Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 391 - Yemen War Mosaic 391

Yemen Press Reader 391: 10.3.2018: Huthis u. Saudis–Landminen–Fischerei im Krieg–Großbritannien u. Saudis–Einfluss der Golfstaaten in USA–US-Waffenverkäufe legal?–Politik der Emirate–BAE Systems

Bei diesem Beitrag handelt es sich um ein Blog aus der Freitag-Community.
Ihre Freitag-Redaktion

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

March 10, 2018: Houthis and Saudi Arabia – Houthi landmines – Losses of fishery sector – British-Saudi relationship – Saudi and Gulf states influence in the US – Legality of US arms sales to Saudi Arabia – UAE builds its influence – BAE Systems: Jobs in Saudi Arabia – Visit of Saudi Crown Prince Salman in Britain – and more

Schwerpunkte / Key aspects

Klassifizierung / Classification

Für wen das Thema ganz neu ist / Who is new to the subject

cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important

cp1a Am wichtigsten: Seuchen / Most important: Epidemics

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

cp11 Deutschland / Germany

cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries

cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis

cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms Trade

cp13b Kulturerbe / Cultural heritage

cp13c Wirtschaft / Economy

cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism

cp15 Propaganda

cp15a Propaganda: Prinz Salman in Großbritannien / Propaganda: Prince Salman in UK

cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids

cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War

cp18 Sonstiges / Other

Klassifizierung / Classification

***

**

*

(Kein Stern / No star)

? = Keine Einschatzung / No rating

A = Aktuell / Current news

B = Hintergrund / Background

C = Chronik / Chronicle

D = Details

E = Wirtschaft / Economy

H = Humanitäre Fragen / Humanitarian questions

K = Krieg / War

P = Politik / Politics

PH = Pro-Houthi

PS = Pro-Saudi

T = Terrorismus / Terrorism

Für wen das Thema ganz neu ist / Who is new to the subject

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

3 days before the great killing air raid... (see images in tweet above)

(** B H K)

Zwischen Cholera und Hungersnot
Der humanitäre Alptraum des Jemen-Kriegs
Seit März 2015 wird der Jemen von einem brutalen Krieg beherrscht, in dem eine von Saudi-Arabien geführte Koalition einen erbarmungslosen Bombenkrieg gegen die Aufständischen der Houthi-Bewegung führt, dem bereits weit über 10.000 Menschen zum Opfer fielen, über 3 Millionen sind auf der Flucht. Der Krieg wird dominiert von brutalsten Kriegsverbrechen der Saudi-Koalition. Eine „vollständig menschengemachte“ Folge ist die größte Cholera-Epidemie in der Geschichte und die größte Hungersnot seit Jahrzehnten mit potentiell „Millionen von Opfern“.

Der Krieg im Jemen ist gekennzeichnet von extremer Gewalt gegen Zivilisten und zivile Infrastruktur. Dabei macht sich vor allem die Saudi-Koalition schwerer Kriegsverbrechen schuldig, wie die MenschenrechtsorganisationenHuman Rights WatchundAmnesty Internationalin ihren Berichten unzweideutig feststellen. Ohne die Unterstützung westlicher Staaten wäre die Bombardierung des Jemen undenkbar und so tragen insbesondere die USA, Deutschland, Großbritannien, Frankreich, Italien, Australien und Kanada durch Waffenlieferungen, Luftbetankung saudischer Kampfjets, Bereitstellung von Logistik und Geheimdienstinformationen oder Entsendung von Militärberatern eine zentrale Mitschuld an den Kriegsverbrechen der Saudi-Koalition.

Nach einer kleineren Welle 2016 brach im Jemen als Folge des Krieges ab Mai 2017 die globalverheerendste Choleraepidemieseit Beginn der modernen Aufzeichnungen aus.

„Dieser tödliche Cholera-Ausbruch ist die direkte Folge von zwei Jahren heftigen Konflikts,“ erklären die Köpfe von UNICEF und WHO in einergemeinsamen Erklärung. „Durch den Zusammenbruch der Gesundheits-, Wasser- und Sanitärsysteme wurden 14,5 Millionen Menschen vom regelmäßigen Zugang zu sauberem Wasser und sanitären Anlagen abgeschnitten, wodurch sich die Krankheit weiter ausbreiten konnte.“

„Dieser Choleraskandal ist vollständig menschengemacht“,urteiltdaher auch UN-Nothilfekoordinator Stephen O’Brien.

Neben dem vorsätzlich zerstörten Gesundheitssystem ist die massive Choleraepidemie auch untrennbar mit der zweiten großen Katastrophe im Jemen verknüpft: der Hungerkatastrophe.

Die Gründe der Hungerkatastropheliegen einerseits auf der Nachfrageseite. So stürzte die jemenitische Wirtschaft als Folge des Krieges in dieverheerendste Kriseseit den späten 1960er Jahren, kriegsinduziert ist das jemenitische Finanzsystem nahezu vollständig kollabiert.

Fataler ist jedoch die Angebotsseite. Vor dem Krieg importierte der Jemen 85 Prozent seiner Medikamente und 90 Prozent seiner Nahrungsmittel aus dem Ausland. Unter dem Vorwand, Waffenlieferungen an die Houthis zu unterbinden, verhängt Saudi-Arabien seit Frühjahr 2015 eine Seeblockade gegen den Jemen, die das UN-Menschenrechtskommissariat als völkerrechtswidrig und „schwerwiegenden Bruch grundlegender Menschenrechtsnormen“bezeichnet.

Bei Recherchen zum Thema Jemen-Krieg finden sich aufentsprechenden Fotosund in Videos immer wieder herzzerreißende Bilder von Babys und Kleinkindern, die, ausgezehrt von Hunger und Cholera, in den Armen ihrer verzweifelten Mütter, oder auf Bahren in zerstörten Hospitalen liegen. Die beschämende Wucht dieser Bilder der jemenitischen Kinder, die ihre letzten physischen Kräfte für gelegentliche Atemzüge aufwenden, gerade so noch nicht tot, ist ein Schlag ins Gesicht des Menschheitsgewissens – von Jakob Reimann

http://justicenow.de/2018-03-04/zwischen-cholera-und-hungersnot/=https://www.freitag.de/autoren/jakob-reimann-justicenow/zwischen-cholera-und-hungersnot=https://diefreiheitsliebe.de/politik/zwischen-cholera-und-hungersnot/

(** B K P)

Die Houthis und das Haus Saud: Die Wurzeln des Jemenkriegs
Saudi-Arabien beteuert, die Houthi-Rebellen wären eine Marionette Teherans und rechtfertigt damit den erbarmungslosen Krieg im Jemen, da dieser die Expansion des Iran auf die Arabische Halbinsel verhindern würde. Die tatsächlichen Gründe sind jedoch wesentlich banaler: Riad will die Grenzen seiner 1934 annektierten Provinzen schützen und seinen jahrzehntelangen Einfluss auf die jemenitische Regierung wiederherstellen.
Seit März 2015 bombardiert eine von Saudi-Arabien geführte Koalition zur Bekämpfung der Houthi-Rebellen den Jemen in einem Krieg, der – wenn er überhaupt reportiert wird – in aller Regel als Stellvertreterkrieg dargestellt [wird]: Die Houthi-Rebellen kämpften als Marionette des Iran gegen den regionalen Erzfeind Saudi-Arabien. Der Krieg sei Teil des Kampfes um die Herrschaft im Nahen Osten, desweilen ginge es um einen herbeigeschriebenen Jahrtausende währenden Kampf zwischen Sunniten und Schiiten. In einer George-Bush-Reminiszenz redet der saudi-arabische Außenminister Adel al-Jubeir vom Kampf „zwischen Gut und Böse“ – höchst epische Kategorien scheinen auf dem Spiel zu stehen.
Dichotomien wie die drei genannten sollen komplexe Zusammenhänge auf vertraute Narrative eindampfen. Doch um zum Kern eines Krieges vorzustoßen, taugen derart dilettantische Erklärungsmuster nicht. Nachdem #1 der Jemen-Reihe den humanitären Alptraum des Krieges analysierte, geben die nächsten drei Teile einen Einblick in Hintergründe und Ursachen, jeweils im Kontext der wichtigsten regionalen Player des Krieges und ihrer Agenda: Saudi-Arabien, Iran und die Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate.

Der Siegeszug der Houthi-Rebellen

Der Untergang der Houthis ist nur eine Frage der Zeit

Der Untergang der Houthis als dominierende Macht im Jemen ist besiegelt.

Der „private Hinterhof“ der Saudis

Entgegen den saudischen Verlautbarungen, der Einfluss Teherans auf der Arabischen Halbinsel solle durch das Bombardement zurückgedrängt werden, geht es Riad im Kampf gegen die Houthi-Rebellen vordergründig um die Sicherung der Grenze im Südwesten, an der sich beiderseits mehrheitlich schiitische Siedlungen befinden. Seit der Gründung Saudi-Arabiens 1932 ist der Grenzkonflikt zum Jemen zentral für die Sicherheit des Hauses Saud. Das Königreich intervenierte daher immer wieder in die inneren Angelegenheiten des Nachbarn am südlichen Zipfel der Arabischen Halbinsel, den Riad mehr als seinen „privaten Hinterhof“ begreift denn als ein eigenständiges, souveränes Land.

Der Alptraum des Haus Saud

Seit jeher war es saudische Politik, im Jemen für instabile Verhältnisse sowie für eine schwache, größtmöglich von saudischen Petrodollars abhängige Regierung zu sorgen, die keinerlei Gefahr für das saudische Territorium darstellen würde. Jemenitische Volksbewegungen oder ambitionierte politische Bewegungen in Sana’a wurden stets unterwandert oder offen militärisch bekämpft. Spätestens seit den 1970ern intervenierte Riad aggressiv in innerjemenitische Angelegenheiten, indem Clanführer, Politiker oder Medienpersönlichkeiten nach Belieben finanziert oder diskreditiert wurden. Nicht umsonst gelten die Saudis im Jemen als „Königsmacher“ – so spielten sie in den 1970ern auch bei der Machtergreifung des Diktators Saleh eine zentrale Rolle, über den Riad in den Jahrzehnten der Diktatur seinen Einfluss geltend machte.

Das Erstarken der Houthis Anfang der 2000er war daher der Alptraum des Haus Saud, nicht nur weil die Houthis als bewaffnete und kampferfahrene Rebellen-Bewegung an der saudischen Südgrenze rüttelten, sondern vor allem, weil sie unabhängig von der Korruption und dem elitären Klüngel in Sana’a waren – und somit unzugänglich für Riads über Jahrzehnte etablierte Unterwanderung des jemenitischen Politbusiness – von Jakob Reimann

http://justicenow.de/2018-03-07/die-houthis-und-das-haus-saud/ = https://ffd365.de/2018/03/07/die-wurzeln-des-jemen-kriegs/ = https://www.freitag.de/autoren/jakob-reimann-justicenow/die-houthis-und-das-haus-saud#1520529803902904 = https://diefreiheitsliebe.de/politik/die-houthis-und-das-haus-saud/

(* B H K)

Der vergessene Krieg im Jemen

Die humanitäre Lage im Jemen, gegen das Saudi-Arabien einen erbarmungslosen Krieg führt, ist katastrophal. [Überblicksartikel]

https://www.swp.de/politik/inland/der-vergessene-krieg-im-jemen-24771468.html

(** B H K)

Film: For those new to here's a 25 minute doco we made 2016 explaining how this UK & US backed war has already killed tens of thousands of civilians in airstrikes, from famine & lack of medical care

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CxiNMN5EsM

(* B H K)

Film: Yemen Millions of children and families are on the brink of starvation UNICEF

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lT9jRp2Z1K4

(* B H)

MORE THAN 21 MILLION YEMENIS LACK ACCESS TO CLEAN WATER
More than 21 million Yemeni citizens lack access to clean drinking water and need urgent assistance, 17.8 million of whom are unable to meet their food needs, Minister of Agriculture Othman Majali said on Thursday.
This comes during a speech at the fortieth session of the International Fund for Agricultural Development in Rome, noting thatabout 19.4 million people lack access to clean water and sanitation services, 9.8 million people can not access the water because of the war.
According to Saba news agency, about 8.4 million Yemenis are threatened by famine, an increase of 24% compared to the data of 2017.
He pointed out that about 14.1 million citizens live without adequate health care, in addition to the fact that at least 2.7 million people have fled their homes to other areas within Yemen or to other countries.

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1649644028421954/?type=3

(* B H K P)

Amnesty: JEMEN 2018

In dem 2017 weiterhin andauernden bewaffneten Konflikt verübten alle Beteiligten Kriegsverbrechen und andere schwere Verstöße gegen das Völkerrecht; unzureichende Maßnahmen im Rahmen der Rechenschaftspflicht verhinderten, dass Opfer Gerechtigkeit und Wiedergutmachung einfordern konnten. Die von Saudi-Arabien geführte Militärallianz, welche die international anerkannte Regierung des Jemen unterstützte, bombardierte erneut zivile Einrichtungen und verübte wahllose Angriffe, bei denen Zivilpersonen getötet oder verletzt wurden. Die bewaffnete Gruppe der Huthi und ihre Verbündeten, darunter Armeeeinheiten, die dem ehemaligen Präsidenten Ali Abdullah Saleh die Treue hielten, beschossen Wohnviertel in Taiz mit Granatwerfern und feuerten Artilleriegeschosse wahllos über die Grenze nach Saudi-Arabien. Dabei gab es Tote und Verletzte unter der Zivilbevölkerung. Die jemenitische Regierung, die Huthi und mit ihnen verbündete Armeeeinheiten des ehemaligen Präsidenten Saleh sowie jemenitische Streitkräfte, die sich den Vereinigten Arabischen Emiraten unterstellt hatten, griffen auf rechtswidrige Haftpraktiken wie Verschwindenlassen, Folter und andere Misshandlungen zurück. Frauen und Mädchen wurden nach wie vor Opfer von Diskriminierung und anderen Menschenrechtsverstößen wie Zwangsverheiratung und häusliche Gewalt. Die Todesstrafe blieb in Kraft. Es gab jedoch keine öffentlich zugänglichen Berichte über Todesurteile und Hinrichtungen.

https://www.amnesty.de/jahresbericht/2018/jemen

and English version:

(* B H K P)

Amnesty International: YEMEN 2017/2018

All parties to the continuing armed conflict committed war crimes and other serious violations of international law, with inadequate accountability measures in place to ensure justice and reparation to victims. The Saudi Arabia-led coalition supporting the internationally recognized Yemeni government continued to bomb civilian infrastructure and carried out indiscriminate attacks, killing and injuring civilians. The Huthi-Saleh forces indiscriminately shelled civilian residential areas in Ta’iz city and fired artillery indiscriminately across the border into Saudi Arabia, killing and injuring civilians. The Yemeni government, Huthi-Saleh forces and Yemeni forces aligned to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) engaged in illegal detention practices including enforced disappearance and torture and other ill-treatment. Women and girls continued to face entrenched discrimination and other abuses, including forced and early marriage and domestic violence. The death penalty remained in force; no information was publicly available on death sentences or executions.

https://www.amnesty.org/en/countries/middle-east-and-north-africa/yemen/report-yemen/

(* B H K)

"1- The humanitarian crisis in#Yemenis the most important story in the world,but it rarely receives the coverage that such a massive crisis ought to have.
2- Ongoing blockade by#Saudiand willingness to impose collective punishment on the civilian population.
3- suffering from the largest famine the world has seen 4 decades .
4- struggling with an acute hunger crisis that has effected at least 17M ppl ,third of them considered close to famine.
5- Diseases r spreading like a wildfire,the closure of Yemeni ports will worsen the epidemics.
6- There is a gas and fuel crisis ,people are without salaries for 18 months ,the #Saudi bombardment has really scared our children .
7- Almost daily massacres by #Saudi bombs made in#UK&#US.
8- Poor sanitation,famine,malnutrition,water crisis and etc...
9- The delay to the restoration and expansion of humanitarian access will cost the life of innocent people .
10- The only way to stop the war is if people put pressures on #UK & #US governments to stop selling arms to #Saudi and to find a sustainable peace solution. "

Ahmad Algohbary

https://twitter.com/AhmadAlgohbary/status/967827245212602368(thread) =https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1659463720773318

cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(** B H K)

Menace of Houthi-laid landmines adds to Yemeni misery

The results of landmine use can be seen in the hallways of the hospital in al-Mokha town, located not far north of the strategic Bab al-Mandab strait, which were crowded with victims and visitors on a recent visit by Reuters.

Doctors and medical staff made their way between armed men to provide first aid to patients wounded by landmines, as well as by shrapnel and mortars.

Residents and medics from al-Mokha and nearby villages said landmines had caused more casualties than the fighting in the area, which has seen the Houthis pushed out of some Red Sea coastal areas since 2016.

The explosives were buried randomly across the region, including in residential areas, playgrounds and under trees where many Yemenis traditionally sit to chew the local mild narcotic qat leaves, they added.

It is not clear how many people have been killed by these weapons, but two doctors and a government official said dozens had died just in the coastal areas of al-Mokha, al-Khoukha and al-Heiss since Houthi forces started withdrawing in early 2017.

The UAE armed forces and Yemeni troops said they harvest between 250 and 300 landmines every week in the western region. More than 40,000 devices have been neutralised since coalition-allied forces took control of the Red Sea coast in a series of battles starting in 2016.

Around 90 percent of the landmines were locally made and most of the victims are civilians, they said.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-landmines/menace-of-houthi-laid-landmines-adds-to-yemeni-misery-idUSKCN1GK28Y

(** B E H K)

Losses of Fisheries Sector in Yemen…Huge Numbers and Catastrophic Results

The fisheries sector in Yemen, which is considered one of the most important sectors of the Yemeni economy, was not excluded from the circle of the Saudi-led coalition’s targeting, causes humanitarian disasters that had never occurred before.

The latest reports issued by the Ministry of Fisheries in Yemen indicate a large amount of losses,because of the crimes committed by the coalition , confirms that the losses of the fish sector as a result of direct targeting of fishermen and boats, ports and landing points of fish over three years, amounted to four billion and 586 million and 301 thousand dollars.

Losses of the fisheries sector in Yemen,huge numbers and catastrophic results:

The number of martyrs of fishermen who were attacked by the bombing of the coalition was killed 151 and wounded 45 others.

The number of fishermen who lost their sources of income 36 thousand and 688 fishermen, while the number of those who lost their jobs of employees 96 and the number of auxiliary workers 18 thousand and 652 workers.

The number of fishing boats destroyed by the coalition reached 222 boats with a loss of five million and 248 thousand and 536 dollars.

While the number of boats that stopped their activity as a result of the targeting of landing sites, four thousand and 586 boats, mostly in Midi district of Hajjah province and the departments of Dhubab, Bab al-Mandab and Mukha in Taiz province, where the loss of production billion and 58 million and 312 thousand dollars.

It also caused direct damage to the livelihood of more than two and a half million citizens of coastal cities and villages along the coastal strip, in addition to the average annual per capita consumption of fish at the level of the Republic, where it reached two and a half kg instead of 14 kg to be 85% .

The bombardment on infrastructure of Midi and Hima ports,and 11 fish landing sites, as well as the center of exports caused losses of 13 million, 32 thousand and 558 dollars.

The number of establishments whose activities have ceased due to the decline of fish production,reached to more than 50 different establishments between factory, preparation plant and others, resulting in losses of five million and 262 thousand dollars.

The direct targeting of villages and fishing communities by aviation and warships resulted in a large wave of displacement that had a disastrous impact on the areas that were displaced, especially as fishermen are among the poorest in society.

Losses of industries and services associated with fish activity amounted to 8 million, 269 thousand and 442 dollars, while losses in fees and customs amounted to 42 million, 332 thousand, 484 dollars.

http://www.newnewss.net/losses-of-fisheries-sector-in-yemenhuge-numbers-and-catastrophic-results/ and also https://yemen-rw.org/2018/03/08/saudi-coalition-starving-yemen-targeting-fishermen/

(** B E P)

MBS’s visit begins, but what governs the UK’s relationship with Riyadh?

The U.K.-Saudi relationship was subsequently founded upon oil and arms deals, which has pulled the two countries closer together politically. Westminster serves as an important ally for the Saudi state, providing crucial international support. In reciprocity, Saudi Arabia has pumped billions into the U.K. economy through arms deals and investment.

The Saudi monarchy is not short of international support, and MBS made his first visit to the U.K. on March 7. Three factors underpin the U.K.’s relationship with the Kingdom, which put together make it exceedingly difficult for the U.K. to split the bond. Firstly, arms sales.

Secondly, the Saudi state has substantial investments in the U.K., which cannot simply be taken for granted.

The third reason is Saudi Aramco. The world’s largest oil company is preparing for what could be the biggest initial public offering (IPO) in history, as it is set to float in 2018.

In the formation of the U.K.’s foreign policy, realpolitik prevails. The commercial and strategic benefits of the bi-directional relationship are increasingly unavoidable, and they stand first and foremost not just in the upper echelons of the U.K. government but in the vast majority of governments across the globe. As MBS continues down his path of progress and rapid change, the U.K. cannot leave the kingdom by the wayside and miss the economic fruits that follow – by Joseph Colonna

https://www.egypttoday.com/Article/2/44682/MBS%E2%80%99s-visit-begins-but-what-governs-the-UK%E2%80%99s-relationship-with

(** B P)

The Gulf monarchies and the corruption of US foreign policy

It should be obvious that amidst the widespread coverage of alleged attempts by some in Russia to influence U.S. politics, whether they’re connected to the government of that country or not, their efforts are laughable in comparison to the influence of these Middle Eastern potentates on American and other western policy makers.

Less violently, there’s also a rivalry playing out between the Saudis and their allies on one side, and the tiny, but immensely wealthy and often independent minded Kingdom of Qatar on the other, which has resulted in a flurry of spending to influence policymakers from the president on down in Washington, DC.

The think tank militarist lobbyist complex

The traditional route to influence over the United States government for other countries has been the use of lobbying firms It’s an expensive road, as these firms have an incentive to keep clients on retainer in order to milk them for cash. While lobbyists are required to register under the (until recently rarely enforced) Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), we’ve seen evidence that they don’t always do so during the ongoing legal troubles of high-powered Republican aligned lobbyist and former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort and his deputy, Robert Gates.

Even when they’re in full compliance with the law, well-funded lobbying groups, filled with former political operatives and insiders, can give a foreign country an inside track to gaining influence over those currently serving in government. This is by definition a form of corruption, though it’s never called this, and it’s been an invaluable tool for deep pocketed Gulf states.

As Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian and Rhys Dubin explained on the web-site of Foreign Policy magazine, “Between 2015 and 2017, Saudi Arabia expanded the number of foreign agents it hired from 25 to 145, spending more than $18 million on lobbying.”

In a rare report focusing on these kinds of political insiders by CNN last summer, just before President Trump left on his first foreign trip to Saudi Arabia and Israel, the Saudis went on another lobbying spending spree, hiring three new firms to promote their interests in the American capital.

An even cheaper route to influence in American politics and, perhaps more importantly, its civic life, is by funding ‘Think Tanks’, whose fellows, besides producing work for their own institutions, populate the opinion pages of the United States’ most important newspapers and are regularly featured as commentators on cable news networks.

While it may be easy to dismiss the influence of Think Tanks (and, to a lesser extent, registered lobbyists) as neutral or even benign, we don’t have to travel too far back in time to see that they can play an out-sized role in helping to first inform elite and then public opinion, working seamlessly with the mainstream media in pushing disastrous foreign policy positions.

In the least cynical view, there is obvious overlap between the often militarist thinking of the laptop generals at these think tanks, whether they call themselves conservative or liberal, and the Gulf monarchies, at least in terms of Iran. In this case, the funding could be seen less as a compromise on the part of these institutions than as a bonus for continuing the hostile posture they’ve been taking towards the Islamic Republic for many years.

