeling that real reconstruction had not begun.
We also met fearless rights activists. When we spoke to them by phone this weekend, they were worried. They had hoped the city had seen the last of fighting. Now, the future was uncertain.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/01/29/fighting-reignites-yemens-southern-port-city
(A P)
Yemen's former president: Clashes in country's south nothing short of a coup
Yemen's former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi has said that the outbreak of fighting between UAE-backed separatists and Saudi-backed forces in the country's southern regions is nothing short of a coup.
"Any assault on legitimacy is a coup," said Hadi on Monday, while noting that both sides should join their forces to fight against Ansarullah fighters.
http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/01/29/550632/yemen-hadi-uae-saudi-coup
Remark: By Iranian media, labeling Hadi as “former president” (which is correct due to the fact that Hadi’s legal term ended in Feb. 2015). – And Hadi still mingles “legitimacy” and his own person.
(A P)
The so-called Yemen legitimate president Hadi, Saudi puppet, from a luxurious hotel in Riyadh now: What's happening in Aden is a coup. The coup plotters are terrorists! Which means: UAE denies any legitimacy for Hadi. Saudi (via puppet) Hadi replies: you're terrorists (photo)
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/958004594935848961
(* B P)
An activist believes Saudi Arabia does not want stability in Yemen and is seeking to keep the impoverished Arab nation “weak” in order to control it.
“What they [the Saudis] are doing now in the south is just a British tactic which is ‘divide and conquer’ because they want the south, especially Aden to stay weak because if there is any progress in Aden, this will affect Dubai port and other ports in the Persian Gulf. So the Saudi-led coalition and the United Arab Emirates want to keep Yemeni people in the south fighting each other and at the same time the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia work really well together in fighting the Houthis in other areas, so they want to control Bab el-Mandeb Strait, Socotra island and the coast of Yemen because this was one of the main goals of the war in Yemen,” Hussain al-Bukhaiti told Press TV in an interview on Monday (in film)
My comment: A Houthi supporter. – I do not think so: The strife at Aden will weaken the Saudi coalition.
(* A P)
Yemen war: Deadly infighting rages in Aden
[Overview article by BBC]
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-42858270
(A P)
The Yemeni Scene - Special: #ADEN
The Presidential Protection Force (PPS) has announced its full control of a camp of the security belt forces in the interim capital of Aden.
He said control came after heavy fighting since morning.
The clashes broke out on Monday morning
(* A P)
Arab Coalition Urges Yemeni Gov't, Opposition to Stop Clashes, Return to Talks
The Saudi-led coalition that has been supporting the Yemeni government in their fight against the Houthis has called on the parties of a newly escalated sub-conflict to stop clashes, AFP reported Monday.
"We call on the fighters from the Southern Transitional Council to refrain from further escalation while asking the government to listen to their demands," coalition's spokesperson Turki al-Maliki said at a briefing Monday.
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801291061161562-coalition-yemen-opposition-demands/
(** A P)
At least 36 dead as tank battle rocks Yemen's 'coup-hit' Aden
At least 36 people have been killed and 185 wounded in two days of heavy fighting between separatists and government troops in Yemen's interim capital of Aden, the Red Cross said Monday.
Heavy fighting intensified at night after the two sides used tank and artillery on the second day of an attempted "coup" in Aden, military sources said.
As the fighting escalated, the Saudi-led military coalition which supports the government called for dialogue and for it to hear the demands of the separatists in the southern port city.
The head of the International Committee for the Red Cross mission in Yemen, Carlos Batallas, tweeted that "the clashes in #Aden have so far killed 36 people and wounded 185".
The ICRC did not provide figures on civilian casualties.
Civilians were hunkered down at home as five separatist fighters were killed by snipers and four soldiers died in clashes, military sources said, with tanks and heavy artillery entering the fray.
At night, pro-separatist security forces advanced in some areas and were just one kilometre (mile) away from the presidential palace in Aden, security and military sources told AFP.
They also seized two military camps near Aden international airport which remained close for the second day, the sources said.
https://www.afp.com/en/news/23/36-dead-tank-battle-rocks-yemens-coup-hit-aden-doc-y827h4 = https://www.sbs.com.au/news/at-least-36-dead-as-tank-battle-rocks-yemen-s-coup-hit-aden
(* A P)
Tank battle rocks Yemen's 'coup-hit' Aden
At least nine people were killed in heavy fighting between separatists and government troops Monday as a tank battle broke out on the second day of an attempted "coup" in Yemen's interim capital Aden, military sources said.
As the fighting escalated, the Saudi-led military coalition which supports the government called for dialogue and for it to hear the demands of the separatists in the southern port city.
https://www.afp.com/en/news/23/tank-battle-rocks-yemens-coup-hit-aden-doc-y827h2
(* A P)
Forces from the Mokha front, western Taiz, reportedly already withdrew and arrived in #Aden to intervene in the clashes. This may allow al #Houthi forces to regain recently lost territory in Taiz.
https://twitter.com/MaherFarrukh/status/957969636728897536
(A P)
Yemen is also a war of narratives as supposed allies support opposing sides. #Saudi Okaz paper says: "Rebellion in Aden" #UAE AlArab paper says: "Authority of Hadi and Islah over in Aden. Aden under southern transitional council control" (images)
https://twitter.com/osamabinjavaid/status/957974793516589056
and
Today's newspaper headlines give sense of battle lines behind #Aden clashes: -Ukaz (#Saudi pro-Hadi) writes of "coup in Aden.. serving #Iran & Houthis" -Aden al-Ghad (pro-#UAE Southern separatist) writes of govt "led by Hadi & Islah", #Yemen's Muslim Brotherhood opposed by UAE (images)
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/957910462775087104
(A P)
Al-Awlaky: Demands Are Increasing
After a long stressful day in Adan, as the legitimacy government tried to prevent peaceful demonstrators from reaching Al-Oroud Square and Demonstrating there peacefully, Salem Thabet Al-Awlaky, official spokesman of the Southern Transitional Council, posted on his page on face book saying: “Demands are now increasing”
http://en.smanews.org/al-awlaky-demands-are-increasing
(A P)
Activists: Aggressions Against Unarmed Civilians in Adan is a War Crime According to the International Law
Mohamed Al-Ghaithy, a southern activist, indicated that aggressions against unarmed civilians is a war crime according to the international law and those who commit it will be under legal pursuit. He added that the southern resistance has an ethical commitment towards the Arab Ally who must interfere to stop such absurd acts, or the southern resistance should fulfill its duties as it has the right and capability to do so.
Fahad Saleh Al-Auzaly, another political activist, indicated that who exploded the situation in Adan today are the same persons who assaulted peaceful demonstrators and tried to break throw Al-Oroud Square.
(* A P)
Death toll rises on second day of clashes in Yemeni port of Aden
Four people were killed on Monday in a second day of fighting between rival factions seeking control of the southern Yemeni port city of Aden, where the internationally recognized administration is based, witnesses and officials said.
The clashes between southern separatists allied to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and forces loyal to Saudi-based President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi risk crippling their once united campaign against the Iran-aligned Houthi movement.
Witnesses reported fighting outside Yemeni government camps in the districts of Khor Maksar and Dar Saad in the north of Aden. The clashes involved tanks and heavy artillery targeting a hill, Jabal Hadeed, which overlooks Khor Maksar and Aden port.
The SABA state news agency, controlled by the Hadi government, said four people had died in Monday’s fighting, bringing the total death toll since Sunday to 16 and the number of wounded to 141.
President Hadi issued a statement ordering the military to secure the city and assuring the population that his government was capable of handling the situation.
The witnesses said forces loyal to the Southern Transitional Council (STC), which was formed last year to push for the revival of the former independent state of South Yemen, were apparently trying to wrest control of two bases in Aden from Prime Minister Ahmed bin Daghr’s government.
(* A P)
UAE supports anti Mansour Hadi elements in Yeman
UAE is one of the important Saudi Arabia’s ally in its Yemen’s war.
According to Aljazeera, UAE has been financing and training armed groups in the south who answer to the STC’s leader Zubaidi [Overview, background]
http://www.apnlive.com/world-news/uae-supports-anti-mansour-hadi-elements-in-yeman-37015
(* A P)
Audio: Below is a clip from my breakfast show interview today on the BBC World Service. What's behind fresh clashes in #Yemen's #Aden & what are the implications?
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/957931198759743488
(* A B P)
Clashes in Aden as Yemen allies turn on each other
[Overview and background]
(A P)
I can't reach my friend who lives in Crater Arwa Street, and my Aunt's family who live in Khormaksar October street . Electricity is off since Yesterday and we can't know if they are okay or not #Aden
https://twitter.com/NismaAlozebi/status/957857129066647553
(** B P)
What is going on in southern Yemen?
This latest turn of events could not only exacerbate the ongoing conflict in Yemen, leading to more destruction and loss of civilian lives but could also threaten the territorial integrity of the country.
The growing secessionist sentiments in southern Yemen are a product of its distinct historical path as much as the current geopolitical situation in the region.
Since its liberation from the Houthis, Aden has witnessed severe security challenges, economic and basic infrastructure problems, and most recently growing support for secession from the North. The city has also seen a deliberate attempt to silence activistssupporting the Hadi-allied Islah Party (seen as having links to the Muslim Brotherhood), as well as some voices within the Salafi movement with a number of imams gunned down in the last several months.
Al-Zubaidi is backed by the STC's de-facto military wing known as the "Security Belt", which the UAE supplies with military equipment and financial resources.
Indeed, if this escalation of violence continues in Aden, it will undermine not just the course of the war against the Houthis, but the whole political process of the Gulf Initiative, the national dialogue, and the various United Nations Security Council resolutions emphasising the territorial integrity of Yemen.
The military response of Hadi's government to the current violence will shape the southern question during the post-war era. Quick restoration of military control over Aden and restructuring of the "Security Belt" forces under the direct command of President Hadi would increase the likelihood of Yemen remaining unified in the near future.
However, the political fate of Aden will also be greatly shaped by the political actions of the UAE.
While the Saudi government is more concerned with the security of its southern border and with Houthi attacks, its lack of clear coordination with the UAE in southern Yemen could undermine its overall war effort – by Gamal Gasim
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/south-yemen-secession-aden-180129095311293.html
(A H)
Yemen: Escalation of armed clashes in Aden: Implications on the humanitarian situation
The security situation has restricted staff movements in and outside Aden. Humanitarian flights into Aden are on hold due to the closure of Aden’s airport and WFP’s vessel remains in international waters off Aden due to the closure of the seaport. • Planned missions and assessments from Aden Hub have been put on hold until the security situation improves
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-escalation-armed-clashes-aden-flash-update-1-29-january-2018 and full https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Flash%20Update%20No1_Aden_FINAL_ENG.pdf
(A P)
Exchange of artillery shelling between the @STCSouthArabia forces and Presidential Guard in #Aden.
https://twitter.com/MuradAbdu/status/957944603243679746
(* A P)
Aden gripped by fresh fighting as Yemen rivals battle for control
Fresh fighting erupted around Yemeni government facilities in Aden on Monday, witnesses said, as rival factions battled for a second day for control of the southern port city where the internationally-recognised administration is based.
Witnesses reported fighting outside Yemeni government camps in northern Aden’s Khor Maksar and Dar Saad districts, adding that at least one tank had fired shells in Khor Maksar.
They said forces loyal to the Southern Transitional Council (STC), which was formed last year to push for the revival of the former independent state of South Yemen, were apparently trying to wrest control of the two bases from Prime Minister Ahmed bin Daghr’s government.
