Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 402 - Yemen War Mosaic 402

Yemen Press Reader 402: 11.4.2018: Syrien und Jemen–Kriegsstatistik–Huthi-Landminen–UN-Resolution 2216 blockiert Frieden–Mega-Tod aus USA–Huthis und Schifffahrt–Saudi-PR in USA–Salman-Interview

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Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

April 11, 2018: Syria and Yemen – Statistics of war – Houthi landmines – How UN resolution 2216 blocks peace – Mega deaths from America – Houthis will not impede shipping – Web of Saudi PR firms in the US – Prince Salman interview in „Time“ – and more

Dieses Jemenkrieg-Mosaik nur in Englisch. Deutsch: Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 403, folgt

This Yemen war Mosaic in English only. In German, Yemen War Mosaic 403 is to follow

Schwerpunkte / Key aspects

Klassifizierung / Classification

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

cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important

cp2 Allgemein / General

cp2a Allgemein: Saudische Blockade / General: Saudi blockade

cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation

cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis

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

cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks

cp7a Saudi-Arabien und Iran / Saudi Arabia and Iran

cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia

cp9 USA

cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain

cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries

cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis

cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms Trade

cp13b Mercenaries / Söldner

cp13c Kulturerbe / Cultural heritage

cp13d Wirtschaft / Economy

cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism

cp15 Propaganda

cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids

cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War

cp18 Sonstiges / Other

Klassifizierung / Classification

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**

*

(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

Einführende Artikel u. Überblicke für alle, die mit den Ereignissen im Jemen noch nicht vertraut sind, hier:

Yemen War: Introductory articles, overviews, for those who are still unfamiliar with the Yemen war here:

https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-einfuehrende-artikel-u-ueberblicke

Neue Artikel / New articles

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Film: Demand An End to the Horror in Yemen!

The Zero Hour with RJ Eskow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKxj61Hz1B8

and

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Yemen, the story of a broken country after 3 years of war

Yemen has entered its fourth year of conflict. 3 out of 4 people in the country need humanitarian assistance and more than 8 million, mostly children, are on the verge of starvation. Action against Hunger outlines a grim picture.

Since March 2015, millions of people in Yemen have been suffering the devastating consequences of war.

The fighting, collapse of the economy and basic services, as well as the commercial blockage enforced by the coalition headed by Saudi Arabia – in a country that was already 90 per cent dependent on imports before the war – has led to more than 8.4 million people on the verge of starvation. Many of them have been forced to flee inland in search of some measure of safety.

For three years, the coalition led by Saudi Arabia, other pro-governmental forces or the Houthis have been violating with total impunity the rights of civilians to be protected from war without being held to account for their actions.

The great Western powers such as France, the United States or the United Kingdom have become accomplices by supporting this coalition, in supplying weapons and in refusing to fully commit to resolving diplomatically this conflict. (photos)

https://www.lifegate.com/people/news/yemen-story-conflict

cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(** A B K P)

[Yemen and Syria]

Isn't it amazing that Saudi Arabia has been accused of war crimes - by Amnesty, Human Rights Watch, United Nations, save the children, UNICEF, Oxfam, and others, all with credible evidence. The government said that the evidence was insufficient and they needed to see what Saudi Arabia said about it first. They said they were not guilty so the government believed them. Now in Syria the so called White Helmets - part of Al Qaeda - claim that the Syrian government has gassed its own people. Within 48 hours the UNSCR has convened, no evidence has been offered, and already Israel has bombed the main military capability in Syria that was used against ISIS. Now doesn't this reek of double standards and warmongering? How can we stop this ongoing detestable destruction that will not stop until our world is destroyed. And all the people on it.

https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156584518348641

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Trump Prepares to Launch His Illegal Attack on Syria

The president will very likely order an illegal attack on another government in the coming days. Trump has no authority to order an attack on the Syrian government, which has not attacked the U.S. and doesn’t pose any threat to America or its allies. There is no international mandate for military action against Syria, and there is no vital American interest at stake that might conceivably justify an attack.

The same president who enables war crimes and famine in Yemen has no business talking about humanity or opposing atrocities. It is not just that the Trump administration applies two radically different standards for how it responds to the atrocities committed by other governments, but also that it is actively involved in facilitating the atrocities of its clients while pretending to be horrified by the war crimes of others. Unfortunately, the U.S.-backed war on Yemen will receive even less attention than it already does because of the focus on a possible U.S. attack on Syria, and the one war that the U.S. has the influence to stop with relative ease will continue while our government needlessly escalates its involvement in another war – by Daniel Larison

http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/trump-prepares-to-launch-his-illegal-attack-on-syria/

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The Legal Center for Rights and Development Reveals Statistics for The Third Year Under The Aggression

The center explained that the US-Saudi Aggression on Yemen left 14,000 and 291 civilian martyrs, including three thousand and 57 children and two thousand and 86 women. The Center reported that 22,537 civilians, including 2,869 children, 2,284 women, are still suffering from a lack of medicines, medical supplies and quality treatment because of the blockade in the shadow of the shameful silence of human rights organizations.

On the infrastructure side, the center uncovered the destruction caused by the aggression including 15 airports and 14 ports and damaged roads and bridges of two thousand and 425 between a road and a bridge. The statistics showed that the aggression destroyed 688 tanks and water network, 179 power stations and generators and 410 communications networks, making the most vital installations in Yemen out of coverage.

The Center pointed out that the aggression destroyed more than 413 thousand and 297 houses and displaced more than four million citizens and destroyed 903 mosques and 869 centers and schools, and stopped four thousand and 500 schools and bombed 309 hospitals and health facilities and 35 media organizations.

In the government and industry side, the center explained that the aggression destroyed a thousand and 761 government facilities, 722 food stores, 596 food tankers, 609 shops and commercial complexes, 345 gas stations, 262 fuel tankers, 307 factories, 269 poultry and livestock farms, 216 archaeological sites, 264 tourist facilities and 122 playgrounds and sports facilities.

http://www.newnewss.net/the-legal-center-for-rights-and-development-reveals-statistics-for-the-third-year-under-the-aggression/

(** B K)

Houthi landmines kill 700 civilians in Taiz

The Human Rights Information and Training Center, a Yemeni NGO, said that landmines planted by Houthis killed 700 civilians in the province of Taiz since the Shia rebels partly invaded the city in March 2015.
The HRITC said in a new report issued on the occasion of the International Mines Day that "the biggest war crime the Houthis have committed in Yemen over the past three years was the planting of landmines."

The report showed that the rebels systematically planted landmines, which led to "the killing of nearly 700 civilians, including 32 children and 14 women, and injury of 1,100 other civilians, including 38 children and 17 women" in the city.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17306

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How a tough UN resolution is making push for Yemen peace talks harder

The UN's new Yemen envoy says all sides desire a political solution. But Resolution 2216, which demands Houthi rebels disarm and withdraw, is being invoked to create an 'impossible precondition' for talks.

Yet the bad news is that Griffith’s efforts may be hobbled by UN Security Council Resolution 2216 from 2015, which has been used by the internationally recognized Yemen government and its chief supporter, Saudi Arabia, to legitimize military intervention against Shiite Houthi rebels and create a serious obstacle to negotiations.

Analysts say the conflict has now evolved beyond that resolution, which explicitly requires that the Iran-backed Houthis give up their weapons and leave cities.

Any framework for peace, the analysts say, must also be updated to account for the following:

  • widespread Houthi gains in a war that lasted years longer than expected
  • fragmented parties and multiple power centers on all sides, many of which benefit from a war economy
  • desperately urgent humanitarian needs for millions of Yemenis
  • and a war that has ground to a stalemate, despite nearly 17,000 coalition airstrikes, which the UN blames for two-thirds of civilian casualties.

“The fact is, this is a very rigid Security Council resolution, for a conflict that’s been very fluid and evolved quite a bit over the last three years,” says Adam Baron, a Yemen expert with the European Council on Foreign Relations, contacted in Beirut.

“In a lot of ways, 2216 outlines something that – even if parts of it are still valid – it’s something that really does fail to address the complexities of the Yemen conflict as it exists today,” Mr. Baron says.

The 2015 resolution was supported by the United States and Britain, allies of Saudi Arabia who have sold billions of dollars of weaponry to Saudi Arabia and its chief coalition partner, the United Arab Emirates.

There are no signs yet that either the US or Britain, as permanent members of the Security Council – much less Saudi Arabia – are interested in a new resolution that would inevitably raise the Houthis’ negotiating status vis-a-vis the internationally recognized Yemen government, which resides in exile in Riyadh.

Resolution 2216 has been used by that Yemeni government, Saudi Arabia, and its allies to insist that the Houthis surrender and withdraw – as required by the text – as a precondition for peace talks, analysts say. The Houthis have indicated a willingness to talk, and even to hand over heavy weapons to a government that represents all factions, but only as a result of any talks.

“There is a political solution, but I think the new UN Special Envoy – as much as the former UN Special Envoy – is faced with this impossible precondition to the negotiations,” says Marie-Christine Heinze, a Yemen specialist and president of the Center for Applied Research in Partnership with the Orient (CARPO) in Bonn, Germany.

The 2015 resolution “condemns the Houthis, rightly so, for the coup that they did,” says Dr. Heinze. But she adds that today Houthis have little incentive to simply surrender their arms and territory at the outset, before talks begin.

Without a change, or some creative diplomacy, the UN Special Envoy “can’t address all sides on an equal level and broker a solution that keeps the dignity of all sides intact, which is an important precondition for all mediation efforts,” says Heinze – by Scott Peterson

https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2018/0409/How-a-tough-UN-resolution-is-making-push-for-Yemen-peace-talks-harder

(** B H K P)

Mega Deaths From America

As Americans get ready for Thanksgiving 2017 overeating, their government wss on the verge of successfully starving millions of Yemenis to death by siege warfare. The U.S. naval blockade of Yemen has been unrelenting since March 2015. The U.S. Navy is an essential element of this perpetual war crime, this endless assault on a civilian population of about 25 million. This is the kind of collective punishment of innocents that we once put Nazis on trial for at Nuremberg.

The aggression against Yemen has been a nexus of war crimes from the beginning.

If the United States doesn’t kill you, it’s perfectly happy to let you die (what health care?). The question—with hope embedded—is whether most Americans support the legal reign of terror that is Pax Americana. Given U.S. treatment of Americans from Ferguson to Flint to Standing Rock to Puerto Rico, the prospect is grim – by William M. Boardman

https://zcomm.org/zmagazine/mega-deaths-from-america/

(** A B K)

Assessment: Houthi Rebels Will Not Impede Shipping

This week's missile attack on a tanker off Yemen sparked diplomatic outrage, but it is unlikely to affect merchant traffic in the Red Sea, according to multiple assessments..

As troubling as an attack on a merchant ship might be, Dryad noted that the Houthi forces are focused on Saudi coalition- and coalition-aligned targets, and they are unlikely to expend their resources on random attacks. "Dryad continue to assess that targeting by Houthi rebels is almost exclusively as a result of vessels being identified as being in support of the Saudi led coalition in Yemen or due to proximity to Saudi naval vessels," the firm wrote. "Houthi rebels are assessed as being highly unlikely to utilise limited and valuable weapon systems against targets that are not positively identifiable as being of Saudi origin or in direct support of Saudi coalition forces."

https://maritime-executive.com/article/assessment-houthi-attacks-will-not-impede-shipping#gs.Fw6LkoA

My comment: Exactly. What is told otherwise is propaganda bullshit.

(** B P)

Inside the vast web of PR firms popularizing the Saudi crown prince

Before the crown prince arrived in the US, CBS had already been to Riyadh to interview him for a perfectly-timed episode of 60 Minutes, which aired on the eve of his arrival and was promptly criticized for its failure to press bin Salman on substantial issues.

The kingdom is no stranger to securing multimillion-dollar contracts to counter the negative press it is often the subject of. From quashing lawsuits on Saudi involvement in 9/11, to denying accusations of war crimes in Yemen, Saudi Arabia counts on international PR firms to do its bidding, and has ramped up its efforts as the country attempts to diversify its economy and attract foreign investment as bin Salman prepares to ascend to the throne.

Podesta Group

The Podesta Group was founded by longtime Democratic operative and former Hillary Clinton campaign chair John Podesta and his brother, Tony. The Saudi royal court renewed a $1.7 million annual contract with the group on January 1, 2017.

The Podesta Group’s work has included sending pro-Saudi material to congressional staffers and analysts. In September, Podesta employee John Anderson sent around an article from Al Arabiya, which was also published by the Saudi Press Agency, titled ‘National Society for Human Rights expresses its condemnation of the insult of Qatari citizen Hamad al Marri.’ The email was sent to a 14-page-long list of journalists, from ABC to Al Jazeera, and to think tanks like the Brookings Institute.

Saudi American Public Relation Affairs Committee (SAPRAC)

SAPRAC is a US lobby group founded in March 2016. Salman al-Ansari is founder and president, and appears in the media to commend the kingdom. SAPRAC says its funding comes from organizations and events. Because it has been set up in a similar fashion to the prominent American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) lobby group, it doesn’t have to register as a foreign agent, despite it pushing the same agenda as the kingdom.

Qorvis MSLGROUP

Qorvis MSLGROUP, a subsidiary of French PR giant Publicis, has represented the kingdom since 2001. Qorvis is behind efforts to stop 9/11 families suing Saudi Arabia. Its work included sending military veterans to Washington to lobby against the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA), with the PR firm telling the vets there was no Saudi involvement in the all-expenses paid trip.