Considering the money involved, we probably shouldn’t expect any further investigations to shine a light on the corrupting influence of these decadent absolute monarchies on American democracy, itself an all too slowly widening experiment in enfranchisement, born out of a refusal to bow to the whims of a foreign king – by Derek Royden

https://www.nationofchange.org/2018/03/09/gulf-monarchies-corruption-us-foreign-policy/

(** B K P)

The Legality of U.S. Arms Sales to Saudi Arabia for Use in Yemen

In May 2017, in the midst of debates over congressional proposals to halt arms sales, the American Bar Association (ABA) Center for Human Rights sent a report by Vanderbilt Law Professor Michael A. Newton to the Senate arguing that “further sales under both the Arms Export Control Act [AECA] and the Foreign Assistance Act [FAA] are prohibited until the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia takes effective measures to ensure compliance with international law and the President submits relevant certifications to the Congress.” The report recommended that Congress bring a joint resolution under both the AECA and the FAA to halt the proposed restart of arms. The report’s conclusions appear to be well founded.

The Arms Export Control Act

Yet if, as reports suggest, there have been significant numbers of attacks on non-military targets, the ABA report was correct to conclude that these attacks are neither necessary to respond to the threat posed to the recognized government of Yemen by the Houthis or Houthi-Saleh alliance, nor proportional to it. As a consequence, it appears the ABA report was likely correct that the sales violate the AECA.

The Foreign Assistance Act

The ABA report likewise makes a strong case that the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia violates the FAA. The FAA prohibits security assistance “to any country the government of which engages in a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized human rights.”

The challenge levied by the ABA report to the sale of weapons to the Saudi-led coalition under the FAA is substantial enough to require a considered response. Thus far, the U.S. government has provided none.

Presidential Policy Directive 27

The U.S. government’s continued sale of weapons to Saudi Arabia in the face of the ABA report and the UN Panel of Experts’ repeated findings of international humanitarian law violations is all the more striking given that the transfer of arms to the Saudi-led coalition appears to not only violate the AECA and FAA but also run counter to Presidential Policy Directive 27 on conventional arms transfers.

The United States’ continued transfer of billions of dollars of weapons to Saudi Arabia for use in its military operations in Yemen—operations which the United Nations Expert Panel of Experts has found have involved repeated violations of international humanitarian law—would appear to run directly counter to this policy guidance, as well as the AECA and FAA.

https://www.justsecurity.org/53449/u-s-arms-sales-saudi-arabia-yemen/

My comment: There is one more important point the authors simply do not understand: The legitimacy of the hadi government ended on Feb. 27, 2015 – and no foreign power ever (whether the UN or any singular state) would have the right to extend it.

(** B K P)

As Saudi Influence Wanes, UAE Builds Its Regional Value as Tool of US Imperialism

What is rarely covered by the media is the United Arab Emirates’ involvement in Yemen, but its influence and military might are an equally evil force to be reckoned with.

There is indeed a proxy war taking place in Yemen, but it isn’t between Iran and Saudi Arabia as the media would like the public to believe. Throughout Yemen’s southern provinces and beyond, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are battling for political control of the country and crucial Yemeni waterways — and the UAE appears to be winning.

While Saudi Arabia has spent billions — $200 million per day — on weapons, murdering civilians and completely failing in its objectives in taking control over Yemen, the UAE has built military bases, forged imperial alliances, and secured its grip on regional hegemony both politically and militarily in the same country. As a result, the UAE has made itself into an ideal tool for long-term U.S. imperialism.

While Riyadh wages its air war, Abu Dhabi has flooded southern Yemen with troops. The Emiratis stationed troops on the Yemeni-controlled island of Socotra — a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which they use for training purposes — in November of 2015. With current UAE assistance (and previous decades of assistance from late Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh), the United States has secured a naval base on the island as well.

Where Riyadh’s imperial ambitions are haphazard, Abu Dhabi’s are smooth and calculated. Using this war as a stepping stone, the UAE has secured political control in Yemen, expanded its military presence across the Red Sea, and elevated its status as a key ally of U.S. imperialism – by Randi Nord

https://www.mintpressnews.com/as-saudi-influence-wanes-uae-quietly-builds-regional-power-value-tool-us-imperialism/235790/ = http://geopoliticsalert.com/saudi-arabia-uae-yemen-africa-imperialism

(** B K P)

BAE Systems Careers in Saudi Arabia

LET YOUR CAREER TAKE OFF WITH BAE SYSTEMS IN SAUDI ARABIA

We are actively recruiting suitably qualified and experienced technicians with Fast Jet experience, to fill positions in the UK and Saudi Arabia in support of our Aircraft Maintenance & Support contracts. We operate and maintain a range of Fast Jet aircraft; Typhoon, Tornado & Hawk, where we offer exciting, challenging and rewarding opportunities.

To support this we undertake UK-wide recruitment campaign and are planning to undertake a number of recruitment roadshows throughout 2017 to share information on working for BAE Systems both in the UK and as an expat in Saudi Arabia.

If you are ex-military or due to leave the services soon, with the appropriate skills we are looking for, look out for details of our events which will be available here soon. In the meantime if you would like to find out more about our roles you can search and apply our vacancies or register your details below.

http://www.saudicareers.co.uk/events/

Typhoon Pilot (Job Number: 00036479)

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join BAE Systems as a Typhoon Pilot based in Saudi Arabia.

You will be responsible to the Flying Wing Commander for flying instructional missions for cadets in accordance with appropriate Royal Saudi Air Force training syllabi.

This position requires good people development competencies, high levels of interpersonal skills and the ability to communicate, influence and direct Saudi cadets both in the air and on the ground.

Expatriate Employee Benefits

In return for the required high levels of commitment and hard work you will receive a competitive salary, rent free accommodation, and access to free recreation facilities, all available within Company secured accommodation. A full health care scheme is provided within Saudi Arabia. In addition a generous leave and travel allowance makes this an opportunity not to be missed.

BAE Systems

At BAE Systems, we serve the needs of our customers by delivering a wide range of advanced defence, aerospace, and security solutions that provide a technological and performance edge. We work together with local partners to develop, engineer, manufacture and support the innovations that sustain economies, increase defence sovereignty and safeguard commercial interests. With some 88,000 employees in six continents, our story is about talented people who are relentlessly committed to creating solutions that protect and strengthen nations, commerce, communities, and people. That’s work that inspires us. That’s BAE Systems.

http://www.saudicareers.co.uk/vacancy/

and main page: http://www.saudicareers.co.uk/

Comment: Take is right: Britain actually IS leading war in Yemen, directly IS involved in bombing Yemen.

cp1a Am wichtigsten: Seuchen / Most important: Epidemics

(* A H)

In #Yemen lab tests show that even treated sewage water remains contaminated with vibrio cholera bacteria. @ICRC_ye is implementing large-scale projects to rehabilitate the country’s barely functioning sewage treatment plants to curb the spread of diseases.

https://twitter.com/ICRC_ye/status/971360291324821504

(* A H)

Diphtheria outbreak kills 72 in Yemen: WHO

The death toll from a diphtheria outbreak in war-torn Yemen has risen to 72 people, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday.

In a statement, the UN agency said some 1,193 suspected cases of diphtheria have been registered in 20 of Yemen’s 23 provinces.

It listed Ibb and al-Hodeidah provinces in central and western Yemen as the hardest-hit by the diseases.

https://aa.com.tr/en/health/diphtheria-outbreak-kills-72-in-yemen-who/1076129

(* A H)

Yemen: Cholera Attack Rate (%) Population (From 27 April 2017 - 8 March 2018)

https://reliefweb.int/map/yemen/yemen-cholera-attack-rate-population-27-april-2017-8-march-2018

(* A H)

Yemen: Cholera Suspected Cases (From 27 April - 8 March 2018)

https://reliefweb.int/map/yemen/yemen-cholera-suspected-cases-27-april-8-march-2018

(* A H)

Yemen: 1,075,023 cholera cases as of March 7

WHO's Cholera Response Dashboard reports 1,075,023 cases and 2,264 deaths as of March 7. That is an increase of 580 cases and zero deaths in 24 hours.

http://who-powerbi.net/bi/

(* A H)

With support of the @WorldBank, @WHO and @UNICEF, a large-scale vaccination campaign was launched today to help control the spread of #diphtheria in #Yemen. The campaign aims to reach over 3 million children and young adults (aged 6 months to 15 years) in 11 governorates.

https://twitter.com/WHOYemen/status/972492623436042240

and

(A H)

Health Ministry to launche immunization campaign against diphtheria

The Ministry of Public Health and Population will launch next week an immunization campaign against diphtheria in 11 provinces as a first stage.

The campaign targets more than 2,666,000 children aged from 6 months to under 15 years.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-16224

Remark: It's not the Hadi government ministry who is launching this campaign, as this pro-Hadi website suggests. The Hadi government not even rules just its capital city any more.

(* A H)

Fears mount over possible spread of avian flu in Lahj

A medical source in the province of Lahj expressed its concern over the emerging symptoms of sudden fevers, severe flus and severe coughs together with the emergence of measles and gout.
The medical source said that there is concern about the threat of bird flu, calling on the health authorities in the province to take action to find out the reasons by examining the patients showing such symptoms.
On the other hand, Shamsan Al-Montasser, a pediatric specialist, said: "There are a number of persons who have died of a weird fever, severe cough and severe flu."
He pointed out that some patients manifested symptoms of measles and gout.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-16193

cp2 Allgemein / General

(* B K P)

The Lobbying War for War in Yemen

"Coalition airstrikes are based on intelligence and extensive monitoring and surveillance, to ensure all targets are military installations…Extensive precautions are taken to avoid civilian areas, especially where women and children are present," a spokesman for the Saudi coalition in Yemen, announced on December 20.

Six days later …

Despite these and many other instances where the Saudi lobby’s claims have been rebutted by the horrifying realities on the ground in Yemen, the US has continued to support the Saudi led coalition. But, that support may be coming to an end if Congress passes legislation introduced this week by Senators Sanders (I-VT) and Lee (R-UT) to block US support for the Yemen war.

Saudi lobbyists are likely feverishly working to ensure the legislation doesn’t pass. They will not tell of the immense suffering of the Yemen people in the world’s largest humanitarian crisis or of how the war is helping al Qaeda growstronger and richer. They’ll make promises of humanitarian assistance, of improvements to avoid civilian casualties. They’ll promise things belied by the realities of the Yemen war. It’s time that Congress stopped believing them.

https://original.antiwar.com/ben_freeman/2018/03/09/the-lobbying-war-for-war-in-yemen/

(B K P)

Houthi Missile Attacks and the Many Influences on Yemen’s Conflict

Besides the short-term benefit to the Iranian military-industrial complex of supplying the Houthis, gaining an upper hand in Yemen could allow Iran to overcome Saudi influence in the region and tip the balance of power in its favor. Success in Yemen could see an Iranian military presence there, and Iran is already ascendant elsewhere in the region as a result of its successful interventions in Syria and Iraq.

The Houthis want influence in Yemen’s politics and to that end have formed a national unity government aimed at securing the interests of the Shia Zaydis (Alwaght, December 1, 2016). They wish to manage the country’s domestic affairs and bring development to their war-torn country.

https://jamestown.org/program/houthi-missile-attacks-many-influences-yemens-conflict/

My comment: Rather weak article with many links, telling the Iran tale again and not passing over US mainstream.

(* B K P)

'Short of engaging in combat': UK has Al Saud's back in Yemen war

London was not a coincidental choice of Saudi Arabia’s new Crown Prince for his first official visit to the Western world. The UK has been deeply involved in the brutal war the Saudis are waging on Yemen.

When it began three years ago this month, the then-foreign minister Philip Hammond explained that Britain’s policy was to support the war “in every practical way short of engaging in combat.”

In late 2016, the “Yemen Quartet” was set up – a ministerial-level grouping of the four main powers responsible for the war – the UK, the US, the KSA, and the UAE. Their meetings have been sporadic, but over the past four months, they have become much more frequent, usually at Britain’s behest. But what is particularly noteworthy is that every single major strategic shift in the war’s execution in recent months has coincided with a meeting of the Quartet called by Boris Johnson. Clearly, the Foreign Office mandarins responsible for planning the Yemen war have been working overtime.

On November 29, Theresa May was in Riyadh, meeting with King Salman. At the same time, Johnson was hosting a meeting of the Quartet, attended by the foreign ministers of the UAE and Saudi Arabia, along with the US under-secretary of state. That very day, the forces of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh turned on their erstwhile allies in the Houthi-led Ansar Allah movement in what was heralded as the most significant shift in the war to date.

The simultaneous meetings in London and Riyadh were precisely such a demonstration of that support.

The reasons for this deep British determination to wage war on Yemen go back over a century, when Britain decided to help the Saudi family secure their rule of the peninsula in the knowledge that their sectarianism and lack of popular legitimacy would make them forever dependent on outside colonial support.

The British have always understood that an independent Yemen is the greatest threat to Western domination of the Arab peninsula – by Dan Glazebrook

https://www.rt.com/op-ed/420893-uk-yemen-threat-war/

(B K P)

Bischof in Arabien: „Niemand kann im Jemen einen Krieg gewinnen“

„Hinzu kommt, dass der Konflikt in Jemen ohnehin sehr komplex ist. Es sind interne Allianzen da, die sich ändern können, zwischen den Landesteilen oder Stämmen oder Interessensgruppen. Jetzt ist der Konflikt aufgeheizt durch die Intervention von außen, die Allianz unter der Führung von Saudi-Arabien, dann mischt sich Iran mit hinein. So weiß eigentlich niemand recht, worauf das hinausläuft. Ich vermute, wenn das so weitergeht, dass es längerfristig zu einer Aufteilung des Landes kommt.“

http://www.vaticannews.va/de/welt/news/2018-03/bischof-paul-hinder-arabien-jemen-krieg.html

(* B K P)

Unconditional Support for the Yemen Intervention Remains Even as the GCC Coalition is Weakening

The U.K. and U.S.’s support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen is justified by needing to maintain ties with Saudi Arabia, and strategic leverage against Iran

But the coalition itself is fragmenting, as the UAE and Saudi agendas dovetail, and the UAE supports southern separatists

The U.N. Resolution that legitimized the original intervention stipulated the restoration of President Hadi’s authority

That chance is almost gone, so it is time for a serious re-assessment of international strategy to end the conflict

The tragic truth is that the human cost of the war in Yemen has not been good enough reason for the U.S. and the U.K. to cease enabling the Saudi-led coalition and try and put an end to the war.

The excuses justifying our ongoing intelligence support and increasingly un-transparent arms sales to the Saudi-led coalition have been irritatingly vague.

During Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s ongoing visit to the U.K., Theresa May has fallen back on saying that Saudi intelligence sharing has protected British citizens from terrorist attacks.
That may be. But not only is that a pact trading British lives for Yemeni ones, it means the lessons of Iraq are now the proverbial elephant in the room, being ignored as far as possible. Razing a country to the ground does not get rid of security threats, it creates worse ones to deal with in the not-too-distant future.

https://www.albawaba.com/news/original-unconditional-support-for-the-yemen-intervention-is-a-strategic-as-well-as-a-humanitarian-failure-1099904

(* B H P)

In Yemen, women bear the brunt of a merciless war

While women around the world are today celebrating International Women's Day (IWD), Yemen's women hope simply that it will throw a spotlight on the unspeakable human suffering all genders are enduring across the country.

In fact, to celebrate women's rights today, in an apocalyptic situation like the one in Yemen, seems an extravagant thought. On the ground, women queue for hours in Sanaa to buy gas amid a fuel shortage, and in Taiz, women activists are a target of Houthi bullets. In Aden, women agonise over their missing male relatives, and in Hodeidah they are barely able to feed their starving little children.

The more I reported, the more I realised that - contrary to the stereotypes - the tribal culture in Yemen sees women as the backbone of the family and community across the country. That culture ensures their fair treatment.
Nonetheless, following Yemen's 1990 failed unification between the north and south, and the interference of political religious powers in the nation-building process, these factors have put women's rights at a disadvantage.
Women's biggest problems used to be the institutionalised gender discrimination and socio-economic hardships as a result of Yemen's longstanding poor governance.

In this grim situation, the country's women are one of the most neglected political groups. While they bear the brunt of the war, many are still manging political activism that needs our solidarity – by Afrah Nasser

https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/comment/2018/3/8/in-yemen-women-bear-the-brunt-of-war

(* B P)

The Perils of ‘Rooting’ for a Foreign Leader

It really doesn’t take much to impress the crown prince’s fan club.

Maybe we should wait until he has been in power more than a few years before we making sweeping assessments of how popular and lasting his future reign will be.

Instead of looking at what the crown prince says or promises to do, we would do well to look at the fruits of the policies he has already supported. He may talk a good game about combating jihadists, but in practice the war that he has presided over for the last three years has strengthened jihadists in Yemen and Saudi policy in Syria has led to the funding and arming of Islamist and jihadist groups. The Saudi government continues to stoke sectarian hatred as part of its foreign policy, and it is through this fueling of sectarian hostility that Mohammed bin Salman has placated Wahhabist clerics at home. Insofar as he is at all serious about changing things at home, the trade-off for that is that the Saudis will continue exporting more fanaticism, misery, and destruction to the rest of the region and perhaps beyond.

We don’t hear anything about this from the crown prince’s Western fans, and as usual we hear nothing from them about the Saudi-led coalition’s own myriad crimes in Yemen. Whenever Western observers feel as though they ought to “root” for a foreign leader, they ignore the leader’s many flaws and bad decisions that they should be taking as warning signs – by Daniel Larison

http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/the-perils-of-rooting-for-a-foreign-leader/

(* B P)

Yemen’s disenfranchised youth must be given a voice

With the war soon to enter its fourth year, breaking the barriers to youth inclusion must start with supporting, engaging and funding various youth groups inside and outside Yemen. The young women and men who sparked change are still Yemen’s best hope of getting out of the current crisis. If the youths’ initial experience appeared myopic, the difficult risks they are incurring on the ground today as a result of their bitter experience and the civil war is making them more attuned to the political realities that they minimized in 2011. Trust and support for youth is essential in order to avert another miscalculated political gambit.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1262096/opinion

My comment: Saudi media, Western author, not even so bad.

(A P)

Peace Laureates Condemn Inaction on Rohingya Genocide – What About Yemen?

Nobel Laureates Mairead Maguire, Shirin Ebadi, and Tawakkol Karman met with more than 100 women refugees in camps in the coastal Cox’s Bazar region of Bangladesh this week, as well as travelling to the “no man’s land” where thousands of Rohingya have been stranded between Myanmar and Bangladesh.

They have all called for trials of the Myanmar leaders in the International Criminal Court for committing genocide. And now the question is if they also intend to seek justice when the world seems to be so divided over the US-backed, Saudi-led war on Yemen.

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961215001797

(* A K P)

US Defence Intelligence Agency: Statement for the Record: Worldwide Threat Assessment

Yemen

Fighting in Yemen will persist along the major battlefronts between Huthi-aligned forces, backed by Iran, and remnants of the Yemeni government, backed by a Saudi-led coalition that includes the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Neither the Huthis nor the government of Yemeni President Abd Rabuh Mansur Hadi, backed by the Arab coalition, has been able to achieve decisive results through military force. Efforts at peace talks are stalled, and the Huthis are unwilling to cede territory or disarm, and Saudi Arabia is unwilling to accept a perceived Iranian proxy on its southern border and weapons in the hands of nonstate actors. We do not expect a significant shift in 2018.

http://www.dia.mil/News/Speeches-and-Testimonies/Article-View/Article/1457815/statement-for-the-record-worldwide-threat-assessment/

cp2a Saudische Blockade / Saudi blockade

(* A H P)

UK, Saudi to strengthen U.N. inspection regime for Yemen -Johnson

Britain and Saudi Arabia want to strengthen a United Nations inspection regime for ships headed to Yemen, the British foreign minister said after meeting his Saudi counterpart in London.

“Today we have agreed to strengthen the U.N. inspection of shipping in order to ensure that all Yemeni ports remain open to the humanitarian and commercial supplies that Yemen’s people so desperately need,” Boris Johnson told reporters on Wednesday evening, without providing details.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-saudi-yemen/uk-saudi-to-strengthen-u-n-inspection-regime-for-yemen-johnson-idUSKCN1GJ300

My comment: This would mean to strengthen the blockade of Yemen. It’s amazing to which extent the British government willingly accepts all Saudi claims regarding Yemen. – And it’s amazing that these two states think that simply the UN will be dancing to their tune. Well, might-be it really will.

Comment: "#Uk & #KSA want to strengthen a #UN inspection regime for ships headed to Yemen.." aka continuing their blockade ON #Yemen by covering themselves behind #UN council controlled by 3 out of 5 countries part of the coalition

https://twitter.com/2flamesburning1/status/972181914810507264

(* B H P)

Makabrer saudischer Hilfsplan für Jemen

UNICEF-Vertreter: Hier soll Hilfe in der Hand von einer Kriegspartei monopolisiert werden

Für besonderen Ärger sorgt nun bei Mitarbeitern von UNO und Hilfsorganisationen ein Hilfspaket Saudi-Arabiens: Zwei Milliarden Dollar will die dortige Regierung dafür aufwenden, Häfen und Infrastruktur auszubauen und Hilfsgüter zu liefern. »Unser Plan wird neue Standards bei der humanitären Hilfeleistung setzen«, sagt ein Sprecher des saudischen Kronprinzen Mohammad bin Salman: »Güter werden künftig schneller und effizienter zu den Menschen kommen.«

Doch hinter den wohltönenden Worten klingt eine »bittere Wahrheit« durch, sagt Asaadi: »Dieser Plan wird Hilfe in der Hand einer der Kriegsparteien monopolisieren und vor allem dazu führen, dass weniger Güter geliefert werden können, als es jetzt der Fall ist.«

Denn ausgebaut werden sollen ausschließlich Häfen unter Kontrolle der Hadi-Regierung oder der Militärallianz; die beiden von den Huthi-Milizen kontrollierten Häfen Hodeida und Saleef bleiben nicht nur außen vor: Der saudische Plan sieht auch vor, dass die Einfuhren im Vergleich zum Juli 2017 um 200 Kubiktonnen im Monat verringert werden sollen.

Für die Helfer ist deshalb klar: Die saudische Regierung wolle humanitäre Hilfe als Waffe einsetzen, heißt es allerorten; es sei völlig illusorisch, Güter über die Fronten hinweg quer durch das Land zu transportieren - falls es Regierungstruppen und Militärallianz überhaupt zulassen.

https://www.neues-deutschland.de/artikel/1081697.makabrer-saudischer-hilfsplan-fuer-jemen.html

(* A E P)

Yemen officials say UAE barring ships with government cash

Yemeni officials say the United Arab Emirates is barring ships carrying some 170 billion Yemeni rials ($680 million) from entering the southern port of Aden.

They told The Associated Press Wednesday the money is meant for the salaries of government employees who haven't been paid for over a year. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak with reporters.

There was no immediate comment from the UAE.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2018/03/07/yemen-officials-say-uae-barring-ships-with-government-cash.html = http://www.newsobserver.com/news/business/article203863129.html

My comment: A new chapter of the blockade story. Now it’s the Emirates blocking the Hadi government from doing its work.

cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(B H P)

US Agency for International Development:

Yemen ‑ Active USG Programs for Yemen Response (Last Updated 03/09/18)

https://reliefweb.int/map/yemen/yemen-active-usg-programs-yemen-response-last-updated-030918

Yemen - Complex Emergency Fact Sheet #5, Fiscal Year (FY) 2018

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-complex-emergency-fact-sheet-5-fiscal-year-fy-2018

(* B K P)

Interactive Map of Yemen

https://yemen.liveuamap.com/en/2018/9-march-houthi-militia-kidnaped-2-un-employees-in-sanaa-yemen

(B H)

video : A man from #Yemen meets his parents After a long absence in #Egypt airport . War is hell .

https://twitter.com/AhmadAlgohbary/status/971884116894502912

(* B H)

According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), one out of every four Yemenis suffering from kidney failure dies.
In its Twitter account, the International Organization said that patients with kidney failure in Yemen receive only half of the treatment they required, while the dialysis centers in Yemen struggle to continue their work.

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1671331436253213/?type=3 and also http://almasdaronline.com/article/97516

(* B H)

Female mechanic breaks social barrier in war-torn Yemen

Dressed in a baggy jumpsuit and a grey paisley veil, 24-year-old Dalia al-Moqadam is an understated pioneer in Yemen -- a rare female mechanic in a conservative Middle Eastern country at war.