In downtown Aden, most people stayed off the streets as government forces guarded the main road to al-Maasheeq palace where the government is based.
A government source said that if the Saudi-led coalition did not restrain the separatists, soldiers would leave anti-Houthi battlefronts elsewhere in the country to converge on Aden.
“The military commanders leading the battle in the western part of Yemen have given short notice to Saudi and UAE to intervene to end the fighting in Aden. Otherwise they will leave the battlefront and move back to Aden to assist President Hadi and the government,” the source said.
The two sides have traded accusations over who started the clashes on Sunday.
(* A P)
Yemen: UAE-backed separatists send reinforcements to Aden amid clashes
Separatists in southern Yemen, who are backed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), have dispatched sizable reinforcements to the city of Aden, where they have been engaged in fierce clashes with Saudi-allied militants loyal to the former Yemeni government.
Reports on Monday said the so-called Southern Transitional Council had sent a large number of armed members from Dhale and Shabwah Provinces, respectively in southwestern and south-central Yemen, to Aden.
Numerous Arab-language outlets have verified the collision between Saudi and Emirati interests there. Neither Abu Dhabi nor Riyadh has, however, attested to any division within the Saudi-led coalition.
http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/01/29/550555/Yemen-Aden-Saudi-Arabia-UAE-Hadi
(* A P)
Film: Fighting intensifies in Yemen's Aden after separatist 'coup'
(* A P)
Fighting flares in Yemen's Aden after separatist 'coup' attempt
Fresh fighting flared in Yemen's southern city of Aden on Monday after separatist forces seized government buildings in what the prime minister said was an attempted coup.
On Monday, sporadic clashes continued after fighting overnight in the port city, especially in its north where separatist forces tried to take control of a military camp, security sources said.
The separatists dispatched additional forces from the central province of Marib and the southern province of Abyan, the sources said.
The forces from Abyan progressed towards Aden after clashes with loyalists on the way.
https://www.afp.com/en/news/23/fighting-flares-yemens-aden-after-separatist-coup-attempt-doc-y827h1
(*A P)
Turmoil in Aden as Legitimacy Warns of ‘Coup’
The Yemeni Interior Ministry said on Sunday the security situation in Aden was under control, following a day of turmoil in the temporary capital after gumen linked to the Southern Transitional Council (STC) attacked government buildings and clashed with security forces.
https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1158231/turmoil-aden-legitimacy-warns-%E2%80%98coup%E2%80%99
Remark: By Saudi media. „security situation in Aden was under control“ at best is an unproofed claim.
A reminder from May 2017:
(* B P)
Warning Update: Fracturing of the Yemeni state
https://www.criticalthreats.org/analysis/warning-update-fracturing-of-the-yemeni-state
cp2 Allgemein / General
(* B K P)
Les médias français désormais obligés de couvrir une fois par an la guerre au Yémen
Mauvaise nouvelle pour les médias français : s’ils ne veulent pas dégringoler au classement mondial de la liberté de la presse, ils n’auront désormais pas d’autre choix que d’évoquer la guerre au Yémen au moins une fois par an.
Reporters sans frontière a dévoilé aujourd’hui sa liste de conseils pour aider la France à quitter sa peu flatteuse 39e place au classement mondial de la liberté de la presse. Et comme le laissaient entendre certaines rumeurs, la recommandation numéro une est bien de « couvrir une fois par an la guerre au Yémen ». En cas de refus, RSF a annoncé que des sanctions seraient prises sous la forme de recommandations encore plus contraignantes. Une menace à prendre très au sérieux puisqu’en cas de non-respect des règles, ces mêmes médias pourraient se voir dans l’obligation de parler des conflits au Mozambique ou en Nouvelle-Guinée voire d’aborder les violations des droits de l’homme en Erythrée.
My comment: French media are critizised for not reporting on Yemen – they are not the only ones!
(* B K P)
Debunking Alt-Media’s Doublethink On Yemen
Many in the Alt-Media Community aren’t aware of the doublethink that pervades the Iranian-influenced discourse on Yemen, and a critical analysis of the three most prominent examples of this in practice could assist Tehran in avoiding unnecessary narrative shortcomings and ultimately optimizing its regional message.
A narrative bifurcation has set in whereby Houthi supporters look to Iranian media for guidance while their opponents seek out Saudi and other coalition sources, with both sides sometimes blindly adhering to whatever their “patron state” says or suggests on any given issue.
There has already been exemplary work done by many investigative journalists exposing the contradictions prevalent in the Saudi narrative on Yemen, but almost nothing has been said in the Alt-Media Community about its Iranian counterpart.
a critical analysis of the overall storyline is direly needed for outside observers who aspire to grasp a deeper understanding of the latest fast-moving developments that have occurred in this battlefield, particularly those in South Yemen.
The three most popular Alt-Media talking points will be debunked below in illustrating the inconsistent nature of Iran’s depiction of several interconnected regional themes related to Yemen. The purpose behind this analysis is to draw attention to the “forbidden knowledge” that’s usually hidden from the Alt-Media audience when discussing this topic due to it being “inconvenient” to the narrative at hand, which is ultimately to promote everything that has to do with the Houthis and their original plans to conquer all of Yemen while denigrating all those who stand opposed to them. Starting with the slaughter of the most “sacred cow” of all, here are the three most glaring examples of Alt-Media doublethink on Yemen:
Saudi Arabia Hates All Shiites…Despite Backing Them During The North Yemen Civil War
It’s popular nowadays for people to casually assert that Saudi Arabia hates all Shiites, and there’s indeed an overwhelming mountain of evidence proving that Riyadh suppresses its own confessional minority within its borders and has backed Takfiri death squads targeting its sectarian counterparts all throughout the world, but the fact of the matter is that this violent opposition to them isn’t “universal” and based on some dogmatic “principle”. The intent of the following isn’t to excuse Saudi Arabia’s actions but to explain them, and in advance response to triggered critics, this isn’t “apologia” either.
Syrian Socialism And Secularism Is Good, But Its South Yemeni Version Is Bad
Another prominent contradiction in the Iranian-affiliated Alt-Media narrative about the Mideast is the support of socialism and secularism in Syria while denying the South Yemenis these very same rights.
Bahrainis Should Revolt, But The South Yemenis Shouldn’t Dare Try
Concluding Thoughts
, a refined infowar-activist approach could be developed that takes the time to address the narrative differences between the aforementioned topics of study, even if it does so superficially or embraces the Machiavellian mantra that “interests, not principles, are what matter most” and that these evolve depending on circumstances. Many people, though, prefer to live in an idealized bubble and refuse to accept the contemporary Neo-Realist paradigm of International Relations that the author earlier described as the “19th-Century Great Power Chessboard” – by Andrew Korybko
https://orientalreview.org/2018/01/31/debunking-alt-medias-doublethink-yemen/
My comment: This article is not very convincing. 1) Saudi support for the Zaidi Imam in the 1960ies civil war tells nothing of today. At first, zaidi is not Shia. At second, the Saudis in the 1960ies backed the conservative Yemeni monarchy against the aussault of republican revolutionaries, they felt much closer to the Yemeni Imam than to the republic, whether he was Zaidi or not. 2) By no way, all “alt-media” support Assad in Syria 3) Korybko seems to be a fan of the Southern Yemeni separatists. He still has to tell what should be “socialist” regarding them. They want to restore a Southern Yemeni state, not Southern Yemeni socialism. 3) Alt-media not generally are hostile to the Southern separatists’ cause, as Korybko claims.
(* B K P)
Why is UAE fighting in Yemen?
The United Arab Emirates has been the leading partner in Saudi Arabia's military coalition running the war machine against Yemen since the outset of the aggression. And in recent times, the tiny Persian Gulf state’s increasing support for secessionist ambitions in southern Yemen has raised questions surrounding the Emirates’ real agenda by taking on an ever-expanding role in the conflict. This, coupled with another set of compelling facts, has resulted in this idea taking hold that the UAE is seeking to expand its sphere of influence in the region politically, militarily and last but not least financially.
Here’s a quick check of some ulterior motives that the Abu Dhabi rulers may have.
Yemen Breakup
The UAE has been openly financing and arming separatist militants in the southern port city of Aden with the so-called Southern Transitional Council in their confrontation against the Riyadh-sponsored forces who are loyal to the former government.
Prisons vs. Projects to Buy Public Support
The UAE has been running secret prisons -- notoriously titled 'black sites' -- in Yemen, where hundreds of inmates suffer mistreatment, torture and forcible disappearance. The massive detention campaign primarily targets individuals who are opposed to the Emirates' presence in Yemen.
Military and Naval Adventures
Meanwhile, the UAE has been seeking to gain full control of Yemeni ports in a bid to reinforce its foothold in the Arabian Peninsula country. It is also currently running the Aden airport.
Greed for Energy, Resources
Yemen is a country rich in oil and gas reserves and that has served as an added incentive for the UAE to choose to be a partner in the war.
Abu Dhabi has previously made attempts towards capturing oil and gas fields in the provinces of Shabwah, Marib and Hadramawt.
http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/01/31/550799/UAE-Yemen-Saudi-Arabia
Remark: By Iranian media, anyway quite reasonable.
(* B K P)
Even More Chaos in Yemen
The STC is heavily supported by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) while the Hadi forces are heavily supported by Saudi Arabia. These two countries are the leading members of the coalition that is currently bombing Yemen to drive out the Houthi rebels from power and to restore the Hadi presidency. Now, these two regional powers are supporting rival factions that are fighting each other.
The war in Yemen has become exceedingly problematic for Saudi Arabia.
The coalition between the UAE and Saudi Arabia had papered over the differences between, and the self-interests of, the two countries, but that is no longer the case.
The developments of January 28 are particularly worrisome.
Meanwhile, the primary goal of the war in Yemen is actually further from being achieved than when it began in March 2015. The Houthi rebels have moved closer to Iran, the humanitarian disaster continues to worsen, and now, with the coalition fighting amongst itself, even as it continues to fight the Houthis, the situation in Yemen is even more dire.
http://www.soufangroup.com/tsc-intelbrief-even-more-chaos-in-yemen/
(* B K P)
A Setback for the Saudi-Led War on Yemen
The rejection of Hadi’s authority in the south echoes his overthrow in the north three years ago. The UAE is a member of the so-called “coalition to restore legitimacy” that intervened in 2015 to reimpose Hadi as president, and now they back forces inside Yemen that don’t accept Hadi’s rule, either. Hadi has denounced the move as a “coup,” but his position is so weak that he remains in Riyadh as a virtual prisoner of his Saudi backers. The recent events in Aden underscore how little support Hadi has inside his own country, and it tells us that the Saudi-led coalition’s poor justification for intervening in Yemen has been completely discredited. There are very few Yemenis in the north or south that want the “legitimate” government, so when will the Saudis and their Western patrons stop insisting on restoring that government to power?
Southern Yemenis have legitimate political grievances that have long been ignored by governments in Sanaa, and the UAE has effectively exploited that rift for its own purposes. The split between the UAE’s proxies and Hadi may help the Emiratis to carve out a sphere of influence for themselves, but it makes the coalition’s stated war goals much harder to achieve – by Daniel Larison
http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/a-setback-for-the-saudi-led-war-on-yemen/
(* B K P)
Film (Talk): Yemen on the brink: Civil war, famine and a growing separatist movement
With Yemen's capital Sana'a already under the control of Houthi militias, now there's fighting in the second city Aden. Southern separatists - backed by the UAE - are locking horns with Saudi-backed government forces. Both Riyadh and the Emiratis are urging restraint. Is this a very localized dispute triggered by a demonstration ban? Or is there trouble among coalition partners who for three years have been fighting Iran-aligned Houthi militias with little to show for it?