Sonoran Policy Group

Sonoran Policy Group of Arizona signed a $5.4 million contract with the kingdom in May. The contract is signed by the director of the Department of Intellectual Security and says SPG will “provide the Ministry of Interior, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia broad advisory services including public relations and media engagement as well as public affairs counsel along with marketing arid outreach as pertaining to the United States.”

https://www.rt.com/news/422858-saudi-pr-firms-yemen-terrorism/

(** B P)

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Talks to TIME About the Middle East, Saudi Arabia's Plans and President Trump

On March 29, TIME interviewed the Crown Prince at New York City’s Plaza Hotel.

An edited and condensed transcript of the conversation follows.

Q: Do you see it being dangerous in any way for your own well-being in terms of trying to make that break from the Wahhabists?

A: What’s Wahhabist? You’ve got to explain what’s Wahhabist. Because there is nothing called Wahhabist. And this is one of the ideas of the extremists after ’79 to put the Wahhabist things, to let the Saudis be part of something that they are not part of it. So I need someone to explain to me what are the teachings of Wahhabism. There is nothing called Wahhabist. In Saudi Arabia we have Sunni and Shiite sects

Q: So would you use ground troops in Yemen?

A: Yemen, it’s a battle between Yemeni people, Yemeni government trying to get rid of the terrorists who hijacked their country and their normal life. And it’s their battle. Whatever they ask us in Saudi Arabia or the other 12 countries in the coalition, we’ll provide. Until today they didn’t ask for soldiers on the ground.

Q: The UN has said that 10,000-some civilians have been killed in this conflict, and members of Congress and independent humanitarian groups have said that air strikes carried out by your country have risen to the level of war crimes. How you would respond to those criticisms?

A: Well, first of all, in any military operation mistakes happen. We cannot fight any military operation around the whole world, even United States of America, even Russia, all the countries, without mistakes. The question is are these mistakes are accidents or by mistake or intentional. Of course any mistakes made by Saudi Arabia or the coalition are unintended mistakes.

And we’re working with other countries around the world to increase our rules of engagement to be sure that there are no civilian casualities in these military operations. We are the biggest donor in the history of Yemen. We are still doing our best to be sure that the humanitarian need in Yemen and the interests of the people, health care, education, whatever, it’s supported. And any initiative made from the UN or any other groups around the world, immediately we help and we try to do our best to push positively in that side.

But sometimes in the Middle East, not all the choices it will be between good and bad choices. Sometimes we are between bad and worse choice. But let me tell you one important thing. The humanitarian problem in Yemen didn’t start in 2015. It started in 2014 when the Houthis started to move. But what if the coalition and the Security Council didn’t answer the call of the Yemeni president and the Yemeni legitimate government? You would see Yemen divided between two terrorist groups: the Houthis, the new Hezbollah in the north, and Al Qaeda in the south, they are trying to take advantage of what’s happening there and they are trying to grow in 2015. So you will see Yemen split between those two terrorist groups.

http://time.com/5228006/mohammed-bin-salman-interview-transcript-full/ and condensed in this Saudi media article: https://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2018/04/06/Mohamed-bin-Salman-talks-plans-for-Saudi-Arabia-with-US-Time.html

My comment: The questioning is very soft, there are no contradictions to obvious lies and propaganda stories. Salman is telling almost the same as in other interviews (60 Minutes, The Atlantic). That’s what he wants the Western world to believe, all this has nothing to do with reality.

cp2 Allgemein / General

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(* B K P)

EXCLUSIVE: THE AGGRESSION’S EYE ON THE YEMENI WORM WATERS

In fact, the self-evident reality is that Yemen is being invaded and occupied, therefore, the aggression objectives should be look at in the colonizing context. These world powers seek to divide the country and sort it out regionally to occupy its strategic locations. In this research, we consider everything that was given to Yemen, as a geographical region of natural characteristics, that raised its importance and strategic strength enabling it to have the most important features of political and economic power. These features come first in the list of considerations for the US-Saudi Aggression as it has been pointed out by many observers and experts in the political, military and economic affairs.

https://www.yemenpress.org/yemen/exclusive-the-aggressions-eye-on-the-yemeni-worm-waters/

Remark: Pro-Houthi site.

(* B H K)

Doctors Without Borders: Film: YÉMEN : UNE POPULATION EXSANGUE

Depuis l’intervention d’une coalition internationale menée par l’Arabie saoudite contre les Houthis en mars 2015, le conflit au Yémen s’est étendu, entraînant une crise de grande ampleur pour la population. Médecins Sans Frontières est un des rares acteurs humanitaires présents dans ce pays où l’accès est extrêmement restreint.

https://www.msf.fr/eclairages/yemen-une-population-exsangue

(* B H K P)

As the World Watches Syria, Don’t Forget About Yemen

In the time it takes to read these words, a child under the age of five will probably die in Yemen.

And, as this is being written, the U.N. Security Council is meeting to discuss a gas attack in Syria. President Trump, with newly-appointed National Security Advisor John Bolton at his side, says he will decide on his course of action within 24 to 48 hours.

The Syrian people’s tragedy is enormous. So is the possibility for military confrontation between two nuclear powers.

But while the headlines focus on Syria, and as a multitude of voices call for increased military involvement there, don’t forget the tragedy in Yemen. We can save lives much more easily there. We don’t have to send troops or launch missiles.

All we have to do is leave.

The problem isn’t that the US is standing by and doing nothing while this horror unfolds. It’s much worse than that. The US is actively working to cause these atrocities, by helping the dictatorship in Saudi Arabia in its relentless attack on Yemen.

Marjorie Ransom, a former diplomat in Yemen, writes of “direct U.S. military complicity in this long and pointless campaign,” adding:

“In addition to selling a vast arsenal of weapons to Saudi Arabia, our government’s military gave logistical guidance in the Saudi military headquarters in Riyadh and continues to provide intelligence to Saudi defense officials and aerial refueling during bombing runs.”

She concludes, “The Saudi-led coalition could not have conducted the two and a half years of bombing without the support of our military.”

https://ourfuture.org/20180410/as-the-world-watches-syria-dont-forget-about-yemen

(* A H K P)

Interactive Map of Yemen

https://yemen.liveuamap.com/

(B H K P)

Building Peace in the Conflict: AfP Statement on Yemen

The Alliance for Peacebuilding urges the US and other governments to invest in these peacebuilding programs, call on parties to the conflict to uphold international humanitarian law, and support peace negotiations that include all warring Yemeni parties and their international supporters. More civilians are at risk of famine and disease every day this man-made conflict endures. One more anniversary is not acceptable.

https://medium.com/@AfPeacebuilding/building-peace-in-the-conflict-afp-statement-on-yemen-89adf07adc1a

(* B H K P)

Download Link: Conclusions Roundtable on Protection in Yemen, March 2018

https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/en/operations/yemen/document/conclusions-roundtable-protection-yemen-march-2018

(* B P)16)

Journalists Syndicate documents 60 cases violations against press

The report documented 60 violations against journalists and media institutions during the last three months from January to the end of March 2018, of which 29 were abductions, arrests and detentions.

The report indicated 12 journalists are still being kidnapped by the Houthi rebel militia in the Political Security Jail in Sana'a.

The imprisoned journalists are denied their right to medical treatment and health care.
The Syndicate documented 13 cases of assaults against reporters n addition to 4 cases of abuse and death threats, 3 cases of interrogations and trials, 4 cases of property confiscations, and two cases of prevention of coverage.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17307

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Audio: Yemen, a US/Saudi-made catastrophe 3 years on - with Shireen al-Adeimi (Ep. 16)

Max Blumenthal and Ben Norton are joined by Yemeni-American scholar and activist Shireen al-Adeimi to discuss the joint US-Saudi war on Yemen, which marked its third anniversary on March 26, 2018.

This war has unleashed the largest humanitarian catastrophe in the world. We discuss the historical context and long history of Saudi intervention in Yemen; the various political actors on the ground, including the Houthis (Ansar Allah), Ali Abdullah Saleh, and Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi; the extreme depth of the humanitarian crisis; and the crucial role of the West in facilitating the Saudi bombing campaign and blockade.

https://soundcloud.com/moderaterebelsradio/yemen-shireen-al-adeimi-episode-16

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Forces aligned with the nephew of the late former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, Tariq Mohammed Abdullah Saleh are preparing to join the Saudi-led coalition offensive against al Houthi forces in al Hudaydah governorate, western Yemen, according to local sources. Saleh’s forces will reportedly operate under the name “National Resistance Forces.”Tariq Saleh has met with the governor of al Hudaydah governorate on February 2 and Salafi military commanders on March 6 to discuss the al Hudaydah front.[2]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-april-10-2018

(* B H K)

Film: Première Urgence Internationale: 3 years after the beginning of the conflict in Yemen, what is the state of the country?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1y0OgqS6P4&

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Saudi-led coalition says it does not seek permanent Yemen presence

The spokesman for a Saudi-led coalition said on Tuesday that its military campaign in Yemen was not aimed at establishing a permanent presence along the country’s West coast but at restoring its internationally recognized government.

A Yemeni official had told Reuters that Saudi Arabia and its main ally the United Arab Emirates would likely seek to remain deployed along the country’s Red Sea coast, where it is currently fighting an offensive against the Iran-aligned Houthi movement.

“Saudi Arabia and UAE are very worried about Iran’s influence, so they are seeking to keep some military presence on the Yemeni coasts even if the civil war ends,” said the official who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter.

In a response to a request for comment, the coalition denied the allegation.

“The coalition is working by all means to restore Yemen’s legitimacy so it can become stable and secure”, spokesman Colonel Turki al-Malki said in a statement.

“The Yemeni Republic will restore its role in protecting its lands and territorial waters, as well as contributing to the maintenance of regional and international security,” he added.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security/saudi-led-coalition-says-it-does-not-seek-permanent-yemen-presence-idUSKBN1HH3BJ

My comment: Who believes... What they are doing in Somalia and Eritrea, they even more would do in Yemen. Socotra island has been occupied by the Emirates for 99 years.

(* B K pS)

HRITC: Houthis systematically practiced landmine planting

The Human Rights Information and Training Center (HRITC), a Yemeni NGO, said that Houthis systematically practiced planting landmines in the country.

In a report it has issued on the occasion of the International Mine Awareness Day 4 April, the HRITC said the severest of the rebel militia's war crimes committed over the course of its three years long insurgency has been the "planting of landmines", which poses a danger to the entire population not only for the present time but also for the future.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17185

(* B K pS)

Landmine planters promote awareness with UN support !

Houthis are the only warring party in the Yemeni conflict that plant landmines.

With insufficient help from the United Nations, the government's army personnel (as well as civilians) often fall victims to these landmines and undertake discovering what they can discover and dismantle what they can dismantle.

But thousands of mines will remain a danger lying in wait for new victims; unsuspecting women and children.

Because the extremist group have planted way more beyond the army's capacity to discover and remove; least estimated as 250 thousand landmines by some NGOs and estimated as 500 thousand landmines by others.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17187

(* B K P)

Humanitarian Crisis in Yemen Cannot End If Saudi Bombs Keep Falling From Sky

For good reasons pressure is growing on Saudi Arabia over its illegal war on Yemen, with the international community giving the country a stark warning over their actions in the conflict zone.

It doesn’t take a strategic mind to realize that the United Nations Security Council has what it takes to exert pressure on Saudi Arabia to end the war and promote international peace and security for Yemen. It is not a question of whether there is a link between UN obligations and peace. Because, this link is already widely ignored.

It is even evident in the United Nations’ Charter.

Ending the conflict. It is simple. The UN cannot achieve any of its 2018 development goals in Yemen if US-manufactured Saudi bombs are falling from the sky. The poorest country in the Arab world cannot achieve social or economic progress if its people are fleeing their homes in horror. And, development cannot take root on the Yemeni battleground.

The UN cannot address the link between peace and sustainable development without acknowledging that it is facing major challenges from Saudi Arabia and the United States. They are the reason why Yemeni institutions are crumbling to conflict and people’s prayers and calls for peace remain unanswered. Riyadh and its main supporter, Washington, have waged an illegal war and opened up new battlegrounds. In the prevailing circumstances, no country, land, or group is immune in the Middle East, much less in Yemen.

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13970120001460

(* A K)

Facing tough fight in mountains, Saudi-led alliance focuses on Yemen's coast

Once a thriving coffee exporting hub, al-Mokha is now a heavily guarded forward naval base from which the United Arab Emirates monitors shipping lanes and the movements of the Houthis, their foes in a conflict that has sparked a humanitarian crisis in one of the world’s poorest countries.

“They cannot get close to this port anymore, they will be under fire,” said a UAE soldier loading an anti-aircraft gun onto a patrolling warship.

Winning and keeping control of Yemen’s ports in the Red Sea, no matter how small, is of paramount importance to the UAE, a key partner in the Saudi-led coalition that has overseen the effort to wrest the coast from the Iran-aligned Houthis as part of a strategy to box them in around the capital, Sanaa.

Dotted along one of the most important trade routes for oil tankers heading from the Middle East to Europe, the ports - also vital entry points for Yemen’s food imports and aid - are too strategic to lose.