This week in the rebel-controlled capital Sanaa, Moqadam's cavernous garage -- full of gleaming cars -- was a refuge from the three-year conflict that has claimed thousands of lives.

For this young Yemeni woman, the biggest worry when starting out was that society, not the violence, would make it hard for her to take on the challenge and follow her passion.

Yemen, an impoverished Muslim-majority country on the tip of the Arabian Peninsula, came bottom in the rankings of the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report released in November.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-5478887/Female-mechanic-breaks-social-barrier-war-torn-Yemen.html

(* B H)

What It’s Like to Be a Woman Living in a War Zone

Being a woman in Yemen means struggle, fighting, and hope. Because of the war, the most basic everyday tasks are difficult. I start my day hoping that I have fuel in my car, and even if I do, then I have to pray that I find a fuel station that is open so that I can get more. Then I have to pass by dozens of military checkpoints.

If I have enough gas, I’ll drive to my office, where the electricity will hopefully be turned on. When the war started, the electricity station was bombed and officials say it needs to be fixed by professionals who can’t enter Yemen because of the blockade. In 2015 we spent nine months without power, and it was a nightmare. We mixed boiled water with cold water and showered like we were in the dark ages and we had to find cafés with generators to charge our phones.

https://www.thecut.com/2018/03/what-its-like-to-be-a-woman-living-in-a-war-zone.html

(* B H)

CARE: “Find your passion and achieve it”

From when she was only ten years old, Helalah knew what she wanted to do when she grew up. Today, despite the ongoing conflict in Yemen, she continues to hold on to her dreams and at twenty-three years of age, can attest to the value of hard work in achieving her goals.

Helalah lives with her husband and their two-year-old daughter in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a. “As a child I would spend hours in my room sewing dresses for my dolls. I’d wake up in the middle of the night when everybody was a sleep to finish sewing my dolls and would enjoy every second of it,” she proudly says.

Today, Helalah owns her own tailoring store and training institute. She sews wedding dresses, children’s dresses, casual dresses, and pajamas.

CARE’s Women Economic Empowerment program in Yemen aims to improve the living conditions, empower women through developing their enterprises, and enhance the skills and knowledge needed for self-employment and entrepreneurship. At least 50 women received training in business planning, microfinance, life skills, and marketing, and 14 of those received loans to start or expand their enterprises.

For more of our work in Yemen, click here.

https://www.care-international.org/news/stories-blogs/find-your-passion-and-achieve-it

(* B H)

Dozens of malnourished children may die in Mahweet

The death of dozens of children in the province of Al-Mahweet, west of Yemen, is now a real threat children face as a result of the widespread malnutrition in some of its districts like Hofash.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-16194

(* B H)

Yemen: More than 3 million women and girls suffering the brunt of the ongoing conflict, warns CARE

More than 3.25 million women of reproductive age in Yemen are facing increased health and protection risks, the international aid organization CARE warns. Conditions for women and girls are deteriorating rapidly as the conflict in Yemen nears its fourth year.

An estimated 1.1 million pregnant and lactating women are malnourished as lack of humanitarian access to conflict-affected areas and difficulties obtaining food and medical supplies persist, according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). A further 75,000 pregnant women are at risk of developing complications due to the dire state of health services in Yemen.

“Yemeni women and girls are the ones who are truly paying the price of war,” says Suha Basharen, Gender Specialist with CARE Yemen. “The situation for women is extremely difficult. They are now having to step into roles that are traditionally filled by men, because so many men are now being killed or injured or are forcibly disappeared.”

According to UNFPA, more than 3 million Yemeni women and girls are at risk of gender-based violence, and 60,000 women are at risk of sexual violence, including rape. Many cases of gender-based violence remain unreported, adding to an incomplete picture of the scale of violence against women.

https://www.care-international.org/news/press-releases/yemen-more-than-3-million-women-and-girls-suffering-the-brunt-of-the-ongoing-conflict-warns-care

(B H)

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: Yemen Humanitarian Update Covering 26 February - 04 March 2018 | Issue: 05

UPDATE FROM THE HUMANITARIAN HUBS

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-humanitarian-update-covering-26-february-04-march-2018-issue-05

(B H)

Yemen: Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) Medicine Importation - March 2018

This document was developed in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO). The information in the following sections informs the humanitarian community as to the procedures required for importing medicines and medical supplies into Yemen.

Medicines and medical relief items require particular and additional documentation and procedures for importation into Yemen.

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-standard-operating-procedures-sops-medicine-importation-march-2018

(A H)

Starving Yemen brothers killed each other! Adel & Sadek Shawki,from Hajja north Yemen Killed each other in conflict over relief aids! Leaving their aged parents sad & and every in Bani Kais shocked! Saudi-made starvation must stop for the sake of humanity, for love of God. (photo)

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/971412097677643776

(A H)

Medicines were delivered today by @monarelief's crew for Cancer patients at al-Shafaqa Center in the capital Sanaa. Our project was funded by @monareliefye's online fundraising campaign (photos)

https://twitter.com/Fatikr/status/971406718004531201

(B H)

Sumaya is nearly two years old according to her mother Aisha. Looking at the child, one would not say she's more than a few months. The girl is suffering from rickets, a growth disease due to a deficiency of calcium and vitamin D. For several months, Aisha has been going from hospital to hospital with the hope of a lasting treatment (photos)

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1670055996380757

(B H)

Isn't it enough to let my Yemen people suffering famine, blockade, Cholera & bombing to let them wait for days by their empty cooking gas cylinders for cooking gas supplies? (photos)

https://www.facebook.com/AdelHa11/posts/2053733208245587

cp4 Flüchtlinge / Refugees

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(B H)

Kaum Möglichkeiten zur Flucht für Jemeniten

Die Nachbarländer, darunter Saudi-Arabien und Oman, weigern sich aus Furcht, es könnte zu einer Masseneinwanderung kommen, die überwiegende Mehrheit der vertriebenen Jemeniten auf legalem Wege aufzunehmen. Folglich sitzen Tausende Jemeniten fest bzw. wenden sich an Schleuser. (…)

https://www.mena-watch.com/kaum-moeglichkeiten-der-flucht-fuer-jemeniten/

(B H)

UN High Commissioner for Refugees: Shelter/NFI/CCCM Cluster Coordination Team (CCT) Report for the Mission to Amran Gov. (under Sana’a Hub)

2.1 Visit AlJaheen Spontaneous Settlement in Raydah district:

Consists of approximately 80 HHs

Majority of IDPs families displaced in the site for three years

IDPs areas of origin are mainly Sahar and Sa’adah City (Sa’adah Governorate)

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/shelternficccm-cluster-coordination-team-cct-report-mission-amran-gov-under-sana-hub

(B H)

UNHCR Somalia Repatriation Update, 1-31 January 2018

Repatriation is considered one of the three traditional durable solutions. UNHCR, therefore, provides support to Somali refugee returnees who opt for a voluntary repatriation.

https://reliefweb.int/report/somalia/unhcr-somalia-repatriation-update-1-31-january-2018

cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis

Siehe / Look at cp1

(A P)

Houthi sniper wounds one civilian west of Moreis in Dhali'a

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-16226

(*A)

A gunman kill 4 civilians over Gas conflict in Sana'a

Four civilians were killed on Wednesday and others wounded by a gunman in front of a gas station in the 30th zone, Muaen district, Sana'a over a gas filling issue, eyewitnesses and medics said.

The eyewitnesses told Almasdaronline that the gunman opened fire at the civilians as they queued in front of the Sasco gas filling station in the 30th zone, killing four of them immediately.

The gunman, who was likely to belong to the Houthi group, arrived at the station on a motorcycle with an empty Gas cylinder and bypassed hundreds of people who had been in long queues for filling gas cylinders.

The people in queues and the owner of the station prevented him from bypassing the rest and asked him to return to take a spot in the queue.

But the gunman refused to line up and insisted that he fill before every one else, so he made a conflict with the people in line, then opened fire at them, killing four of them and injuring others.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/97518 and https://www.thenational.ae/world/mena/houthi-rebel-shoots-dead-four-civilians-in-sanaa-1.711680 (taking for sure he was a “Houthi gunman”)

(A P)

The domestic gas crisis continues in the capital Sana'a, while the Houthis continue to detain carriers from Marib, with the aim of forcing traders to pay customs duties and citizens to land in long queues in front of gas stations. (photos)

https://twitter.com/RepublicanYemen/status/971455135376343041

and film: People waiting for gas

https://twitter.com/RepublicanYemen/status/971820158435168256

and

(A P)

Dozens of angry citizens protest in some streets of # Sana'a, to demand the supply of domestic gas, and the high price of gas cylinder on the black market to more than 9 thousand riyals.

https://twitter.com/RepublicanYemen/status/971777361480953857

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

(A P)

Troops from the Emirati-backed al Hizam Security Forces clashed amongst themselves in al Mahfad district, Abyan governorate, southern Yemen on March 9, according to local sources. Officer Salem Mohim and one other soldier died in the clashes. It is unclear what caused the clashes. Al Hizam Security Forces are conducting an operation in al Mahfad to clear AQAP from strongholds in the area. [3]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-march-9-2018

(A E)

The opening of the first plant for the production and packaging of fruits in the Directorate of the valley of the province of Marib, with a cadre of women, in conjunction with a continuous renaissance in services, as well as investments in the agricultural and tourism sectors. (photos)

https://twitter.com/RepublicanYemen/status/971780383242117120

(A T)

A Massive Operation Clears Abian off Terrorists and Kills Their Emir

Recently, Abian witnessed several military operations for eliminating terrorist elements from the governorate. Operations were launched by security belt forces with backup of the Arab Coalition Air Forces

http://en.smanews.org/a-massive-operation-clears-abian-off-terrorists-and-kills-their-emir and also https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-march-9-2018

My comment: “security belt forces“, UAE-backed, pro-separatists. The Hadi government has nothing more to govern in Southern Yemen.

And

(A T)

Film: Yemen - A Senior Qaeda Leader Killed In A New Operation In Yemen (Exclusive Scenes)

With the start of the operation of "Alsayl Aljarf" which aims to end Al-Qaeda terrorist organization and to take control over the province of Abyan. The forces supported by Arab coalition were able to kill a senior Qaeda leader "Abu Muhsin Basarin" in Al Mahfid, they also arrested two organization members and seized a number of explosive as they continue to search for the remaining Qaeda members.

http://arab24.com/portal/index.php/en/stories/2017-09-05-06-26-75/item/9972-yemen-a-senior-qaeda-leader-killed-in-a-new-operation-in-yemen-exclusive-scenes

(* B P)

Andrew Korbyko Interviews Summer Ahmed of Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council

The following is an interview Andrew Korybko conduced with Summer Ahmed, a US based spokeswoman for the Southern Transitional Council which is pressing for the restoration of South Yemen based on its pre-1990 borders.

AK: Please briefly tell our audience about the origins of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) and the cause of South Yemeni independence more generally.

AK: What exactly happened in late January that provoked the STC to seize power in Aden, and to what extent was it assisted by the UAE like has been alleged?

AK: How has the “cold peace” between the STC and the Hadi government been maintained in the month since, and what influence if any have the UAE and Saudi Arabia had in stabilizing the situation?

SA: So far the peace has held and negotiations led by UAE and Saudi Arabia are still ongoing to try and resolve the issue. Nothing tangible achieved yet, the SRF are still surrounding the Ma’shiq Palace, some government officials are still in there and others such as PM Bin Dagher have left to Saudi Arabia.

For southerners, those events are a point of no return, and they continue to move forward in the disengagement process from Yemen unity and plans for South Yemen independence

AK: What is the STC’s reaction to former South Yemeni President Ali Nasr Mohamad’s 8-point peace proposal last week in Russia and its suggestion for a two-region federal state instead of independence?

SA: There was no official reaction from the Southern Transitional Council.

http://www.eurasiafuture.com/2018/03/08/exclusive-andrew-korbyko-interviews-summer-ahmed-yemens-southern-transitional-council/

(A T)

Lahij security official survives assassination attempt north of Aden [2]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-march-8-2018

http://en.smanews.org/security-chief-of-lahj-survives-a-failure-assassination-in-al-rabat

(A T)

Arrest of Assassins’ Cell in Adan, Transferred from Sanaa by Officials in the Legitimacy Government, with Thousands of US Dollars in their Possession

Asecurity source indicated that security forces arrested an assassination cell responsible for the last two assassinations of a soldier and a superior officer in Adan security forces. According to the source, members of the cell had in their possession huge sums of US Dollars, modern weapons and documents indicating that they work for the general association of electricity in Sanaa who were recently transferred to Adan by officials in the legitimacy government.

http://en.smanews.org/arrest-of-assassins-cell-in-adan-transferred-from-sanaa-by-officials-in-the-legitimacy-government-with-thousands-of-us-dollars-in-their-possession

(A P)

Local Leadership of the Southern Transitional Council in Adan Holds the Expanded Consultation Meeting of Southern Syndicates and Academics

Under auspices of the local leadership of the southern transitional council in Adan, the expanded consultation meeting of southern syndicates and academics was held on Tuesday March 6th, 2018.

http://en.smanews.org/local-leadership-of-the-southern-transitional-council-in-adan-holds-the-expanded-consultation-meeting-of-southern-syndicates-and-academics

My comment: Events like this show that the Hadi government does not have anything to govern any more, not even in its capital city.

(A P)

Gunmen storm house of resistance commander in Aden, kidnap his relatives

Armed men in military uniforms have stormed the house of Mohammed al-Maqtari, a commander in the popular resistance force that drove out Houthi rebels from Aden in 2015 and kidnapped two of his relatives.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-16191

(A P)

Al Hizam Security Forces disperse oil employees protesting in Aden

A local source said that al Hizam security forces loyal to the United Arab Emirates broke up on Wednesday a protest organized by employees of the oil company in Brega, western Aden.

The source told Amasdaronline that the security forces attacked the protest that was held in front of Aden Refinery Company and opened fire in the air.

Dozens of the employees protested against what they called corruption and manipulation of oil derivatives and its prices.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/97497

(A T)

UAE ‘Operation Sweeping Torrent’ unleashed in Yemen

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has begun another counter-terrorism assault against Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in Abyan governorate yesterday, just two weeks after it launched its last offensive, Emirates News Agency reported.

The mission “began on Tuesday to cleanse pockets and strongholds of Al-Qaeda members from Al-Muhafad and Wadi Hamara districts, the last terrorist stronghold in Abyan Governorate”, a statement on Emirates News Agency read.

The UAE-backed Security Belt Forces (SBF) is carrying out the “military plan” with assistance from the Saudi-led coalition.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180308-uae-operation-sweeping-torrent-unleashed-in-yemen/

(A P)

German Delegate Meets Abu Yamama in Al-Gala Camp

On Wednesday March 7th, 2018, the German delegate met Brigadier Muneer Al-Yafiey Abu Yamama, commander of the first brigade backup and support in Al-Gala Camp at Al-Berika – Adan, to observe the situation in Adan and the liberated areas. During the visit, Abu Yamama awarded the German delegate an honorary shield and accompanied him in a field visit to the camp where they attended a military march and then they visited streets of Adan to observe security situation closely. The German delegate observed that the security situation is comforting

http://en.smanews.org/german-delegate-meets-abu-yamama-in-al-gala-camp

My comment: LOL. The “German delegate” is Uli Gack, correspondent of German ZDF TV station.

(A T)

Arab Coalition locates Al Qaeda's Katyusha depot in Yemen

Under the support of the pro - legitimacy Saudi-led Arab Coalition Forces in Yemen, the security forces in Abyan located a Katyusha rocket depot used by Al Qaeda in Wadi Hamara.

The find, which falls within the ongoing Operation "Sweeping Torrent", deals a heavy blow to the terrorist group which is using this type of missiles in carrying out its terror offensives against civilians.

http://wam.ae/en/details/1395302672885

(A P)

UAE authorities dismiss government employees in Socotra

The UAE authorities began to dismiss government employees in the electricity company, like other government employees.

The source told Almasdaronline that Daxem, the UAE's energy company, had controlled the island's electricity company and began to dismiss the employees one by one.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/97487

cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks

(* B P)

Peace proposals dead on arrival in Yemen

As Yemen's situation continues to deteriorate, there is little hope that any peace proposal can save it

Peace initiatives are dead on arrival in Yemen. Late last month, Yemen's Houthis declared a bid to wind up the appalling conflict which has killed thousands of people since 2015.

The initiative signalled an unprecedented flexibility for the Houthi group

The Saudi-supported, internationally recognised Yemeni government and the Houthi group controlling the capital seem to have zero trust in one another. Upon hearing the news of the Houthi peace initiative, a government minister warned against taking the peace proposal into serious consideration.

The government insists on implementing what it calls "the three references" - the National Dialogue Conference outcomes, the Gulf Initiative and UN Security Council resolution 2216.
On the other hand, the Houthis would rather fight endlessly than consent to implement these three sets of demands. If the NDC outcomes are enforced, Yemen will be a federal state, and Sanaa will no longer be the country's hub of power.
Moreover, the Houthis deem the Gulf Initiative to be foreign interference into Yemen's internal affairs.
It is also unlikely that we will see the implementation of Resolution 2216 - which clearly stipulates the Houthi handover "state weapons" and withdraw from areas they seized.
Irrespective of the logicality of peace initiatives, distrust has deepened enough to doom any peace ideas in Yemen.

https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/indepth/2018/3/7/peace-proposals-dead-on-arrival-in-yemen

(* A H P)

Film: The speech of Mrs. Kim Sharif director Human Rights for #Yemen at the 37th session of the Human Rights Council was a strong speech in which she explained some of what Yemen has suffered as a result of the war imposed on it, bringing 7 million to the brink of famine, in addition to the unprecedented numbers of people suffering from cholera, for many reasons, including the great destruction of the infrastructure of Yemen...

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/videos/1670351499684540/

cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia

(* B P)

Timeline: Ten times Saudi Arabia's Mohammed bin Salman created chaos in the region

In the three years Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been at the helm of Saudi Arabia's government, he has created chaos at home and abroad.

Young and bullish Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has created turmoil in the region during his three years at the centre of the Saudi royal court.
https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/indepth/2018/3/6/timeline-how-a-bullish-saudi-prince-created-regional-chaos

(* A P)

This 19-Year-old Gang Rape Victim Received 200 Lashes & 6 Months in Jail in Saudi Arabia

A 19-year-old woman who was the victim of a violent gang rape in Saudi Arabia has been sentenced to 200 lashes and six months in jail after being found guilty of being “indecent” at the time of the attack because she was not accompanied by a male guardian.

The government defended the outrageous court decision, saying that the victim was at fault, and noting that Saudi courts abide by Sharia law which dictates that a woman cannot be in public without a male guardian.

The original incident reportedly took place in 2006. At that time the victim was in a car with a friend when two men commandeered their vehicle and drove them to a secluded area. She was then violently raped by seven men, three of whom also attacked her friend.

Initially, the woman was sentenced to 90 lashes, while the men who raped her were given minor custodial sentences.

The obviously unfair verdict was appealed by the woman’s lawyer. However, instead of overturning the punishment, the court reportedly more than doubled the punishment for the woman, sentencing her to 200 lashes and six months in jail after being found guilty of indecency and talking to the media.

https://www.femalista.com/19-year-old-gang-rape-victim-received-200-lashes-6-months-jail-saudi-arabia/

(B P)

Could Saudi be leading the drive to employ women in the Middle East?

https://ameinfo.com/money/economy/saudi-women-middle-east/

Remark: Well, Iran did this for long already.

(* A P)

Report: Saudi Crown Prince Meets Senior Israeli Officials in Egypt, Discuss Future Ties

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman met with senior Israeli officials during his visit to Egypt this week, the London-based Arab newspaper Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported on Wednesday.

The report said the meeting focused on the normalization of ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia, and included the kingdom’s commitment to the “deal of the century,” the Middle East peace plan being devised by the Trump administration.

Within that framework, Israel would take part in the unprecedented real estate venture being sponsored by the Saudis in the Gulf of Aqaba.

https://www.algemeiner.com/2018/03/09/report-saudi-crown-prince-meets-senior-israeli-officials-in-egypt-discuss-future-ties/

(B E P)

Saudi Aramco international share sale might never happen: Kemp

Saudi Aramco’s [IPO-ARAM.SE] partial privatization has loomed over the oil market for the last two years, influencing expectations about oil prices, but what if it never happens?

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-privatisation-kemp/saudi-aramco-international-share-sale-might-never-happen-kemp-idUSKCN1GL2F0

(? B P)

Audio: Salman's Legacy: The Dilemmas of a New Era in Saudi Arabia (1:28 hours)

Speakers: Madawi Al-Rasheed, LSE Middle East Centre; Steffen Hertog, LSE; Michael Farquhar, King's College London.
This talk launches the edited volume 'Salman’s Legacy', which interrogates this era and assesses its multiple social, political, regional and international challenges. Whether Salman’s policies have saved the kingdom from serious upheaval is yet to be seen, but no doubt a new kingdom is emerging.

https://soundcloud.com/lsemiddleeastcentre/lse-legacy?utm_source=soundcloud

(A P)

Saudi crown prince commits to interfaith tolerance

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman met the head of the Anglican Church in London Thursday and promised to promote interfaith dialogue as part of his domestic reforms, the British faith leader’s office said.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2018/Mar-09/440852-saudi-crown-prince-commits-to-interfaith-tolerance.ashx

My comment: Doubts: https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2001272256/girl-held-in-saudi-arabia-risks-death-by-stoning and https://www.femalista.com/19-year-old-gang-rape-victim-received-200-lashes-6-months-jail-saudi-arabia/

(* A P)

Mohammad bin Salman to deal with the ‘deal of the century’

Arab diplomatic sources in Cairo revealed that the so-called ‘deal of the century’ on the Palestinian-Israeli question is the most prominent matter on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman agenda.

The leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), Maher Al-Taher, called on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman and all Arab leaders to “stand by the Palestinian people and support their struggle.”

In an interview with Quds Press, Al-Taher said that “all Palestinian people reject ‘the deal of the century’ because it seeks to destroy the Palestinian cause.”

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180308-mohammad-bin-salman-to-deal-with-the-deal-of-the-century/

(A H)

Film: ‘The time is now,’ say women in Saudi Arabia celebrating #Internationalwomensday with a new found right many of us take for granted...jogging. I chased @bliss_run through the old city of Jeddah

https://twitter.com/ewither/status/971764890011684864

(** B P)

Thousands of Pakistanis detained and sentenced to death in Saudi denied rights: Report

Thousands of Pakistanis imprisoned in Saudi Arabia and dozens sentenced to death in the ultra-conservative kingdom have been denied their legal rights to a defence, a report in Islamabad has warned.

Saudi Arabia executes more Pakistanis than any other foreign nationality annually, nearly all for heroin smuggling, according to the study by Justice Project Pakistan and Human Rights Watch (HRW).

Sixty-six Pakistanis were beheaded in the country between 2014 and 2017 alone, the report entitled "Caught in a Web" said.
"You not only have the death sentence, but you have it without due process or elementary fair trial," Saroop Ijaz, an HRW researcher, told AFP.

Pakistani migrants are "exceptionally disempowered and marginalised," Ijaz told AFP, adding that the group faces a "premodern discriminatory" criminal justice system in Saudi Arabia.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/thousands-of-pakistanis-detained-and-sentenced-to-death-in-saudi-denied-rights-report/articleshow/63216695.cms

(* B P)

Mohammad bin Salman is not a revolutionary. He’s the prince of PR

Don't be fooled: the crown prince is an old-fashioned despot

https://www.spectator.co.uk/2018/03/mohammad-bin-salman-is-not-a-revolutionary-hes-the-prince-of-pr/

(B)

A glimpse inside Saudi Arabia in photos

The photos in the gallery below illustrate Saudi Arabia’s rapid urbanization, rising national identity, and some of the changes underway in society and politics as King Salman’s Vision 2030 gets underway.

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2018/03/07/a-glimpse-inside-saudi-arabia-in-photos/

My comment: Modern outfit, medieval thinking.