Guests: Sama’a AL-HAMDANI, Director of the Yemen Cultural Institute for Heritage and the Arts; Hussain AL BUKHAITI, Yemeni journalist; Manuel ALMEIDA, Columnist, Arab News
http://www.france24.com/en/20180129-debate-yemen-brink-war-famine-separatist
Remark: One pro-Houthi and one pro-Saudi among the guests.
(* B K P)
Woher hat der Jemen seine Raketen?
Der Westen glaubt, dass die Houthis im Jemen ihre ballistischen Raketen vom Iran erhalten haben. Das ist aber nicht sehr wahrscheinlich.
Wie haben die Ansarullah-Kämpfer Jemens ballistische Raketen in die Hände bekommen?
Wie haben die Milizsoldaten das Know-How erworben, um ihr Arsenal zu bestücken und zu bedienen? Seit die jemenitischen Streitkräfte ihre Fähigkeiten aufgezeigt haben, deuten Saudi-Arabien und seine Verbündeten, einschließlich die Vereinigten Staaten, mit dem Finger auf den Iran.
Selbst Hilfsgruppen und sogar in das Land entsandte medizinische Kräfte erhalten selten die Chance, irgendetwas tatsächlich in den Jemen zu liefern, um die dort tobende humanitäre Krise zu bekämpfen. Ein großes und schweres Gerät dieser Größenordnung in den Jemen zu schmuggeln wäre eine enorme Leistung.
Also müssen die Raketen bereits vor Beginn des Kriegs in das Land geliefert worden sein. Blickt man etwas in der Geschichte zurück, ist eine relativ enge Beziehung zwischen dem Jemen und Nordkorea feststellbar.
Pjöngjang war immer daran interessiert, Verbindungen mit dem Südjemen aufgrund seiner kommunistischen Vergangenheit zu knüpfen.
Im Jahr 2015 behauptete ein südkoreanischer Geheimdienstchef, Pjöngjang habe den jemenitischen Truppen nicht weniger als 20 Scud-Raketen zur Verfügung gestellt.
http://www.gegenfrage.com/woher-hat-der-jemen-seine-raketen/
(* B K)
MILITARY SITUATION IN YEMEN ON JANUARY 29, 2018 (MAP UPDATE)
https://southfront.org/military-situation-in-yemen-on-january-29-2018-map-update/
(* B K P)
@YemenData is now working with @ACLEDINFO collecting data on political violence and protest events across #Yemen, including fatality figures. 7,862 events were recorded in 2017 with 17,029 fatalities. More here: https://www.acleddata.com/data/
https://twitter.com/YemenData/status/958015753076334593
(* B K P)
Activist: ‘Hadi Has to Go, Someone More Moderate' Must Lead Yemen
Speaking with Sputnik Radio's Loud & Clear, Mustafa Akhwand, executive director of Shia Rights Watch, offered insight into the ongoing issues in Yemen and his take on what needs to happen to ease the suffering of the Yemeni people.
"Right now, the situation is between Saudi Arabia and UAE," Akhwand said. "There is a lot of news and documentation that there is a natural resource in Yemen and that each of those countries want to have a stake [in it]."
"Thats a big issue right now," Akhwand added, referring to the newfound resources of oil, silver and gold along Yemen's border with Oman. "If Saudi Arabia controls that, they're going to control more natural resources in the region and the UAE, at the same time, because they have a small country, they're trying to get [control of the natural resources in order to get] more power in the region as well."
And yet, the situation is only going to get worse, the activist said.
(* B H K P)
Yemen: A nation in danger
And yet, the situation in Yemen does not make the front page. We are not as aware of what is happening in Yemen as we are aware of what is happening in Myanmar or Syria. The disinterest is not a matter of proximity. Myanmar is not near, but it remains close to our hearts. Nor is this disinterest a matter of religious or cultural sensibilities. Rather, the lack of forceful reporting is that alongside the difficulties in reporting the massive humanitarian disaster that is happening right now there is little interest.
Perhaps it is because there is no threat of a potential refugee crisis.
Johannes van der Klaauw from UNHCR has said that Yemen had been forgotten even before the war started.
Yemenis cannot escape - they are blockaded on land and sea, they are trapped in the borders of their country, waiting to be bombed by the Saudi-led coalition.
But the information is there. It is available for everyone to read and consider. All major newspapers have reported on the situation in Yemen, but millions dying, a country in danger of extinction is still not front-page news.
Unfortunately, the world is full of tragedy, horror, pain and suffering. Yet, no matter how many countries, how many people are in danger or are suffering, it is not possible to ignore even one instance of cruelty or inhumanity. Humanitarian disasters are exacerbated only when humanity turns the other way. Yemen is waiting for the world's attention. Perhaps we can give it before it is too late – by JANE LOUISE KANDUR
https://www.dailysabah.com/feature/2018/01/30/yemen-a-nation-in-danger
(* A P)
Houthi Rebels, Yemeni Authorities Swap 275 Prisoners – Source
Yemeni Houthi rebels, also known as Ansar Allah, and the country's government have carried out a prisoner exchange, releasing a total of 275 people, a military source in Sanaa told Sputnik on Monday.
"The forces of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi released on Monday 165 prisoners loyal to Ansar Allah, while the Houthis released 110 Yemeni servicemen," the source said.
According to the source, the exchange took place in the southeastern Al Bayda province. The majority of prisoners had reportedly been held in detention since last December, after fighting in the neighboring Shabwah province resulted in the Yemeni military establishing control over the area.
https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201801291061169138-houthi-hadi-forces-prisoners-exchange/
and
(* A P)
165 war prisoners of army, committees released in exchange Operation
A total of 165 war prisoners of Yemen army and popular forces have been released on Monday in an exchange deal with militias loyal to Saudi-led aggression coalition in Shabwa province, Head of the National Committee for Prisoners Affairs General Abd Al-Qader al-Mortadha told Saba.
The exchange operation, in which 165 prisoners were released from the army and forces in exchange for the release of 110 prisoners from the other side who were in the army’s hands, was done through local mediation from tribal sheikhs in Shabwa front, after efforts lasted three weeks
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486256.htm
(B K PS)
Film: CNN gets exclusive access inside Yemen
CNN's Nic Robertson gets to see the cost of war up close in an exclusive embed with the Saudi-led coalition.
http://us.cnn.com/videos/world/2018/01/29/war-in-yemen-robertson-pkg-cnni.cnn = http://us.cnn.com/2018/01/29/vr/yemen-civil-war-front-line-vr/index.html
My comment: A typical CNN junk, spoken with the typical CNN breathless voice. In this case: “Embedded journalism”.
And this is a longer text by the same author:
(* B K P)
A clear view of enemy lines, but no end in sight to Yemen's war
Yemen's government troops are not a vast military force capable of a swift decapitation of their enemy, but an army holding the high ground for military necessity, advancing when and where they can.
I have been brought to the war-torn country by Yemen's information minister and the government army's regional commander. Their coalition partners, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, facilitated the trip.
All of the military, civilian and coalition representatives we met in government-controlled Yemen insist that they have no intention of racing down their military outposts on the high ground and capturing the rebel-held capital of Sanaa.
It's not the lack of military hardware that holds back the government, they say, but a reluctance to crush the Houthis with overwhelming military force. The government is convinced that it is popular in Sanaa, and is wary that an aggressive military campaign, similar to the Iraqi army's fight to oust ISIS in Mosul, would diminish that support. That, in turn, would hinder the ability to reunify Yemen.
There is, of course, no guarantee that the government can achieve reunification.
That some southern separatists are clashing with the government is perhaps an indication that the war has entered a more focused, albeit not final, phase toward the Houthis' defeat.
The government claims to control 85% of Yemeni territory.
As we drove out of the desert town of Mar'ib toward al-Manara mountain, our driver, a former policeman who fled his hometown when Houthis took control, told us Yemenis alone cannot be blamed for failing to find peace.
He was part of the government delegation taking us to the front lines. In his view, the country's branch of the Muslim Brotherhood was the single most powerful political group in Yemen.
Without the Muslim Brotherhood's support, he said, negotiating a final peace deal could be near impossible.
Both the Saudis and the Emiratis are having a hard time accepting that the Brotherhood would have a powerful role in Yemen's future. Saudi Arabia and the UAE view the Brotherhood as a stepping stone to al Qaeda – by Nic Robertson
http://us.cnn.com/2018/01/30/middleeast/yemen-nic-robertson-intl/index.html
My comment: The Hadi government certainly is not popular at Aden – and in the moment it controls little more than the presidential palace at Aden.
Comment: Why will not share the latest from CNN:
because it is not a civil war
Houthis are not backed by Iran
there is nothing on the US role in the tragedy unfolding in #Yemen
no mention on the arms deals fueling the apocalypse
no footage of the destruction of #Hodeida port but you can see a port in full activity and well equipped
it is not 1 million people at risk of #cholera, but over a million cases have been recorded and 2000+ people have died; the entire country is at risk
(* B K P)
Swedish Activist Warns of Saudi Policy to Relocate Daesh to Yemen
A senior human rights activist from Sweden slammed the Saudi regime for its heinous crimes against the Yemeni people and raised the alarm that Riyadh is seeking to relocate the Daesh (also known as ISIS or ISIL) terrorist group to Yemen.
“The biggest potential danger now is a renewed Saudi policy to relocate hardened ISIS-mercenaries from Syria and Iraq to Yemen,” Ulf Sandmark said in an interview with the Tasnim News Agency.
“There should be an international uproar against the continued deployment of those ISIS-criminals who should be put on trial and imprisoned for their crimes against humanity,” he added.
Following is the full text of the interview:
https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2018/01/29/1641005/swedish-activist-warns-of-saudi-policy-to-relocate-daesh-to-yemen = http://en.abna24.com/news/interview/biggest-danger-is-renewed-saudi-policy-to-relocate-isis-mercenaries-from-syria-iraq-to-yemen-swedish-activist_879911.html
(B H K)
Yemen behind the headlines
Yemen is frequently described in newspaper headlines as one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. But what society lies behind the crisis, and how did we get here?
[Short overview]
https://www.nrc.no/news/2018/january/yemen-behind-the-headlines2/
(* A H K)
UNICEF Yemen Humanitarian Situation Report (December 2017)
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/unicef-yemen-humanitarian-situation-report-december-2017
Remark: General overview of situation.
cp2a Saudische Blockade / Saudi blockade
(* A H P)
Yemen Shipping and Food Stocks Update (commercial and humanitarian), 30 January 2018
Vessels Discharged at Hodeidah/ Saleef ports
Since the end of the temporary blockade on 22 November, a total of 43 vessels and 1 dhow are / have discharged cargo at Hodeidah and Saleef ports.
2 Humanitarian vessels carrying 50,000 tons (mt) of wheat— 1 offloaded at Hodeidah port while the other Saleef port and 1 dhow carrying 220 mt of humanitarian medical items.
25 commercial food vessels carrying 680,104 mt of wheat flour or wheat in-bulk, sugar, corn and soybean have been offloaded at Hodeidah and / or Saleef ports.
14 commercial fuel vessels carrying 171,111 mt of diesel have discharged at Hodeidah port.