Gulf government officials familiar with UAE and Saudi thinking said capturing the coast would block the Houthi supply lines and push them towards the negotiating table.

Maintaining that military presence would be a key condition for any political resolution of the conflict, they said.

The UAE trained, armed and paid the thousands of fighters from the southern provinces who captured the southern port of al-Mukalla from al-Qaeda militants and the port city of Aden from the Houthis. They also hold Hawlaf Port on the Socotra Island and the strategic Perim island.

They now want to take control of Hodeidah, which handles the bulk of Yemen’s imports including fuel, medicine and aid, saying the Houthis are using the port to smuggle weapons from the Sunni coalition’s arch-foe, Shi’ite Iran.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security/facing-tough-fight-in-mountains-saudi-led-alliance-focuses-on-yemens-coast-idUSKBN1HG2AR

(A K P)

SAUDIS SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED BY MISSILE ATTACK ON OIL TANKER

Rebel videos from 2017 revealed plans for Red Sea violence

The recent missile attack on a Saudi super tanker by Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen should have been no surprise, since the rebels warned of such an attack last year, reports Joseph Farah’s G2 Bulletin.

http://www.wnd.com/2018/04/saudis-shouldnt-have-been-surprised-by-missile-attack-on-oil-tanker/

My comment: A quite weak article. Better read the article on this subject in cp1.

(A P)

Houthis Claim Yemen President 'Simply Tool' in Saudi Arabia's Hands

The Houthi movement, also known as Ansar Allah is ready for peace with Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and the Arab coalition that supports him, thereby putting an end to the interference of other countries in the affairs of Yemen, a foreign relations official for foreign relations Hussein al-Azi told Sputnik.

"We are ready for peace […] that respects the pride of the Yemeni people, which will put an end to the interference in the affairs of Yemen," said Al-Azi.

He noted that the Yemeni politicians supporting President Hadi, including Foreign Minister Abdul-Malik al-Makhlafi, were "simply tools that do not solve anything, and the decision about the war is in the hands of Saudi Arabia."

https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201804071063308632-houthis-yemen-peace/

(* A P)

UAE accused of banning Yemeni President from returning to Aden

Yemen’s Interior Minister, Ahmed Al-Maseeri, has accused the UAE of banning President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi from returning to Aden, the temporary capital of his country, Thenewkhaliji.org reported on Friday.

Speaking to French radio, Al-Maseeri said that the “conflict” between Hadi and the authorities in the UAE is “sharp,” noting that Hadi’s presence in Aden has suddenly “become undesirable” to Abu Dhabi. Saudi Arabia is trying to calm the situation in order to keep Hadi alive given the bad security situation in Aden.

The minister warned of the negative effect that the differences between the UAE and the legitimate Yemeni government will have on the military operations against the Houthis.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180407-uae-accused-of-banning-yemeni-president-from-returning-to-aden/

Comment: This is not 'sudden' at all. Last year the UAE would not let Hadi travel to Yemen. In truth when he went there he could only stay in a fortified compound and be helicoptered in and out. Troops paid by Saudi Arabia have fought several times with militias paid by UAE in Aden. UAE sees Hadi as an obstacle to peace. Well, do do I.

https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156575782833641

(* A H K)

VLCC missile attack: Gard Yemen port update

Following the missile attack on the Saudi Arabian-operated VLCC Abqaiq on Tuesday afternoon, P&I Club Gard has issued an update on the port situation in Yemen. Working with its correspondent in the region, Gulf Agency Co Ltd, Gard reported the port situation in Yemen as at 4 April 2018 is as follows:

Working: Aden, Mukalla, Ash Shihr Terminal, Nishtun, Saleef and Hodeidah.

Closed: Mokha, Ras Isa Marine Terminal (Safer), Ras Isa Petroleum Products Reception Facility and Balhaf LNG Terminal.

http://www.tankershipping.com/news/view,vlcc-missile-attack-gard-yemen-port-update_51315.htm and also look at http://www.gard.no/web/content/yemen-port-situation

(* B K P)

The Saudi Crown Prince Is Pledging Aid to Yemen Even as He Hits It With Airstrikes

Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates pledged $930 million to Yemen, a war-torn nation where more than 10,000 people have died thus far, and the lives of millions more remain at risk from famine.

It was an ironic gift, considering bin Salman, who currently serves as his nation’s defense minister, is also the architect of the war.

[Overview]

http://time.com/5231166/mohammed-bin-salman-saudi-arabia-yemen/

http://time.com/5231166/mohammed-bin-salman-saudi-arabia-yemen/

(* B K)

Trump Inks Arms Deal with Saudis as Humanitarian Crisis Rages in Yemen & Saudi Prince Tours U.S.

We speak with Iona Craig, a journalist who was based in Sana’a between 2010 and 2015 as the Yemen correspondent for The Times of London.

IC: There is no immediate prospect to even political talks going on or a solution to this conflict right now.

And the U.S. involvement in that, as we’ve seen in the last few days, is the continuation of supporting the Saudi coalition, particularly by weapon sales. The latest one is artillery, so it’s for the ground war. It’s for howitzers specifically. But prior to that, it has been a continuation of selling bombs for the air campaign, in refueling the fighter jets, in helping with intelligence to select targets in the bombing campaign, where there have been many claims of violations of international humanitarian law.

https://www.democracynow.org/2018/4/6/trump_inks_arms_deal_with_saudis and film also here: https://www.facebook.com/democracynow/videos/vb.17414523278/10156254159128279/?type=2&theater

(* B K)

Yemeni rebels target Saudi oil industry

Yemeni rebels have announced three attacks on Aramco facilities

The Saudi-led coalition blamed them for an attack on an oil tanker

http://www.janes.com/article/79059/yemeni-rebels-target-saudi-oil-industry

(* A K P)

Iran-Backed Houthis Step up Missile Attacks

The United States strongly condemned the attacks.

State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert said in a statement that the United States supports “the rights of our Saudi partners to defend their borders against these threats.” She again called “on all parties, including the Houthis, to return to political negotiations and move toward ending the war in Yemen.”

A Pentagon spokesperson pointed to Iran’s role in the conflict: “This follows Iran’s pattern of providing advanced weapons to the Houthis,” Lieutenant Commander Rebecca Rebarich said in a statement. “Iran has enabled the conflict in Yemen to spill into neighboring countries and undermines international efforts to resolve the conflict, exacerbating the suffering of the Yemeni people.”

https://editorials.voa.gov/a/iran-backed-houthis-step-up-missile-attacks/4335255.html

My comment: The biased US propaganda statements again.

(* B K P)

Taking sides with Yemeni people

Yemen in Crisis: Autocracy, Neo-Liberalism and the Disintegration of a State
Helen Lackner
London: Saqi Books, 2017, Pp. 330

The title of this book might seem to indicate that it covers only the current situation, but it is much more. In explaining today’s crisis, Helen Lackner has written what amounts to a post-colonial history of Yemen. A social anthropologist, researcher at SOAS and leading authority on Yemen, Lackner’s involvement with the country is not solely academic. For fifteen years, she lived in different parts of Yemen, working on rural development projects. This might explain her admiration for Yemen’s natural beauty, as well as her committed, pro-people approach to its multifaceted crisis and how it could be solved once the war ends. For each of the socioeconomic facts and figures cited, she gives concrete examples of exactly what they mean for people’s lives.

Tracing Yemen’s downward spiral from the 2011 popular uprising to the failed democratic transition and finally civil war and humanitarian disaster, Lackner is stringently objective and does not take sides among the competing, local, political and military forces and their shifting alliances. Instead, she adamantly sides with the Yemeni people: “None of the players involved demonstrated the slightest concern for the welfare of the 27 million Yemenis, most of whom suffered worsening conditions on a daily basis.” (p. 53)

Her critique extends far beyond the Yemeni elite and political/military factions to encompass the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and international powers. “Throughout, the US administration has shown that support for the Saudi regime and arms sales, which spell cash for their companies, took priority over human rights and human life in Yemen.” (p. 88)

Lackner’s arguments are impeccably logical, her writing is lucid and bold.

http://www.jordantimes.com/news/features/taking-sides-yemeni-people

cp2a Saudische Blockade / Saudi blockade

(* A H P)

UN Steps Up Inspection of Ships in Yemen, Saudi Arabia Says 'Not Enough'

UN move to step up its inspection of ships before arriving in Yemen is a "not enough step" but could “enhance inspection abilities”, according to Saudi Ambassador to Yemen Mohammed Al Jaber.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1229051/un-steps-inspection-ships-yemen-saudi-arabia-says-not-enough referring to (reported in YPR 401 already): https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-un/u-n-quietly-steps-up-inspection-of-aid-ships-to-yemen-idUSKCN1HC1P0

Comment: Amid growing concerns about mass starvation and lack of medical aid, the #UN appears to be backing the Saudi blockade against northern #Yemen, announcing they are adding a handful of additional “inspectors” to rummage through the cargo of aid ships trying to reach the coast.

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1704481132938243

(B H P)

THE SIEGE OF YEMEN WITH ARAB AND INTERNATIONAL COLLUSION

There are no humanitarian or international laws protecting Yemenis from the unjust siege imposed by Saudi Arabia. The coalition has been violating such laws since the start of its military intervention in Yemen almost three years ago.

There is international collusion. This much is clear. The people of Yemen are being abandoned and punished in an act of collective punishment; something must be done about it, and quickly.

http://www.yemenpress.org/yemen/the-siege-of-yemen-with-arab-and-international-collusion/

cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(* B H)

Save the Children: Help Save Children in Yemen

As the war in Yemen enters its fourth year – children in Yemen are facing a massive crisis. The volatile civil war, taking place in the midst of growing poverty, is causing the world’s largest humanitarian emergency. As the conflict rages on, the needs of vulnerable children continue to grow. 22 million people – three out of every four – urgently need life-saving assistance, including more than 11 million children.

https://www.savethechildren.org/us/what-we-do/where-we-work/greater-middle-east-eurasia/yemen

(A H)

Share Aid Yemen today delivered 80 packages of medicines to Al-Ossimi medical Center, Sabaain district, #Sanaa The packages included generic painkillers, first aid medications and emergency medicines, hydrating solutions (used in #cholera cases). (photo)

https://twitter.com/ShareYemen/status/983789026565029888

(* B H)

Yemen Humanitarian Update Covering 04 – 09 April 2018 | Issue 10

The US$2.01 billion that was pledged last week by donors, if fully disbursed, will account for almost 70 per cent of the 2018 YHRP funding requirements.

Humanitarian response activities are ongoing in northern governorates despite intensified airstrikes and fighting, especially in Sa’ada and Al Jawf.

Analysis shows that more than 57 per cent of all districts were impacted by conflict in 2017; the worst affected witnessed daily airstrikes or armed clashes.

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-humanitarian-update-covering-04-09-april-2018-issue-10

(* B H)

Film: Jemen - Kliniken am LimitDas Gesundheitssystem im Jemen ist quasi zusammengebrochen. 22 Millionen Menschen sind in Not.

https://www.facebook.com/Weltspiegel/videos/vb.49633993885/10156125889838886/?type=2&theater

(A K P)

Saudi Arabia condemns anew "Houthi-Iranian" attack on oil tanker

https://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=2709558&Language=en

My comment: Killing dozens of civilians by air raids does not matter.

(B H)

UN High Commissioner for Refugees: Summary and Conclusions: Roundtable on Protection in Yemen - Amman, Jordan 5‐6 March 2018

On 5 and 6 March 2018 in Amman, Jordan, the Protection Cluster Yemen hosted a roundtable meeting on protection in Yemen. Participation comprised UN, humanitarian actors in protection, donors and diplomatic representatives with the objective to collectively analyze the protection situation in Yemen and agree on strategic actions relating to programming, operations, advocacy and stakeholder engagement. Discussions were held under Chatham House rules. This note is intended to summarize the main discussions and conclusions.

Protection Cluster colleagues presented the main drivers of protection in Yemen regarding IHL/IHRL violations, conflict-related forcible displacement, violations of human rights and weak rule of law, psychosocial support needs, negative coping mechanisms and violations of the rights of children and gender-based violence.

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/summary-and-conclusions-roundtable-protection-yemen-amman-jordan-5-6-march-2018

(B H)

Yemen - Humanitarian Imports Overview, March 2018

The Logistics Cluster facilitates the cargo transport via sea on board the WFP-chartered vessel VOS Apollo. The vessel operates on a weekly rotation from Djibouti to Aden.

A second WFP-chartered vessel, VOS Theia, was chartered to support the Logistics Cluster Yemen operation.

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-humanitarian-imports-overview-march-2018

(A H)

Fajr al-Amal inaugurates program for empowering Taiz rural girls

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17243

(* A B H)

Taiz hospital official mourns 300 kidney failure patients in advance

A senior health official in Taiz has mourned in advance three kidney failure patients doomed to die in three days as the main hospital that treats them is running out of the dialysis-related requirements by Monday.

The Director of the Prosthetic Kidney Section in Al-Thawra Hospital, Fahmi al-Hanani, posted on Facebook on Saturday: "Let me tell everyone today that we can mourn the 300 kidney failure patients. Starting from today Saturday 2018-04-07 only three days remain until the materials required for carrying out dialysis run out."

He said that, in addition to the solutions, medicines and other materials required, the center needs 30,000 liters of potable water everyday to continue its work.