(A P)

Tortured Activist Loses Memory in Saudi’s Prison

Bahraini sources say an activist, who had been deported recently to Saudi Arabia, has lost his memory after he was subjected to torture in the kingdom’s prisons.

The family of Ahmed Attia reported that his health has been deteriorated since his deportation to Saudi Arabia, adding that he lost his memory due to torture

http://www.newnewss.net/tortured-activist-loses-memory-in-saudis-prison/

(A P)

US ‘60 Minutes’ to air interview with Saudi crown prince

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will appear on the CBS “60 Minutes” program, one of the most popular US television shows.
An interview with the crown prince by “CBS This Morning” co-host Norah O’Donnell will be screened on Sunday, March 18, two days before the Saudi leader’s meeting with US President Donald Trump.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1261446/saudi-arabia

My comment: More propaganda to be expected.

(* B P)

Will Saudi Arabia Free Its Women?

Imagine the humiliation of a middle-aged mother having to ask a young son’s approval for life decisions.

In Saudi Arabia, governed by Shariah (Islamic law), a woman must live under the authority of a male guardian, her wali al-amr.

Saudi women do not have freedom of movement and never become fully independent legal persons.

Could things finally be changing?

There could be no clearer demonstration of the crown prince’s commitment to bringing Saudi Arabia into the modern era than dismantling the guardianship system. It would earn him credibility with investors and unlock the productive capacity of Saudi women, fewer than 18% of whom participate in the labor force.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/will-saudi-arabia-free-its-women-1520466022

(B P)

Saudi Arabia’s strongman is doing too much, too fast

As western leaders welcome Prince Mohammed, allies would do well to counsel caution

It was often said that change in Saudi Arabia came at a glacial pace. At best, its rulers moved two steps forward and one step back. These days, you’re more likely to hear that the world’s largest oil exporter is moving far too fast. It has become an unpredictable, aggressive kingdom, where long-held taboos are broken every day and new rules are introduced overnight. Yet if the paralysis of the past was destructive, the hyperactivity of the present is troubling too.

https://www.ft.com/content/94910528-212e-11e8-9efc-0cd3483b8b80?desktop=true

(* B P)

Saudi prince says Turkey part of 'triangle of evil': Egyptian media

Saudi Arabia’s powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has described Turkey as part of a “triangle of evil” along with Iran and hardline Islamist groups, Egypt’s Al-Shorouk newspaper reported on Wednesday.

The Saudi prince also accused Turkey of trying to reinstate the Islamic Caliphate, abolished nearly a century ago when the Ottoman Empire collapsed.

His reported comments reflect Saudi Arabia’s deep suspicion of President Tayyip Erdogan, whose ruling AK Party has its roots in Islamist politics and who has allied his country with Qatar in its dispute with Saudi Arabia and some other Gulf states.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-turkey/saudi-prince-says-turkey-part-of-triangle-of-evil-egyptian-media-idUSKCN1GJ1WW

My comment: Beginning a new strife, as Iran, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, Libya, Qatar yet not seem to be enough. – You really must not be a friend of Erdogan’s Turkey to realize that Saudi Arabia is much worse, much more autocratic, much more Islamist than Turkey.

cp9 USA

Siehe / Look at cp1

(* B K P)

Google admits collaboration with illegal US drone murder program

In another milestone in the growing integration between the military-intelligence complex and Silicon Valley, Google’s parent company Alphabet has confirmed that it has provided software to identify targets used in the illegal US government drone murder program.

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2018/03/08/goog-m08.html

and

(* B K P)

Hey Google! Who Should the US Government Kill Today?

Only months after it was disclosed that the Pentagon was using artificial intelligence (AI) to hunt for terrorists, officials have now acknowledged that Google has been collaborating with the Department of Defense to use AI in analyzing drone footage. The disclosure comes amid an uproar among Google employees who aren’t happy to be assisting in the development of military applications.

While Google has had controversial contracts with the government before — most notably with the NSA — this is its “pilot” project with Project Maven, which is itself the Pentagon’s own flagship weaponized AI program.

http://theantimedia.org/google-collaborating-pentagon-drone-strikes/

(A P)

Saudi Arabia Using Law Firm Tied to Trump to Lobby U.S. for Nuclear Deal

A law firm that reportedly has advised President Trump’s real estate empire registered last month to lobby the Trump administration as part of Saudi Arabia’s bid for U.S. approval for a civilian nuclear power program, federal documents show.

King & Spalding, an international law firm headquartered in Atlanta that reportedly has worked for Trump’s real estate concerns, disclosed that Saudi Arabia was paying the firm up to $450,000 for a 30-day period. The disclosures were made in a filing with the Justice Department, as required by the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).

https://tytnetwork.com/2018/03/08/saudi-arabia-using-law-firm-tied-to-lobby-u-s-for-nuclear-deal/

(* A P)

Jemen-Krieg: US-Senatoren fordern Ende der Unterstützung Washingtons

US-Senatoren haben das Ende des Jemen-Kriegs gefordert und einen Entwurf zur Abstimmung vorgestellt. Denn allein der Kongress habe das Recht, Krieg zu erklären, und nicht Trump. Senator Chris Murphy spricht von einem illegalen Krieg, den Washington unterstütze.

Die US-Senatoren Mike Lee (Republikaner), Chris Murphy (Demokrat) und Bernie Sanders merkten im Bezug auf den Jemen an, dass die Verfassung dem Kongress die Macht überlässt den Krieg zu erklären und nicht der Präsident. Sie fordern die Beendigung der amerikanischen Involvierung in dem Krieg. Der Konflikt im Jemen gilt als derzeit größte humanitäre Katastrophe. Saudi-Arabien verhindert Hilfslieferungen ins Land. Rund 1,8 Millionen Menschen im Jemen sind derzeit unterernährt und 250.000 von Cholera betroffen. Der Senator Chris Murphy ist der Ansicht, dass die USA durch ihre Involvierung in dem Konflikt "Gewalt exportieren" und Zivilisten töten.

https://deutsch.rt.com/international/66286-us-senatoren-fordern-ende-unterstuetzung-jemen-kriegs/

(* A P)

GOP Senator Once Critical Of Yemen War Helps Trump Block Senate Debate On It

Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) crafted an alternative bill peace groups believe threatens U.S. escalation with Iran.

Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) spent much of 2017 urging greater accountability for the American role in the civil war in Yemen ― presenting himself as one of few GOP critics of the Trump administration’s policies and aligning with prominent critics of U.S.-backed Saudi-United Arab Emirates operations in Yemen, like Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and a bevy of national security experts on the left and right.

Now he is trying to undercut the best shot war skeptics have of forcing the U.S. to change course.

The Young-Shaheen amendment is less ambitious.

That proposal would effectively greenlight continued Saudi-UAE operations for months, at the very least.

The worry among supporters of the Sanders-Lee-Murphy bill is that Senate leaders will encourage both pieces of legislation to be considered in short succession.

Campaigners in the constellation of groups supporting the Sanders-Lee-Murphy bill are lining up to blast Young’s move.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/gop-senator-once-critical-of-yemen-war-helps-trump-push-against-senate-debating-it_us_5aa1f48ce4b07047bec4cf97

(* A P)

Bipartisan Senate Bill Calls for an End to U.S. Intervention in Yemen

Sanders, Murphy, and Lee are correct: the United States must end its involvement in the immoral, destructive, and unsuccessful Saudi-led war effort in Yemen.

Unfortunately, the bipartisan resolution will likely face difficulties in getting through the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and onto the Senate floor for a vote. To counter these challenges, Americans across the political spectrum must call on their senators and voice their support for this important resolution.

https://muftah.org/bipartisan-senate-bill-calls-for-an-end-to-u-s-intervention-in-yemen/#.WqJ73OjOWUk

(* A P)

America’s complicity in Saudi Arabia’s immoral war in Yemen needs to end

Washington shares responsibility for the larger civilian deaths from Saudi airstrikes and the deliberate incitement of famine since the Kingdom intervened in Yemen’s civil war to reinstate its deposed president. But our government’s response has been pitiful.

The cynicism of Saudi Arabia and its backers in Washington is profound. After three years of effort to starve Yemenis into submission, the Saudi government announced a $3.5 billion “humanitarian plan” with great fanfare instead of contributing to the desperately underfunded U.N. plan. But the Saudi plan would allow them to direct aid flows to regions under their control while denying food to the most affected rebel-held regions and continuing the blockade of the city’s main port, Hodeidah.

https://bangordailynews.com/2018/03/09/opinion/contributors/americas-complicity-in-saudi-arabias-immoral-war-in-yemen-needs-to-end/

(* A P)

The Congressional Battle Over Ending the War In Yemen

But it is telling that the administration is aware of the measure, sponsored by Lee, Bernie Sanders and Chris Murphy, and at least, as yet, is not publicly lashing out against it.

Indicators abound that Saudi Arabia, and its pointman the Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, have lost some steam from the high-water mark of the early part of the Trump administration, when the White House embraced the Saudis wholeheartedly.

Murphy, who is attempting to build a national profile, is pitching a pro-State Department, anti-war (but tough on Moscow) platform, and working with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. The idea, says supporters on the Hill and outside of it, is to force defenders of the war to defend the status quo. Former State Department officials have long complained of a sinister origin of the U.S. support for the coalition: after the Obama administration inked the Iran deal

http://nationalinterest.org/feature/the-congressional-battle-over-ending-the-war-yemen-24836

(* B P)

Once Upon a Time, Congress Actually Fought Saudi Arms Deals. It Can Again.

Most members of Congress accept that the U.S. will sell huge quantities of weapons to the rights-abusing state. It doesn't have to be that way.

Indeed, in the past Congress has asserted itself in ways that now seem almost unthinkable: denying and opposing presidential requests for arms sales, scrutinizing intelligence agencies, and questioning the foreign policy of the executive.

Today’s elected representatives must look to this legacy if they are to save themselves from irrelevance.

Fast-forward to 2010 and what was then the biggest arms deal in U.S. history: $60 billion worth of F-15s, F-15 upgrades, helicopters, missiles, night-vision goggles, and radar warning systems — all for Saudi Arabia.

Several things had changed since the 1980s. T

It is, however, hard not to notice how congressional interest in arms deals has receded as money from arms companies has increasingly lined the pockets of representatives and their political action committees.

http://fpif.org/upon-time-congress-actually-fought-saudi-arms-deals-can/

(* A P)

Putting the Yemen Resolution in Procedural Context

Much of this debate, however, has overlooked the unique procedural context in which the joint resolution is being put forward, which is designed to ensure it can be made the subject of a vote even over possible opposition by others in the Senate. That said, the same procedure—which is tied to the 1973 War Powers Resolution (WPR)—limits the legal effect that the joint resolution can have.

If the Castle letter is correct that the joint resolution is unlikely to have any direct impact on U.S. policy, then why are its sponsors pursuing it? The answer is most likely political.

Whichever of these paths its supporters decide to take next, the joint resolution currently under consideration is unlikely to put an end to the controversy surrounding U.S. involvement in Yemen. But it may prove to be an important step towards eventually winning the political debate.

https://www.lawfareblog.com/putting-yemen-resolution-procedural-context

Remark: Very detailed; showing that the Sanders & others resolution would have little effect.

(* A P)

This Is the Best Chance Yet to Stop the U.S. War on Yemen. Where Are the Major Human Rights Orgs?

Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, the most powerful human rights organizations in the world, are declining to endorse a new political push to end U.S. participation in the catastrophic Saudi-led war on Yemen.

The groups are taking no position on the bill, S.J.Res.54, even as it gains political momentum and a groundswell of grassroots backing from About Face: Veterans Against the War, Just Foreign Policy, United for Peace and Justice, Oxfam America, Indivisible and other organizations.

Shireen Al-Adeimi, who is organizing independently to build support for the Sanders and Lee bill, tells In These Times that it is morally unacceptable for leading human rights groups to refuse to take a position on wars, arguing that the new legislation presents the best opportunity to curb U.S. support for the intervention.

http://inthesetimes.com/article/20970/Yemen-War-Saudi-Arabia-Amnesty-International-Human-Rights-Watch-military/

(* A P)

NGOs Push Senators To Support Yemen Resolution

A group of over 40 NGOs have signed on to an open letter calling on senators to support SJRes54, a joint resolution introduced last month by Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Mike Lee (R-UT), and Chris Murphy (D-CT). The resolution calls for a vote to authorize the U.S. military role in Yemen’s civil war under the 1973 War Powers Act.

The text of the letter is as follows:

http://lobelog.com/ngos-push-senators-to-support-yemen-resolution/

(* A P)

Experts urge senators to back bill ending US involvement in Yemen war

A group of experts, advocates, former officials and others are urging senators to support a bipartisan effort to end U.S. involvement in Yemen’s civil war.

“We strongly encourage you and your Senate colleagues to cosponsor and vote for S.J.Res 54, which defends the constitutional linchpin of Congress’s sole authority to declare war and promises to help end what aid groups consider the worst humanitarian crisis in the world,” the 37-person group wrote in a letter sent to every senator Thursday and obtained by The Hill.

Signatories include former U.S. ambassador to Yemen Stephen Seche; Bruce Ackerman, a Yale Law School professor who has previously challenged the legal authorization of recent U.S. wars; Nobel peace laureates Jody Williams and Tawakkol Karman

http://thehill.com/policy/defense/377457-experts-urge-senators-to-support-sanders-lee-bill-on-ending-us-involvement-in and also https://www.commondreams.org/news/2018/03/08/experts-demand-senators-back-sanders-led-proposal-end-us-complicity-yemen-bloodshed

(* A P)

Activists Rally Behind Bipartisan Effort To Have Senate Vote On Brutal Yemen War

Meanwhile, the Trump administration is stepping up its fight against the bill, planning a special classified briefing on Yemen for all senators next week.

Advocacy groups with powerful grassroots networks around the country are pressuring senators to vote for unprecedented legislation from Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) that would immediately end U.S. support for a controversial Saudi-led coalition that has been fighting in Yemen since 2015.

The Trump administration has responded to the bill by questioning its legal basis. In a letter to Senate leaders obtained by HuffPost last week, the acting general counsel of the Defense Department argued that lawmakers legislation cannot invoke the War Powers Resolution and force an end to the policy because American support to the coalition, dominated by Saudi Arabia and fellow U.S. partner the United Arab Emirates, does not constitute “hostilities” against the Iran-backed rebels the coalition is fighting.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/activists-rally-behind-bipartisan-effort-to-have-senate-vote-on-brutal-yemen-war_us_5aa1acf4e4b086698a9bf062

(A P)

The US has the leverage to end the senseless suffering in Yemen

The United States Congress and the Trump administration should work to facilitate a political resolution to the conflict, without which the humanitarian crisis will never truly be addressed. Our organization, In Defense of Christians in the Middle East, supports any legislation that works to end the escalating proxy war between Iran and Saudi Arabia in the Middle East.

The United States has the leverage to pressure our ally Saudi Arabia to work on an agreement in Yemen and guide them to play a stabilizing and constructive role in the Middle East.

http://thehill.com/opinion/international/377554-the-us-has-the-leverage-to-end-the-senseless-suffering-in-yemen

(A P)

Film: Bombed and Banned: Yemenis doubly victimized by U.S. policiesThe worst humanitarian crisis in decades is happening in Yemen because of the Saudi-led bombing campaign that's literally being fueled by the U.S. military. Tell your Senators to support#SJRes54 and stop U.S. involvement in the war on Yemen.

https://www.facebook.com/MPowerChange/videos/vb.826451114135102/10155249800725493/?type=2&theater

(A P)

Sara Avery: Congress must vote to end Yemen war

I call on Sens. Michael Bennet and Cory Gardner to support S.J.Res. 54, introduced by the bipartisan trio of Sens. Bernie Sanders, Mike Lee, and Chris Murphy, to withdraw U.S. armed forces from the Saudi-led war in Yemen.

I encourage others interested in joining this effort to call 1-833-STOPWAR and stopwar.us to get more info on how you can end this illegal and brutal war.

http://www.dailycamera.com/letters/ci_31720760/sara-avery-congress-must-vote-end-yemen-war

(* A P)

How the US can bring an end to the war in Yemen

As early as the next few days, the Senate will have its best opportunity so far to end US support for Saudi Arabia's devastating war in Yemen -- a war that has sparked a humanitarian catastrophe that puts millions of lives at risk.

US support for the Saudis -- which includes refueling of Saudi combat aircraft and assistance in choosing bombing targets -- is an act of war as defined by section 8 (c) of the War Powers Resolution. That 1973 law requires congressional approval of any such action, as a way to curb the President's ability to launch a war unilaterally.

Action to end US support for Saudi Arabia's shameful military campaign in Yemen is long overdue.

The Senate can improve the prospects for an end to the slaughter in Yemen by supporting the Sanders/Lee/Murphy amendment – by William D. Hartung

https://us.cnn.com/2018/03/07/opinions/congress-saudi-funding-yemen-opinion-hartung/index.html

(* A P)

Stand Up for the Constitution: Stop Unauthorized Involvement in Yemen’s Civil War

The unlikely alliance of progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and constitutional conservative Sen.. Mike Lee, R-Utah, has presented the Senate with an unprecedented opportunity to end the unauthorized U.S. involvement on the ill-advised Saudi Arabia-led side of the civil war in Yemen.

It is clear that U.S. participation in the Yemen War contravenes our laws. President Donald Trump is failing to uphold the War Powers Resolution requirement that Congress has to authorize any long-term military commitments made by the United States.

Undoubtedly, this resolution will face vigorous opposition by some in the Senate

Every senator voting to end U.S. military assistance to the Saudi side in the civil war sends the much-needed diplomatic signal to Riyadh that it’s time to bring this mission to a practical conclusion.

http://www.defenseone.com/ideas/2018/03/stand-constitution-stop-unauthorized-involvement-yemens-civil-war/146465/

(A P)

Film: Sen. Lee on the Global Trade Accountability Act, the U.S. Role in Yemen

Sen. Mike Lee, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a Republican from Utah, discusses the Global Trade Accountability Act and the role of the U.S. in Yemen. He speaks with Bloomberg's Julia Chatterley, Julie Hyman and Scarlet Fu on "What'd You Miss?"

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2018-03-07/sen-lee-on-the-global-trade-accountability-act-the-u-s-role-in-yemen-video

(A P)

Audio: How a new resolution will affect U.S. troops in Yemen

Governance Studies fellows Molly Reynolds, and Scott R. Anderson, analyze the new joint resolution in Congress which encourages President Trump to rescind United States support for the Saudi-led campaign in Yemen. Reynolds and Anderson delve into the legal premises of the joint resolution, and discuss whether the resolution will prevent the Department of Defense from keeping U.S. troops in Yemen

https://www.brookings.edu/podcast-episode/how-a-new-resolution-will-affect-u-s-troops-in-yemen/

(A P)

Saudi Ambassador to Yemen meets US officials in USA

He also met American researcher Katherine Zimmerman of American Enterprise Institute (AEI) in Washington

http://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1734747

cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain

Siehe / Look at cp1 and cp15a (propaganda on Prince Salman visit)

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(A P)

Cartoon by Brookes, Times

https://twitter.com/BrookesTimes/status/971730536178831361

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1672492409470449/?type=3&theater

(** A P)

Britischer Außenminister: Saudi-Arabien darf im Jemen "zur Selbstverteidigung" bomben

Der britische Außenminister hat die saudisch geführte Militärintervention im benachbarten Jemen verteidigt, bei der bislang mehr als 9.300 Menschen getötet und mehr als 50.000 verletzt wurden. London liefert mithilfe "offener Exportlizenzen" Waffen an Riad.

"Großbritannien unterstützt das Recht Saudi-Arabiens, seine nationale Sicherheit gegen Raketenangriffe aus dem Jemen zu verteidigen", sagte Boris Johnson.

Um in der Öffentlichkeit nicht zu sehr ins Kreuzfeuer der Kritik zu geraten, soll Premierministerin May laut Medienberichten verstärkt auf so genannte offene Waffenverkaufslizenzen zurückgreifen, um den tatsächlichen Umfang der Verkäufe britischer Rüstungsgüter an Riad zu verschleiern.

Eine Analyse der Beobachtungsstelle für internationalen Waffenhandel "Campaign Against Arms Trade" (CAAT) ergab, dass im Jahr 2016 insgesamt 257 Lizenzen in Anspruch genommen wurden - in den ersten Monaten des Jahres 2017 erfolgte gar ein Anstieg um 175 Prozent auf 707.

https://deutsch.rt.com/der-nahe-osten/66398-britischer-aussenminister-saudi-arabien-darf-jemen-bomben-selbstverteidigung/

(** A P)

Handel statt Wandel: Saudischer Kronprinz weilt in Großbritannien

Roter Teppich für Mohammed bin Salman: Der saudische Kronprinz ist für einen mehrtägigen Besuch im britischen Königreich angekommen. Während Beobachter den Besuch scharf kritisieren, soll der bilaterale Handel gestärkt werden.

Im Vorfeld des Besuchs des saudischen Kronprinzen Mohammed bin Salman hatten britische Menschenrechtsgruppen die Regierung in London dazu aufgefordert, den geplanten Besuch des Kronprinzen abzusagen.

Am Flughafen wurde der junge Prinz zunächst vom britischen Außenminister Boris Johnson geherzt. Dieser frohlockte bereits in der vergangenen Woche voller Vorfreude auf den Besuch "eines der ältesten Freunde Britanniens in der Region".

Egal, ob es um Frauenrechte, den Börsengang der saudischen Ölgesellschaft Saudi Aramco oder vermeintliche Anstrengungen gegen den islamistischen Terrorismus geht: Das Königshaus bemüht sich sichtlich, nach außen den Anschein zu erwecken, das Land sei auf dem Weg gesellschaftlicher und politischer Reformen. Auch der hauseigene saudische Nachrichtenkanal al-Arabiya bemüht sich mehr denn je, ein positives Bild der absolutistischen Autokratie zu zeichnen.

Wohl nur in diesem Kontext ist es überhaupt zu verstehen, welche Worte die britische Premierministerin angesichts des royalen Besuchs fand:

Die Beziehung, die wir mit Saudi-Arabien haben, ist historisch, sie ist wichtig und sie hat die Leben von womöglich Hunderten Menschen in diesem Land gerettet.

In der Tat steht es nicht im Widerspruch zu Reformen nach westlichem Vorbild, dass das wahhabitische Königshaus in anderen Weltregionen für den Tod Tausender, wenn nicht Zehntausender Menschen zumindest mitverantwortlich zu machen ist.

https://deutsch.rt.com/europa/66327-handel-statt-wandel-saudischer-kronprinz-grossbritannien/

(** A P)

Riads Charmeoffensive erreicht London

Die britische Regierung rollt dem saudischen Kronprinzen den roten Teppich aus. Kritiker des engen Verhältnisses zwischen London und Riad reagieren erzürnt

Viel mehr Ehre lässt sich einem ausländischen Gast nicht erweisen, was die Kritiker des saudischen Regimes nur umso stärker erbost. Im Regierungsviertel kam es am Mittwoch zu Demonstrationen, und im Unterhaus musste sich May scharfe Fragen der Opposition gefallen lassen.

Im Mittelpunkt der Kritik steht der Krieg, den Saudi-Arabien gegen die von Iran unterstützten Houthi-Rebellen im Jemen führt – mit militärischer Unterstützung aus London. Labour-Chef Jeremy Corbyn zitierte in der Debatte Dokumente der Vereinten Nationen, die Riad „Kriegsverbrechen“ vorhalten.

Nur die guten Beziehungen zu Riad ermöglichten es allerdings, mehr Einfluss als andere auf die saudische Regierung und ihre Kriegsführung zu haben. „Schande! Schande!“, schallte es von den Rängen der Opposition.

Das Vereinigte Königreich sieht Saudi-Arabien seit Jahrzehnten als „strategischen Partner“.

Downing Street hat die saudischen Menschenrechtsverletzungen nie verurteilt. Sie werde den Kronprinz aber „darauf ansprechen“, versicherte May. In der Regierung wird derzeit lieber der Reformwille des Kronprinzen betont.

http://www.faz.net/aktuell/politik/der-saudische-kronprinz-besucht-grossbritannien-15482779.html

(** A P)

The Prince and the PM

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, came to Downing Street on Wednesday, having had lunch with the queen. Yesterday evening he dined at Chequers. A petition against his visit, just passing the 10,000 signatures at which the government must respond, elicited a statement assuring the public that British values would be stressed during the visit, and that UK arms export licences were subject to the highest standards of scrutiny concerning their eventual targeting. There are guests at Yemeni funerals who would no doubt beg to differ.

https://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2018/03/09/julian-sayarer/the-prince-and-the-pm/

Remark: A clear short overview of the visit.