1 commercial vessel carrying 44,000 mt of coal has discharged at Saleef port.
Vessels Currently Discharging at Hodeidah/ Saleef ports
Vessels Waiting to Berth at Hodeidah/ Saleef ports
Vessels Waiting Coalition Clearance at Hodeidah/Saleef ports
Commercial Food Commodities Available
As of 25 January 2018:
Commercial Food Commodities Expected (all ports)
Commercial Fuel Commodities Available
(* B H P)
Norwegian Refugee Council: Saudi aid package to Yemen insufficient unless blockade ends
The recently announced Saudi aid package to Yemen will not solve Yemen's humanitarian needs unless it also allows for unhindered entry of commercial and humanitarian food, fuel and other vital supplies in through all of Yemen's ports, including Hodeida, NRC said today.NRC also called on the coalition to ensure that all aid delivery is in line with long-standing humanitarian principles.
“Increased resources and efforts that will bring more aid to Yemeni civilian are welcome,” Jan Egeland said. “But if the Saudi-led Coalition really wants to relieve the suffering in Yemen, it should completely lift the blockade on commercial imports, including fuel, that is crippling the country.”
Fuel is particularly important to avoid the spread of hunger and disease. Shortages are driving up fuel prices and reducing the amount of money people have left to cover basic costs: food prices have increased, water prices are up and the cost of public transport has doubled, which mean fewer people can get to work, look for work, send children to school or reach medical treatment.
Hodeida port continues to represent Yemen’s most important port of entry for humanitarian and commercial goods, serving more than 22 million people. Hodeida has significantly greater handling capacity and proximity to populated areas than other ports
https://www.nrc.no/news/2018/january/saudi-aid-package-to-yemen-insufficient-unless-blockade-ends/
cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation
(* B H)
World Food Programme: Yemen: Emergency Dashboard, January 2018
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-emergency-dashboard-january-2018
(* B H)
UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: Yemen Humanitarian Bulletin Issue 30 | 28 January 2018
22.2 million people in Yemen need assistance in 2018 – one million more than in June 2017.
The 2018 Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan seeks US$2.96 billion to assist 13.1 million people.
Diphtheria has killed 48 Yemenis in 19 governorates.
In 2017, the YHF allocated $129 m to 53 partners to implement 111 projects.
Humanitarian needs across Yemen continue to increase, fuelled by ongoing conflict that has collapsed the economy, crippled social services and severely disrupted livelihoods
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-humanitarian-bulletin-issue-30-28-january-2018
(* B H)
Film: 'I have 8 children and have nothing to feed them'.
Bakita is just one of the millions 'food insecure', or better: on the way to starvation.
Many Yemenis are receiving little or no aid at all. Listen to their stories
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/videos/1633192833400407/
(* B H)
Film by TRT: The War in Yemen: Yemeni civilians receiving limited aid
The UN says the conflict in Yemen has created one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. The fighting between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and Saudi-backed government forces has left millions of people facing starvation. TRT World's Clinton Nagoor has an exclusive report from Yemen's Hodeida province, where nearly 3-million people are close to starvation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9X86AzhCeo = https://twitter.com/AhmadAlgohbary/status/958417993918230530
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IRC experts warn Afghanistan, Myanmar and Yemen in the top crises to watch this year as US refugee admissions slashed
Yemen is facing three emergencies at the same time, with war, food insecurity and disease threatening millions. Eighty percent of the country lacks adequate food, fuel, clean water and health care, and over one million people have been exposed to the latest cholera outbreak. There is no end in sight to the conflict this year. No Yemeni refugees were resettled in the U.S. in the first quarter of FY18.
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A concerted effort to strengthen emergency response in war-torn Yemen
The World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners, Global Health Development (GHD) and the Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network (EMPHNET), with support from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), are making notable progress through the Public Health Empowerment Programme in preparing and equipping Yemen to rapidly respond to future public health threats, stopping them before they can spread to vulnerable communities.
As part of the Programme, the recently concluded 3-month training programme on strengthening epidemiological surveillance, investigation and response to outbreaks in Sana’a and Aden, targeted 75 surveillance coordinators from all governorate health offices.
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/concerted-effort-strengthen-emergency-response-war-torn-yemen
(A H)
Humanity Giving Organization HUGO is a newly operative and registered NGO in #Sanaa.
Their work has only recently started and it commenced when the founders found out that some girls stopped going to school because they had no uniform.
The choices families are forced to make are very basic: either food or a uniform.
Some families, to keep their little ones in the classroom, had to sell family furniture.
This is the first success of the NGO:
'HuGo believes in the importance of education.
Thanks to one of our projects, HuGo was able to donate 266 school's uniforms to the little girls of a primary school in Sanaa (photos)
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1632316753488015 and https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1806885546280565&id=1799908100311643
(A H)
Her name is Dr _ Ashwaq Moharram and, with her team, she has just launched a new campaign for the distribution of food baskets consisting of wheat grain provided by an association in Germany and the integrated basket of cooking oil, rice, sauce, beans, sugar and flour for 180 families from the port directorates in #Hodeidah
The campaign aims to benefit 1000 families during the year 2018.
Dr Ashwaq Moharram writes: 'We call on the good people to contribute to the campaign and support it in order to alleviate the suffering of people because of the war.' (photos)
For further information, you may check the Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/Ashwaqmohrram/
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1632208743498816
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Humanitarian Action for Children 2018 - Yemen
Humanitarian operations in Yemen are decentralized, with five field offices managing interventions locally. UNICEF works closely with a range of partners and leads the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), nutrition and education clusters and the child protection sub-cluster. Given the collapse of public services,10 UNICEF will increase access to primary health care by providing supplies, covering operational costs, referring maimed children to services, and monitoring/responding to disease outbreaks. Community management of malnutrition will be strengthened, particularly in hard-to-reach areas.
As of 31 October 2017, UNICEF had US$170.3 million available against the US$339 million appeal (50 per cent funded).11 This included US$49.3 million for the immediate (first phase) AWD/cholera response, which involved integrated health, nutrition, WASH and Communication for Development interventions. More than 5 million people gained access to safe drinking water,12 9.1 million people benefitted from water treatment, and 17.7 million people participated in awareness and behaviour change activities. UNICEF support for health facilities, which included the provision of supplies and operational support, enabled 2,840 out of 3,083 facilities to stay open in 2017. In addition, some 4.8 million children received polio vaccination, and more than 405,000 pregnant and lactating women accessed health care. Although over 167,300 children with SAM received treatment, the needs continued to outstrip the response.
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/humanitarian-action-children-2018-yemen
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Yemen: Escalation of fighting in Taiz forces temporary closure of Oxfam's office
The fighting has forced the organization to temporarily close its office in Taiz
Shane Stevenson, Oxfam’s Country Director in Yemen, said: “The fighting is Taiz has escalated rapidly. We are particularly concerned at reports of civilian casualties and the use of landmines in total disregard to the rules of International Humanitarian Law.
“With shells landing 500 meters away, we had no choice but to temporarily close our office in Hoban, Taiz. We are ready to resume our work providing much needed aid to Yemenis as soon as we can ensure the safety of our staff.
(B H)
Rehaban Directorate in #Saada, #Yemen
'All these children lost their parents because of the daily raids on their homes for 3 years by the Saudi-led coalition with US and UK support.' (photos)
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1631240596928964
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The aid makes a difference for people in Yemen
“I think all the Yemeni people dream for this whole nonsense war to stop,” says Amr, one of our staff members based in Sana’a.
The 25-year-old has lived in Yemen most of his life, but now he doesn’t recognise his own country.
“People are losing their lives, losing their homes, losing their sources of income, and no one outside cares about what is going on here.”
A great frustration for Amr is how little people seem to know about his country.
Even the way people interact with each other has changed. Before people used to have patience, now they are psychologically and emotionally drained because of the ongoing situation.
“Yemen is not a country born from war,” he says. “People here never knew about airstrikes or the ground clashes, we never saw people fighting on the street like they do now.”
Despite the bleak outlook, Amr calls himself an optimist.
Despite the blockade and serious increase in violence over the past three months, NRC is able to continue working in Yemen.
https://www.nrc.no/news/2018/january/sees-that-the-aid-makes-a-difference/
cp4 Flüchtlinge / Refugees
Siehe / Look at cp1
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Film: 1042 days of #Saudi war on #Yemen Watch this video and you will know the real suffering of these displaced people ,they have fled to #Haja because of the daily bombing by #Saudi led coalition on their houses in #Harad area
https://twitter.com/AhmadAlgohbary/status/958744121115578368
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Trump's 'sovereignty safeguards' leave Yemeni refugees for dead
Trump's 'sovereignty safeguards' leave Yemeni refugees for dead
The third and latest version of the Trump administration's so-called travel ban went into force on 8 December 2017, impacting travel from eight countries - Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Chad, North Korea and Venezuela - as the Supreme Court prepared to take up the matter in coming weeks.
Almost immediately, in Djibouti, several hundred visa applicants anticipating final clearance for their entry into the United States received denial notices, leaving them stranded.
For many migrants, the journey to the Horn of Africa, and daily life upon arrival are fraught. Djibouti is the lone coastal country across the Gulf of Aden to receive Yemeni refugees with US consular services, although its lava-baked landscape and extreme temperatures pose a challenge to those displaced there.
Refugees have arrived in a constant flow on the Djiboutian and Somaliland (the northern breakaway region of Somalia) coasts since 2015 when the Saudi-led, US-backed violent campaign to restore the Yemeni government from its Houthi captors began.
Since then, the situation in Yemen has deteriorated into the greatest humanitarian catastrophe in recent history according to UN agencies, reaching a death toll of 10,000 since 2015.
By November 2016, of the 166,658 who fled Yemen, 75,748 had arrived in the Horn countries of Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan.
Driven by an increase in numbers of refugees globally, all UN member states adopted the New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants in 2016, as an instrument for sharing responsibility in mediating the global migration crisis.
Within months, the United States exempted itself from the process established there, citing the concern that it breached US sovereignty.
(B H)
Yemen: Shelter/NFIs Fact Sheet – December 2017
The Cluster finalised and disseminated its winterisation Strategy and Plan for 2017/2018. 34,000 families out of a targeted 95,000 families representing 30% of those living in locations that are experiencing harsh winter conditions are prioritized to receive winter (cash or in kind) assistance. 974 families were provided with winter support in Q4.
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/republic-yemen-shelternfis-fact-sheet-december-2017 and in full https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/20180129_yemen_shelter_nfi_cccm_cluster_factsheet_for_q4_2017_-_shelter_0.pdf
(B H)
IOM Somalia 2018 Consolidated Appeal for Emergency Programming
While most of these arrivals managed to selfevacuate on commercial boats, many others remain stranded in Yemen. In 2018, UNHCR will support a target of 40,000 Somali refugee returnees from Yemen on their return to Somalia. IOM will continue to partner with UNHCR in providing complementary support
https://reliefweb.int/report/somalia/iom-somalia-2018-consolidated-appeal-emergency-programming and in full https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/IOM%20Somalia%20Consolidated%20Appeal%202018.pdf
cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis
(A P)
Yemen - Elders Of Sana'a Tribes Stand Against The Houthis
Elders of Sana'a tribes and their various parties have confirmed that the methods used by the Houthis for forced recruitment and threats to tribal leaders in areas still under Houthis control, whether by killing, arrest and destroying houses, will not deter them from fighting against them. Political analysts pointed out that the arbitrary actions of the Houthis against tribes is an indication of the decline of their influence, especially as they are rejected by the Yemeni society. (film)
Remark: As claimed by pro-Hadi media.