He said that the hospital itself has no allocated budget from the government and by extension the center does not have. He said that there was "limited cooperation with international organizations in 2017 and the health workers' transportations costs were afforded and the potable water was supplied intermittently."

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17244

(* A H)

A desperate appeal for kidney patients in #Taiz

A Yemeni government official on Sunday appealed to the Coalition backed government and to the international organizations to save the lives of more than 300 kidney failure patients in #Taiz province who may face death due to a severe shortage of medical supplies. (photo)

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1705537056165984/?type=3&theater

and

(* B H)

Siege and War Increase Suffering of Kidney Failure Patients in Yemen

As a result of the siege imposed by the brutal coalition on Yemen over three years, death is pursuing lives of patients continuously and every day more patients lose their life.

The dialysis machines are being worn out daily, large numbers of them are no longer usable, while technicians have not been able to repair it, because of the lack of spare parts. Dr.Rajeh Al-Hosn, who works in the renal dialysis unit at Al-Thawra Hospital in Sana’a ,capital of Yemen, confirmed that they could not even import damaged parts ; because of the blockade imposed on Yemen.

Patients with renal failure, in Yemen live in the most difficult cases, a large number of them are barely able to breathe, from excess hypersensitivity in the blood, others are transferred to intensive care, which is full of patients coming from all sections, where the patient dies, if bed is not available

Dr. al-Batahi pointed out that cholera epidemic has contributed significantly to the increase of kidney failure, especially for patients with diabetes, hypertension, the elderly and some kidney-related immunological patients, as well as patients with renal insufficiency in the first and second stages under conservative treatment, the fourth and fifth patients were treated with laundry, a large proportion of 4,000 to 5,000 patients.

The US-Saudi coalition’s war against Yemen left big suffering on patients with renal failure in particular, and all patients in general, the Yemeni people in general live amid the disregard of the international silence suspicious..

http://www.newnewss.net/siege-and-war-increase-suffering-of-kidney-failure-patients-in-yemen/

(* B H)

Film: 'Without gender equality, the conflict in Yemen will continue'

Within one of the world’s most vicious conflicts, there remains a largely unreported narrative: the plight of women in Yemen. The UN estimates that more than three million Yemeni women and girls are at risk of gender-based violence, and 60,000 women are at risk of sexual violence, including rape. Suha Basharen, a gender specialist with CARE Yemen, talks to Armen Georgian about the challenges facing women in the war-torn state and her work around the country aimed at improving gender equality.

http://www.france24.com/en/20180409-interview-suha-basharen-care-yemen-war-humanitarian-crisis-poverty-gender-equality-women

(* B H)

Film: Children suffer as war, famine devastate Yemen

For six months, NBC News documented the lives of children in depleted hospitals across Yemen, finding few doctors, not enough medicine and children suffering from malnutrition.

https://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/children-suffer-as-war-famine-devastate-yemen-1205899331585 = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fNUCXuLjJ0

(A H)

Film: Today in #Sanaa, school children put to paper their vision of a world where all people regardless of location, race, gender or socioeconomic status had access to health care. Universal health coverage is possible, and this #WorldHealthDay we are dreaming of #HealthForAll people.

https://twitter.com/WHOYemen/status/982737214986571776

(A H)

Popular Yemeni writer sells personal library to survive

Mohammed Al Qaoud offers 8,000-book collection for sale after two years without income in rebel-held capital

One of Yemen's most popular writers is selling his collection of more than 8,000 books to raise money for rent and food for his family, reflecting the plight of citizens in Sanaa more than three years after Houthi rebels seized the capital.

Mohammed Al Qaoud, 40, told The National he had built up his library over three decades but was being forced to part with it because he had not been paid in two years as a result of the civil war

https://www.thenational.ae/world/mena/popular-yemeni-writer-sells-personal-library-to-survive-1.720162

cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis

Siehe / look at p1

(A P)

Former detainee tells horrific tales of torture in Houthi jails

A tribal chieftain who has been released from Houthi detention this month paralyzed has told al-Masdar news website horrific tales of torture he was subjected to for three years since he was arrested by Houthis in the capital Sana'a in March 2015.

Jamal al-Maamari said he was arrested when he was with his wife in an hotel room in the capital Sana'a at 12 midnight in 13 March 2015.

Here are some excerpts of what he told the news site

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17309

(A P)

Houthi Gunmen Kidnap GPC Leading Figure In Hajjah

A number of Houthi militia gunmen have kidnapped Dhaifallah al-Aqari, the leading figure of the General People’s Congress (GPC) party from his house in the province of Hajjah on Monday.

http://republicanyemen.com/archives/4965

(* A H P)

The #Houthis are imposing royalties on the pharmaceutical campanies in the capital #Sanaa to support their so-called "war effort" at a rate up to , by 10 percent, which increases the suffering of citizens.

https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/983710779038928896

(* B P)

Congress Party: Houthis Sought to Discredit Late President and Eliminate Him

Legal and General People’s Congress party sources in Sana’a revealed on Monday that Houthi militias prepared files to trial late Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his relatives in court, as a means to justify his killing and repression against hundreds of his supporters.

The sources said Houthis would use the trial to exert pressure on Saleh’s relatives and to blackmail leaderships from his General People's Congress Party.

“Rebel militias who control the intelligence apparatus in Sana’a, already prepared files to trial Saleh and his relatives based on accusations of high treason and conspiring with the Arab Coalition,” the sources said on Monday.

The sources uncovered that rebel militias already transferred those files to one of their controlled-tribunals, specialized in the affairs of state security and terrorism.

Their move came as a prelude for kicking off the sham trial of Saleh and his relatives and for launching investigations with GPC’s hostages, including the former president’s sons, Salah and Maydan.

https://www.albawaba.com/news/congress-party-houthis-sought-discredit-late-president-and-eliminate-him-1115154 and by Saudi media: https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1232686/sources-houthis-trial-saleh-treason-justify-his-killing

(A K P)

Saudi Arabia no longer safe from Yemeni ballistic missiles: Official

The president of Yemen’s Supreme Political Council warned that more ballistic missiles will be fired at Saudi Arabia in the current year, stressing that the kingdom is no longer safe country as Yemeni missiles can now hit anywhere in that country.
“This year will be the year of all types of ballistic missiles,” Saleh al-Samad said on Tuesday, addressing a huge gathering in Sana’a as the Saudi military aggression against the impoverished Arab country has entered the fourth year.

http://en.abna24.com/news/middle-east/saudi-arabia-no-longer-safe-from-yemeni-ballistic-missiles-official_888831.html

No single day would pass without a Yemeni ballistic missile being fired to Saudi Arabia, We would call it the "Ballistic Year", If US-Saudi aggression did not stop, Said Yemen President Saleh Samad in an extensive meeting in Dhammar city on Monday. (photos)

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/983571939305324544

(A P)

FreeQahtan# hashtag hopes UN may pressure Houthis to release Qahtan

A social media campaign to push the UN to press Houthis into releasing Yemen's prominent political activist Mohammed Qahtan from the rebels' jail is still gaining momentum.

Yemeni activists launched hashtag Freeqahtan# on 4 April 2018 which marks the third anniversary of the veteran politician's arrest by the Shia Islamist rebels from his house in Sana'a. The 60 years old politician is a senior member of the Yemen Congregation for Reform Party (Islah).

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17188

(A P)

Houthis have forced the employees of the Civil Status Department and other public offices under their control in the central Yemen province of Ibb to attend sectarian re-education courses

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17242

(A P)

Houthis abducted a 12-year old boy (Ibrahim Khaled Aljaradi) in Yemen's central city of Taiz to pressure Aljaradi's cousins to hand themselves over the rebel militia.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17242

(* A P)

Houthi Mufti issues license to kill oppositionist demonstrators

The Mufti (top jurist) of Houthis in the capital Sana'a has issued a ruling that regards all demonstrators against the Shia Islamist rebels as apostates from the religion "should be gotten rid of."

Shamsa al-Deen Sharaf al-Deem, a Houthi-appointed "Mufti of Yemen" said in a Facebook post on Wednesday: "We are facing an aggression. Thank God we have a wise leader from a Hashemite dynasty that God and the people both loved. But there are people who want to take out to the streets to disrupt our victories. I am saying that their demonstrations would be a defection from the Islamic religion. The ruling is that those who defect from the religion, the loyalists of Allah and the nation must be gotten rid of (physically elminated) for the public good."

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17166

(A P)

Houthis Distribute Forms to Collect Accurate Date About Citizens in Sana’a

In a serious development in the capital Sana’a, the Houthis are distributing population census and monitoring forms in the Capital Secretariat in order to benefit from the information citizens would provide.

According to document that is currently circulating, the forms that are filled out contain comprehensive data about a citizen, his family members and vehicles, as well as whether he is the owner of the house or a tenant.

http://republicanyemen.com/archives/4933

(A P)

Released Abductee Gamal Al-Ma’mari Tells his Story with Torture at Houthis Prisons

Lays paralyzed, unable to move in his new residence in Mareb, eastern Sana’a, few days following his release from Houthis militia in prisoners’ exchange deal.

More than three years, the tribal sheikh Gamal Al-Ma’mri, spent at Houthis militia prisons, in Sana’a, during which he was subjected to different forms of torture, turned him into a mass of flesh unable to move.

Gamal and other abductees spent years in the prison, represent one thousand and one hundred days, of brutal torture and inhumane treatment, more than 26400 hours of pain, subjugation and torture, and terrifying nightmares.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/98071

(* A P)

Houthis Shoot Detainees Attempting to Escape, Kill One, Wound Several Others

A detainee was killed and several others wounded by the Houthis when the earlier were attempting to flee Houthi detention in al-Sawadiah district of al-Bayda province in central Yemen, according to local sources.

The sources said that dozens of other detainees managed to escape the building, in which they were held; however, the armed men of the Houthi militia pursued them and shot many of them, resulting in the death of one person and the injury of several others while the whereabouts of the rest was still unknown until writing this story.

http://republicanyemen.com/archives/4845

(A P)

The #Houthis have referred the case of ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh, his relatives, Brigadier Ali Al-Shater, and Fuad Al-Kummim, head of the Finance Department of the #GPC Party and others to the specialized criminal prosecution in #Sanaa on charges of treason , Rights sources

https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/983118847485104128

(A P)

Yemeni Sunni religious council calls for Sunni-Shia unity against invaders

The Religious Shafi’i Council, a top Sunni religious authority in Yemen, has responded to a call for mass popular mobilisation in the country against the occupation of the invading coalition forces.

https://yemen-rw.org/2018/04/06/yemeni-sunni-religious-council-calls-for-popular-mobilisation-against-invaders/

(A P)

Massive demonstration in Sana'a against US-Arab coalition

http://www.irna.ir/en/News/82879088 and film https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/videos/1704088279644195/

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

(* A P)

UAE-backed forces deployed in Yemen province

Dhale has been plagued with assassinations and proliferation of armed groups

Yemeni security forces, trained and armed by the UAE, have been deployed in Yemen’s province of Dhale, south-western Yemen, to boost security as the province has recently plagued with assassinations and proliferation of armed groups.

Residents said a long column of armoured vehicles carrying hundreds of soldiers crossed into the capital of Dhale and neighbouring areas on Saturday where they replaced unofficial checkpoints.

Local security officials said the governor of Dhale, Major General Ali Mouqbel Saleh, ordered armed men to hand over their checkpoints to the Security Belt, a force set up by the UAE shortly after Al Houthis were driven out of most key areas in southern Yemen in late 2015.

http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/yemen/uae-backed-forces-deployed-in-yemen-province-1.2201870

My comment: UAE-backed pro-separatist militia. The Hadi government has nothing to tell anymore.

(A P)

Ben Farid: Ben Daghar’s Government Tried to Prevent UN Delegate from Reaching Adan

Ahmed Omar Ben Farid, chairman of office of foreign affairs of the southern transitional council in EU, accused Ben Daghar’s government of trying to halt the visit of Martin Griffith, UN Delegate to Yemen, to Adan. Ben Farid indicated that Ben Daghar’s governments exercised all types of pressure and manipulation to prevent UN delegate from reaching Adan and meet the leadership of the southern transitional council.

http://en.smanews.org/ben-farid-ben-daghars-government-tried-to-prevent-un-delegate-from-reaching-adan

(* A P)

Thousands of Southern Citizens Crowd in Front of Al-Karimi Bank for Their Salaries after Months of Delay

Thousand of southern citizens gathered in front of Al-Karimi Bank branches in Adan, to get their salaries as president Hady announced that salaries of military and security personnel will be paid after months of delay. Since the announcement, crowds of people gathered in a scene that is unfamiliar in the south for years. It is noteworthy that the legitimacy government of Ahmed Ben Daghar refrain from paying salaries of southern employees and personnel under the excuse of lack of liquid money although billions of Yemeni Riyals were printed recently and a huge sum of it is dedicated for salaries.

http://en.smanews.org/southlands-of-southern-citizens-crowd-in-front-of-al-karimi-A -bank-for-their-salaries-after-months-of-delay

(A P)

Southern Transitional Council Discusses Result of Al-Zubaidi Foreign Tour

http://en.smanews.org/southern-transitional-council-discusses-result-of-al-zubaidi-foreign-tour

(A P)

Hundreds of people from the Yemeni #Socotra archipelago have marched in an angry march ,denouncing the #UAE forces and demanding the UAE to leave the island, media sources said Monday.