(** A B P)

When It Comes to Criticising Saudi War Crimes, Maybe PM May Should Skip It

For his part, Saudi Arabia’s ambitious heir wants to show that the war on Yemen has made Britain a better place to invest and a more tolerant society toward its funding extremism in the UK and human rights abuses domestically. He also wants to ensure arms deals with British defence group BAE Systems and European weapons maker MBDA continue apace.

In the prevailing environment, don’t be fooled when you hear Prime Minister May claiming “all arms sales are strictly regulated, that Saudi Arabia’s involvement in the conflict is backed by the UN Security Council, and her government supports it.” Together with the United States, Riyadh and London are responsible for putting millions at risk of starvation. They refuse to allow full and unfettered humanitarian and commercial access, including through the ports, to the besieged people of Yemen. They also seek no political solution to end the conflict and the humanitarian suffering.

Far from it, Prime Minister May rolled out the red carpet and provided the equivalent of a state visit to a dictatorial head of a medieval regime. Despite domestic and international criticism, she never bothered to demand the Saudis end the systematic bombing of civilian targets in Yemen, which the crown prince initiated. Instead, she offered Britain’s red carpet, bowing and scraping to the architect of the coalition airstrikes and blockade in Yemen, who funds terrorist groups in the Syria war, and ordered his guards to disrespect and lock up the prime minister of Lebanon, without shame or regret.

As is, the British prime minister ignores all that and more because it’s good for British arms business.

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961218000947

My comment: That’s from Iran – but simply hits the spot.

(** A E K P)

Saudi Crown Prince signs off UK visit with push for fighter jet deal

Britain and Saudi Arabia took a step closer to a multi-billion pound arms deal on Friday, touching on the most inflammatory element of their relationship at the end of an official visit to London which has mixed warm diplomacy with angry street protest.

The two countries agreed to finalize talks on a multi-billion pound order for 48 Typhoon aircraft, the fighter plane’s maker BAE Systems said. The deal has been under discussion for years but has proven tough to seal.

“The Crown Prince’s visit has opened a new chapter in our two countries’ historic relationship,” British Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said.

“We have taken a vital step towards finalizing another order for Typhoon jets that will increase security in the Middle East and boost British industry and jobs in our unrivalled aerospace sector,” he said.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-saudi/saudi-crown-prince-signs-off-uk-visit-with-push-for-fighter-jet-deal-idUSKCN1GL18M

and

(** A E K P)

Britain to finalize Typhoon plane order talks with Saudi

Britain agreed on Friday to finalize talks with Saudi Arabia on a multi-billion pound order for 48 Typhoon aircraft, the fighter plane’s maker BAE Systems said.

BAE, Europe’s biggest defense contractor, has long awaited a major Saudi order for Typhoons, and slowed production in 2016 to ensure it would remain competitive.

The memorandum of intent was signed after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met with British defense minister Gavin Williamson.

BAE Chief Executive Charles Woodburn said it was a positive step toward agreeing a contract with a valued partner.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-saudi-bae-systems/britain-to-finalize-typhoon-plane-order-talks-with-saudi-idUSKCN1GL26D and also https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/mar/09/uk-typhoon-jet-deal-saudi-arabia-bae-systems

My comment: New planes for bombing Yemen. Shame on the British government.

And

(** A B P)

Saudi Arabia and BAE one step closer to finalizing Typhoon deal

Completion of the deal would come as a major boost for Britain’s combat air industry, just weeks after the government here announced plans to conduct an industrial strategy review of the sector to map out future skills and resources required beyond Typhoon.

Aside from BAE, the U.K. arm of Italian aerospace company Leonardo is a major supplier of avionics for the jet. Rolls-Royce is involved in building the jets engines for the Typhoon and dozens of smaller local companies are also in the supply chain.

Nearly 15,000 people are employed in the Typhoon supply chain in Britain, with thousands more jobs supporting manufacturing in Eurofighter partner countries Germany, Italy and Spain.

The Typhoon is built by the Eurofighter consortium in which Airbus and Leonardo have a stake alongside BAE.

The Saudis already operate 72 Typhoons from a first batch of jets ordered from BAE in 2007. The final jets from that order were delivered in the first half of last year.

Along with the large, and lucrative support contracts for Typhoon, Hawk and Tornado jets, the British company employs some 6,000 people in Saudi — the majority being locals.

https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2018/03/09/saudi-arabia-pens-deal-with-uk-to-buy-48-typhoons/

And

(* A K P)

‘Toxic, damaging & shameful’: Fury as UK and Saudi Arabia sign huge arms deal

Shares in BAE Systems shot up 2 percent after the announcement. BAE confirmed the news, saying in a statement: “This is a positive step towards agreeing a contract for our valued partner. We are committed to supporting the kingdom as it modernises the Saudi Armed Forces and develops key industrial capabilities critical to the delivery of Vision 2030.”

However, civil and human rights campaigners are furious.

Andrew Smith of Campaign Against Arms Trade said: “This shameful deal will be celebrated in the palaces of Riyadh and by the arms companies who will profit from it, but it will mean even greater destruction for the people of Yemen.

https://www.rt.com/uk/420879-saudi-arms-deal-yemen/

and

(A P)

Save the Children: We are deeply concerned that the UK plans to sell 48 #Typhoon jets to #SaudiArabia. What guarantees do we have they will not be used in an aerial campaign that has already struck 800 schools in Yemen? (full text in image)

https://twitter.com/SaveUKNews/status/972163401597247491

and how the Ministry of defense puts it:

(* A P)

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson statement following his meeting with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman (test in image)

https://twitter.com/DefenceHQ/status/972165138940915712

My comment: The government, a dealer of death. “Will increase security in the Middle East”??? That’s even much more than just “cynical”.

and look how BAE puts it:

(A E P)

The UK Government has signed a Memorandum of Intent with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to aim to finalise discussions for the purchase of 48 Typhoon Aircraft. This is a positive step towards agreeing a contract for our valued partner

https://twitter.com/BAESystemsplc/status/972135643898839040

… We are committed to supporting the Kingdom as it modernises the Saudi Armed Forces and develops key industrial capabilities critical to the delivery of Vision 2030. 2/2

https://twitter.com/BAESystemsplc/status/972136280636248064

Charles Woodburn, CEO, said: “Today’s news is a positive step towards agreeing a contract for our valued partner. We are committed to supporting the Kingdom as it modernises the Saudi Armed Forces and develops key industrial capabilities critical to the delivery of Vision 2030.”

https://twitter.com/BAESystemsplc/status/972142137444917249

Charles Woodburn, CEO, said: “The MOI between the Saudi and UK Governments is a further endorsement of Typhoon’s world class credentials as a proven, highly capable swing-role aircraft.”

https://twitter.com/BAESystemsplc/status/972140660894633984

My comment: Unbelievable. Look at the comments to these tweets.

And the local MP

(A P)

Today's news that #SaudiArabia is looking to buy 48 #Typhoons is great news for #SouthRibble residents. Thousands work on this programme @BAESystemsAir. I was pleased to meet the Crown Prince to make the case for our area #BuildingABetterFuture (photo)

https://twitter.com/SeemaKennedy/status/972149861935181829

Comment: Mrs. Kennedy boast her efforts and celebrated the news that will cause the death of thousands of women and children in #Yemen. @SeemaKennedy your jets and bombs kills our people every day. If you do not have children, at least you have a family.

https://twitter.com/HussamSanabani/status/972201618757312512

My comment: Crazy. What else to say???

(** A P)

Theresa May misled parliament over Yemen UN resolution: Corbyn

Accusation comes as UK and Saudi Arabia sign preliminary deal for sale of 48 Typhoon fighter jets

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has accused Theresa May of misleading parliament over the legal basis for Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen, threatening to reignite a bitter political row over UK support for the conflict.

The fresh political row, which comes after the prime minister said the war in Yemen had United Nations backing, threatens to overshadow the last day of the visit to the UK by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

It also came as the UK signed a preliminary deal with Saudi Arabia on Friday for the sale of 48 Typhoon fighter jets, to the dismay of rights campaigners.

Now, Corbyn has gone further and attacked May's comments in parliament, saying that she got her facts wrong, amid claims that the UN has not explicitly authorised the use of military force by the Saudi-led coalition under Chapter VII of the UN Charter.

The meeting between bin Salman and Williamson on Friday is focused on discussions on the sale of up to 48 Typhoon fighter jets made by British firm BAE Systems - a multi-billion dollar deal which has been under discussion for some time.

The deal, which could be worth as much as $10bn, will be welcomed by BAE Systems, which manufactures the aircraft, as it struggles to keep the aircraft's production line in Lancashire viable.

Kate Allen, Amnesty International UK’s director, said: “Selling more fighter planes to a country leading a military coalition that’s already laying waste to homes, hospitals and schools in Yemen, is just adding fuel to a humanitarian fire.

[long overview and backgrounds of visit]

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/theresa-may-accuses-misleading-parliament-1550318592

Comment: She has misled parliament over many things in this horrible war. The UNSCR 2216 draft was written by the GCC countries that at that time were parties actively engaged in destruction of Yemen. A bit like asking Netanyahu write a UN resolution on Palestine. It's uncanny and it demeans the UN. And now there are questions about its authority. MBS and Theresa May, how many kids have you killed today.

https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156466756048641

(* A P)

Saudi Arabia accused of Yemen war crimes as crown prince completes UK visit

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has met Theresa May, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and had an audience with the Queen

Saudi Arabia is targeting children in the brutal war in Yemen with a “growing sense of impunity”, a charity chief has warned as the country’s key power player completed a high-profile visit to the UK.

Killing and subjecting minors to appalling violence is becoming “normalised” in conflict zones around the world, Save the Children chief executive Kevin Watkins warned.

He spoke on the final day of a three-day official visit and charm offensive by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman – which included talks with Prime Minister Theresa May, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and an audience with the Queen.

Downing Street said the Prime Minister raised the situation in Yemen with the Saudi royal.

[and visit overview]

http://home.bt.com/news/uk-news/saudi-arabia-accused-of-yemen-war-crimes-as-crown-prince-completes-uk-visit-11364256960311

and

(* A P)

Britain set to sell 48 new Typhoon jets to Saudi Arabia - despite protesters accusing the state of war crimes

A 'memorandum of intent', which aims to finalise the deal, was signed today between the government and the nation's Crown Prince despite huge protests

[and visit overview]

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/britain-set-sell-48-new-12157952

(A P)

MPs protest over Women’s Day parliament visit by Saudi royals

https://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/mps-protest-over-women-s-day-parliament-visit-by-saudi-royals-1-4702830

(* B P)

Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen: Has the UK been too passive to hold Saudi Arabia to account?

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson’s personal comments on the Middle East and in particular Saudi Arabia, highlight the manner inconsistencies and contradictions in UK foreign policy towards the Middle East.

In particular, the Saudi’s proxy war in Yemen, and the human cost of this deliberate use of political violence. Recently the forgotten war in Yemen has featured in the current debates about how proportionate the use of force is.

The Western media, including the UK media establishment does not seem to want to talk about conflict, but it has important political, and regional geopolitical contexts which impact on international relations. Moreover the UK and United States in particular are indirectly engaged.

What is more concerning is that this act of violence is made possible by the military infrastructure supply chain.

In this case Saudi’s import of Britain and American made military technology.

The concern is that the bargaining power of the United Kingdom to hold Saudi Arabia into account, has largely been diminished as the commercial interests of our military industrial complex overrides our government’s moral judgements about how UK made munitions and military hardware potentially being used to kill civilians. Secondly, there is a lack of scrutiny between the UK’s government with the Saudi regime.

In terms of policy the British government could attempt to reset relations and add more of a two way relationship where scrutiny and holding the Saudi regime to account would feature more prominently.

https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/saudi-arabias-war-yemen-uk-passive-hold-saudi-arabia-account/

(A P)

The BBC just protected the Tories on Saudi Arabia. Viewers are outraged.

Question Time host David Dimbleby diverted a difficult question on Saudi Arabia aimed at international trade minister Liam Fox. As the panel discussed Russia, spoken word artist George the Poet questioned how Fox’s views on Vladimir Putin added up with his stance on Saudi Arabia. But before he had a chance to respond, the question was blocked.

Dimbleby told the panel they’d come back to it. But they never did.

Saudi Arabia didn’t come up again.

Many people on Twitter soon vented their outrage that Dimbleby had seemingly protected the Tories.

https://www.thecanary.co/trending/2018/03/09/bbc-just-protected-tories-saudi-arabia-viewers-outraged/

(A P)

Saudi Crown Prince on the last day in UK: Security high on the agenda

The talks on the last day of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's visit to the UK will focus on defense and security during the Friday meeting with British Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson.

May met Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the prime minister's residence for a dinner banquet on Thursday evening where she had given the Saudi crown prince a document showing the Al-Saud family tree, as per the prime minister’s office.

The British government said that the document was originally framed by Queen Victoria's consul in Jeddah in 1880.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2018/03/09/Saudi-Crown-Prince-on-the-last-day-in-UK-Security-high-on-the-agenda.html

(A P)

Saudi Cultural Days - Three-day Celebration of Saudi Arabian Culture Built Bridges with UK to Support Cultural Talent

http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/saudi-cultural-days---three-day-celebration-of-saudi-arabian-culture-built-bridges-with-uk-to-support-676370593.html

(A P)

UK says it supports Saudi Arabia's 'self-defence' in Yemen

The foreign minister of Britain has defended the brutal Saudi-led military intervention in neighbouring Yemen, which has killed more than 9,300 people and wounded more than 50,000.

"Britain supports Saudi Arabia's right to defend its national security against missile attacks from Yemen, many of which have targeted the Kingdom’s cities, including Riyadh," Boris Johnson said.

British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson made the remarks in a statement on Thursday

https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2018/3/8/uk-says-it-supports-saudi-arabias-self-defence-in-yemen

My comment: This is ridiculous and just again shows that the British government supports Saudi politics and the Saudi Yemen war, what ever happens and what ever is revealed. There is no Saudi “self defence” in this war; Houthi attacks against Saudi territory just started 10 weeks AFTER the Saudis had begun their aerial war.

(A P)

Crown Prince to promote business links and meet PM again on second day of UK visit

Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to London will see him travel to Chequers, Theresa May’s country residence.

Following meetings with Queen Elizabeth II and Theresa May on Wednesday, the second day of Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to London will see him travel to Chequers, Mrs May’s country residence, for another meeting with the prime minister, after a business conference in the heart of the City.

Earlier on Thursday, he will attend a business conference at Mansion House, an iconic venue in the centre of Britain’s financial capital, which will feature leading Saudi businesses and ministers, with British companies hungry to seal deals and participate in the Vision 2030 strategy.

https://www.thenational.ae/world/mena/crown-prince-to-promote-business-links-and-meet-pm-again-on-second-day-of-uk-visit-1.711223

(B K P)

When Art Denounces. By Andrea Scheffler (image)

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1671404586245898/?type=3 = https://me.me/i/breaking-news-miraculous-womens-day-gesture-theresa-may-sends-bouquet-20921198

(A P)

Labour fury over UK-Saudi humanitarian aid partnership amid Yemen crisis

Labour has blasted the Government over a new aid partnership signed with Saudi Arabia amid major humanitarian concerns over its war in Yemen.

Shadow International Development Secretary Kate Osamor said Theresa May was “auctioning off Britain’s credibility as a humanitarian power to the highest bidder”.

Ministers signed a £100m aid agreement with the Saudis to coincide with the controversial visit of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman to the UK, it has emerged.

Lashing out at the new aid agreement with Riyadh - which will deliver help in poverty-stricken regions of Africa - A furious Ms Osamor told PoliticsHome: “Even for the Tories, this is a new low.

"It beggars belief that with Saudi Arabia bombing civilians and frustrating aid access for 8.4 million Yemenis facing imminent famine, Theresa May thinks it right to buddy up as a humanitarian partner.

https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/political-parties/conservative-party/theresa-may/news/93454/excl-labour-fury-over-uk-saudi

and this is the government’s statement:

(A P)

New UK-Saudi Arabia partnership to boost livelihoods and economic development in world’s poorest countries

UK and Saudi Arabia announce new partnership on Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia's first visit

The UK and Saudi Arabia are building a new long-term partnership to improve livelihoods, boost economic development and create vital infrastructure to support some of the world’s poorest people in drought and conflict-stricken countries. This includes a commitment to work together in East Africa, which will in turn strengthen global prosperity.

The partnership – announced during the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia’s visit to the UK – is the first of its kind between the Department for International Development and the Saudi Fund for Development. It will see British development experts working closer with Saudi counterparts, including in the Horn and East of Africa where both countries are already helping to lift people out of poverty.

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-uk-saudi-arabia-partnership-to-boost-livelihoods-and-economic-development-in-worlds-poorest-countries

My comment: This really is a bad joke.#

(* A P)

A national disgrace': fury over £100m aid deal between UK and Saudi Arabia

Unveiling of plan to create infrastructure in poor countries overshadowed by unease over Saudi role in Yemen conflict

The controversial aid deal between the UK and Saudi Arabia announced on Friday has been branded a “national disgrace”.

Amid further outcry over Britain’s relationship with the Gulf state, government ministers have signed a £100m aid agreement with Riyadh to coincide with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to London this week.

The government described the deal as a “new long-term partnership” to improve livelihoods and boost economic development in some of the world’s poorest countries.

But the accord has been greeted with fury by opposition MPs and the aid sector, with grave concerns expressed about Saudi Arabia’s role in the Yemen conflict.

Kate Osamor, the shadow international development secretary, said the agreement “made a mockery” of Britain’s reputation as a global leader in delivering humanitarian aid.

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2018/mar/09/national-disgrace-fury-over-100m-aid-deal-between-uk-and-saudi-arabia

(* B P)

Disgusting, I'm aware that @Helen_Whately @LeoDochertyUK visited Saudi Arabia "flights, hotels and hospitality" were paid for by the KSA. Is there a list of the British MPs who have visited Saudi Arabia after the recent elections?

https://twitter.com/HussamSanabani/status/972162907529236480 (thread with more names, more sums, more information]. Selection.

Among the most prolific attendees on foreign tours have been Alistair Burt, who has been a junior F.O minister for the Middle East. Mr Burt undertook 9 paid-for trips since 2013, including 5 to UAE (among them a £10,000 visit last November accompanied by his wife and 3 to Bahrain

https://twitter.com/HussamSanabani/status/972181035126489089

In September last year, KSA spent £7,800 per head to host 4 Tory MPs, including Leo Docherty, head of the Conservative Middle East Council, for a six-day visit. Similarly, UAE paid £3,500 per head for 8 MPs – seven Tory and one Labour – to meet ministers and business leaders.

https://twitter.com/HussamSanabani/status/972179412971130883

Who broke UK Parliamentary rules? The vast majority of the visits were undertaken by Tories MPs, strongly suggesting that foreign governments have prioritised members of the governing party. Of the 41 MPs invited by KSA, all but one –Labour MP Liam Byrne– were Tories.

https://twitter.com/HussamSanabani/status/972178153228701696

41 British MPs visited Saudi Arabia. At the same time we see the seats of the British parliament are empty, the only solution to ensure that British MPs are not absent from parliamentary sessions, is to transfer the parliament to Saudi Arabia.

https://twitter.com/HussamSanabani/status/972247852901650432

(B P)

Tory who lavished praise on Crown Prince Salman at PMQs received £16,000 in donations from Saudi Arabia

Leo Docherty was treated to two paid for trips to Saudi Arabia, with hotels, flights and hospitality paid for by the Kingdom

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/tory-who-lavished-praise-crown-12152627

and look at

Leo Docherty: Fascinating discussion today with HRH The Crown Prince of #SaudiArabia - geopolitics,human rights, the historic alliance between UK & KSA and the reforming ambition of #Vision2030 (photo)

https://twitter.com/LeoDochertyUK/status/971766787170816001

My comment: How cheap you can buy a British MP!!

(* B K P)

British weapons in Yemen: the human cost and the UK’s national interest

Whatever good the UK might be doing on overseas aid or peacekeeping, the UK is severely undermining it on Yemen.

The level of destruction is eye-watering.

The UK’s irresponsible approach to arms exports is in sharp contrast to increasing numbers of our European neighbours.

The Security Council has collectively failed Yemen but the UK must shoulder some of the responsibility. As a permanent (P5) member and as the Council lead on Yemen, questions should be asked as to why there has been so little action.

Is the UK’s policy to maintain at all costs its ‘strategic’ relationship with Saudi Arabia defendable? The opportunity cost of doing business with Mohammed bin Salman will turn out to be severe. To keep Raytheon’s Paveway IV bombs flowing from our shores, the Department of International Trade has had to trample over Article 7 of the Arms Trade Treaty.

By throwing the rule-book out of the window when it comes to Saudi Arabia, the UK strikes two blows, one to the credibility of the international system, and another to its own national interest.

http://controlarms.org/blog/british-weapons-in-yemen-the-human-cost-and-the-uks-national-interest/

(* A P)

Theresa May defends Saudi ties as crown prince 'takes tea with the Queen'

Prime minister faces protests and pressure in Westminster as UK moves towards inking $90bn deal with Riyadh

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s first day in London saw him lunch with Queen Elizabeth, visit the Churchill War Rooms and meet with Theresa May at Downing Street, as a fierce political row over UK military support for Riyadh threatened to overshadow the Saudi royal’s first official visit to the UK.

A crowd of about 200 anti-war protesters gathered outside Downing Street on Wednesday evening, as the crown prince and the British leader held a bilateral meeting after a day of fierce debate in parliament.

This challenged a UK government charm offensive trying to leverage the visit into a more far-reaching defence partnership in spite of criticism that May is overlooking human rights concerns and the war in Yemen to “plug the hole in trade and growth” caused by the UK's forthcoming exit from the European Union.

Wednesday afternoon saw May and bin Salman hold the first meeting of the newly announced UK-Saudi Arabia Strategic Partnership Council, as the UK moved to formally back the crown prince's Vision 2030 project.

The Downing Street meeting saw the two leaders agree to a “landmark ambition” for about £65bn ($90bn) in investment, including new Saudi investment in the UK, in what officials called a “significant boost for UK prosperity”.

[longer overview]

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/may-defends-saudi-ties-crown-prince-gets-royal-welcome-london-1031183546 = http://geopoliticsalert.com/theresa-may-defends-saudis-mbs-takes-tea-queen

(* A P)

Britain's Red Carpet for Chief Architect of Yemen War Not for Security, Just for Money

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961217000856

Remark: A long overview and backgrounds to Prince Salman’s visit, from Iran.

(* A P)

‘Prince Mohammad bin Salman welcomed to London’: Saudi media reports on controversial visit

Several news organisations made mention of the billboards and posters bearing the leader’s face and slogans such as “Welcome crown prince” and “He is changing Saudi Arabia” seen around London on Wednesday, on which The New Arab reported the Saudi government is rumoured to have spent around £1m.

Saudi state news channel Al Ekhbariya ran footage of both the charm offensive and the prince’s arrival at Stansted and meeting with Queen Elizabeth II on its news bulletins.No mention of opposition or protests on first day of heir to the throne’s state visit to UK in heavily censored national media.