(A P)
New graduation of fighters to reinforce the battlefields against US-Saudi invaders Maneuvers,drills,exercise before heading to fronts 30January,2018,secret place in 6th military region New voluntary recruitments continue in all villages across Yemen (photos)
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/958567044370268162
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Houthis sentence to death three civilians, imprisoned child
The Houthi group has sentenced to death four people accused of collaborating and working for Saudi Arabia, including one child and one woman, the Houthis news agency Saba reported.
The Specialized Criminal Court of the capital secretariat, condemned the four accused by conspiracy and working for the aggression benefit, and sentenced the execution to three of them, the agency added.
The Criminal Prosecution brought to the convicts the charges of conspiracy for the countries of the Aggression coalition and work in its favor which resulted in facilitating the targeting and controlling of strategic sites in Yemen, in addition to the establishment of an espionage network and recruiting agents for the UAE benefit
http://almasdaronline.com/article/96808
(A P)
Houthis have issued a summon to elderly rival cleric to attend a Sana'a court to face charges of evadingZakat (obligatory Islamic alms), local sources said this week. Mohammed bin Ismail al-Amrani who is coming up to 100 years in age is a famous cleric from the mainstream Sunni Islam
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-15042
(A P)
Houthi militia launches sweeping arrests campaign in Sana'a
Houthis have launched a sweeping campaign of arrests in the capital Sana'a, local sources said on Sunday. The militia has been rounding up people in al-Dayiri neighborhood in downtown the city.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-15041
Remark: As claimed by anti-Houthi Islah-Party media.
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30 military detainees involved in December sedition released in Sanaa
The police in Sanaa province on Monday released 30 military detainees involved in December sedition, who participated in the riots that aimed to topple local authorities.
The move came in a response to a general amnesty issue by President of the Supreme Political Council Saleh al-Sammad.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486272.htm
cp6 Südjemen und Hadi-Regierung / Southern Yemen and Hadi-government
Siehe / Look at cp1b
(* A P)
#Yemen papers today feature headline "Mahra Governor Issues Directive to Prevent Construction of Religious Centres & Camps". So looks like #Mahra #women won battle vs #Salafi incursion & some are celebrating. BUT important small-print: "except in areas defined by local authority"
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/958650119884345344
Remark: Earlier reporting about Saudis’ plans to erect a Salafi center, and local protests. The small-print shows they will not get obstacles by local authorities.
(A P)
Security Belt forces in Lahj arrested (150) persons in the green area near Mahran Al-Kabaty’s brigade
http://en.smanews.org/arresting-150-persons-in-the-green-area-near-mahran-al-kabatys-brigade
Remark: “Security Belt”: UAE affiliated militia. Background is not clear.
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Viele Tote bei Anschlag auf Kontrollpunkt im Jemen
Bei einem Anschlag auf einen Kontrollpunkt der jemenitischen Regierung im Süden des Landes sind mindestens 15 Soldaten getötet worden. Fünf weitere Personen seien durch den Selbstmordangriff mit einem sprengstoffbeladenen Auto am Dienstag in der südlichen Provinz Shabwa verletzt worden, berichteten Sicherheitskreise.
Demnach gehörten die Sicherheitskräfte zu Spezialeinheiten, die von den Vereinigten Arabischen Emiraten (VAE) trainiert worden seien.
https://www.sn.at/politik/weltpolitik/viele-tote-bei-anschlag-auf-kontrollpunkt-im-jemen-23603431
(* A T)
14 soldiers killed in Yemen suicide attack: army official
Fourteen soldiers were killed on Tuesday in a suicide attack by suspected Islamist extremists in southern Yemen, a senior military official said.
The bombing struck a checkpoint manned by UAE-trained special operations forces in Ataq, capital of the oil-rich province of Shabwa, a high-ranking source in the Yemeni army said.
The source, who requested anonymity as he was not authorised to brief the press, said the attack was likely the work of Islamist extremists, but declined to give further details.
Another military source in Shabwa said at least 10 people had been killed.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-5328805/14-soldiers-killed-Yemen-suicide-attack-army-official.html and reporting 15 killed: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/01/yemen-11-killed-suicide-car-bomb-180130071431623.html
photos: https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/958250866066251776
(* A T)
Eleven dead in suicide attack at Yemen checkpoint: officials
At least 11 people were killed on Tuesday in a suicide car bomb attack on a checkpoint in southeastern Yemen run by local forces backed by the United Arab Emirates, officials and residents said.
Residents said gunmen opened fire on the checkpoint after a suicide bomber drove his booby-trapped car into the checkpoint northeast of Ataq, the capital of the province of Shabwa.
Officials said 11 people died in the attack and three were wounded, while residents put the death toll at 12.
No one claimed responsibility for the attack, but it resembled previous operations by Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which operates in the area.
cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks
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Yemen: Devising Sustainable Processes for Dialogue
This report summarises the discussion at a roundtable on the war in Yemen and the potential for supporting peacebuilding capacity in the region. The event took place on 1 December 2017 at the Conflict Analysis Research Centre (CARC) at the University of Kent and was a joint event organised by CARC and Oxford Research Group (ORG). The roundtable took place under the Chatham House Rule, so comments are not attributed to specific individuals or the organisations they are affiliated to.
The roundtable was stimulated by an emerging consensus among analysts on the need for the peace process in Yemen to be inclusive and that the lack of local participation contributed in some measure to the failure of the National Dialogue Conference (2013-2014) and more recent UN-led peace talks. However, questions surrounding how to establish a viable political process in Yemen remain and this was the focus of discussion.
A range of academics and policy practitioners took part in the roundtable in order to explore the challenges presented by the current war and the potential for an effective process of political dialogue to be built over the medium term. This should provide a platform for civil society voices to engage meaningfully with national conflict resolution. Participants looked at the unique dimensions of the Yemen conflict and at some comparative examples from other contexts.
http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/event/yemen_devising_sustainable_processes_dialogue and full report: http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/sites/default/files/CARC-ORG%20Roundtable%20Briefing%20Paper%20-Buiding%20Local%20level%20Peacebuikding%20in%20Yemen%20RR3.pdf
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Statement by the Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen Ad Interim, Stephen Anderson, on the Situation in Aden
On behalf of the humanitarian community in Yemen, I call on all parties to immediately end the fighting, protect civilians and ensure safe, unimpeded and rapid access for humanitarian personnel and supplies.
My comment: UN failure plys a great role here.
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YEMENI LEADER REVEALS FROM MUSCAT RESULTS OF THEIR MEETINGS WITH INTERNATIONAL PARTIES
A Yemeni leader of Ansarullah group, who is now in Muscat the capital of Oman, said that all the foreign parties that they met, had the conviction that Hadi’s legitimacy was merely a cover for the Saudi-Emirati alliance.
“Most of the official civil external and bodies we meet, are convinced that the legitimacy is only a sign of the Saudi-Emirati aggression for undeclared and undisclosed purposes at the same time,” said Abdulmalik al-Ajri, a member of Ansarullah political bureau who is accompanying the head of the group’s delegation, Mohammed Abdul Salam.
If the international community and the new envoy are serious about stopping the aggression on Yemen, they should go directly to Riyadh because neither Hadi nor the government of the hotels have the answer,” Al-Ajri said in a statement monitored by the correspondent on his Facebook page on Monday night.
The head of the negotiating delegation and spokesman for Ansarullah group, Mohammed Abdul Salam, went last Thursday to Muscat ,the capital of Oman in conjunction with the visit of British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson.
Comment: Note: The 'government of the hotels' refers to Hadi and his internationally recognised entourage.
Since Hadi fled #Yemen with a group of aficionados, they all have been living in hotels in #Ryiadh
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1631749526878071
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Russia casts doubt over evidence of Iran-made missiles to Yemen
Russia on Wednesday dismissed evidence presented by the United States and UN experts that Iran had supplied missiles to Yemen's Huthi rebels as inconclusive, signaling it would oppose a bid to slap sanctions on Tehran.
Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said it was unclear whether missiles and weaponry used by the rebels were Iranian-made or whether they were shipped before the arms embargo on Yemen was imposed in 2015, casting doubt over the findings of a UN panel of experts.
"Iran is vehemently denying it is supplying anything to Yemen," Nebenzia told two reporters.
"Yemen hosts a pile of weapons from the old days. Many countries were competing to supply weapons to Yemen during the time of president Saleh, so I cannot give you anything conclusive," he said.
and
(* A K P)
Defying U.S., Russia says no case for U.N. action against Iran
Russia does not believe there is a case for United Nations action against Iran, Russia’s U.N. ambassador said on Wednesday after traveling to Washington to view pieces of weapons that Washington says Tehran gave Yemen’s Houthi group.
“We only heard some vague talk about some action,” Russian U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said on Wednesday. “If there is something (proposed) we will see. How can we pass judgment prematurely before we know what it is about?”
“Yemen hosts a pile of weapons from the old days, many countries competing to supply weapons to Yemen during the time of (former) President (Ali Abdullah) Saleh, so I cannot give you anything conclusive,” Nebenzia said. “I am not an expert to judge.”
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Nikki Haley says these weapons are proof Iran is violating the law
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley welcomed U.N. Security Council envoys to Washington, D.C. on Monday — and made sure to include a tour of weapons that the Trump administration says are proof of Iran’s meddling in the war in Yemen. On Twitter, Haley called it “first-hand evidence from the Department of Defense of Iran’s illegal weapons program.”
This isn’t the first time that Haley has tried to highlight the weapons
There’s just one big problem: The United Nations hasn’t agreed with the Trump administration’s assessment. As ThinkProgress reported during Haley’s last photo op with the weapons, U.N. officials are still looking into who created the missiles.
Haley’s tour on Monday may be proving fruitful. U.K. Ambassador to the United Nations Johnathan Allen seemed to agree with Haley’s argument, noting on Twitter that there was “clear evidence” that the missiles used by the Houthis in Yemen came from Iran.
Trump has stocked his cabinet with several anti-Iran hawks and repeatedly threatened to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran and the P5+1 (United States, United Kingdom, France, China, Russia, and Germany).
https://thinkprogress.org/nikki-haley-unsc-iran-b7c861e4253e/
and Haley’s propaganda on Titter:
Great meeting with the President and the Security Council— we discussed many issues including North Korea, Iran, Syria, Yemen and foreign aid. (photos)
https://twitter.com/nikkihaley/status/958100306637836290
We brought the Security Council to DC to see first-hand evidence from the Department of Defense of Iran’s illegal weapons program. These violations cannot continue. (photos)
https://twitter.com/nikkihaley/status/958028192392056832
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Tehran Disputes “Evidence” of Arms Transfer to Yemen
Senior officials have disputed the evidence that the United States claims points to Iran’s supply of weapons to Houthi fighters in Yemen, as Washington escalated efforts to put pressure on Tehran on Monday.
According to AP, Haley, who led her Security Council colleagues on the tour at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, said in a message to the Russians, “How do you dispute this? It’s got ‘Made in Iran’ welded on it,” referring to markings on the missiles that US defense officials claim suggest Iranian origin.
Zarif earlier wrote on Twitter that the objective of the field trip is to create an “Iranophobic narrative” at the UN Security Council—through wining and dining and fake ‘evidence’.”