According to the sources, the march roamed a number of main streets in Socotra archipelago, whereas participants rose flags of the Republic of #Yemen, chanted slogans angrily, condemned the practices of the UAE forces ,and demanded the speedy exit from the island.

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.963391330380564.1073741829.961126490607048/1706564262729930/?type=3 and photos https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1706478842738472

(A T)

Taiz police deploy forces in Taiz to stop drive-by assassinations

The Police Department of Taiz in southwestern Yemen has deployed forces to the city's streets after a wave of mysterious drive-by assassinations that killed many civilians over the past months.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17275

(A T)

Unknown gunmen driving a car shot dead a soldier in Sheikh Othman district in downtown the temporary capital Aden's downtown on Saturday.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17242

(A T)

Car bomb explodes near Beidha mosque, no casualties

A car bomb reportedly exploded near a mosque in the central Yemen province of Beidha but no casualties were incurred.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17183

(A P)

The Deputy Director of the Media Department of the Islah Party Adnan al-Odeidni told Suhail TV that it is not possible to talk about a political solution as long as the Houthi rebels disappear the party's member Mohammed Qahtan.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17167

(A P)

Mothers protest against Aden Security Belt for sons' disappearance

The mothers of 12 activists forced into disappearance by the Security Belt, a paramilitary force in the capital Aden, have staged a rally to press for their release.

The activists have been detained for two years now despite a court verdict to set them free.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17163

Remark: “Security Belt” = UAE-backed separatists’ militia.

(A T)

Two gunmen assassinate a military official

the gunmen opened fire on Mohammed Ahmed Muqbel, a police officer in Bab al-Kabir area in the center of the city.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/98155

(A T)

Today's morning, the tribal Sheikh Salama bin Ayed al-Kathiri was assassinated by two unidentified gunmen riding a motorbike in the city of Sayion of Hadramout province.

https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/983326891288514560

(A T)

Unknown gun men assassinate government soldier in Hadhramout

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17277

(A P)

Confrontations between Al Hizam forces and the Security forces killing a deputy Security Director, injuring others

A government soldier was killed and two others injured, including Deputy Security Director of Al-Dala’a governorate (south of the country) Baligh al-Humaidi, on Saturday, in a result of clashes between security forces and the " Al Hizam security forces , south of the city of Al-Dala’a.

According to the correspondent of Almasdaronline, the clashes between the two parties broke out after the attempt of the forces of the belt supported by the UAE to impose its control on the points of the security forces loyal to the Yemeni government.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/98095

Remark: Clashes between government forces and UAE-backed separatists’ militia.

And

(* A P)

Al-Dala’a security department holds al Hizam security forces responsible for events in the governorate

The security department of the governorate of Al-Dala’a held the belt security in the governorate full responsibility for the events that took place in the governorate ‘s capital on Saturday which killed one and wounded more than 20.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/98102

(* B P)

#Imam assassinations in #Yemen: Here's a list of 21 imams targeted in #Aden between Jan 2016 & March 2018. 16 were assassinated outright, 4 escaped death (1 later died of wounds), 1 was kidnapped. A handful of imam assassinations have also occurred in other Yemeni governorates (list; Arabic)

https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/982177670153646080

and

(* B P)

A spate of deadly drive-by shootings targeting Muslim #clerics and #preachers has sparked panic and fear in #Yemen’s southern port city of #Aden, prompting some imams to quit and abandon their #mosques while dozens have fled the country.

https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/982927715442491392

(A T)

#AQAP officially claimed a 28 MAR attack in Hadramawt, eastern #Yemen yesterday. #UAE-backed forces claimed AQAP mutilated the bodies after the attack, the official claim did not respond to the allegation. This was part of a series of back claims after 3 weeks of inactivity.

https://twitter.com/MaherFarrukh/status/982215114634936320

(A P)

Forensic report made in Aden, #Yemen proves that the death of Mohsen Baqatmi a citizen from Shabwa province was a result of torture which was done by the soldiers of Shabwa elite forces. (documents)

https://twitter.com/HussamSanabani/status/983036333508751360

(A P)

By @adenalghad : Sheikhs & dignitaries of #Yemen's Al Mahrah province meet Yemeni PM in Riyadh Strange, really..... why do these Yemeni 'Mahris' look like Saudis or Emiratis? (photo)

https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/983052347206225920

(A P)

#Aden: Military personnel belonging to the administrative base camp in the temporary capital of Aden on Sunday cut off the road between the Directorate of Crater and the administration of Khor Maksar in front of the administrative line to demand payment of their salaries. (photo)

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1704260669626956/?type=3&theater

(A P)

So far, 3 ministers #Yemen have revealed UAE & Saudi Arabia are preventing Govt from coming back to Aden & that UAE is destabilizing south. Reporters revealed UAE is misleading all abut fight on AQAP & ISIS in what appears to be a plot to blackmail Govt with terrorists in future

https://twitter.com/FuadRajeh/status/983119578543919105

cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks

Siehe / Look at cp1

(A P)

UN envoy to Yemen holds talks in UAE

Martin Griffiths has headed to the United Arab Emirates for talks on Yemen with Abu Dhabi’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan today, Khaleej Times reported.

After congratulating Griffiths on taking on the responsibility to resolve the Yemen civil war, Al Nahyan emphasised the UAE’s unwavering stance to support sovereignty and unity in Yemen. Anwar Bin Mohammed Gargash, minister of state for foreign affairs, and Salem Bin Khalifa Al Ghafli, UAE ambassador to Yemen, also attended the meeting.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180410-un-envoy-to-yemen-holds-talks-in-uae/

My comment: Griffith should know what “Orwellian speech” is.

(A P)

Over the past three days the new UN Special Envoy for #Yemen has met with the STC, an al #Houthi delegation, GPC members, and Omani officials in the #UAE and #Oman. Hopefully this is a sign that peace talks are moving in the right direction. (photo9

https://twitter.com/MaherFarrukh/status/983475005211201537

(A P)

International, National Resolve to Keep Saleh’s Party in Any Future Yemeni solution

While Houthi militias attempting dissolving the party and merging it with its popular base after slaying Saleh, the United Nations asserted that GPC representatives were a key player in any prospective negotiations.

Efforts by new UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths, along with the diplomatic statements and positions of a number of Western ambassadors, have underscored the importance of the GPC’s survival despite threats facing Saleh’s political legacy and base.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1231866/international-national-resolve-keep-saleh%E2%80%99s-party-any-future-yemeni-solution

(A P)

UN Envoy Says Oman Plays 'Pivotal Role' in Helping Yemeni People, Could Find Solution to Conflict

https://www.albawaba.com/news/un-envoy-says-oman-plays-pivotal-role-helping-yemeni-people-could-find-solution-conflict-111458

(A P)

Yemen's UN envoy meets with Houthi delegation in Muscat

The UN’s special envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, met a Houthi rebel delegation in Muscat on Saturday, a source said.

During his visits, Griffiths said that he felt a real desire to achieve peace and start political negotiations to stop war and put an end to the sufferings of Yemeni people.

Mr Griffiths also met high-ranking officials from the GPC

http://almasdaronline.com/article/98133

(A P)

The #Houthi negotiating delegation meets with the #UN Special Envoy for #Yemen Mr. Martin Griffiths in the #Omani capital of #Muscat, in the context of the envoy's efforts to resume consultations between the Yemeni parties. (photo)

https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/982785201301573632

(A P)

Hosted by #Oman, the new UN envoy to #Yemen @OSE_Yemen has held his 1st round of 'peace talks', meeting a broad spectrum of warring Yemeni parties. I wish him, and all Yemenis, success in their efforts to end this very bloody & sad war.

https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/983027702176370688

(A P)

UN Special Envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths is scheduled to meet with an al Houthi movement delegation and Omani officials in Muscat on April 7. Griffiths is also expected to meet with officials from the General People’s Congress (GPC) and the Southern Movement in Abu Dhabi, UAE following his visit to Muscat.[2]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-april-6-2018

(A P)

Houthis: we agree for peace negotiations with Saudi Arabia not with the Yemeni government

The Houthi armed group has announced its readiness to enter into peace negotiations under the condition of stopping foreign interference in Yemen.

Russian news agency Sputnik reported that the official of foreign relations in the Houthis group Hussein al-Azi, said "If the aggression stops, it is normal for the reaction to stop that is the defense. We have not attacked the coalition countries. The other parties are the once who have assaulted us and we are the ones defending. We are ready for peace, honorable peace that respects the pride of the Yemeni people and puts an end to these interventions in the affairs of Yemen.

In response to the invitation by Foreign Minister Abdul Malik al-Makhlafi to the Yemeni parties to return to the dialogue table, Al-Azzi said: "We do not negotiate with Abd al-Malik al-Makhlafi or the other parties. These are tools that do not have any decision. If Saudi Arabia wants peace, this will certainly contribute to the peace process in Yemen.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/98097

cp7a Saudi-Arabien und Iran / Saudi Arabia and Iran

(A P)

Iran FM: Tehran always ready to help settle Yemen crisis

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Sunday that Iran is always prepared to help solve Yemen crisis.

In an interview with BBC’s Arabic service, he added that Iran has from the beginning of Yemeni crisis urged dialogue with Saudi Arabia to help solve the country’s plight but the Saudis opposed the proposal.

http://www.irna.ir/en/News/82880913

and

(A P)

FM: Saudi Arabia Not Cooperating with Iran to Politically Resolve Yemeni Crisis

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif blasted the Saudi regime for continuing its massacre of the Yemeni people, and said the Riyadh government has turned down Iran's offer to help end the crisis in its neighboring country.

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13970120000767

cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia

Siehe / look at cp1

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(* A P)

Sectarian #Saudi forces launch a military assault on Shia #Arab cities of Behari, Shwyjha, & other parts of Qatif using explosives & #Canadian made AV. unknown number of civilian casualties.

https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/983656454426169345

(BP)

Due to clear failure of #Saudi CP #MBS policies & leadership, an epidemic of scabies is now nationwide hitting #Riyadh, Hail & Dammam.

https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/983666826247884800

(* B P)

Film: 06.04.2018 - arte: Saudi-Arabien - Ölmacht in der Krise Saudi-Arabien ist ein Königreich der Widersprüche. Die Monarchie galt lange als Stabilitätsanker in der Krisenregion. Doch der Iran, Hauptkonkurrent der Saudis im Nahen Osten, wird immer stärker. Gleichzeitig verfällt der Ölpreis. Zum ersten Mal muss Saudi-Arabien im Ausland Schulden machen. Wird es dem Königshaus gelingen, sich an der Macht zu halten oder implodiert das Land? Anmerkung von Stop the WAR in Yemen im Kontext Saudi Arabien und Atommacht/-bombe Es ist nicht Russland, das vordergründig Saudi Arabien beim Bestreben der Nutzung von Atomenergie unterstützt, sondern die USA, die Bin Salman alle Türen zur zukünftigen Atommacht öffnet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C23GhHMnlm8&feature=share

(* B K P)

Facing reality in the US-Saudi nuclear agreement: South Korea

The Trump administration is on the verge of signing a nuclear agreement with Saudi Arabia that is reportedly “flexible” on Saudi acquisition of centrifuge technology to enrich uranium—the technology that can provide material for nuclear weapons and that was the central concern in regard to Iran’s nuclear program. This flexibility is necessary, the administration argues, to ensure the Saudis choose Westinghouse as their nuclear power reactor supplier. But Westinghouse, which performed abysmally on its last two US projects and is in bankruptcy as a result, is far less likely to win the bid than the South Korean construction firm whose work force is coming off successful completion of a large nuclear project nearby in the United Arab Emirates. This increases the importance of striking a tight US-Saudi agreement to ensure the Saudis don’t get to enrich under their nuclear cooperative agreement with Seoul.

https://thebulletin.org/facing-reality-us-saudi-nuclear-agreement-south-korea11683

(A K P)

Saudi could take part in military response in Syria - Crown Prince

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-mideast-crisis-syria-ghouta-saudi/saudi-could-take-part-in-military-response-in-syria-crown-prince-idUKKBN1HH26R?rpc=401

(B P)

Saudi prince 'failed to pay' after commissioning porn films, lawsuit claims

Saudi Arabia's late foreign minister, Saud al-Faisal, who served in his post from 1975 to 2015, commissioned the making of a series of porn films - but failed to pay for production costs, according to court documents.

https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2018/4/10/saudi-prince-failed-to-pay-after-commissioning-porn-films

(A E P)

Total CEO confirms plan to enlarge joint venture with Saudi Aramco

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-total-aramco-refinery/total-ceo-confirms-plan-to-enlarge-joint-venture-with-saudi-aramco-idUSKBN1HH1CF

(B P)

Cycling in Jeddah: Saudi women embrace change

Saudi Arabia, which for decades seemed irreparably stuck in the past, is now changing by the day.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-woman/cycling-in-jeddah-saudi-women-embrace-change-idUSKBN1HG1W1

My comment: And the “reform” propaganda again. “Lipstick for Wahabism” is not enough.

(* B P)

Saudi Arabia’s Perilous Pivot

Saudi Arabia needs comprehensive political and economic reforms if it is to have prosperity and security in the twenty-first century. But it remains to be seen if Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman can deliver the necessary change without also turning his country into a personal dictatorship, or leading it into a devastating war.