Most reports focussed on business opportunities for the two kingdoms as a result of “increased ties”, as well as “Syria and Yemen, Iran’s role in the region, and the role of the international coalition against the [Isis] terror group,” the Saudi Gazette said.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/mohammad-bin-salman-prince-uk-london-visit-saudi-media-reports-latest-a8244276.html

and as saudi media put it:

(A P)

UK Voices Strong Support to Vision 2030 at Conclusion of Saudi Crown Prince’s Official Visit

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman concluded on Friday a three-day visit to Britain where he held talks with a number of officials during which a number of trade and investment agreements were signed.
A joint Saudi-British statement was issued at the end of Prince Mohammed’s visit during which London affirmed its “strong support for Saudi Vision 2030,” reported the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
The UK is committed to offering expertise to Saudi Arabia to help it achieve vital reforms that are covered by Vision 2030. For its part, Saudi Arabia stressed that the UK is a strategic partner for Vision 2030 given the advanced skill and capabilities of its private and public sectors in various fields, such as education, health, culture, entertainment, finance, science, innovation, energy, security and defense.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1199626/uk-voices-strong-support-vision-2030-conclusion-saudi-crown-prince%E2%80%99s-official

and

(A P)

Saudi crown prince’s UK visit draws to close

Prime Minister Theresa May’s own words captured the mood that surrounded the visit: “The link that we have with Saudi Arabia is historic, it is an important one, and it has saved the lives of potentially hundreds of people in this country.”

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1263001/saudi-arabia

(A P)

They're all at it. The whole corrupt British establishment kowtowing to a monster because of money.

https://twitter.com/nw_nicholas/status/971756614230388736

and the article in Church Times had been removed: https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2018/16-march/news/uk/welby-raises-human-rights-concerns-during-private-meeting-with-saudi-arabian-crown-prince

(A P)

It is extremely disturbing that none of the #UK "women rights" organizations said anything about their UK government hosting & supporting #Saudi women oppressor #MBS on #internationalwomensday2018

https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/971818604751663105

(A P)

British MP calls for probe into Saudi influence on British politics

A Labour MP has called on the British parliament to carry out an investigation into possible Saudi influence on UK politics.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180307-british-mp-calls-for-probe-into-saudi-influence-on-british-politics/

(A P)

Film: Dan Glazebrook's powerful speech at the demo outside downing street against Mohammed Bin Salman' s U.K visit!
Dan makes a powerful argument that Britain and the United States are leading the war on Yemen and that by placing all the blame on the Saudi's it's actually letting the U.K and the U.S of the hook!

https://www.facebook.com/presstvuk/videos/vb.531336173559777/2108794985813880/?type=2&theater

(* A P)

Battle of the billboards as Saudi crown prince arrives in London

This kind of thing is a familiar sight in Arab capitals where banners and billboards often greet a visiting head of state but in Britain there’s usually less fuss — especially when, as in this case, it’s not a State Visit and the visitor is not actually a head of state.

In central London, meanwhile the Monster Displays company has vans driving around displaying pictures of the monster himself and a Twitter hashtag in gold lettering: #WelcomeSaudiCrownPrince.

The hashtag, apparently a creation of the Saudis’ PR machine, looks increasingly like a bad idea, even when it’s written in gold. People have not been responding in the way they were supposed to.

https://medium.com/@Brian_Whit/battle-of-the-billboards-as-saudi-crown-prince-arrives-in-london-b4ebc8c65cbc

(* A P)

MBS, and the million-dollar Saudi charm offensive you can't ignore

Crown prince's face plastered across billboards, newspapers and taxis in UK. But for a campaign costing $1m, impact appeared minimal

For the last few days the stoic face of the Saudi crown prince has glared from giant billboards, from the side of London taxis, and from the pages of national newspapers declaring that he is "bringing change to Saudi Arabia", "opening Saudi Arabia to the world" and that his country and Britain are "United Kingdoms".

Advertising experts say the charm offensive will have cost Saudi Arabia a tidy seven-figure sum for the billboards and the brains behind them.

The adverts are sponsored by Arabian Enterprise Incubators, a consultancy founded by Adam Hosier, a former employee of BAE Systems, the defence company which has supplied Saudi Arabia with dozens of warplanes and other weapons.

But they were playing to a hostile audience: a survey commissioned by the Campaign Against Arms Trade and carried out by Populus, found that 37 percent of people in the UK opposed his visit and only six percent supported UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia.

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/prince-charming-million-dollar-saudi-splurge-london-ad-offensive-1127970144

My comment: Saudi propaganda fails, as so often.

(* A P)

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to London begins with a bitter PR battle about his legacy

But the pomp and the red carpet notwithstanding, Mohammed’s visit already has turned into a bitter PR battle between those who support the moves he is making for Saudi Arabia and those who call him a “war criminal.”

In some cases, the battle veered into absurd territory, such as when pro-Saudi advertisements were placed next to online articles criticizing the crown prince.

Although Mohammed has pushed through some liberal policies at home - including his dramatic decision to allow women to drive - and he is viewed as a key economic ally for a post-Brexit Britain, his foreign policy is controversial in London.

Amid this public mistrust, advertisements praising Mohammed’s reforms have been blanketing London - in an apparent bid to woo Britons. The advertisements have appeared on billboards, on taxis, on trucks and in newspapers.

AEI Saudi, the firm behind the advertisements, is a consulting business that was registered in Riyadh in 2002.

But these were not the only advertisements greeting the crown prince. In central London, buses were emblazoned with messages accusing Mohammed of being a “war criminal,” while social media users used hashtags to let the Saudi royal know that he was “not welcome.”

http://www.post-gazette.com/news/world/2018/03/07/Saudi-Crown-Prince-Mohammed-bin-Salman-s-visit-to-London-begins-with-a-bitter-PR-battle-about-his-legacy/stories/201803070202

(A P)

Photo: The very expensive ad campaign for the #CrownPrinceVisit was nicely positioned against coverage of the #SaudiPrinceNotWelcome protests this morning

https://twitter.com/CAATuk/status/971723436425871360

(A P)

Photo: Who needs paid adverts when the editorials are as gushing as this?

https://twitter.com/BenjaminRamm/status/971441019437936645

(A P)

Did Houthis Give Us Flowers? No, They Killed Kids': UK Yemeni Tells Sputnik

A group of Yemeni nationals demonstrated outside the Houses of Parliament on March 8 to express gratitude to the Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammed bin Salman for "what he has done for Yemen."

The manifestation in central London goes in sharp contrast to anti-Saudi protests in the capital over Saudi-led military operation in Yemen, since the beginning of Mohammed bin Salman's state visit in Britain.

https://sputniknews.com/analysis/201803081062350936-saudi-prince-yemenis-london/

(* B P)

The West has abandoned human rights

No one should yawn, however. Familiarity breeds ignorance as well as contempt. It blinds us to the reality that the old world where universal human rights were valued is no longer the world we inhabit. Today hardly anyone left or right believes in them. Human rights are simply truncheons to beat one’s opponents with.

We are relearning the truth of the old saying that hypocrisy is the compliment that vice pays virtue. Denounce it by all means, but remember that when governments and individuals no longer feel they need to pretend, no longer think anyone will care if they seem to be virtuous, what you get is what you see around you.

https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2018/03/the-west-has-abandoned-human-rights/

(* B P)

May should break ties with the blood-soaked Riyadh regime

WHO cares how many Yemeni civilians are slaughtered by the Saudi air force? Selling military hardware to Saudi Arabia is profitable.

Shorn of diplomatic niceties, that is the government’s justification for its close relationship with the medieval dictatorship in Riyadh.

Arms sales underpin the British-Saudi partnership, which is why the top face cards of Britain’s monarchy are wheeled out to welcome the blood-soaked crown prince of the house of Saud.

May should break ties with the blood-soaked Riyadh regime

https://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/article/may-should-break-ties-with-the-blood-soaked-riyadh-regime

(* A P)

Film: Yemen war overshadows Saudi crown prince visit to Britain

The red carpet was rolled out for the Saudi crown prince’s visit to Britain today, but Theresa May said she would raise human rights issues in her talks with Mohammed bin Salman, as Jeremy Corbyn accused the government of “colluding” in war crimes by Saudi forces in the Yemen civil war. Mrs May strongly defended Britain’s ties with the kingdom, saying co-operation over issues like terrorism had potentially saved hundreds of lives.

https://www.channel4.com/news/yemen-war-overshadows-saudi-crown-prince-visit-to-britain

(A P)

Saudi Arabia plastered posters of its crown prince across London for his state visit to the UK, but these protesters say he's not welcome.

[Short film on the visit]

https://twitter.com/ajplus/status/971758823688962050

(* A P)

Demonstrators tell MBS 'hands off Yemen' at rally against visit

Demonstrators and opposition politicians call on British PM to challenge kingdom's policies and military campaign

Protests have erupted in London, with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman beginning his visit to the UK with a meeting with Theresa May, British prime minister.

Hundreds of demonstrators stood on Downing Street, holding signs with "Hands off Yemen" and "No more profits from bin Salman's wars" outside May's office. [and more on the visit and background]

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/03/demonstrators-mbs-hands-yemen-rally-visit-180307151305625.html

and more articles on the visit, varying headlines

https://news.sky.com/story/jeremy-corbyn-accuses-uk-troops-of-directing-yemen-war-as-saudi-crown-prince-visits-11279950 (with several films)

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-43308416

https://news.sky.com/story/saudi-prince-poses-with-pm-on-controversial-visit-11280077

(* A E P)

U.K., Saudi Arabia Target 65 Billion Pounds of Mutual Investment

The U.K. and Saudi Arabia agreed a goal of 65 billion pounds ($90 billion) of mutual trade and investment in the coming years, with Prime Minister Theresa May’s office calling it a “vote of confidence” in the economy before Britain leaves the European Union.

The target was set at a meeting between May and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in London on Wednesday, the prime minister’s office said in an emailed statement.

The prince, who announced plans for a rapid economic overhaul and oversaw a crackdown on corruption since his appointment in June, won praise from the British prime minister for his reform program known as Vision 2030, in particular allowing women to drive and attend sporting events.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-07/u-k-saudi-arabia-target-65-billion-pounds-of-mutual-investment

(* A E P)

PM and prince eye £65bn trade boost with Saudi Arabia amid concern over Yemen

Theresa May raised the war in Yemen and human rights during talks, Downing Street said.

Theresa May and Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince have used talks in Downing Street to lay plans for a £65 billion trade and investment package.

The Prime Minister’s discussions with Mohammed bin Salman also touched on the conflict and humanitarian crisis in Yemen.

A Downing Street spokeswoman said: “The meeting agreed a landmark ambition for around £65 billion of mutual trade and investment opportunities over the coming years, including direct investment in the UK and new Saudi public procurement with UK companies.”

The spokesman said that Mrs May brought-up the issues of Yemen and human rights in the talks.

She said: “The Prime Minister raised our deep concerns at the humanitarian situation in Yemen.

“The Prime Minister and crown prince agreed on the importance of full and unfettered humanitarian and commercial access, including through the ports, and that a political solution was ultimately the only way to end the conflict and humanitarian suffering in Yemen.”

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/uk/pm-and-prince-eye-65bn-trade-boost-with-saudi-arabia-amid-concern-over-yemen-36681691.html

My comment: Big business, this is what counts. – What they tell on Yemen is propaganda bullshit. The last paragraph cited here is a bad joke, looking at the Saudi blockade and the Saudi unwillingness to stop the bombing campaign. And May “agrees”. – And this is by Saudi media, even taking this headline:

(A P)

‘Political solution only way to end Yemen conflict’: Saudi crown prince and PM May agree

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1261456/saudi-arabia

My comment: They agree. Oh, yes, they do.

And this is the official statement:

(* A P)

Press release

PM meeting with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia: 7 March 2018

Prime Minister Theresa May jointly hosted the inaugural meeting of the UK-Saudi Arabia Strategic Partnership Council with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman.

The meeting agreed a landmark ambition for around £65bn of mutual trade and investment opportunities over the coming years, including direct investment in the UK and new Saudi public procurement with UK companies. This is a significant boost for UK prosperity and a clear demonstration of the strong international confidence in our economy as we prepare to leave the European Union.

These new investment and procurement opportunities will be spread across a range of sectors including education, training and skills, financial and investment services, culture and entertainment, healthcare services and life sciences, technology and renewable energy and the defence industry.

The Prime Minister said the UK was a firm supporter of Saudi Arabia’s ‘Vision 2030’

The Prime Minister welcomed recent reforms in Saudi Arabia

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/pm-meeting-with-the-crown-prince-of-saudi-arabia-7-march-2018 and photos: https://twitter.com/10DowningStreet/status/971489685498408961

(A P)

New UK-Saudi Arabia partnership to boost livelihoods and economic development in world’s poorest countries

UK and Saudi Arabia announce new partnership on Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia's first visit

The UK and Saudi Arabia are building a new long-term partnership to improve livelihoods, boost economic development and create vital infrastructure to support some of the world’s poorest people in drought and conflict-stricken countries. This includes a commitment to work together in East Africa, which will in turn strengthen global prosperity.

https://reliefweb.int/report/world/new-uk-saudi-arabia-partnership-boost-livelihoods-and-economic-development-world-s

My comment: What an ugly propaganda. In the case of Yemen, this means: The UK produces and sells air planes and bombs and assists in targeting and military training, the Saudis “furnish” the bombs to Yemen.

(B E P)

UK eyes chance to help Saudi Arabia’s fledgling entertainment industry

Saudi Arabia’s decision to lift the 35-year ban on cinemas last December has opened up opportunities for UK companies to help the Kingdom develop its entertainment industry.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1261566/saudi-arabia

Remark: By Saudi media.

(* B E K P)

A look into the long-running UK-Saudi military cooperation

According to Amnesty International, the UK issued a total of 152 licenses for exports of military equipment to Saudi Arabia, topping £2.94 billion for a long list of weapons, including bombs, torpedoes, rockets and missiles.

The UK's total earnings from the war, according to reports from last September, soared to a hefty £6 billion.

The numbers only include the officially announced deals and there is a growing fear that London and Riyadh have been making more deals in secret in order to avoid public pressure.

The extensive arms deals between Saudi Arabia and the UK and its relationship to the deadly Saudi air campaign on Yemen can be traced back to 1986, when the UK signed a £5 billion contract to provide the Saudi regime with 72 Tornado fighter jets, 30 Hawk advanced trainer aircraft and 30 Swiss licensed Pilatus PC-9 trainer planes.

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/03/07/554711/UK-Saudi-Yemen-military-ties

(* B K P)

Britain’s divisive role in Yemen conflict

Britain’s support for Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen divides the government from the public, which disapproves of the conflict, according to opinion polls.

It is more than just moral support. Saudi Arabia’s role in the war is being led by British and American fighter-bombers in the Saudi Royal Air Force, including the BAE-built Typhoons that were sold as part of the Yamamah arms deal. Britain also sends the bombs to go with them

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/britain-s-divisive-role-in-yemen-conflict-55xtkl0sv (subscribe)

(A P)

UK, Saudi to monitor shipping lanes before Yemeni ports open: Al Arabiya

Britain and Saudi Arabia will monitor shipping lanes in preparation for opening Yemeni ports, the British foreign minister said on Wednesday after meeting his Saudi counterpart in Yemen, according to Saudi-run Al Arabiya television.

Boris Johnson also said London would seek a United Nations meeting on a political solution in Yemen

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-saudi-yemen/uk-saudi-to-monitor-shipping-lanes-before-yemeni-ports-open-al-arabiya-idUSKCN1GJ300

My comment: This is hot air and adopting Saudi positions: Saudis want to deviate imports to Yemen from Hodeidah port to other ports. But this would mean to more or less cut off Houthi-held northern Yemen (and 75 % of the population) from a great part of all supplies, which would go elsewhere.

(* A P)

Saudi Arabia:Do not execute protesters

Urgent – We will deliver this petition to the Saudi Crown Prince during his visit to London on 8th March.

https://act.reprieve.org.uk/page/content/saudiexecutions

(* B P)

Britain beware: Mohammed bin Salman's 'shock and awe' agenda could spark a backlash

Britain must take notice of possible unpredictable outcomes of the Saudi crown prince's shock therapy

In anticipation of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's visit to Britain this week, London's Conservative press has described him as the greatest reformer of all time, a youthful revolutionary thinker and the leader of a top-down transformation programme.

The British government is clear about its intimate relation with the Saudi regime. It considers the prince's so-called reform agenda as an opportunity for Britain to be a key partner to the Gulf state during uncertain post-Brexit times. But these new opportunities, that must be seized at all cost, are shrouded with uncertainty and danger.

Britain must rethink its unconditional support for the Saudi regime for three main reasons

First, Mohammed bin Salman sits at the top of a regime of extremes.

The prince's extreme style is fine for sensational media coverage but has yet to result in a major turnaround in the problems Saudi Arabia is facing, including unemployment, huge government spending on wages, unsustainable benefits, and military adventures abroad.

Yemen is unfinished business.

Finally, Britain must cease to be a dedicated supporter of Saudi Arabia's century of extremes.

Britain needs to urgently reconsider its Middle East foreign policy

http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/britain-must-cease-be-dedicated-supporter-saudi-arabias-century-extremes-1414224321

(A P)

Adverts on billboards, vans, in almost every paper physically & online, a weird mob who turned up at Buckingham Palace with identical flags... #Saudi are spending a lot of money on trying to make their Crown Prince not look like a despotic torturing repressive war criminal.

https://twitter.com/SamWalton/status/971392006382604288

(A P)

Film: #London protests official visit of #Saudi Prince Mohammad bin Salman for war crimes in #Yemen and complicity of UK Government

https://twitter.com/CareyTourism/status/971380323132084224

(* A P)

Caroline Lucas Hits Out At Newspaper Ads Promoting Saudi Arabian Crown Prince

'They are promoting a man whose country has caused devastation in Yemen.'

The leader of the Green Party Caroline Lucas has strongly criticised some of Britain’s leading newspapers for running pro-Saudi Arabia adverts while the country’s Crown Prince makes a controversial visit to the UK as part of major PR offensive.

The Brighton Pavilion MP slammed the Guardian for hosting an advert which claimed that Prince Mohammed bin Salman is “empowering Saudi Arabian women”.

The advertisement appeared next to an article by Labour MP Emily Thornberry criticising the government for “rolling out the red carpet” for the ruler.

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/caroline-lucas-saudi_uk_5a9fdc21e4b0d4f5b66c1478?lp

and

(A P)

The Guardian Newspaper just printed 3 huge pro-Saudi propaganda ads next to an anti-Yemen war petition

Prince Mohammad bin Salman of Saudi Arabia is in town, and even the supposedly liberal Guardian Newspaper is in on the welcome. Not only have The Guardian accepted Saudi money in return for printing three huge propaganda adverts for the Saudi regime in today’s printed edition, they have disgustingly decided to print all 3 pro-Saudi ads just before a full-page ad calling on the government to suspend arms sales to the Gulf state over Saudi’s involvement in the horrific war in Yemen. The Guardian has chosen to play both sides, and it is utterly shameful.

https://evolvepolitics.com/the-guardian-newspaper-just-printed-3-huge-pro-saudi-propaganda-ads-next-to-an-anti-yemen-war-petition/

My comment: Well, Saudi money takes everything, the Guardian as well.

And

(A P)

Guardian defends Saudi prince ads despite criticism of regime in paper, saying ads 'in no way affect our editorial position'

The Guardian has defended its decision to run adverts supporting Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed bin Salman despite criticising him and his regime in editorials in recent months.

In defending its publication of the adverts, a Guardian spokesperson said: “The acceptance of advertising and sponsorship in no way affects our editorial position.

“We are free to, and often do, challenge the activities of companies and organisations that are also our advertisers and sponsors.”

http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/guardian-defends-saudi-prince-ads-despite-criticism-of-regime-in-paper-saying-ads-in-no-way-affect-our-editorial-position/

My comment: LOL.

(* A P)

Film: Activists stage pro-Yemen protests as Saudi crown prince visits UK

https://www.facebook.com/PRESSTV/videos/1937726152935829/?fref=mentions

(A P)

YEMEN: DON’T BOMB CHILDREN

As the UK Government welcomes the Saudi Crown Prince’s first official visit to London, Save the Children has unveiled a life-size statue of a child outside Parliament. The bronze-like statue is a reminder of the dangers that Yemeni children face every day and the risks of British-made bombs fuelling the violence.

The charity also took the statue to iconic locations in London including Tower Bridge, Camden Market and Guy’s & St Thomas’ Hospital – to reflect the types of places where children are regularly bombed in Yemen such as playgrounds, hospitals, schools and markets (photo)

https://www.savethechildren.net/article/yemen-don-t-bomb-children

(A P)

Film: #UK's essential role in the bombardment of #Yemen
'Saudi Arabia is doing major airstrikes using UK fighter jets and UK bombs'

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/videos/1669998803053143/

(A P)

#London is literally rocking and making noise (photo)

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1669982476388109/?type=3

(* A P)

UK's May defends Saudi ties as crown prince get royal welcome in London

Prime Minister Theresa May defended Britain’s links to defense and security ally Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, as Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met Britain’s Queen Elizabeth for lunch at the start of a high profile visit to London.

A fiery exchange in parliament between May and opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn underlined tension in Britain over Prince Mohammed’s trip, which is aimed at building a broader economic partnership between the two countries, but has sparked protests about human rights and war in Yemen.

“The link that we have with Saudi Arabia is historic, it is an important one, and it has saved the lives of potentially hundreds of people in this country,” May said, pausing her answer briefly as opposition lawmakers cried “Shame!”.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-saudi/uks-may-defends-saudi-ties-as-crown-prince-get-royal-welcome-in-london-idUSKCN1GI2ZQ

(A P)

Saudi & UK links ‘saving lives,’ claims Theresa May... just not in Yemen (VIDEO)

Theresa May has defended the UK’s relationship with Saudi Arabia. Despite coming under fire from politicians ahead of her meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, May said the countries’ relationship will remain strong.

British PM May claimed Britain’s relationship with the Middle East kingdom has prevented deaths. However, the UK is selling arms to the Saudis which are used in the war in Yemen, which has turned into one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises as aid routes are strangled and record numbers of children have cholera. Despite the attack over the dispatch box, Tory leader May said the UK will stand by its ally.

She said intelligence gathered from the Middle East over planned terrorist attacks has prevented mass deaths

https://www.rt.com/uk/420713-saudi-may-yemen-corbyn/

My comment: She already had told this fairy tale before, and it already had been stripped down.

(* A P)

WATCH: Corbyn calls on May to demand ceasefire in Yemen

At Prime Minister’s Questions today, Jeremy Corbyn called on Theresa May to use the Saudi crown prince visit to demand a ceasefire in Yemen.

“It cannot be right that her government is colluding in what the United Nations says is evidence of war crimes.

“Will the Prime Minister use her meeting today with the crown prince to hold the arms supplies and demand an immediate ceasefire in Yemen?” (with film)

https://labourlist.org/2018/03/watch-corbyn-calls-on-may-to-demand-ceasefire-in-yemen/ and also http://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-politics-43321192/pmqs-corbyn-asks-may-about-uk-role-in-yemen-war and also http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/uk-saudi-arabia-yemen-bombing-campaigns-mohammed-bin-salman-crown-prince-visit-theresa-may-cabinet-a8244136.html

and

(* A P)

Jeremy Corbyn Savages Theresa May For ‘Colluding’ In Saudi War Crimes In Yemen That Killed Hundreds Of Children

In his most outspoken remarks yet on the conflict, Corbyn said that “British military advisers are directing war” in the country.

After PMQs, his aides claimed UK personnel had helped to “target” schools and hospitals in Saudi bombing raids.

Corbyn’s spokesman added that ministers should be held “accountable” for the “very large numbers of children” killed and injured by the air strikes against Yemeni rebels.

“The British Government has responsibility for what is taking place in its support for the Saudi campaign – it’s British ministers who should be held accountable for that.”

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/jeremy-corbyn-savages-theresa-may-for-colluding-in-saudi-war-crimes-in-yemen-that-killed-hundreds-of-children-accountable-crown-prince-mohammad-bin-salman_uk_5aa0132ce4b0e9381c148ece and also https://news.sky.com/story/jeremy-corbyn-accuses-uk-troops-of-directing-yemen-war-as-saudi-crown-prince-visits-11279950 and also http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/uk-saudi-arabia-yemen-bombing-campaigns-mohammed-bin-salman-crown-prince-visit-theresa-may-cabinet-a8244136.html #

and

(A P)

Prime Minister's Questions RECAP: This is what Theresa May was asked about at PMQs

Our political editor Jon Walker provided live updates from Westminster - recap the session in full below.

https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/pmqs-theresa-may-live-updates-14378364

https://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/928355/PMQs-live-Theresa-May-Jeremy-Corbyn-Brexit-Irish-Border-Mansion-House

(A P)

Cross-party calls for ban on Saudi arms sales

At PMQs, the SNP MP Stewart McDonald raised the case of Raif Badawi, a blogger arrested in 2012 and sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1000 lashes for “insulting Islam through electronic channels”. Mr McDonald called on the Prime Minister to “stand at the Dispatch Box and say that Raif Badawi is no criminal, and that he should be set free”. In urgent questions later, the Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable said

https://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/cross-party-calls-for-ban-on-saudi-arms-sales-1-4701972

(A P)

Theresa May attacks Jeremy Corbyn over Saudi 'collusion' claims

Downing Street has accused Jeremy Corbyn of “twisting the facts” about UK involvement in Yemen after the Labour leader said Britain was “colluding” in war crimes there.