The ambassadors were also White House lunch guests of Trump, who pressed them to counter “Iran’s destabilization activities in the Middle East.”
Iran has dismissed accusations that its regional activities are destabilizing.
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US missile allegations part of psychological warfare campaign: Iran
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi has said the US allegations pertaining to Tehran supplying Yemen with missiles is the start of psychological warfare campaign with roots in Washington’s continuous policy failures in the region.
Qassemi made the remarks during an interview with Press TV on Monday.
"The current efforts follow previous shows by the US and its envoy to the UN. It comes after the US suffered repeated failures in its foreign policy. This is Washington's new propaganda and part of a new psychological warfare against the Islamic Republic of Iran," he added.
http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/01/29/550629/iran-us-psychological-warfare-qassemi
(B P)
Film: Stunning facts about what UN's last envoy to Yemen has been doing!
AnsarAllah spokesman reveals facts about Ould Cheikh, that appear to be behind changing him as an envoy to Yemen
https://twitter.com/OyonAlYemen/status/958720852371132416
cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia
(A E P)
Film: 1000s of #Saudi engineers pack job center offering 140 vacancies. Video exposes #Saudi Monarchy's lies about sky-high unemployment
https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/958439219453718528
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The dark underside of Saudi Arabia the crown prince is loath to change
ONE VIEW of Saudi Arabia was on display at the just-completed World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where the kingdom sought to reassure investors and show off traditional Saudi food, music and culture.
But the old Saudi Arabia was still evident back at home. On Thursday, two human rights activists, Mohammed al-Otaibi and Abdullah al-Attawi, were sentenced to 14 and seven years in prison, respectively, for briefly founding a human rights organization about five years ago. No matter that they heeded the government's demands to close it; the prosecution painted such things as publishing human rights reports, disseminating information to the news media and retweeting posts on Twitter as criminal acts.
The prosecution of Mr. Otaibi and Mr. Attawi was full of absurd twists.
All who are intrigued by the crown prince's ambitions should take note of the stubborn persistence of old thinking when it comes to liberty and rights. – by Editorial Board
My comment: Well, Saudi Arabia is a close ally to the US. Don’t miss that.
(* A P)
Saudi Arabia: Long Prison Terms for Rights Activists
Rights-Group Founder, Deported by Qatar, Was Sent to Trial
Saudi Arabia’s Specialized Criminal Court convicted two Saudi human rights activists on January 25, 2018, solely for their human rights advocacy, Human Rights Watch said today.
The charges against Mohammad al-Oteibi, sentenced to 14 years in prison, and Abdullah al-Attawi, sentenced to 7 years, included “forming an unlicensed organization” and other vague charges relating to a short-lived human rights organization they set up in 2013. None of the alleged “crimes” listed in the charge sheet resemble recognizable criminal behavior, and none of them took place after October 2013.
“Mohammad bin Salman’s reputation is tarnished by his justice system’s relentless campaign against government critics and human rights activists,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.
“Outlandish sentences against peaceful activists and dissidents demonstrate Saudi Arabia’s complete intolerance toward citizens who speak out for human rights and reform,” Whitson said.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/01/28/saudi-arabia-long-prison-terms-rights-activists
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For Saudi tycoons freed from detention, cheers and a business challenge
Cheering supporters greeted Saudi Arabian billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal when he arrived at his skyscraper offices in Riyadh after his release from detention in an anti-corruption crackdown.
But he and other tycoons freed from a luxury hotel in the Saudi capital face a challenge to get back into the swing of running their financial empires in the uncertainty hanging over the business community since their detention in early November.
Their ability to do so could impact Saudi Arabia’s attempts to lure investors to big projects, an important part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s grand vision to transform the kingdom and reduce its dependence on oil.
(? B P)
Plea for Money Preceded Saudi Crackdown on Elites
King, crown prince sought cash to buttress government finances; release of top figures signals purge is winding down
A sweeping, self-styled anticorruption campaign that has upended Saudi Arabian politics and business started with a request from the country’s king and new crown prince to prominent citizens: Make patriotic contributions to help shore up government finances.
When the plea for cash was largely rebuffed, according to people familiar with the matter, the prince, Mohammed bin Salman, decided on sterner steps. Members of the country’s elite were lured to the Ritz-Carlton luxury hotel, arrested, accused of bribery and other crimes...
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https://www.wsj.com/articles/plea-for-money-preceded-saudi-crackdown-on-elites-1517186010
(* A P)
Saudi government says it's seizing over $100 billion in corruption purge
Saudi Arabia’s government has arranged to seize over $100 billion in financial settlements with businessmen and officials detained in its crackdown on corruption, the attorney general said on Tuesday. The huge sum, if it is successfully recovered, would be a major financial boost for the government, which has seen its finances strained by low oil prices. The state budget deficit this year is projected at 195 billion riyals.
The announcement also appeared to represent a political victory for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who launched the purge last November and predicted at the time that it would net about $100 billion in settlements.
(* A P)
Saudi closes hotel detention center as corruption purge winds down
Saudi Arabian authorities have released all remaining detainees from Riyadh’s opulent Ritz-Carlton Hotel, which had been used as an interrogation center in a crackdown on corruption, a Saudi official said on Tuesday.
(* A P)
Guilt, fines remain hazy as Saudi corruption purge draws to close
Saudi Arabian media magnate Waleed al-Ibrahim was found innocent in an anti-corruption purge, a source at his company said on Monday, part of a wider campaign against graft whose secrecy could hurt the country’s effort to win foreign investment.
The officials said all of the men, who included billionaire global investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, had agreed to financial settlements after admitting to unspecified “violations”.
But the allegations against the men and their settlements have been kept secret, leaving the global investment community to wonder what the penalties are for large-scale corruption in Saudi Arabia - and whether detainees were actually guilty.
The decision to release some of the most powerful people in the kingdom comes ahead of a planned trip by Prince Mohammed to the United States and European capitals in February and March, according to diplomats.
He could face awkward questions there about how the purge was conducted. The releases, and what kind of deals may have been struck, could have huge implications for Saudi Arabia’s image in the international investment community.
(* B P)
The Saudi parable
Recently, every report on Saudi Arabia′s erratic foreign policy seems to end up concluding that the Kingdom is simply battling it out with Iran for dominance of the region. All this does is wrap the incomprehensible in pseudo-plausibility.
In actual fact, in the 21st century, each and every country is developing its own modern era; Saudi Arabia, in particular, serves as a parable in this regard. We don't yet know if Mohammed bin Salman's version of the modern age should be mostly feared.
What has happened in recent months under his direct or indirect influence can be divided up into three categories. Firstly: women should contribute more to the national economy; their driving ban has been lifted and the ominous ward system restricted to the extent that it does not prevent women from working. Secondly: the Prince wants all the power; competitors are neutralised, opponents arrested. Thirdly: his foreign policies are provocative and nationalistic.
And while long-serving female Saudi activists had tears in their eyes as they heard about the lifting of the driving ban, the humanitarian catastrophe in Yemen ran its course.
So that there are no misunderstandings: every centimetre of freedom gained for Saudi women is a good thing. But the fact that the Crown Prince is both forcing back the power of a misogynist clergy and is credited with speaking the language of the youth, should not detract from other issues. What we are seeing is the rapid growth of an aggressive young ruler in a Kingdom where there is already barely anyone able to stop him in his tracks.
Recently, every report on Saudi Arabia′s erratic foreign policy seems to end up concluding that the Kingdom is simply battling it out with Iran for dominance of the region. All this does is wrap the incomprehensible in pseudo-plausibility.
If you continue spinning out these ideas, then it might also make sense that of all countries, Saudi Arabia now wants to position itself at the helm of the battle against Islamist terror. After all, there's now a new military alliance headquartered in Riyadh; another instrument of power for the Prince – By Charlotte Wiedeman
http://en.qantara.de/content/mohammed-bin-salmans-political-agenda-the-saudi-parable
(* B P)
Saudi Arabia uses aggression abroad to calm clerics at home
After three years on the throne, King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud and his son Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman are pursuing the most aggressively sectarian and anti-Iran policy in modern Saudi history. The Wahhabi clerical establishment is an enthusiastic partner, which is good internal politics for the royals.
The fear of a pro-Iranian regime led by the Zaydi Shiite Houthis prompted the Saudi intervention in Yemen three years ago. The war is a proxy conflict between Riyadh and Tehran, stuck in a stalemate that costs the Saudis billions every month and Tehran next to nothing.
But the conflict is popular with Saudi clerics, who have long sought to strengthen Sunni Salafist groups in Yemen. In Mahra province in southeast Yemen, the Saudis have set up a Salafist missionary center to propagate Wahhabism, a move that has alarmed the Omanis next door. Senior clerics in Mecca regularly praise the king for fighting the Zaydis. Prince Mohammed is the face of the war as defense minister.
The quarrel with Qatar also has an Iranian dimension, of course, and the Wahhabi establishment is enthusiastically pressing for regime change in Doha.
Pursuing a very sectarian agenda at home and abroad gives the king and crown prince clerical support despite the defense minister's vocal support for “moderate” Islam and reforms like permitting women to drive. It’s a way to keep the mainstream Wahhabi establishment and the Al Sheikhs content that their core interests are safe.
But the rivalry and proxy wars are dangerous, especially the conflict in Yemen. A lucky Houthi rocket could spark a catastrophe – by Bruce Riedel
cp9 USA
(* B K P)
Enmeshed in Yemen: Another split further entangles U.S. in brutal war
The message here for the United States seems clearly to be that this conflict is far too complicated and has far too little to do with the United States for us to be involved in it at all. If American companies want to sell aircraft and other arms to participants in this war, let them do so, but disassociate the United States from a multisided war that continues to mean only one thing for Yemenis: suffering from disease, starvation, denial of health care and education, damaged infrastructure, bombing and a lack of peace.
We are already complicit. To continue to be so approaches war criminality. There is a real possibility, based on past history, that the Yemenis themselves can work it out if the foreigners — Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iran and the United States — would step back.
My comment: True, but stopping the companies to sell arms to warring parties still would be better.
(B K)
Fallen Navy SEAL’s South Florida father still fighting for answers one year after Yemen raid
Almost one year later, Bill says he still has almost no information from the Pentagon about how and why his son died.
Bill Owens: “I wanted to know what went into the planning, what went into the actions on the ground, and why my son was killed nine days after the Inauguration.”
Brian Entin: “And what did you think when the Trump Administration called it a success?”
Bill Owens: “It’s ridiculous. They don’t want to sit there and admit that the first operation of President Trump’s Administration was a huge failure.”
So many of the details of that fight are still a secret.
Ryan’s dad is determined to know the full story
(B K P)
Assange blasts US ‘subservience to Saudis’ as Trump triples drone strikes in Yemen
US drone strikes in Yemen have tripled under the Trump administration, as the US targets Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula while at the same time providing support to ally Saudi Arabia in its attacks there, a new study shows.
“The Trump administration's subservience to Saudi Arabia's military adventurism in Yemen has lead to 8x the drone assassination rate of Obama,” WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange wrote on Twitter. “Most killed are civilians. Obama, in turn, had 10x the drone kills of Bush.”
The targeted drone program was created during the George W Bush administration and multiplied under President Barack Obama, with Trump then taking the reins and further increasing its operations in the first year of his presidency.
https://www.rt.com/news/417397-yemen-drone-strikes-trump-saudi/
(* B K P)
Trump’s secret assassinations programme
One year on from a disastrous operation in Yemen that left 10 children dead, we take a look at President Trump’s secret assassinations programme, its origins in the Bush and Obama administrations, and its horrifying escalation in the last year.