Saudi Arabia has long maintained (relative) internal stability by spreading its enormous oil wealth among its subjects, and by imposing on Saudi society fundamentalist Islamic doctrines based on the austere Wahhabi tradition.

In recent years, however, the Saudi regime has had to worry about its future.

Some of MBS’s actions have garnered favorable international press coverage.

Still, other new policies could prove problematic.

But even if MBS succeeds in shoring up his power and endearing himself to the people in the short term, it has become clear that he intends to rule as an authoritarian despot.

If he succeeds, he will emerge with a reputation as a reformer. Yet he clearly is not interested in establishing representative institutions or strengthening the rule of law, so his country will have become a personal dictatorship.

Alternatively, MBS’s authoritarian tendencies and embarrassing foreign-policy failures might provoke internal opposition.

And, on the international front, MBS’s escalation with Iran could spin out of his control – by Shlomo Averini

https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/saudi-domestic-reform-and-foreign-policy-by-shlomo-avineri-2018-04

Comment: I like this article, but let's speak plain English: The #Saudi crown prince is not in fact trying to 'reform' his country In reality, MBS is attempting to replace the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with a brand new entity.

https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/983400110666276865

(A K P)

Saudi armed forces show off latest weapons at Jazan exhibition

The Armed Forces Exhibition, which is participating in the second edition of the “Pride and Appreciation” event at the waterfront of the northern Corniche in Jazan city, witnessed a great turnout of visitors from inside and outside Jazan, Saudi state-news agency SPA reported.
The exhibition, in which all military sectors — ground, air defense and navy forces — participate, includes many weapons and capabilities used by soldiers to defend the homeland

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1280851/saudi-arabia

(* B P)

Mohammed Bin Salman Adds Israel to his Address Book and Deletes Iran

MBS wants a modern Saudi Arabia not in appearance only such as food, dress, idiom, but, mainly, in belief and practice of modernity, equality and equity. To achieve this goal, dear to him, he chose the shock treatment approach. Will he vanquish the dark forces of tradition, tribalism and patriarchy to drag Saudi Arabia fully into the third millennium or will he fail and things will return to reactionary Arab normality, after all the Arab Spring withered in spite of many youth uprisings in the whole Middle East?

Only time can show and tell.

https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2018/04/244020/mohammed-bin-salman-adds-israel-address-book-deletes-iran/

My comment: Prince Salman again; from Marocco.

(A P)

Saudi crown prince begins European tour in Paris

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrived in Paris on Sunday at the start of a European tour after three weeks in the United States, where he pitched for investments and support against arch-rival Iran.

France’s foreign minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, who worked closely with Prince Mohammed as defense minister in the previous French government, greeted him at the airport.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-saudi/saudi-crown-prince-begins-european-tour-in-paris-idUSKBN1HF0F4

(A P)

Saudis begin investigating detainees who did not settle, newspaper reports

Saudi Arabia’s public prosecutor has begun investigations and opening arguments in the corruption cases of princes, top officials and businessmen who were detained late last year, an official told pan-Arab newspaper Al Sharq Al Awsat on Sunday.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-arrests-court/saudis-begin-investigating-detainees-who-did-not-settle-newspaper-reports-idUSKBN1HF060

and

(A P)

Saudi Detainees Who Didn’t Settle May Face Terrorism-Focused Courts: Report

Dozens of Saudi detainees caught up in November’s so-called anti-graft crackdown could be referred to courts specialized in cases of national security and terrorism, Asharq al-Awsat newspaper reported Sunday.

They include individuals who refused to agree to confidential settlements with the government, and others believed to be guilty of “a greater offence

http://english.almanar.com.lb/479085

(A E P)

Saudi exchange counting on foreign funds to aid Aramco IPO, chief says

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-aramco-ipo-exchange/saudi-exchange-counting-on-foreign-funds-to-aid-aramco-ipo-chief-says-idUSKBN1HF0MY

(A P)

SAUDI ARABIA'S VEGAN PRINCE WILL BRING AN ANIMATED AQUARIUM TO RIYADH AS THE KINGDOM TRIES TO MODERNIZE

On the heels of a high-profile visit of Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman to the United States, his relative prince Khaled bin Alwaleed is in New York promoting a project he’s launching in Saudi Arabia with National Geographic: an animated aquarium.

http://www.newsweek.com/saudi-arabias-vegan-prince-will-bring-animated-aquarium-riyadh-kingdom-tries-873106

(* A P)

In France, Saudi crown prince seeks to woo Macron despite differences on Iran and Yemen

The Saudi crown prince arrives in France on Sunday to discuss a range of challenges facing the Middle East. The Iran nuclear deal, the Qatar crisis, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and business are at the top of the agenda.

"Mohammed bin Salman's tour is designed to introduce him to key constituencies in the international community as the King-in-waiting of Saudi Arabia," said Kristian Ulrichsen.

http://www.dw.com/en/in-france-saudi-crown-prince-seeks-to-woo-macron-despite-differences-on-iran-and-yemen/a-43292790

(* A P)

Does the Saudi Crown Prince’s Rosy Rhetoric Indicate Real Change?

In the interview that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman granted to The Atlantic, there were many questions that were not asked

After crown prince recognizes Israel's right to exist, Saudi king reiterates support for Palestinians

Why the Saudi crown prince's first official meeting with Jewish leaders is such a big deal

Saudi Crown Prince: We share common interests with Israel, but there must be peace with Palestinians

https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/does-saudi-crown-prince-s-rosy-rhetoric-indicate-real-change-1.5975518

Remark: From Israel an therefor of course biased in some way.

(A P)

Allies of Saudi crown prince appointed to board of new culture authority

The 13 members of the General Authority for Culture’s (GCA) board include artists, filmmakers, executives and government officials, said a statement carried by state news agency SPA.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-culture/allies-of-saudi-crown-prince-appointed-to-board-of-new-culture-authority-idUSKCN1HD1I6

(* B P)

Film: Saudi Arabia's missing princes - BBC Newsnight

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2KYQWPUbG4&t=2s

and full https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ES4jouOSsjk

and other report https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlP08KGFGlk

From 2004 (!)

(* B P)

So Much for Saudi Reform

Does U.S. support for democracy in the Middle East extend to Riyadh?

We shouldn't be fooled by conciliatory statements emanating from the Saudi establishment. Actions speak louder than words, and it is obvious to any seasoned observer of Saudi affairs that the reform movement to date has been little more than talk. It is to be hoped that President Bush will know better than to base his plans for democracy in the area on the Saudi model.

http://www.weeklystandard.com/so-much-for-saudi-reform/article/5149

cp9 USA

Siehe / Look at cp1

(A P)

Trump Should Be Wary of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince

The purpose of Mohammed’s visit to the United States is to demonstrate to Riyadh’s most important strategic ally—and to the American people at large—that Saudi Arabia is genuinely making strides to be a more inclusive, socially tolerant and economically diversified nation. On that front at least, it appears that Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler is having some success.

What Prince Mohammed is not, however, is a good foreign-policy practitioner or a particularly great geostrategic thinker. The Middle East could use a transformative and innovative Arab leader, but the crown prince’s performance as Saudi Arabia’s defense minister makes it quite clear that he is not that leader.

Ever since Crown Prince Mohammed has monopolized power, a growing number of lawmakers and scholars in Washington are viewing Saudi Arabia as part of the problem rather than part of the solution.

http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-skeptics/trump-should-be-wary-saudi-arabias-crown-prince-25237

(A P)

Trump: Arab Monarchs wouldn’t survive for two weeks if US leaves

US President Donald Trump has reportedly indicated recently that the wealthy monarchs in the Middle East wouldn’t last two weeks if US withdraw from the region.

According to CNN report about a meeting Trump held with his administration officials regarding US forces in Syria on Tuesday, President has boasted to friends that once the US withdraws from the region, the wealthy monarchs of those nations will need to forgo their private jumbo jets and extravagant lifestyles.

http://www.apnlive.com/india-news/trump-arab-monarchs-wouldnt-survive-for-two-weeks-if-us-leaves-41021

(B K P)

3 Wars Trump Should End Right Now

It has always been a mystery why the United States would stick its nose in this internal conflict (after striking a nuclear deal with Iran that the Saudis never supported, backing up Riyadh in Yemen may have been seen as some sort of compensation). Yemen is an insignificant player in the Middle East, and U.S. foreign policy in the region will go on as it has regardless of which armed faction happens to sit in Sanaa at any given time. Catering to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is not a good enough reason to taint America’s moral status by getting dragged into the gutter of this man-made humanitarian catastrophe.

http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-skeptics/3-wars-trump-should-end-right-now-25251

(* B P)

Families Divided: President Trump's Travel Ban Strands Some U.S. Citizens Abroad

As people try to flee the war in Yemen — which U.N. agencies have labeled the "world's worst humanitarian crisis" — some Yemeni-Americans living in the United States have been able to get family members out of Yemen and to temporary safety in countries in East Africa. But the next step, to the U.S., is blocked.

https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2018/04/03/597350163/how-president-trump-s-travel-ban-has-trapped-some-u-s-citizens-abroad

(* B P)

Arms of America: From Yemen to Florida

The United States government views human rights not as the foundation of human dignity but as an impediment to corporate profits.

— Haley Pedersen & Jodie Evans, AlterNet, January 11, 2018.

In the United States of America it’s all about the quantity, not the quality, of so-called freedom. That may be because only a few powerful lobbyists and the media control freedom’s meaning and its distribution.

This low-quality, surplus, unhinged freedom in the hands of a few comes witha price and color-coded tag attached to it, and too few of us can actually afford it. In this country, freedom serves the arms that link violence and capitalism, not the arms that link us together in solidarity for social, political, racial, economic and ecological justice.

https://www.counterpunch.org/2018/04/06/arms-of-america-from-yemen-to-florida/

(* B P)

America is fawning over Saudi Arabia’s repressive dictator

It’s true that MBS, as he’s commonly called, is, by Saudi standards, relatively progressive on certain issues. He’s allowed women to attend soccer matches, for example. But calling this “emancipation” is more than a little absurd: Saudi women are still not allowed to get married or travel internationally, among other things, without the permission of a male guardian. And Saudi Arabia is still the seventh most gender-unequal country in the world, according to one World Bank metric.

Focusing on these modest reforms ignores the fact that MBS is the architect of Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen

Why MBS got a hero’s welcome in America

But the sycophancy we’ve seen on display during the MBS visit to America has reached a new level. The sheer volume of pro-MBS rhetoric in the press, and his meetings with politicians and pop culture figures alike, dwarfs what we typically see with pro-American dictators. He got a friendly reception from all sorts of powerful American figures, from Trump on down.

Experts say this isn’t an accident.

“His domestic reforms and rhetoric have been carefully crafted to resonate here,” Lynch explains.

Another part of the story is that the Saudis, along with other Gulf monarchies like the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, have spent huge amounts of money in Washington. They have armies of PR staff and lobbyists and provide ample support to prominent think tanks. As a result, many influential Americans see the Saudis through the lens of their pro-US foreign policy rather than their awful human rights record.

“Money talks,” Ben Rhodes, one of President Obama’s top foreign policy aides, told me when I asked him about the MBS coverage.

https://www.vox.com/2018/4/6/17202562/mohammed-bin-salman-america-visit

(A P)

George Bush sen.: Delighted to join the 43rd President and Jim Baker in welcoming the Saudi Crown Prince His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman and His Royal Highness Prince Khalid bin Salman to Texas. A wonderful chance to celebrate the long-standing friendship between our two nations. (photo)

https://twitter.com/GeorgeHWBush/status/982724507160006656

Both Bushes, who made their names butchering Iraqis, bond with Saudi Arabia's dictator, as he bombs Yemeni children and starves millions of Yemenis A "long-standing friendship" built on oil and blood, war and arms sales

https://twitter.com/BenjaminNorton/status/983010310792667136

(* A P)

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman toured Hollywood, Harvard and Silicon Valley on US visit

Royal met a host of household names from Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey to Dwayne Johnson and Sir Richard Branson

He talked about the movie business with Michael Douglas, Morgan Freeman and Dwayne Johnson over dinner at Rupert Murdoch’s house. He discussed space travel with Richard Bransonin the California desert, and philanthropy with Bill Gates and technology with Jeff Bezos in Seattle. He visited Harvard and MIT, brokered arms deals with President Donald Trump and sat down with Wall Street financiers. He even met with Oprah Winfrey.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/saudi-prince-mohammed-us-tour-hollywood-harvard-silicon-valley-dwayne-johnson-rupert-murdoch-oprah-a8293456.html

and

(* A P)

Saudi 'Prince Charming' Mohammed bin Salman comes to Hollywood

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43663447

(A P)

Tequila on The Rock, as Mohammed bin Salman parties in Hollywood

A-lister The Rock uses Instagram to hail 'historic night' of boozy debates on reform with Saudi crown prince, before editing post

http://www.middleeasteye.net/The-Rock-Dwayne-Johnson-Mohammed-bin-Salman-Hollywood-Tequila

and

(A P)

Saudi crown prince parties with The Rock, Murdoch and James Cameron

https://yemen-rw.org/2018/04/05/saudi-crown-prince-parties-with-the-rock-murdoch-and-james-cameron/

and

(* A P)

Oprah, Rupert Murdoch, Harvard: Saudi Prince’s U.S. Tour

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/06/world/middleeast/saudi-prince-mohammed-bin-salman-us.html

(A P)

Film: Reality Check: Could 9/11 Victim Families Actually Sue Saudi Arabia?

http://www.videosfan.com/dS1qdnlQQXNObEk-w

(A P)

Nearly 17 Years After 9/11, Middletown Son Seeks Answers From FBI

Brett Eagleson, who was 15 when his father, Bruce, died in the terrorist attack in lower Manhattan, said Monday that his family has demanded from the FBI unredacted reports, letters, emails, transcripts of closed hearings and other documents related to the attacks as part of a civil lawsuit against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

http://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-news-saudi-arabia-suit-20180409-story.html

(* B P)

“Oil for security”: Ex-CIA Director Michael Hayden describes cozy U.S. relationship with Saudi dictatorship in new book

“Playing to the Edge” offers readers a glimpse into the U.S. government’s support for brutal Middle East dictators

Hayden, not one to mince his words, speaks in the book of "the unspoken contract between... the two countries: oil for security, security for oil."