But a Downing Street source shot back: "It is now clear that Jeremy Corbyn is prepared to twist the facts about the work our dedicated troops are doing overseas in order to score political points - and that’s totally unacceptable.

"He should correct the record at the earliest opportunity.”

https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/foreign-affairs/news/93421/theresa-may-attacks-jeremy-corbyn-over-saudi-collusion-claims

My comment: That’s really ridiculous: “twist the facts“???? LOL.

(A P)

Film: Labour MP on disputed Corbyn claims about Saudi action in Yemen

Thank god for an MP that actually tells it straight and doesn't suck up to human rights abusers in the hope of getting a free Rolex watch. The British government are "up to their elbows" in Yemeni blood. Thank you @DerbyChrisW

https://twitter.com/Rachael_Swindon/status/971743279065845760

(A P)

Film: Alison Thewliss MP - Urgent Question - UK's diplomatic and economic relationship with Saudi Arabia

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=69KtvmbrU5k

(A P)

Film: Emily Thornberry: Today in the House of Commons, I challenged the government on why they are rolling out the red carpet for Crown Prince Salman instead of doing their job at the UN and working to end the war.

http://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/0168b70b-7310-440a-bbd3-b1a05b2e38e1?in=12:59:59 = https://twitter.com/EmilyThornberry/status/971392810216763394

(* B P)

EXCLUSIVE: UK approves $42m in spyware sales to Middle East 'regimes'

UK approved sale of surveillance gear to Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain and Israel, among others, according to figures from rights campaigners

Britain has approved the export of more than $40m of surveillance equipment to the Middle East since 2015, prompting fears it is being used to track political dissidents and activists, Middle East Eye can reveal.

The figures show millions of dollars of exports were approved to Gulf states who are criticised by rights campaigners of spying on and repressing dissidents and opposition leaders.

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/revealed-uk-approves-20m-spyware-exports-middle-east-regimes-2074837748

Comment: Please note these shocking levels of spyware sold to regimes i the Middle East. Maybe we should all go back to the old system of cash and written letters and forget this modern technology that is working to control all of our everyday activity. You can guess that if its being used in UK its being used in the Middle East too.

https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156458370778641

(A P)

Saudi Arabia through the eyes of Saudi students in London

Saudi students discussed their visions for a future Saudi Arabia at the inaugural Misk Talk in London on Wednesday evening. During a series of presentations at the Dorchester Hotel, 12 young Saudis studying in London took the stage to discuss their ideas for realizing Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 goals.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1261636/saudi-arabia

My comment: In Saudi media and certainly little more than a propaganda event.

And just a reminder, from Jan. 2016:

(** B K P)

UK military 'working alongside' Saudi bomb targeters in Yemen war

Saudi foreign minister confirms claims that British military advisers are in operation room of heavily criticised bombing campaign

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/saudiarabia/12102089/UK-military-working-alongside-Saudi-bomb-targeters-in-Yemen-war.html

cp11 Deutschland / Germany

(A P)

Jemen-Konflikt: ZDF sendet erneut Desinformation & Kriegspropaganda

Einmal mehr verbreitet Sievers die Lüge von der Beteiligung des Irans in diesem Krieg eines der reichsten Länder dieses Planeten gegen eines der Ärmsten. Weder Sievers noch Uli Gack in seinem nachfolgenden Bericht erwähnen mit einem einzigen Wort, dass es in Wahrheit die USA, Großbritannien, Frankreich und auch Deutschland sind, die Saudi-Arabien bei Bombardement und dem Aushungern der Jemeniten aktiv mit Waffenlieferungen, Spezialkräften, Ausbildern und Logistik unterstützen.

https://propagandaschau.wordpress.com/2018/03/07/zdf-sendet-erneut-desinformation-und-kriegspropaganda-ueber-den-jemen/

Kommentar: …plus die Krokodilstränen in der Anmoderation…

„Bei all den Krisen, über die wir berichten gerät eine Katastrophe FAST in Vergessenheit. Das darf NICHT passieren….“

Der der das Beklagt ist nicht „passives Objekt“, er ist „aktiver Täter“ !!!

https://propagandaschau.wordpress.com/2018/03/07/zdf-sendet-erneut-desinformation-und-kriegspropaganda-ueber-den-jemen/#comment-131753

cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries

Siehe / Look at cp1

(A P)

Mystery of the runaway 'Princess' as 'daughter' of Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed claims she has fled the country after being 'drugged and jailed for three years in the Arab state'

A 'runaway Princess' who claims to be the daughter of Dubai's billionaire ruler says she has fled the country

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's daughter says she wants to lead a normal life free from oppression in the strict Arab state

Sheikah Latifa, 33, claims she was secretly jailed for three years and drugged in hospital by doctors to stop her rebelling and causing trouble

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5478493/Runaway-Princess-mystery-ruler-Dubai-daughter-flees-country.html

(B K P)

A #Saudi Typhoon from the 10th Sqn & a #French Rafale at Al Dhafra AFB (photo)

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/971823250463514626

My comment: Can anybody tell what a French fighting jet has to do at an Emirati air base (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Dhafra_Air_Base )???

Oh yes, can:

France continues its joint training with Saudi fighter pilots on the Abu Dhabi air base.
Despite the war crimes inflicted on #Yemen-is

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1672097442843279

(* B P)

Pakistan’s Tight Rope Walk Between Iran And Saudi Arabia

Pakistan’s recent decision of sending a contingent of slightly above 1000 troops to Saudi Arabia apparently in violation of its own parliamentary resolution of 2015 on Yemen reflects the country’s tight rope walk between two main regional rivals i.e. Saudi Arabia and Iran and highlights the need to make arrangements for keeping the policy of neutrality intact when it comes to disputes involving Muslim states in the Middle East.

http://www.eurasiareview.com/09032018-pakistans-tight-rope-walk-between-iran-and-saudi-arabia-oped/

(A P)

Pakistani troops in Saudi providing 'internal security', Khawaja Asif tells NA

Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif on Friday told lawmakers that Pakistani troops have been stationed in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for 'internal security' reasons, not to take part in the Yemen war, as other lawmakers had feared.

My comment: LOL. Might-be they will shell and tear down Saudi cities like Awamiya then.

(* B P)

Brit detained in Abu Dhabi for 'sending insult on Facebook'

A British teacher has been locked in a “rat-infested” jail in Abu Dhabi for sending “an insult” on Facebook. Christian Wilke, 39, is reportedly being denied medical care and an adequate amount of food.

His mother, Christine Wilke-Breitsameter, says Wilke has not been told what his charges are, but that they are related to “electronic insults” which could mean sharing the wrong post on Facebook. He has been held in Al Ain prison since October 2017.

“As we now know he was sentenced to one year imprisonment and the equivalent of €12,500 (£11,175/US$15,500) in punishment for an ‘electronic insult,’” she told the Mirror. “That can be anything. A five-year-old Facebook post which the government classifies as critical.”

https://www.rt.com/uk/420733-facebook-abu-dhabi-detained/

cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis

(* A P)

Qatar Signs and Agreement with NATO for Using Qatari Territories and Military Bases

NATO revealed serious information about signing an agreement with Qatar that allows NATO forces and personnel to enter and pass Qatar in addition to using Qatari air force bases for facilitating NATO missions in the region. The official website of NATO published the statement after the meeting between NATO secretary general, Bens Stoltenberg, and Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim Ben Hama Al Thani, in the NATO headquarters in Brussels

http://en.smanews.org/qatar-signs-and-agreement-with-nato-for-using-qatari-territories-and-military-bases

My comment: A blowback to Saudi policy against Qatar. – Apart from this, NATO really has no business in the Middle East, and its regime change trip to Syria is obviously illegal.

(A P)

Sheikh Sultan bin Suhaim: Hamad bin Khalifa poisoned my father

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2018/03/07/Sheikh-Sultan-bin-Suhaim-Hamad-bin-Khalifa-poisoned-my-father.html and film https://twitter.com/AlArabiya_Eng/status/971450409620508673

My comment: Saudi Arabia creates its own opposition in Qatar again (i.e. outside Qatar, at Riyadh).

cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade

Siehe / Look at cp1, cp10

(* A K P)

#SPAIN IS STILL ARMING SAUDIS AND EMIRATIS.

On February 16, the environmental association Greenpeace and other groups carried out an action in the port of Bilbao to announce that a Saudi ship used these facilities on a regular basis to ship weapons and explosives "illegally"

At dawn yesterday, the ship moored in Santander. As confirmed by the Port Authority, at 20.00 hours they finished uploading about 40 containers and was ready to leave. According to organizations such as Safe Passage, heading to Saudi Arabia and the Arab Emirates. From there, the weapons will later be used "in the Yemen war."

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1672513949468295 referring to http://www.eldiariomontanes.es/cantabria/barco-saudi-carga-20180309231012-ntvo.html

(* B K P)

Un fortino per i test sulle bombe usate in guerra: ecco il progetto della Rwm in Sardegna

[New bomb-testing area in #Sardinia, #Italy from #RMW, Italian bombs manufacturer whose explosives continue to kill in #Yemen]

Gli esplosivi delle bombe che vengono sganciate sullo Yemen (e non solo) verranno testati in un nuovo pezzo della fabbrica di Domusnovas. Quella che è finita al centro di numerose interrogazioni parlamentari e inchieste giornalistiche, arrivando ad attirare anche l'attenzione del New York Times. Le intenzioni sono note, il procedimento è stato avviato da mesi. Ma solo adesso la Rwm Italia Spa ha depositato le carte che svelano i dettagli

http://www.youtg.net/v3/top-news/6184-un-fortino-per-i-test-sulle-bombe-usate-in-guerra-ecco-il-progetto-della-rwm-in-sardegna

My comment: It#s a German company actually!

(* B E K P)

US still pouring weapons into Yemen war

The United States sold more than $650 million in weapons to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as the Yemen war expanded last year, according to a study released on Thursday.

The Washington-based Security Assistance Monitor said the weapons went to Saudi Arabia and the UAE through the State Department’s Direct Commercial Sales program, which allows American arms-makers to sell directly to foreign customers.

US weapons contractors reportedly sold $610 million in precision-guided bombs and small arms ammunition to the Saudis, and another $48.6 million in M-4 and M-16 automatic rifles and spare parts to the Emiratis. Congress receives detailed readouts of direct US commercial weapons sales, but only cursory data is made public.

Under the program, the UAE spent nearly $60 million for small arms in 2016, while Saudi Arabia purchased about $11 million worth of machine guns.

Experts say the move shows an uptick of expeditionary warfare by the UAE.

https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2018/03/yemen-us-weapons-saudi-arabia-uae.html

My comment: There have been much more arms deals than just these US$ 650 billion. This figure seems to cover just a small part.

The article refers to:

(* B K P)

Trump Makes Over $80 Billion in Major Arms Deals in First Year

Major Changes in Types of Weapons and Recipient Countries Compared to Obama

Puts U.S. Manufacturing Jobs and Human Rights at Risk

A report released today by the Security Assistance Monitor (SAM) program of the Center for International Policy documents over $80 billion in U.S. arms sales notifications to Congress during the Trump Administration’s first year in office. The Trump Administration total of $82.2 billion for 2017 slightly exceeded the Obama Administration’s total of $76.5 billion for 2016, and was more than $20 billion less than the peak year of the Obama Administration’s major arms sales offers in 2010.

Some of the biggest differences in major arms sales offers in 2017 compared to previous years are the types of weapons. The bulk of major arms offers during President Obama’s final year focused on sales of military aircraft. In contrast, the largest category of arms sales offers under the Trump Administration has been bombs and missiles, driven by major missile defense deals with Saudi Arabia, Poland, Romania, Japan, and the United Arab Emirates. Overall, the Trump Administration proposed 40 notifications in this category, which is a 30 percent increase over 2016.

There were notable differences between the Trump and Obama Administration on human rights. In 2017, the Trump Administration lifted Obama-era suspensions on specific arms deals to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Nigeria. “Signing off on missile and bomb sales to Saudi Arabia when the country was using these weapons to attack the civilian population in Yemen sent an alarming signal about the U.S. support for human rights,” said Colby Goodman, the Director of the Security Assistance Monitor and editor of the report.

A key reason President Trump touted arms sales in 2017 was to create “jobs, jobs, jobs,” as the President put it during a visit to Saudi Arabia in May of 2017 – by William Hartung

https://securityassistance.org/publication/trump-makes-over-80-billion-major-arms-deals-first-year

and the full report:

(** B E K P)

Trends in Major U.S. Arms Sales in 2017

The top ten recipients of U.S. arms sales notifications in 2017 were, in order, Saudi Arabia, Poland, Japan, Canada, Romania, Bahrain, Australia, United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates, Greece, and Singapore (see Table 1 below).

Saudi Arabia: 2016 US$ Bill. 5.07; 2017: 17.85

https://securityassistance.org/sites/default/files/US%20Arms%20Sales%202017%20Report.pdf

(A K P)

#LockheedMartin has been awarded a $481.2M not-to-exceed undefinitized contract action for long-lead-time material in support of the construction of (4) MMSC ships for the Royal #Saudi Navy. Work is expected to be completed by October 2024

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/971759031537864704

(A K P)

US State Dept. approves a $270.4M possible FMS to #UAE for (300) AIM-9X-2 Sidewinder Block II missiles, (40) AIM-9X-2 Captive Air Training Missiles (CATMs), (30) AIM-9X-2 Block II Tactical guidance units, (15) AIM-9X-2 CATM guidance units and other support equipment (text in image)

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/971756334940086272

(A K P)

Ghasemi: Saudische Angriffe auf Jemen mit französischen Waffen

Der iranische Außenamtssprecher Bahram Ghasemi hat auf die Behauptungen des französischen Außenministers reagiert, Iran unterstütze den Jemen mit Waffen und betonte, Iran spielt keine Rolle beim Konflikt im Jemen und die Aggressionen Saudi-Arabiens auf das Land geschehen mit französischen Waffen.

http://parstoday.com/de/news/iran-i37847-ghasemi_saudische_angriffe_auf_jemen_mit_französischen_waffen

Mein Kommentar: Womit er Recht hat. Man muss die iranische Führung keineswegs mögen, um das festzustellen. Es ist erstaunlich, in welchem Umfang die USA und ebenso deren europäische Verbündete den Iranern im Tagesrythmus propagandistische Steilvorlagen erster Klasse bieten.

cp13b Kulturerbe / Cultural heritage

(A E P)

#Yemen: Claims by #UAE official that a first export from #Balhaf turned out to be premature and unfounded. UAE and anti-Houthi coalition remain interested in resuming production, but in reality nothing is in place yet.

https://twitter.com/riskstaff/status/970937191030579200

(A P)

Yemeni Minister to Asharq Al-Awsat: Efforts underway to Stop Sale of Smuggled Relics

Yemeni Minister of Culture Marwan Damaj said that Houthi militias are involved in smuggling many antiquities to fund their agenda.
In a statement to Asharq Al-Awsat, Damaj stated that the militias have destroyed many historic sites in areas that fall under their control.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1197001/yemeni-minister-asharq-al-awsat-efforts-underway-stop-sale-smuggled-relics

My comment: This is odd hadi government propaganda, as so often. From the historic sites which had been destroyed, 75 % had been destroyed by Saudi coalition air raids.

cp13c Wirtschaft / Economy

(* B E K)

No light at end of tunnel for Yemen’s economy

More than 1.2 million government employees have found themselves in a similar situation since their salaries were suspended 14 months ago.

The financial impact varies per person due to the economic conflict between the internationally recognized government in Aden and the Houthi government in Sanaa. The Central Bank of Yemen was moved to Aden on Sept. 18, 2016, and the government there stopped paying the salaries of employees in Houthi-controlled areas. The government wants the revenues of state institutions in those areas — such as customs taxes and the revenues of al-Hodeidah port under the Houthi control — to be transferred to the central bank. But the Houthis are still refusing this demand.

Meanwhile, the economy in Yemen continues to go downhill. The Yemeni riyal is collapsing against the dollar.

Facing such tough humanitarian conditions and war repercussions, the disputing parties keep blaming each other and voicing conflicting stances.

https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2018/03/yemen-war-houthis-economy-central-bank-salaries-government.html

(B E P)

Yemen Government Debt to GDP 1999-2018 | Data | Chart | Calendar

Yemen recorded a government debt equivalent to 85.40 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2016. Government Debt to GDP in Yemen averaged 54.43 percent from 1999 until 2016, reaching an all time high of 96.10 percent in 1999 and a record low of 36.40 percent in 2008.

https://tradingeconomics.com/yemen/government-debt-to-gdp

cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism

(* A K T)

8 KILLED IN A DRONE STIKE
Eight tribesmen were killed on Thursday evening in an air strike by a drone likely to be American in the al-Abr area of Hadramout province in eastern Yemen.
The victims belonged to one family.

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1671449336241423/?type=3 and also http://almasdaronline.com/article/97521

cp15 Propaganda

(A P)

Russia's support for Iran's proxy war in Yemen is further proof it's enemy No. 1

The Russians have done it again. They have castrated the United Nations and reduced the organization to irrelevance in exactly the type of situation it was created for.

On Feb. 28, Russia defied the U.S. and 10 other states at the U.N. Security Council in vetoing a resolution that would have held Iran accountable for its proxy war in Yemen.

Iran’s involvement is now undeniable, despite the protestations of its Russian benefactor

The time is ripe for meaningful action — punitive sanctions backed up with real bite. The abrogation of the Iran nuclear deal, which gives that country vast economic resources with which to pursue its rogue actions, must also be put in the balance. Unless Iran is willing to abide by its international law obligations it cannot be allowed to take its place amongst other peaceful trading states and its economic potential must be blunted by sanctions.

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/russias-support-for-irans-proxy-war-in-yemen-is-further-proof-its-enemy-no-1/article/2650864

My comment: From Yemen to Iran to Russia…

Comment: What an idiot writing this polemic piece. I'm not a fan of Russia nor of Iran. To tell the truth I think they are nearly as bad as UK USA Israel and Saudi Arabia. But thank goodness Russia vetoed this stupid resolution - who in Yemen has died from Iranian missiles? And who in Saudi Arabia? But tens of thousands in Yemen have died from the Saudi killing machine and weapons provided by U.K. and USA. And stupid UK decided we needed a resolution against a country that isn't causing Yemenis to die. This was a cooked up resolution to please Netanyahu and Trump

https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156470617678641

(A P)

Woman behind ripple of change in Iran starts with campaign against hijab mandate

In light of the recent protests that swept Iran at the beginning of the year, calling for the removal of the country’s theocratic regime lead by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, Iranian women have hopped on the bandwagon and are demanding their basic rights.

Dozens of women gathered in front of the Iranian Ministry of Labor on Thursday, which coincided with Women's Day, while security forces closed roads around the ministry and deployed troops in the area, according to local media outlets.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/features/2018/03/09/Iranian-activist-who-started-White-Wednesday-movement-says.html

My comment: Well done. In most other media, this would be a normal report from Iran. But this is in a Saudi media. What would happen to such women in Saudi Arabia??? And look at the photos how these women present themselves. Think of these women walking the streets in Riyadh this way??? In Saudi media, this is odd propaganda. Women in Saudi Arabia. https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2001272256/girl-held-in-saudi-arabia-risks-death-by-stoning and https://www.femalista.com/19-year-old-gang-rape-victim-received-200-lashes-6-months-jail-saudi-arabia/

(A P)

US General: Iran improved Houthis maritime capabilities, including explosive boats

DIA Director General Robert Ashley also said Iran's Russian anti-aircraft missile is operational

In a detailed testimony about the evolving threats facing the United States globally, US Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) General Robert Ashley laid particular emphasis on the growing Iranian influence across the Middle East, and particularly in Iraq, Syria and Yemen.

Addressing the US Senate Armed Services Committee last week, General Ashley described a “low-cost, high-payoff support" coming from Iran for Yemen's Houthis against the Saudi-led coalition. This support includes helping the Houthis “improve their military and missile capabilities, demonstrated through missile launches against targets in Saudi Arabia and Saudi-led coalition ships in the Red Sea.”

But Iranian support to the Houthis is not just ground and air lethal aid according the US senior defense official. General Ashley detailed Iranian efforts to also boost the Houthis maritime capabilities

https://www.thenational.ae/world/mena/us-general-iran-improved-houthis-maritime-capabilities-including-explosive-boats-1.711704 referring to http://www.dia.mil/News/Speeches-and-Testimonies/Article-View/Article/1457815/statement-for-the-record-worldwide-threat-assessment/

My comment: And again and again and again until vomiting.

(A P)

Saudi-backed interfaith center boosted by crown prince's surprising reforms

Just over five years ago, a Saudi-financed center for interfaith relations opened in Vienna amid concern it might be a public relations fig leaf for a country often slammed for its lack of religious freedom.

In October, Salman, 32, said he wants to return his country to "a moderate Islam open to the world and all religions."

This cautious opening has been a boon to the Saudi-backed King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue, or KAICIID, in Vienna. Its mission to improve relations between religious groups sounds more credible now that its main backer is starting to open up.

Staunchly conservative Saudi Arabia, which prohibits the construction of churches and synagogues, has long been anything but moderate in religion. Especially in recent decades, it has enforced strict limits on women's rights, banned cinemas and other public entertainment and tightly controlled religious activity by any faith other than its official Wahhabi Islam.

That has been changing under the crown prince's Vision 2030 reform program

https://www.ncronline.org/news/world/saudi-backed-interfaith-center-boosted-crown-princes-surprising-reforms

My comment: Oh. A Saudi propaganda outlet at Vienna. The rest: Yawn.

(A P)

Saudi Human Rights Commission: Kingdom has gone beyond legislation to promote women’s rights

Commission in Saudi Arabia said in a statement on International Women’s Day that the Kingdom has taken measures and issued legislation to address some of the challenges for women’s rights.

These rights were guaranteed by Islamic law and regulations in the Kingdom and the international conventions to which the Kingdom was party.

The commission said that Saudi Arabia had gone beyond enacting legislation to correct misconceptions that might constitute an obstacle to the empowerment of women, in addition to the measures taken in the field of human rights education.

“Today, Saudi women have a high-status thanks to God and then the directives of King Salman and the crown prince.”

http://www.daijiworld.com/news/newsDisplay.aspx?newsID=499011

My comment: What a joke, starting from a “Saudi Human Rights Commission”. Just read this: https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2001272256/girl-held-in-saudi-arabia-risks-death-by-stoning

(A P)

675 women killed by Houthis in four years, Yemen minister says

The Houthis have killed 675 women in Yemen over the last three years of the conflict, the minister of social affairs and labour said yesterday.

“The [Houthi] coup militias have killed more than 675 women since their coup against the legitimate government,” Ibtihaj Abdullah Al-Kamal said.

“112 women were killed, 236 wounded and more than 4,500 cases of violence against women were registered in a number of provinces.”

Al-Kamal went on to accuse the Houthi group of forming a women’s military brigade, recruiting more than 350 women and using them in military operations and raids.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180309-675-women-killed-by-houthis-in-four-years-yemen-minister-says/

My comment: Looks like Hadi government’s figure play.

(A P)

Qatar, the country that did it all!

Qatar did everything that makes a solution to its crisis with its neighbors and with Arabs unlikely. Before that, it did everything that contradicted with Arab countries’ stances and national principles. This is in addition to its involvement in affairs that threaten the interests of the region’s countries and their security.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/03/09/Qatar-the-country-that-did-it-all-.html

(A P)

Our pre-emptive war on terrorism

Our gratitude to the Bahraini Interior Ministry is measured by the number of lives saved by the pre-emptive operation it recently announced. Every soul that survived - it is as if it saved all mankind.