It was approved by President Trump casually over dinner – a midnight raid and drone strike on the village of Yakla in Yemen. Concerns about the quality of the intelligence and legality of the operation would later prove to be warnings he should have heeded, but he gave the order anyway. What happened next left 10 children dead and was described by President Trump as a “win”. Reprieve’s investigations have revealed that it was anything but. Instead, we have uncovered violations of international law that led to an appalling loss of life.
Following the horrors of Guantanamo and the CIA’s programme of rendition and torture, the US decided to do away with the discomfort of detaining people. In an attempt to avoid scrutiny, legal accountability and international condemnation for its barbaric practices, the US decided it would resort to killing people – covertly – instead.
The targeted killing programme began. Drones circled villages in Yemen, Pakistan and Somalia – watching, listening and killing. The programme grew exponentially under President Obama, and so did the death toll.
The US government compiled a ‘Kill List’ of suspected enemies, who are targeted for assassination. Following their tradition of using sinister euphemisms to conceal wrongdoing, it was named ‘the disposition matrix’.
But the targeted killing programme turned out to be anything but targeted. The CIA’s own leaked documents concede that the US often does not know who it is killing, and that militant leaders’ account for just 2% of drone-related deaths. Over 250 children have been killed in Pakistan and Yemen.
https://reprieve.org.uk/update/game-changer-trumps-new-attacks-on-human-rights/
(A K P)
Press Statement, Heather Nauert, Department Spokesperson
The United States is concerned by reports of deadly clashes in Aden. We call on all parties to refrain from escalation and further bloodshed. We also call for dialogue among all parties in Aden to reach a political solution. The Yemeni people are already facing a dire humanitarian crisis. Additional divisions and violence within Yemen will only increase their suffering. A political dialogue represents the only way to achieve a more stable, unified, and prosperous Yemen.
https://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2018/01/277745.htm
Comment: US Department of State recycled the same statement we have been seeing since 2011 (image)
My comment: While supplying weapons for hundreds of billions.
(A P)
Einreiseverbot für Flüchtlinge aus elf Ländern aufgehoben
Die USA wollen Flüchtlinge aus Ländern mit hohem Risiko für die nationale Sicherheit nicht mehr pauschal abweisen. Die Überprüfung soll aber verschärft werden.
Die USA haben ihren pauschalen Einreisestopp für Flüchtlinge aus elf Ländern aufgehoben. Wie das Heimatschutzministerium in Washington mitteilte, soll es stattdessen verschärfte Überprüfungen von Flüchtlingen aus diesen Staaten geben.
Das Einreisedekret enthält in seiner jüngsten Fassung weitgehende Einreiseverbote für verschiedene Arten von Reisenden aus den sechs mehrheitlich muslimischen Staaten Iran, Jemen, Libyen, Somalia, Syrien und Tschad.
http://www.zeit.de/politik/ausland/2018-01/usa-einreisestopp-fluechtlinge-donald-trump
(A K T)
US drone kills 2 pro-govt fighters in central Yemen
Two pro-government fighters were reportedly killed in a suspected U.S. drone attack in central Yemen on Monday, according to a pro-government commander.
The airstrike targeted a position of pro-government forces in al-Meqhaya district in the central Al Bayda province, Mohamed al-Ghunaimi told Anadolu Agency.
http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/us-drone-kills-2-pro-govt-fighters-in-central-yemen/1045801
cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain
(A K P)
BAE Systems: We’re delighted to welcome Carnforth North Road Primary School to our Academy for Skills and Knowledge today. They’re getting involved in a Biomimicry Workshop in our #Education Station. (photo9
https://twitter.com/BAESystemsAir/status/958287344871800832
Comment by MP caroline Lucas. Just an arms company teaching primary school children in Britain while their fighter jets bomb children in Yemen...
https://twitter.com/CarolineLucas/status/958715025463611392
(* A P)
The Saudi Crown Prince Should Not Be Welcomed To Downing Street
The visit, which is expected to take place in the weeks ahead, will be yet another propaganda coup for the Crown Prince.
It won’t be the first time Theresa May has rubbed shoulders with Saudi royalty: since taking office she and her cabinet colleagues have made multiple visits to the Kingdom.
There is no question that the pictures of the Crown Prince on the steps of Downing Street will be broadcast around the world. They will be celebrated and used by the Saudi Royal Family, who will regard them as a sign of international legitimacy and a firm gesture of political support from May and her colleagues.
History will regard the atrocities that have been inflicted on Yemen as a terrible and totally preventable assault. They may have been carried out by Saudi forces, but they would not have been possible without the unbending support of politicians like May – by Andrew Smith, a spokesperson for Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT).
(A P)
Yemeni rights group apply to British DPP for arrest warrant to prosecute Ibn Salman
The Director of Human Rights for Yemen, Ms Kim Sharif, on Monday submitted an application to the Westminster Magistrates Court and the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Ms Alison Saunders, to issue a warrant for the arrest of Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed Ibn Salman, for war crimes committed in Yemen in anticipation of his imminent visit to the UK.
The applicant submitted to the Court documents containing evidence of war crimes, witness’ statements exhibiting instances of war crimes and reports from reputable NGOs confirming the commission of these crimes.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180129-yemeni-rights-group-apply-to-british-dpp-for-arrest-warrant-to-prosecute-ibn-salman/ and the application. https://www.facebook.com/SaudiArabia.war.crimes.against.Yemen/posts/1772292169733436
(A P)
Parliament: Early day motion 865
PROPOSED VISIT OF SAUDI CROWN PRINCE TO THE UK
That this House regrets the Prime Minister's invitation to Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman of Saudi Arabia to visit the UK; notes that, as Minister of Defense, Mohammed bin Salman was widely associated with curtailing human rights, and that it was his decision to lead Saudi Arabia into war in Yemen, acknowledged by the UN as one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world
https://www.parliament.uk/edm/2017-19/865
(A P)
Ad vans in London driving round so everyone knows that #Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman is not welcome. #MBS is very sensitive to criticism and people saying things like he is the 'Butcher of #Yemen'. Poor thing.
https://twitter.com/SamWalton/status/958027460649586688?s=08
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
(* B P)
What role will Moscow assume in Yemen's civil war?
Moscow has been gradually stepping up its activity regarding Yemen largely because other international and regional players have moved to secure a permanent military presence in the strategic waters of the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb strait.
In addition, Russia is keeping up with developments in Yemen — a key to the subregion — by trying to maintain contacts with all of the interested stakeholders, excluding terrorist groups.
Saleh's death upset Russian calculations and left Moscow with no alternative but to start interacting with the Hadi administration and his sponsors in the Saudi-led coalition.
Making steps toward Hadi, Moscow is sending the Houthis clear signals that a window of opportunity won't remain open indefinitely and that their stubbornness on preconditions to resume the peace talks may isolate them even more and strip their movement of any prospect of legitimacy.
cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis
(* B P)
How Qatar Is Winning The Diplomatic War In Its Dispute With Saudi Arabia And The UAE
The diplomatic efforts of Qatar to circumvent the economic and political embargo on the country by a number of erstwhile allies in the region appears to be working, with the US government now emphasizing its support for Doha while still calling for all sides to compromise.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/dominicdudley/2018/01/31/qatar-winning-war-saudi-uae/#29f5f01b3743
(A P)
Tillerson, Mattis call for calming tensions in Gulf dispute
The U.S. secretaries of state and defense on Tuesday called on all sides in the dispute between Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to work to calm tensions, saying a united Gulf Cooperation Council bolstered regional stability.
“It is critical that all parties minimize rhetoric, exercise restraint to avoid further escalation and work toward a resolution,” Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said at a joint appearance of the U.S. and Qatari foreign and defense ministers.
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade
(* A K P)
Australia targets place among world’s top 10 arms exporters
Canberra to offer billions of dollars in state-backed loans to weapons makers
Australia will funnel billions of dollars in state-backed loans to domestic arms manufacturers in a bid to become one of the world’s top 10 weapons exporters, its government said on Monday. The drive comes as Canberra steps up a push to sell military hardware in the Asia-Pacific region and the Middle East, including in Saudi Arabia — a controversial move that has attracted criticism from aid agencies and the opposition.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156338163978641
cp13b Wirtschaft / Economy
(A E P)
Dollar = 500 Yemeni rials. Rial is falling again, ten days after Saudi deposited $2 bl in Yemen Central Bank to stabilize our currency.
https://twitter.com/FuadRajeh/status/957758933409718272
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
(A T)
#AlQaeda #Yemen support wire issues infographic of #AQAP ops in month 20Dec2017-19Jan2018. These guys aren't geniuses: Header claims 22 ops but targets total 20 (11 #UAE-supported military, 9 Houthi), breakdown of type adds up to 21 & date error at bottom. (image)
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/958248244579987456
(A T)
Saudi forces arrest two AQAP militants planning attack in Saudi Arabia
(* A T)
The U.S. conducted three drone strikes targeting AQAP militants in central and eastern Yemen. A U.S. airstrike killed seven AQAP militants in al Said district, Shabwah governorate, eastern Yemen on January 27, according to local sources. Reported U.S. airstrikes also killed three AQAP militants in a car in al Jawbah city, Ma’rib governorate on January 28 and two likely AQAP militants in al Bayda governorate, central Yemen on January 29. [4]
Remark: One drone attack hit fighters of president Hadi: http://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/us-drone-kills-2-pro-govt-fighters-in-central-yemen/1045801
cp15 Propaganda
(A P)
Comprehensive humanitarian plan demonstrates Saudi's commitment to Yemen
On Jan. 22, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and other members of the coalition supporting the internationally recognized government of Yemen unveiled what they described as the Yemen Comprehensive Humanitarian Operations (YCHO). This plan aims to increase the flow of humanitarian aid and economic assistance to all regions of Yemen and to the millions of people who have been impacted by the violence that began in late 2014, when the Iranian-supported Houthi militants took up arms against the legitimate government.
The plan is an expansion of various Saudi-led efforts that have sought to support the government of Yemen, alleviate the suffering of the people and help bring an end to the violence.
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1236836
My comment: Setting fire on your neighbours house, then bringing a crate water to his front door and playing the role of generous donator – that’s the “Saudi humanitarian help” for Yemen.
(A P)
Yemen pins hope on Kuwait
Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled renewed Kuwait’s firm position based on providing official and unofficial support to Yemeni.
He added that Kuwait, through its non-permanent UNSC membership in 2018- 2019, would continue its efforts to help Yemen, to contribute to alleviating humanitarian woes, and to find a peaceful solution that could restore this Arab country’s security and stability in line with the Gulf Initiative, its executive mechanism, National Dialogue and UNSC Resolution 2016. On his part, the Yemeni minister said his country pins much hope on Kuwait’s role during its non-permanent UNSC membership.
http://www.arabtimesonline.com/news/yemen-pins-hope-kuwait/
(A P)
Yemen’s Houthis Getting Missile Training From IRGC, Hezbollah, Opposition Group Claims
As the administration on Monday showed foreign ambassadors alleged evidence of links between Iran and ballistic missiles fired into Saudi Arabia by Houthi rebels in Yemen, an Iranian opposition group said it has received reports that the launches are occurring under the “direct orders” of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Citing sources inside the regime and the IRGC, the exiled Iranian opposition group National Council of Resistance of Iran/People’s Mujahedeen Organization of Iran (NCRI/MEK) said the reports indicate that the missiles are being manufactured at factories affiliated to the IRGC’s aerospace division.