At a dense 415 pages, "Playing to the Edge," which was released this week, thoroughly details Hayden's work as one of the most prominent U.S. intelligence officials in history. It is primarily devoted to the last 17 years, and especially to the so-called War on Terror Hayden helped initiate after the 9/11 attacks.

In a chapter about his work as the head of the CIA from 2007 to 2009, the final years of the Bush administration, Hayden discusses the trips he took to a variety of countries. Most interesting among these are the meetings the U.S. intelligence official had with Middle Eastern despots.

https://www.salon.com/2016/02/26/oil_for_security_ex_cia_director_michael_hayden_describes_cozy_u_s_relationship_with_saudi_dictatorship_in_new_book/

cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain

(A P)

Christian peace protestors shut down factory supplying arms for Saudi Arabia

At around 07:35 the activists from Put Down the Sword, which is part of the Faith and Resistance Network, parked outside Roxel and blocked the gates by locking their arms together inside fortified drainage pipes. Others walked through an open gate onto the site, demanding that they be allowed access to inspect. They unfurled banners reading “Site closed for weapons inspection” and “Roxel: stop arming Saudi”

http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/25603 and also https://www.albawaba.com/news/breaking-protesters-england-just-shut-down-missile-engine-factory-alleged-be-supplying-saudis-w

photos: https://twitter.com/StopTheArmsFair/status/983252690561007617

https://twitter.com/badgeringhan/status/983405843302486016

https://twitter.com/badgeringhan/status/983236123551064064

(* B K P)

When it comes to Middle East policy, the UK is nothing but a rogue state

Giving the UK a seat on the UN Security Council is like employing a gangster to serve as a judge

In the current crisis with Moscow, British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has written that “Russia cannot break international rules with impunity”.

Britain, along with Russia, has a particular obligation to uphold international law since it is one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.

Last year, Attorney General Jeremy Wright said the UK was “a world leader in promoting, defending and shaping international law”.

Yet the reality is different: Britain has been promoting at least seven foreign policies that can be strongly argued to be violating international law, and which make a mockery of its current demonisation of Russia.

Wars in Yemen, Syria, Iraq

The war in Yemen is a further example. Ministers have consistently told Parliament that Britain is “not a party” to the conflict – presumably since this would formally implicate Britain in the violations of humanitarian law of which Saudi Arabia is accused.

London’s claim is nonsense: It is arming, advising and training the Saudis and maintaining their aircraft bombing Yemen, many of which have targeted civilians, as the British government has long known. – by Mark Curtis

http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns/when-it-comes-middle-east-policy-uk-rogue-state-1677623456

(* B P)

The Close-Knit Relationship between Britain and Saudi Arabia. Crown Prince Bin Salman’s Visit to London

An interview with Dr. Marcus Papadopoulos

Saudi Arabia is one of Britain’s closest allies and friends in the world. Political, economic and military relations between Riyadh and London are intense, and these have become all the more close-knit because of the conflicts in Syria and in Yemen.

Turning to Saudi influence in Britain, this is frighteningly high. Many British politicians have close ties to Saudi Arabia and defend the Saudis to the bone.

Together with Saudi Arabia wielding immense clout at Westminster, there are huge sums of Saudi money invested in London, especially in the stock exchange and in the property sector.

DMP: The political landscape in the UK is dominated by the Conservative and Labour parties, and Saudi influence can be found in both of these parties, especially the Conservative one.

https://www.globalresearch.ca/the-close-knit-relationship-between-britain-and-saudi-arabia-crown-prince-bin-salmans-visit-to-london/5634670

cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries

(* B P)

Nasrallah: US offered money for ending resistance to Israel

Hezbollah chief says the reconciliation offer was made by Dick Cheney through George Nader, an adviser to the UAE.

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah says the United States under President George W Bush offered his group reconciliation and money on the condition the Lebanese movement relinquish its resistance to Israel.

In a televised speech on Sunday, Nasrallah said the offer, made by former Vice President Dick Cheney, also included removing the group from international terror watch lists and funding to help rebuild southern Lebanon.

He added that the offer was made through George Nader, a controversy-stricken US businessman of Lebanese origin.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/04/nasrallah-offered-money-resistance-israel-180409064026862.html

Comment: The fact that the US was willing to remove Hezbollah from "terrorism" lists if it agreed to stop resisting Israel is a clear sign that these "terror" lists aren't about groups that target civilians (which Hezbollah does not do), but rather groups that resist the US and its allies

https://twitter.com/BenjaminNorton/status/983728252492615681

(A P)

Sudan’s al-Bashir describes relations with the UAE as “outstanding”

http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article65144

(A P)

Somalia Seizes Nearly $10M From UAE Plane in Mogadishu

The government knew in advance that the money was coming for the troops. The UAE has been training Somali soldiers in Mogadishu, as well as about 1,000 maritime police in the Puntland region.

https://www.voanews.com/a/somalia-united-arab-emirates-money-seizure/4337888.html

(A P)

MBS is scheduled to arrive in #Spain on Thu and he is set to sign a contract to buy five warships for $2.4 billion.

https://twitter.com/Bill_Smith82/status/982506199504572416

(A P)

Film: Saudi Prince faces Yemen protests

With Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman in France on the start of a European tour, protestors in Paris have been demonstrating for an end to Saudi Arabian air strikes in Yemen - where Riyadh is leading a military coalition against Iran backed Houthi rebels.

http://www.euronews.com/2018/04/09/saudi-prince-faces-yemen-protests

(* A E P)

France's Macron defends Saudi arms sales, to hold Yemen conference

President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday defended French weapons sales to the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen, but said he was concerned by the humanitarian situation and would host a conference on the issue before the summer.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-saudi-yemen/frances-macron-defends-saudi-arms-sales-to-hold-yemen-conference-idUSKBN1HH30P

My comment: Does he not even realize how perverse and how hypocritical all this is? That it’s evident that all his “he was concerned by the humanitarian situation” just is a fig-leaf for the public to sedate it? A Macron who defends Saudi arms sales cares not even a little shit for the humanitarian situation in Yemen. A conference? Who in this world needs another conference? Does he want to kid us? We assist killing your kids and then we help you by making a conference??

(A P)

France's Macron and Saudi prince discuss response to Syria

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia joined French President Emmanuel Macron in expressing concerns Tuesday over the worsening conflicts in Yemen, Iran and especially Syria.

Macron also announced that France would co-organize with Saudi Arabia a conference on humanitarian aid for Yemen

"We will not tolerate ballistic missiles activities that threaten Saudi Arabia," Macron said. "Yet we are attached to the respect of international law and especially humanitarian law in Yemen."

https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/frances-macron-and-saudi-prince-discuss-response-to-syria

My comment: This sounds like comedy, but it’s bloody. Salman “joined concerns” “over the worsening conflict in Yemen”. Whow! Who mostly triggered this conflict by himself? A “worsening conflict in Iran”. Which conflict in Iran??? – A French-Saudi conference on humanitarian aid for Yemen? That’s really a bad joke.

(A P)

Macron: no tolerance towards ballistic missile threats to Saudi Arabia

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday reiterated his country's solidarity with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia against Yemeni Houthi rebels' ballistic missile attacks.

https://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=2709658&Language=en

My comment: Bombing a country to ruins and civilians into bloody flesh lumps seems to be no problem for Macron.

(A P)

Give Saudi Arabia a chance, French president tells critics

France’s President Emmanuel Macron took on critics of Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday, saying it was too easy to criticize the young leader’s haste to reform and urged detractors to give him time.

“I hear legitimate questions from civil society, journalists about human rights and various sensitive issues concerning your country, (but) I’m also looking at what’s going on in the region.

We can have the choice to stick to our traditional positions and we can decide that the first acts of modernization of his society are cosmetic. If we do that then we are leaving Prince Mohammed to face those in his area that think the opposite and decide to go backwards and keep to a political Islam or terrorism,” he said.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-saudi-macron-salman/give-saudi-arabia-a-chance-french-president-tells-critics-idUSKBN1HH3CN

My comment: Bombing a neighbouring country for 3 years now, for Macron still is not enough time to see what Salman really wants to do. This is just disgusting.

(* A E P)

Saudi Arabia and France sign deals worth $18 billion: Al Arabiya TV

Saudi Arabia and France signed 20 economic deals worth more than $18 billion, Al Arabiya TV said on Tuesday as Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman visits Paris, without specifying whether they were full contracts or memorandums of understanding.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-saudi-deals/saudi-arabia-and-france-sign-deals-worth-18-billion-al-arabiya-tv-idUSKBN1HH1YP

(A P)

Protesters Denounce Saudi Crown Prince’s Visit to Paris & Saudi War in Yemen

https://www.democracynow.org/2018/4/9/headlines/protesters_denounce_saudi_crown_princes_visit_to_paris_saudi_war_in_yemen

(A P)

Yemeni rights group sues Saudi Crown Prince in France: lawyers

A rights group filed a lawsuit against Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during his visit to France on Tuesday, accusing him of complicity in torture and inhumane treatment in Yemen, lawyers said.

The complaint on behalf of Taha Hussein Mohamed, director of the Legal Center for Rights and Development (LCRD), said the prince who is Saudi Arabia’s defense minister was responsible attacks that hit civilians in Yemen.

The case was filed in a Paris court.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-saudi-yemen/yemeni-rights-group-sues-saudi-crown-prince-in-france-lawyers-idUSKBN1HH0YQ?rpc=401&

and

(A P)

Saudi Crown prince sued in France for complicity in torture

A French lawyer has filed a lawsuit in a Paris court against visiting Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, accusing him of complicity in torture in Yemen, an embarrassment for the French government as it rolled out the red carpet for its powerful guest.

Lawyer Joseph Breham, representing a Yemeni human rights group, is suing the crown prince, currently in France on an official visit, for his leading role in the Saudi-led coalition's airstrikes fighting Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.

The criminal lawsuit claims that Bin Salman knowingly targeted civilians.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/saudi-crown-prince-sued-france-complicity-torture-54355945

(A P)

Macron Entertains Saudi Crown Prince Paris-Style at Louvre

Prince Mohammed, Macron spent two hours over dinner on Sunday

Saudi Arabia and France are seeking to patch up differences

The French president’s office said the museum was chosen as a symbol of France’s cultural heritage and because of a new exhibition of the work of painter Eugene Delacroix that just opened. It cited the painter’s “Liberty Leading the People,” which shows a woman with naked chest standing on the barricades, holding the revolutionary red, white and blue flag over the corpses of fallen fighters

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-09/saudi-crown-prince-and-macron-dine-in-style-at-the-louvre-museum

My comment: I would like to see a naked heroine and a 1830 style revolution in Saudi Arabia.

(A P)

Bin Salman, Macron meet amid calls for end to French arms sales to Saudis

French President Emmanuel Macron hosts a private dinner for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the Louvre Museum amid pressure on his administration to halt lucrative weapons sales to Riyadh over its war crimes in Yemen.

The French president’s office said the two-hour meal and talks between the two officials took place on Sunday evening, with the dialog meant to “anticipate the topics” of upcoming discussions.

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/04/10/558000/France-Saudi-Mohammed-bin-Salman

(A P)

Emanuel Macron: Avec Mohammed Ben Salman, prince héritier d'Arabie Saoudite (photos)

https://twitter.com/EmmanuelMacron/status/983388458436694017

This photo by @EmmanuelMacron shows #Saudi despot monarch the painting of French painter Eugène Delacroix, "Freedom" not only French can destroy their monarchy. We shall too & build our republic, a real one.

https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/983422547051122690

(* A P)

Investment and Iran high on agenda as France hosts Saudi crown prince

Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammed bin Salman arrives in France as part of his global tour aimed at reshaping his kingdom's austere image overseas. On the agenda for his two-day stay are the conflicts in Yemen, Syria and the Iran nuclear deal.

https://www.trtworld.com/mea/investment-and-iran-high-on-agenda-as-france-hosts-saudi-crown-prince-16565 and also https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/saudi-crown-prince-lands-in-france-as-activists-to-protest-over-yemen-1.5978838 and also https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/news/2018/4/8/saudi-crown-princes-global-charm-offensive-continues-in-france and protests: https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1704467179606305

(A P)

Saudi prince skips visit to mega tech incubator during French trip

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday pulled out of touring a mega-campus for tech startups in Paris, an official in the French prime minister’s office said, a visit that was meant to highlight deepening Franco-Saudi tech ties.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-saudi/saudi-prince-skips-visit-to-mega-tech-incubator-during-french-trip-idUSKBN1HG144

(* A P)

Saudi crown prince begins European tour in Paris

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-saudi/saudi-crown-prince-begins-european-tour-in-paris-idUSKBN1HF0F4

(* A P)

NGOs pressure Macron over Saudi weapons as prince visits

Rights groups on Monday urged President Emmanuel Macron to pressure visiting Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the war in Yemen, warning that Riyadh may be using French weapons in the conflict.