Thank God that the weapons and explosive materials were seized before they were used, otherwise there would have been catastrophic human losses.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/03/09/Our-pre-emptive-war-on-terrorism.html

(A P)

Saudi crown prince's Coptic Cathedral visit ‘a response to the radicals’

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1262576/opinion

(A P)

Houthis Confiscate Gas Trucks, Urge Locals to Purchase Wood

Houthi insurgent militia leaders asked the Yemeni people to substitute the use of domestic gas, which is undergoing a shortage in Sanaa, with wood, saying that the use of wood would provide thousands of job opportunities.
These calls were met with total rejection by locals who held the pro-Iran Houthi militias fully responsible for the shortage of oil and gas derivatives and transferring them into the black market so that the militias leaders would benefit from them financially and accumulate a wealth on the expense of people.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1198441/houthis-confiscate-gas-trucks-urge-locals-purchase-wood

My comment: Nice propaganda. “locals who held the pro-Iran Houthi militias fully responsible for the shortage of oil”. Which “locals”? it seems to be the Hadi government / Saudi propaganda departments. It’s the Saudi blockade which had caused the gas crisis. If anybody tries to take profit from this, it’s criminal of course. – And the Houthi appeal to use wood instead and that this would create thousands of jobs is odd propaganda as well: Which great forests in Yemen do they think of?

(A P)

Arab states must unite to stop Iran’s weapons smuggling

According to the latest reports, the Iranian regime is increasing its efforts to illegally supply weapons to terrorist groups and its proxies, specifically the Houthis in Yemen, as well as many other militias in Syria and Iraq.
When it comes to smuggling and supplying the Houthis with weapons, Tehran is engaged in four major categories.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1261931

My comment: Any reason why they should make Saudi affairs to their own?

(A P)

A comprehensive humanitarian operation plan for Yemen

The Yemen Comprehensive Humanitarian Operations Plan aims to enhance the humanitarian situation through a wide range of initiatives that offer financial, food, and medical support, as well as humanitarian aid, to an increased number of land, sea, and airports, all the while expanding the capacities of ports and road infrastructure in Yemen in areas under the legitimate Government control. The plan also works to increase imports to Yemen through commercial shipments, taking into account the threat posed by the Iran-backed Houthi militias to national and regional security due to the militias’ smuggling of weapons to fund the group’s continued campaign of aggression.

http://www.manilatimes.net/a-comprehensive-humanitarian-operation-plan-for-yemen/385001/

My comment: This is 100 % from the Saudis – nice propaganda.

(A P)

Yemen: Legitimacy Calls on UN to Save the Red Sea from Disaster

Yemeni government called on the United Nations to save the Red Sea from a possible environmental disaster caused by the oil spill off the coast in Hodeidah.

In a message sent on behalf of the Yemeni government to the UN Secretary General, Mekhlafi described the condition of Safer tanker and the major environmental and humanitarian threats it poses on the Red Sea.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1198211/yemen-legitimacy-calls-un-save-red-sea-disaster

My comment: A new propaganda invention: What an oil spill??

Flanking prince Salman’s visit to the West, there is a Saudi propaganda campaign on which great progress Saudi women are facing:

(A P)

Saudi women are winning the battle for rights

The year 2017 was definitely the year of empowering Saudi women. With long-awaited bold decrees — such as allowing women to drive, introducing sports in girls’ schools and even allowing women to attend soccer games and join the military, among other jobs that were previously off-limits — there is much to celebrate on International Women’s Day. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg of what Saudi women expect in terms of gaining their rights according to Islamic sharia.
The Saudi leadership has been nothing but supportive in changing some of the entrenched social norms and is keen on correcting many of the established attitudes that were based more on traditions rather than Islamic laws.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1261116

(A P)

This is the way to truly celebrate women

On March 8 each year, people around the world take part in efforts to celebrate the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. We spend large amounts of money planning and holding events and rallies in our communities and workplaces to honor the many successes of the women in our lives.

In 2017, women’s rights dominated the news.

The most impressive and dramatic change came from Saudi Arabia, who stepped on the reform accelerator so fast we did not know what to celebrate most.
By the end of 2017, King Salman had ordered reform in a royal decree requesting that driver’s licenses be issued to women who want them.

Moreover, Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor’s office opened the door for female investigators to apply for 140 positions. Amazingly, 100,000 women applied.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1261126

(A P9

Young women reflect on year’s changes

RECENT reforms and lifting of barriers have challenged social norms in Saudi Arabia at a rapid pace that have caused society to be split between two camps, one deeming them too fast and another — often the youth — to find it to be “just the right pace”.
Many Saudi women wonder how daily life has transformed in their country socially and economically since the past. Most have wondered throughout their lives when they would witness the day women will be able to drive.
Today’s generation live in a different Saudi Arabia than their parents’ age and believe the possibilities are now more than the impossibilities.

http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/article/529998/SAUDI-ARABIA/Young-women-reflect-on-years-changes

(A P)

A century of progress is just the beginning

In the past decade we have seen a transformation in the political rights of Saudi women. Surprising numbers of female candidates enjoyed success in recent municipal elections, while the Shura Council’s 20 percent female membership narrowly exceeds that of the US Congress. A Saudi woman, Tamadur Al-Ramah, was recently appointed deputy labor minister. However, aspirations to reform or abolish the guardianship laws – a prerequisite for full female autonomy – have yet to be followed through.
Having spent the past couple of years interviewing hundreds of Saudi women for a book, this issue is close to my heart.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1261136

(A P)

The many faces of feminism

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1261171

(A P)

Time for Saudi women to be more vocal about their rights

Often classified as oppressed, persecuted and crushed by the ultra-conservative, male-dominant society, Saudi women must take a stand against the misconceptions and false stereotypes many have of them.
Times have changed in the Kingdom, and Saudi women are gaining more and more rights — something much of the world is still ignorant about.

Women in the Kingdom can and do open their own bank accounts without the need for a male guardian’s permission, contrary to several false reports by renowned media outlets.
Women do have the authority over their own bodies and health as elective surgeries or medical treatments can be freely sought without permission from a male guardian.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1261616/saudi-arabia

and western media follow by “Saudi women learn to drive” stories like this:
(A P)

Saudi women battle bias, and nerves, to take the wheel

Fatima Salem giggles with hesitation when it's her turn to drive through a small parking lot lined with bright orange cones and arrows. Like millions of Saudi women, she plans on applying for a driver's license when the kingdom lifts its ban on women driving in June. But first, she has to learn how to drive.

"I'm a little nervous," the 30-year-old master's student said.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/saudi-arabia-women-drive-king-salman-decree-allows-drivers-licenses/

My comment: And this is how reality looks like: https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2001272256/girl-held-in-saudi-arabia-risks-death-by-stoning and https://www.femalista.com/19-year-old-gang-rape-victim-received-200-lashes-6-months-jail-saudi-arabia/

(A P)

Yemeni Minister of Media to BBC: We Will Not Enter Sanaa and What is Happening is to Force Al-Houthis to Negotiate

http://en.smanews.org/yemeni-minister-of-media-to-bbc-we-will-not-enter-sanaa-and-what-is-happening-is-to-force-al-houthis-to-negotiate

My comment: LOL. Every day a new story contradictory to yesterday One’s?

cp15a Propaganda: Prinz Salman in Großbritannien / Propaganda: Prince Salman in UK

(A P)

Great opportunity for UK, Saudi Arabia to cooperate in countering extremism

While the UK Government will undoubtedly be keen to use Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to the UK to foster closer economic ties with the Kingdom, policymakers would be wise to use the opportunity to develop greater cooperation to counter Islamist extremism. In this regard, Britain has much to learn, but also much to offer.

Officials from both sides are keen to make progress in this area. Discussions are expected to take place on how Britain and Saudi Arabia could further strengthen their longstanding military cooperation and intelligence sharing activities, with the Crown Prince due to participate in briefings from senior figures from the UK’s military and intelligence agencies. But while such collaborative efforts are necessary and important, more can be gained by both sides.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/world/2018/03/08/Great-opportunity-for-UK-Saudi-Arabia-to-cooperate-in-countering-extremism.html

My comment: By Saudi media. Saudi anti-terrorism scam: The arsonist playing firefighter.

(A P)

Why is Saudi Arabia in Yemen and what does it mean for Britain?

Key questions around Saudi involvement in Yemen and potential UK complicity

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/mar/08/why-saudi-arabia-in-yemen-what-does-it-mean-for-britain

My comment: This sounds like background information – but it much more is disinforming the public.

(A P)

Mohammed bin Salman and the battle of London

The attempts of Qataris, Iranians and their followers, whether those who oppose Saudi Arabia or remnants of the left-wing, failed at thwarting Mohammed bin Salman’s first visit to Britain as crown prince and of distorting his political and social project. Most politicians and media figures who are interested in Middle Eastern affairs frankly voiced their admiration of his character and projects, expressing positive views.

The first to voice this opinion was Boris Johnso

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/03/09/Mohammed-bin-Salman-and-the-battle-of-London.html = http://www.arabnews.com/node/1262266/opinion

My comment: LOL, LOL, LOL.

(A P)

Our outdated notions of Saudi Arabia risk hampering economic and social progress

Bringing our perception of Saudi Arabia up to speed is the challenge that the man driving this transformation, the new Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, has aimed to address during his visit to the UK.

We have opportunities to help a Kingdom that is eager to engage with us to develop its services, from healthcare and education reform, to life-sciences and green energy.

But we now have a choice, between an outdated, aggressively moralistic narrative for Saudi Arabia, and choosing to understand how the Kingdom has been accelerating from a near-medieval way of living to modern-day nation, in under 100 years – by Charlotte Leslie, director of the Conservative Middle East Council.

http://www.cityam.com/281984/our-outdated-notions-saudi-arabia-risk-hampering-economic

My comment: And even more pro-Saudi propaganda by British politicians. And as so often, it’s going to be ridiculous: She laments a “an outdated, aggressively moralistic narrative for Saudi Arabia”. Do not show any moral, please, don’t be “moralistic”! And do not be “aggressive”: Do not call Saudi aggression at Yemen an “aggression”. Oh, that’s “outdated”.

And this still is not enough:

(A P)

Liam Fox: For a more liberal, safer Middle East we must be with Saudi

The Crown Prince’s reform programme can build on what is already a strong alliance with Britain

Under the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman the kingdom has embarked on a programme for reform enshrined through “Vision 2030”.

As well as measures to diversify the economy, this vision includes reforms to government bureaucracy and raising women’s participation in the workforce.

The relationship between Saudi Arabia and the UK is built on an enduring partnership. Today both kingdoms are transforming their economic prospects and roles in the world.

This week’s visit has presented significant opportunities for British businesses.

In Yemen we are working together, with the British UN Special Envoy, to achieve a political settlement and bring a lasting peace – by Liam Fox is Secretary of State for International Trade

https://www.standard.co.uk/comment/comment/for-a-more-liberal-safer-middle-east-we-must-be-with-saudi-a3786136.html

My comment: Well, business is her business. And nothing else? No. – Working together with the Saudis “to achieve a political settlement and bring a lasting peace”: How odd id this? It’s the Saudis who had started this war as a more-than civil war by their aggression against Houthi-held Yemen: that’s like declaring you would be partner with a knifer to bring the victims to hospital (who also had deflated the tires of the ambulance car).

(A P)

Crown prince’s approach to women’s rights is eye-catching and long overdue

The reaction from the British media and people has on the whole been warmer than had been expected and certainly warmer than any previous Saudi royal visit here. But why?

Are Britons putting Saudi Arabia in greater context, or are MBS’s first moves towards greater openness and women’s rights changing perceptions?

For me, the shift is ultimately a reflection of changes at the domestic level in Saudi Arabia.

MBS’s modernisation drive – sometimes ruthlessly driven home – is in my view genuine.

But here is a leader who seems in tune with the modern world and who, at the age of just 32, plans to be around for a long time to come

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/najah-al-otaibi-crown-prince-s-approach-to-women-s-rights-is-eye-catching-and-long-overdue-c8pfsr2dw

My comment: Another piece of shameless pro-Saudi propaganda in British media flanking Salman’s visit to the UK.

(A P)

Film: Saudi Princess Reema: ‘We are seeing cultural norms change’

You wouldn’t expect a Saudi Princess to be the ideal interviewee on International Women’s Day. But beyond the talk of weapons, Yemen and trade during Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s official visit to Britain, another part of the family, in the form of Princess Reema, is also here arguing that strides are being made there towards greater gender equality, particularly in sport.

https://www.channel4.com/news/saudi-princess-reema-we-are-seeing-cultural-norms-change

(A P)

Forget the naysayers. Saudi’s crown prince is the real deal

If you doubt it, hear what he says about Islamist ideology

In an interview this week, Mohammad bin Salman offered an extraordinarily frank assessment of how to combat terrorism. It means rooting out Islamist ideology, he said, as much as sharing intelligence. He presumably would take this blunt message to MI5 and MI6 in his meetings with those agencies, as well as to Theresa May’s National Security Council.

This should provide plenty of food for thought to the cynics who argue against being taken in by his much-trumpeted embrace of a more moderate Islam. We have a Saudi crown prince who is being more frank about Wahhabi-inspired terrorism than the British.

https://www.spectator.co.uk/2018/03/forget-the-naysayers-saudis-crown-prince-is-the-real-deal/

My comment: And even more propaganda of this kind. Saudi Arabia simply IS Islamism.

(A P)

Tom Tugendhat: We must try to steer Saudi Arabia, during the Crown Prince’s visit here, away from its failing strategy in Yemen

In the eight months since bin Salman became Crown Prince, Saudi Arabia has made important reforms which the government has been right to support and encourage.

After Houthi rebels overthrew Yemen’s capital and ousted the elected government, Saudi Arabia intervened in 2015 with laudable aims of protecting their borders, restoring a legitimate government and countering Iran’s destabilising influence.

https://www.conservativehome.com/platform/2018/03/tom-tugendhat-we-must-try-to-steer-saudi-arabia-during-the-crown-princes-visit-here-away-from-its-failing-strategy-in-yemen.html

My comment: It’s really amazing how many British politicians prostitute themselves to repeat such propaganda bullshit again and again – by Tom Tugendhat MP

cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids

Siehe / Look at cp1

(A K PH)

Film: Two citizens injured in raids on the Directorate of Razih Saada 09-03-2018

Injured two Yemeni citizens following raids by the US-Saudi aggression on the Directorate of Razih in the province of Saada

https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1995357334123913/ = https://twitter.com/Hona_Almasirah/status/972169439675404288

(A K PH)

Film: Barbaric aggression targets electricity generators Baqam Sa'ada 09-03-2018

The American air force attacked the Saudi aggressors with vicious raids in the Directorate of Baqam in Saada province (Saudi air force!!]

https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1995357750790538/ = https://twitter.com/Hona_Almasirah/status/972170310047985670

(* A K PH)

Aggression raids in Hodeidah, six killed

Six citizens killed when the US- backed Saudi aggression warplanes waged at night on Friday three airstrikes on a citizens’ farms in al-Thutah and al-Grahi districts in Hodeidah province

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489810.htm

(* A K PH)

Six civilians killed in Saudi aggression airstrikes in Hodeidah

Three US- backed Saudi- led aggression airstrikes killed six civilians in Hodeidah province, a security official told Saba on Thursday.
The aggression warplane waged two airstrikes on one of the farms in Zabeed valley, resulting in the killing of one of the citizen's and losses of anothers.
Furthermore, five civilians were killed in the aggression airstrike near Dahmsh market in Zabeed district.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489830.htm

(* A K PH)

Death of 6 citizens and the loss of others as a result of air raids in Hodeidah

Six citizens were killed and others were missing Thursday after an air raid on the Saudi-American aggression in the province of Hodeidah in the west of the country.
According to the correspondent, "Al-Masriya Net," the death of 5 citizens following an air raid on the aggression near the market Dahmash in the Directorate of Zabid.
The correspondent added that the martyrdom of the farmer and the loss of others following two air strikes on the aggression on a farm in Wadi Zabid.
A civilian was killed and another was injured earlier in the day following two air raids on a poultry farm in Al-Jaraji.
A civilian was killed and three others were injured on Wednesday night after an air raid on a poultry farm targeting a civilian in Zabid governorate.

http://almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=20537&cat_id=3

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/971647015229771777

and what pro-Hadi propaganda makes ot of it:

(A K PS)

Dozens of Houthis killed in series of raids in Hodeida

Dozens of Houthi militias have been killed and wounded in a series of air raids launched by the Saudi-led Arab Coalition aircrafts on a rally southern the coastal Hodeida province, western Yemen, eyewitnesses said.

About 11 air raids were launched on Tuesday on a group of Houthis in a farm in Al-Suwaiq area, Tahita district, southern al Hodeida province, they added.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/97515

(* A K PH)

#Update: 6 killed, including 2 women, 3 children and 4 injured as a result of the air strike targeting a citizen house in Shamlan neighborhood of the capital #sanaa.

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.963391330380564.1073741829.961126490607048/1670245456361811/?type=3

and

(* A K)

Air strike kills 6 family members in Yemen: witnesses

"There was an air strike on the house. My father and rest of the family were inside," the son, Ahmed Hazem al-Samri, told AFP.

He had been out for the evening at the time of the attack in the Shamlan district, northwest Sanaa.

"Six of them were killed and seven wounded," said Samri. The dead were three children, two women and Samri's father.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-5477773/Air-strike-kills-6-family-members-Yemen-witnesses.html

and

(* A K PH)

Photos: Two women and three children will not see a new tomorrow. The aftermath of the bombing on #Shamlan area, #Sanaa, tonight. It was a private home

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1670333413019682

and

(* A K PH)

"Exclusive Photos" Coalition commits a human massacre against civilians in Sanaa which led to the fall of 6 citizens, including two women and three children and wounded four others in an initial toll until the moment.

http://www.sahafah24.net/show1335840.html

More photos:

https://twitter.com/HussainBukhaiti/status/971524951898542081

https://twitter.com/HussainBukhaiti/status/972019581119328256

films: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ez2mXZgdTk = https://www.facebook.com/Hona.Almasirah/videos/1994188884240758/ = https://twitter.com/Hona_Almasirah/status/971481735027482625

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvuEfPY1IWA = https://twitter.com/Hona_Almasirah/status/971853721218011141

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/videos/1671986836187673/

(A K PH)

Two killed in Saudi-led air strikes in Yemen

Air strikes killed a woman and a young girl in northern Yemen on Wednesday in a series of attacks by an Arab coalition.

Residents said the attack early on Wednesday morning on the suburbs of the northern city of Saada, the stronghold of the Houthis, killed a woman and a young girl and also wounded several children from the same family, according to a Reuters witness at the local hospital.

“There were three [strikes] on our house and one on my father’s house,” said Helal Ahmed Saleh, one of those of injured during the strike.

“When they hit mine, I was running and calling for someone to help us, but then the fourth one hit my father’s house and the shrapnel hit me.”

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-airstrikes/two-killed-in-saudi-led-air-strikes-in-yemen-residents-idUSKCN1GJ2GM

and

(A K PH)

Film: Saudi warplanes kill mother, child in Yemen’s Sa’ada

Saudi warplanes have conducted a series of air raids against Yemen’s northern province of Sa’ada, killing a woman and a young girl, residents say.

Residents said the airstrikes early on Wednesday morning killed a woman and a young girl and injured several children from the same family in the suburbs of the city of Sa’ada, according to a witness at the local hospital.

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/03/07/554702/Saudi-warplanes-Yemen-Saada

(* A K PH)

More Saudi coalition air raids reported on:

March 9:

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489817.htm Hajjah prov.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489802.htm Marib prov.

March 8:

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489787.htm Hajjah prov., farm

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489784.htm Nehm, Sanaa prov.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489709.htm Sanaa prov., house destroyed

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489705.htm Serwah (Marib prov.), Nehm (Sanaa prov.)

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489693.htm Taiz prov.

March 7:

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489688.htm Hodeidah prov., farms

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489677.htm Hajjah prov.

cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War

(A K PS)

Arab Coalition intercepts two ballistic missiles over Marib

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-16223

(B K)

Yemen coast a ‘live fire laboratory’ for firing lasers

Each of the military branches researches, tests and deploys various laser systems. But right now, a real battlespace is hosting a showcase of laser threats and countermeasures off the coast of Yemen.

Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert Neller told congressional representatives during a budget hearing this week that the area is a hot zone for the use of both offensive and defense laser systems.

“It’s not just at sea, what’s going on off the coast of Yemen is kind of a live-fire laboratory,” Neller said.

https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/your-marine-corps/2018/03/08/yemen-coast-a-live-fire-laboratory-for-firing-lasers/ and also http://www.newsweek.com/us-forces-face-laser-weapons-surge-yemen-coast-838823?piano_t=1

My comment: US, keep off from there.

Comment: Are we using lasers to disable the #Houthi movement's remote-controlled explosive boats off the coast of #Yemen? Or are we using lasers to disable the kamikaze #drones they use to target coalition Patriot missile defense systems? Or both? Why aren't we talking more about lasers?

https://twitter.com/MaherFarrukh/status/972081788028731392

All excitement about lasers aside, what does this mean about America’s role in the #Yemen war IF our military is disabling al #Houthi weapon systems (noting he did not actually say they were Houthi, just air and seaborne drones off the coast of Yemen)

https://twitter.com/MaherFarrukh/status/972091398613798912

My comment to comment: How much US interference into the Yemen war there still is to come??

(B K)

Swarms of DIY drones are attacking missile defences in Yemen

Swarms of cheap drones are taking on one of the world’s most sophisticated air defence systems. It’s not clear whether these attacks in Yemen have been successful, but home-made drone swarms targeting highly advanced military technology is a trend that is likely to grow.

The defences in question are US-made PAC-3 Patriot systems (paywalled)

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2163260-swarms-of-diy-drones-are-attacking-missile-defences-in-yemen/

(A K PH)

At least five citizens were injured most of them women and children when the US-Saudi artillery forces and missiles hit difference places on Sadaa. A secretary official told Saba on Thursday.
The Saudi’ artillery hit Shatha district resulted, two women injured and a child. And Saudi’ a strike hit Razeh border causing, two men wounded.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489786.htm

(A K PH)

Citizens killed by Saudi border guards in Saada

A citizen was killed and three others wounded when Saudi border guards opened fire on border districts of Saada province.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news489666.htm

cp18 Sonstiges / Other

(* B)

Film: Walls of change in Yemen [street artists]

https://www.trtworld.com/video/showcase/walls-of-change-in-yemen/5a9f90d3e558965e52732f5b

(* B)

Living in Yemen Part I - Tafruta

From April 1996 to March 1999 I lived in Yemen. I was there with my husband who was working to promote the country as a tourist destination. It was wonderful. Many are surprised to hear this, imagining me locked up, veiled and bored out of my mind. I was anything but that; I loved living in Yemen.

Although Yemen is a very conservative Moslem country, Yemeni women are allowed to drive and vote. Many women are in the Yemeni work force as teachers, nurses, doctors and even as businesswomen and television announcers. At the time we were living there, 13 women were in the Yemeni Parliament.

The veiling of women is not law in Yemen as it is in Saudi Arabia. Many younger, educated women merely cover their heads, but not their faces, and some do not veil at all. (photos)

http://www.gildedserpent.com/articles12/livinginyemen.htm

(* B)

Film: Sana'a: The Melody of our Alienation

This elegeic piece by Abdurahman Hussain send us a reminder that no matter how strange the city feels, people are not strangers in their own city. This is their city. This is where they belong. This is where they will make a difference as agents of peace.

http://www.kuriositas.com/2015/01/sanaa-melody-of-our-alienation.html?spref=fb

Vorige / Previous:

https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-390-yemen-war-mosaic-390

Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-390 / Yemen War Mosaic 1-390:

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/

http://www.yemenwar.info/

und alle Liste aller Luftangriffe / and list of all air raids:

http://yemendataproject.org/data/

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

Dietrich Klose

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

Dietrich Klose

Was ist Ihre Meinung?
Diskutieren Sie mit.

Kommentare einblenden