My comment: I would be c<autious with information spread by such groups. This is propaganda.
(A P)
The Houthi rebel militia committed 17,572 human rights abuses against the civilians in Raymah province in Yemen's west during 2017. Raymah Media Center said that the abuses included killings, abductions, forced disappearances, tortures, dismissal from jobs, demolishing of properties by bombing them, child fighter recruitments among myriad abuses
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-15042
My comment: Now doubt that such violations had occurred. But this report looks like one of these propaganda “big figure” reports. – What is this obscure “Rayman Media Center”? – 17,572 violations a year would be about 1,464 violations a month. Compare the report by Al Sahwa from Aug. 7, 2017: „A report issued by the Media Center of Raymah Media Center has revealed that the Houthi- Saleh militias committed 151 violations in Raymah during July 2017“: https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-9169 . Hey, what about that?
(A P)
Houthis have issued a summon to elderly rival cleric to attend a Sana'a court to face charges of evading Zakat (obligatory Islamic alms), local sources said this week. Mohammed bin Ismail al-Amrani who is coming up to 100 years in age is a famous cleric from the mainstream Sunni Islam and Houthis belong to a perverted and radical version of Zaydi Shiite Islam that does not tolerate dissent
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-15042
My comment: Summoning this old man certainly is breaking any law. But by this comment and wording this anti-Houthi media of Islah Party (Muslim Brotherhood) certainly had come clean.
(A P)
Arab Coalition: Humanitarian Operations Underway in Yemen without Discrimination
The Arab Coalition to restore legitimacy in Yemen announced on Monday that humanitarian operations are ongoing in the war-torn country.
Spokesman for the alliance Turki al-Maliki announced during a press conference that the operations encompass all sides and are underway without discriminating against anyone.
He revealed that Yemen’s portals will remain open to allow the entry of humanitarian aid, adding: “We have granted more than 18,000 permits to allow aid into the country.”
A total of 43 permits were granted to allow aid to pass through Sanaa airport, said the spokesman from Riyadh.
(A P)
Yemenis should direct efforts to liberate lands from rebels: Coalition Command
The Arab Coalition in Support of Legitimacy in Yemen has valued the Yemeni government's support for the coalition's recent statement for all segments of the Yemeni society to exercise self-restraint, resort to peaceful dialogue and avoid any causes of dissent.
At a news conference today in the Saudi capital, Col. Turki bin Saleh Al-Malki, the Spokesman for the Coalition Forces, considered the Yemeni government's support for the statement as a step forward on the way to stamp out barriers between political factions in Yemen, affirming that the main battle of the Yemeni people should rather be directed to regain the remaining territories usurped by the coup perpetrators.
Al Malki spoke of the progress achieved by the coalition forces and their ceaseless efforts to secure aid for all Yemenis, specially inside the territories still under the control of the Iran-backed rebels.
http://wam.ae/en/details/1395302663513
My comment: Looking at what is happening at Aden, this is “alternative facts”.
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
Siehe / Look at cp1
(* A K PH)
Saudi coalition air raids day by day:
(* A K PS)
Saudi-led coalition continues battle against Houthi rebels
The Saudi-led coalition destroyed a number of Houthi ammunition stores outside the Yemeni capital on Wednesday as violence abated in the southern city of Aden after days of clashes between local security forces and government troops.
Five coalition air strikes targeted rebel stores in the Houthi stronghold of Al Geraf, to the north of Sanaa. The stores supply rebel fighters in Al Geraf, as well as the areas of Shaoub and Bani Hosheish, located north-east and east of the capital respectively.
"Ammunition stores, which were hidden among civilian buildings, caught on fire and stayed lit throughout the day," a resident told The National.
and
(* A K PH)
5 civilians killed in 4 airstrikes on Yemen' Sanaa
Five civilians were killed and two other injured on Tuesdaywhen the US-backed Saudi-led aggression coalition warplanes launched four strikes on Sanaa province, an official told Saba.
The airstrikes hit the government complex in Bit-maran of Arhab district
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486369.htm
and
(* A K PH)
Film: 6 martyrs including two children the outcome of the massacre of aggression at the government compound in Arhab Sanaa
The American-Saudi aggression aircraft committed a terrible massacre against civilians at the government compound in Arhab Sana'a, where the attacks left 6 martyrs, including two children.
https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1792303454134044/ = https://twitter.com/Hona_Almasirah/status/958465015429914626
(A K PH)
Civilian injured in cluster bomb blast in Saada
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486376.htm
(A K PH)
Civilian injured in airstrike on Saada
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486378.htm
(* A K PH)
Coalition raid kills six Houthis southern Taiz
Six Houthi gunmen were killed on Monday in an air raid launched by the Saudi-led Arab coalition which targeted their car in Hamala mountain in al Raheda area southern Taiz province, southwestern Yemen, a local source told Almasderonline.
The dead were from one family, they were relatives of the Lahj province governor Ahmed Gareeb, who is appointed by the Houthis, the source added.
http://almasdaronline.com/article/96784
My comment: “Gunmen”?? LOL.
(* A K PH)
Five-member family Killed in Saudi airstrike on Yemen's Saada
Five-member family on Monday were killed in US-backed Saudi aggression coalition airstrike on their home in Saada province, a security official told Saba.
The airstrike hit the home in Bani Moaen of Razeh border district
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486264.htm
and
(* A K PH)
Film: As a result, the bodies of the family of Mohammed Ali Ahmed turned to the directorate of Razih in Sa'ada following a raid by the Aggression aircraft in their house, which led to his death with his wife and 3 children and injuring two other children
https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1792307244133665/ = https://twitter.com/Hona_Almasirah/status/958466335025098754
(A K PH)
12 US-Saudi aggression airstrikes hit Saada, dropping cluster bombs
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486268.htm
(A K)
The Saudis continue to bomb Yemen, these images are some of many explosion in Sana'a last night [Jan. 28 to 29] caused by Saudi war planes targeting residential areas in the city.
https://www.facebook.com/jamil.alabiad.9/posts/1700116613567695 = https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156341180258641
(* A K PH)
More Saudi air raids reported on:
Jan. 31:
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486391.htm Sanaa City
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486388.htm Sanaa province
Jan. 30:
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486382.htm Sanaa City and film https://www.facebook.com/SaudiArabia.war.crimes.against.Yemen/videos/1772743056355014/ and photo https://twitter.com/SaifOliby/status/958479172254486528
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486379.htm Taiz prov.
Jan. 29:
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486267.htm Hajjah prov.
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
(A K PS)
Saudi coalition says RC bomb boat intercepted
Another remotely controlled boat carrying explosives was intercepted on 26 January, Colonel Turki al-Maliki, the spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen told journalists in a briefing three days later.
Col Maliki identified the boat as a Shark 33: a name that has previously been attributed to a type recovered by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) forces operating in Yemen and used as evidence that Iran is supplying weaponry to the Ansar Allah (Houthis) group that the coalition is fighting.
The coalition spokesman added that the device was deployed from the Red Sea port of Al-Hudaydah, which is controlled by Ansar Allah, and was heading westwards to threaten international shipping when it was intercepted by the coalition 13 n miles from the coast.
http://www.janes.com/article/77486/saudi-coalition-says-rc-bomb-boat-intercepted
My comment: That this boat should have been on the way to 2 to threaten international shipping” is odd. As long there are Saudi coalition war ships in the area.
Comment: Whether or not it's true - is it any worse than the huge shipments of weapons to Saudi Arabia that is facilitating their attacks on Yemeni civilians and enforcing s cruel embargo that is causing children to die of starvation and easily preventable disease?
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156343387733641
(A K PS)
Houthi Katyucha rocket kills, injures four women in Marib
A Katyucha rocket that the Houthi militia fired into Yemen's eastern Marib on killed one woman and critically injured three other women in the outskirts of the city, local sources said.
The rocket hit the house of a family on Sunday
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-15066
(A K PS)
Yemeni army says will break Houthi siege around Taiz
Yemen's army has announced that it will keep pushing the Houthis until breaking the siege and fully liberating the country's third largest province, Taiz.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-15064
My comment: They say this since at least two years.
(A K PH)
Yemen Army fires ballistic missile toward Saudi capital airport
The Yemeni Rocketry Forces on Tuesday fired a long-range ballistic missile toward the Saudi capital Riyadh's airport, the Yemeni army said in statement obtained by Saba.
The missile, Burkan H-2, targeted King Khaled International Airport.
The missile hit the target precisely, read the statement
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486277.htm
My comment: This only is repeated by pro-Houthi foreign media, and Xinhua also: http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-01/30/c_136936470.htm . This it certainly is a fake story.
(A K PS)
UAE Armed Forces continues clearing landmines in Yemen's western coast
The UAE Armed Forces demining teams have cleared western coast of Yemen as part of the continuous operations to clear landmines in different areas to protect the lives of the people there.
Teams of the UAE Armed Forces and the Arab Coalition have collected and detonated mines, rockets, missiles and projectiles, and improvised explosive devices in a safe area. These landmines were planted by the Iranian-backed Houthi militias to target civilians, and the Emirates News Agency, WAM, has been monitoring the demining operation and disposal of mines.
http://wam.ae/en/details/1395302663642
(A K PH)
Child killed by bombs left of aggression coalition in Saada
A child was killed on Monday in left bomb of US-backed Saudi-led aggression coalition in Saada province, a security official told saba on Tuesday
Saudi forces shelled several areas of Sahda and Razeh borders districts by artillery and missile, damaging residents' properties.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news486271.htm
(A K PS)
Film: On Jan 26, 2018: #Saudi-led Coalition destroyed a #Houthi controlled WBIED (Shark-33) 13 nm off the coast of Al Hudaydah.
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/958026856179097600
(* A K PS)
Around 200 Houthi loyalists join legitimate forces in Yemen’s Jawf
The Yemeni army said on Sunday that around 200 commanders and figures who are loyal to the Houthi militia joined legitimate forces in Jawf, north of the country, adding that more are joining them by the hour.
Brigadier General Ali Mohsen al-Hedi said coordination is underway with Jawf clerics, dignitaries and commanders who want to join legitimate forces and the national army.
https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2018/01/29/Around-200-Houthi-loyalists-join-legitimate-forces-in-Yemen-s-Jawf.html and also https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-15098
Remark: As claimed by Saudi media.
(* B K)
Third Burkan-2H Missile Shows No Sign of Saudi Intercept
Two ballistic missiles launched at Riyadh do not appear to have been shot down as claimed
The remnants of the missiles do not show signs of being hit by Patriot interceptors
A Burkan-2H ballistic missile that was shown to a television news team showed no indication it had been intercepted by a Saudi Patriot air defence system as claimed.
A CNN team was taken to a Saudi military base on 17 January where it was allowed to film the remnants of a ballistic missile clearly marked as a Burkan-2H. The Saudi-led coalition said it was launched from Yemen and intercepted by a Patriot south of Riyadh on 19 December 2017.
http://www.newnewss.net/third-burkan-2h-missile-shows-no-sign-saudi-intercept/
My comment: There had been serious doubts already before whether Patriot had successfully intercepted the Houthi missiles.
Vorige / Previous:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-381-yemen-war-mosaic-381
Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-381 / Yemen War Mosaic 1-381:
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
http://yemenwarcrimes.blogspot.de/
und alle Liste aller Luftangriffe / and list of all air raids:
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