"France is potentially an accomplice to serious violations of humanitarian laws by selling weapons and military equipment to Saudi Arabia, given what we know is taking place in Yemen," said Aurelie Perrier, coordinator for Yemen and Saudi Arabia at Amnesty International France.

"We want to ask President Macron to stop arms transfers to Saudi Arabia and to lift the blockade on Yemen,"

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-5595801/NGOs-pressure-Macron-Saudi-weapons-prince-visits.html

(* A P)

France, Saudi Arabia agree new defense contracts strategy

France and Saudi Arabia have agreed a new intergovernmental accord to conclude weapons deals, a French defense ministry official said on Sunday.

The agreement replaces a process that had been criticized by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is also the country’s defense minister. Sources said the prince, who is known as MBS, wanted to make a break from past processes.

He arrived in Paris on Sunday for a three-day visit.

“In conjunction with the Saudi authorities, France has initiated a new arms export strategy with Saudi Arabia, which until now has been managed by ODAS,” the official said, referring to the organization that currently handles French defense interests in Saudi Arabia.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-saudi-defence/france-saudi-arabia-agree-new-defense-contracts-strategy-idUSKBN1HF0DN

(B K P)

Tony Fortin : « Des armes et équipements militaires français semblent bien utilisés au Yémen »

Le chargé d’études à l’Observatoire des armements appelle, dans une tribune au « Monde », les parlementaires à faire la lumière sur les ventes de matériels militaires français à Riyad.

Si le drame yéménite tient encore une place marginale dans le débat public, la France n’échappera pas longtemps à son examen de conscience. En ligne de mire, nos ventes d’armes aux forces de la coalition

http://www.lemonde.fr/idees/article/2018/04/07/tony-fortin-des-armes-et-equipements-militaires-francais-semblent-bien-utilises-au-yemen_5281988_3232.html#tRyIKOtfuYxaaPcB.99

(A P)

L'Arabie saoudite de Mohammed Ben Salmane mérite des sanctions, pas le tapis rouge

http://www.liberation.fr/debats/2018/04/07/l-arabie-saoudite-de-mohammed-ben-salmane-merite-des-sanctions-pas-le-tapis-rouge_1641576

(* A P)

Ahead of Saudi prince visit, Macron lawmaker asks for inquiry over French arms sales

A lawmaker in President Emmanuel Macron’s party has officially asked for a parliamentary investigation into the legality of French weapons sales to the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen, days before the kingdom’s crown prince arrives in France.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-saudi-arms/ahead-of-saudi-prince-visit-macron-lawmaker-asks-for-inquiry-over-french-arms-sales-idUSKCN1HC2N9

(A P)

The Strategic Implications Of A Possible Russian Base In Somaliland

https://orientalreview.org/2018/04/06/the-strategic-implications-of-a-possible-russian-base-in-somaliland/

(* B P)

How the crisis in the Gulf could spread to East Africa

A crisis in the Gulf has had an unexpected consequence - a rush to build ports all down the Somali coast. But, as Mary Harper writes, some fear it could tear the Horn of Africa apart.

After nearly 30 years of conflict and instability, Somalia is particularly vulnerable.

"Somalia has become a chessboard in the power game between Qatar and Turkey on the one side and Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and their allies on the other," says Rashid Abdi, director of the Horn of Africa project at the International Crisis Group.

"There is no doubt that these rivalries are spilling over into Africa. Somalia is especially vulnerable because of its proximity to the Gulf and its long historical relationship with the region."

The disagreement between Somalia and Somaliland centres around two deals, both connected with the UAE.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-43585814

cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis

(* A P)

#Saudi forces landing on beaches close to #Qatari borders is a show of intimidation. @UN_DPA should act to protect #Qatar & its sovereignty from Saudi expansionist agression

https://twitter.com/AliAlAhmed_en/status/983706399493558272

(* A P)

Saudi Arabia Eyes Up Canal Border Idea, Turning Qatar From A Peninsula Into An Island

https://www.forbes.com/sites/dominicdudley/2018/04/06/saudi-canal-qatar-island/#66461ab9249e

and

(* A P)

Saudi Arabia to set up military base, nuclear waste burial site on Salwa border

The Saudi part of Salwa island bordering Qatar will be converted into a military base and a nuclear waste burial site, Sabq online newspaper quoted informed sources as saying on Sunday.

http://saudigazette.com.sa/article/532303/SAUDI-ARABIA/Saudi-Arabia-to-set-up-military-base-nuclear-waste-burial-site-on-Salwa-border

(* B P)

Film: Qatar under siege (Oct. 2017)

The tiny country of Qatar is being threatened by its greedy neighbors, with the apparent complicity of the Trump administration. This film examines the real reasons for the blockade, behind the headlines.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OB0kH45j2sQ

cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade

(* B K P)

Export armi: Italia sfiora il record vendendo ai regimi autoritari

[Record arms exports for #Italy: 10+ bln Euro, mainly to questionable Gulf regimes known for their human rights abuses and war crimes.]

Le autorizzazioni all'esportazione di armi e sistemi militari da parte dell'Italia hanno superato i 10 miliardi di euro nel 2017. Una cifra inferiore solo a quella fatta registrare nel 2016 dal governo Renzi. E raggiunta facendo affari anche con i regimi del Golfo Persico, impegnati in guerre che violano i diritti umani

https://www.osservatoriodiritti.it/2018/04/10/export-armi-italia/

(* B K P)

Comercio bajo sospecha

España ocupa el séptimo lugar en la clasificación mundial de exportadores de armas y el tercero que más material bélico vende a Arabia Saudí, un país acusado por la ONU de practicar atrocidades contra la población civil en la guerra que libra en Yemen

In Spanish: #Spain ranks 7th in the exports of arms and the top client is Saudi Arabia, accused by the UN of committing atrocities against civilians in #Yemen

http://ctxt.es/es/20180404/Politica/18795/armas-exportacion-Arabia-Saudi-Espa%C3%B1a-Gorka-Castillo-defensa.htm

(A K P)

During Prince Mohammed bin Salman tour in @LockheedMartin California complex, HRH signed on the last piece that will be installed on one of two #Saudi satellites being built at LM as part of a joint cooperation with @KACST (photos)

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/982211273713639425

The Crown Prince was also briefed about the #THAAD system and Lockheed Martin's plan to build an R&D center in the Kingdom (photos)

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/982334384513671169

(A K P)

Sierra Nevada Corp. was awarded a $14M ceiling increase modification to previously awarded contract for the #Saudi King Air 350 program

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/982877572857057280

#Boeing Co. was award a $49.5M modification to previously awarded contract for Royal #Saudi Air Force F-15SA OEM. This modification provides for a one-year extension to the period of performance of the existing contract. Work will be performed in Khamis Mushait. ETC, Aug. 2019.

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/982880010758389760

cp13b Mercenaries / Söldner

(* B K P)

Sudan vows to stay in Saudi alliance fighting in Yemen

Sudan vowed on Tuesday that it will remain in a Saudi-led coalition fighting rebels in Yemen, after a deadly ambush reportedly killed dozens of its soldiers in the war-torn country last week.

Khartoum has deployed hundreds of soldiers in Yemen since 2015 as part of the alliance battling on the side of the country's government against Iran-backed Huthi rebels.

On Friday it suffered one of its heaviest losses when dozens of Sudanese soldiers were killed by insurgents in an ambush, Yemeni military sources and rebels said.

https://www.news24.com/Africa/News/sudan-vows-to-stay-in-saudi-alliance-fighting-in-yemen-20180410

(* A K P)

Sudanese ground forces to take part in Gulf Shield One military trainings in Saudi Arabia

Official Sudanese sources have announced that Sudanese military ground forces will participate in the joint Gulf Shield One military training, which included 23 states.

On Monday, the Sudanese Media Centre (SMC) has mentioned that the Sudanese Defence Minister, Lieutenant General Ahmed Awad Ibn Auf has received an official invitation from the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman to attend the final presentations of the military trainings.

The Saudi Ambassador to Khartoum, Ali Hasan Jaafar, who handed over the invitation to the Sudanese Minister of Defence, hailed the prodigious role and sacrifices the of Sudanese in Yemen.

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180410-sudanese-ground-forces-to-take-part-in-gulf-shield-one-military-trainings-in-saudi-arabia/

cp13c Kulturerbe / Cultural heritage

(* B K)

Film: Yemen's ancient city of Zabid at risk as fighting nears

Residents and international organisations fear that fighting between Saudi-led coalition and Houthi rebels could damage the UNESCO World Heritage site beyond repair.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/04/yemens-ancient-city-zabid-risk-fighting-nears-180410120551743.html

(* B K)

War savages ancient sites in Yemen and Iraq, destroying archaeological record

“Our immortal history has been wasted by wars,” lamented Mohanad Ahmad al-Sayani, chair of Yemen’s General Organization of Antiquities and Museums in Sana’a.

In Yemen, the cultural losses have gone largely unnoticed by the wider world but are keenly felt by archaeologists. Although the country has been far less studied than Mesopotamia, it played a critical role in the rise of empires and economies in the region starting around 1000 B.C.E., researchers said at a meeting here last week of the International Congress on the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East.

Bombs dropped by the Saudi-led coalition have wreaked the most damage, Al-Sayani said. The Marib Dam, in an unpopulated area far from the capital, was struck in 2015, leaving a deep gash in the well-preserved northern sluice gate. The regional museum of Dhamar in the southwest, which contained thousands of artifacts from the Himyarite Kingdom, was completely destroyed.

The destruction seems deliberate, agrees archaeologist Sarah Japp of Berlin’s German Archaeological Institute. “The Saudis were given information on important cultural heritage sites, including exact coordinates,” by UNESCO, said Japp, who was based in Sana’a before the war. UNESCO intended to protect the sites, but she fears that the data may instead have been used for targeting. “There is no reason to say all of these [bombings] are just accidents.” http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/04/war-savages-ancient-sites-yemen-and-iraq-destroying-archaeological-record

cp13d Wirtschaft / Economy

(* A E P)

Planning Minister estimates Yemen war-caused losses as $100 bln

Minister of Planning and International Cooperation, Mohammed al-Saadi, has estimated the damages and losses that the Yemeni economy will sustain as a result of the Houthi insurgency at $100 billion.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17184

My comment: The estimate certainly is too low. US$ 150 to 200 billion will be more realistic. – It’s simply odd propaganda to label these losses “as a result of the Houthi insurgency”, as the very greatest part was “achieved” by Saudi coalition air raids.

cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism

(A T)

Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS) Wilayat al Bayda militants claimed to target al Houthi forces with mortar fire in al Quraishiyah district, northwestern al Bayda governorate, central Yemen on April 5.[5]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-april-10-2018

(A T)

#AlQaeda #Yemen claimed it blew up a Houthi convoy on Friday by booby-trapped vehicle on the Bayda'-Mukayras road.

https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/983807563899785218

(A T)

Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) targeting al Houthi forces in al Quraishiyah district, northwestern al Bayda governorate, central Yemen on April 8 [4]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-april-10-2018

(A T)

Hamza bin Laden warns of Shiite expansion in the Middle East

Al Qaeda’s propaganda arm, As Sahab, has released the latest episode in Hamza bin Laden’s lecture series on the history of Saudi Arabia. The series began in Aug. 2016, when the junior bin Laden called for the overthrow of the Saudi monarchy. Hamza has returned to criticize the Saudi royals several times since then.

Hamza uses the occasion to once again warn that the Shiites are expanding throughout the Middle East

The Shiites are advancing “from the outside on several fronts and from the inside as well,” but the House of Saud has demonstrated a “shameful inability” to confront them, Hamza claims. This means the Saudi government is “not eligible to defend the Two Holy Mosques.”

After attempting to undermine the legitimacy of the Saudi regime, Hamza calls “upon our people in the Arabian Peninsula to prepare the equipment and materials, and prepare to protect the Two Holy Mosques from the Rafidah Safavid (Shiites), and to support their mujahidin brothers in Yemen.”

https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/04/hamza-bin-laden-warns-of-shiite-expansion-in-the-middle-east.php

(A T)

#IslamicState in al-Bayda' #Yemen announces another "martyr": Abu Salih al-Jawfi. He's the 5th #ISIL "martyr" in al-Bayda' in a month (since 8 March). (photo9

https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/983363032775643136

(A T)

Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) militants detonated a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) targeting al Houthi forces in Mukayras district, southeastern al Bayda governorate, central Yemen on April 6.[5]

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

(A T)

Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS) Wilayat al Bayda claimed its militants killed an al Houthi soldier with a sniper in northwestern al Quraishyah district, al Bayda governorate, southwestern Yemen on April 3.[3]

https://www.criticalthreats.org/briefs/gulf-of-aden-security-review/gulf-of-aden-security-review-april-6-2018

cp15 Propaganda

Siehe / Look at cp1

(A P)

The Saudi Crown Prince’s message to the world

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has sent a strong message to the world that Saudi Arabia is capable and intent on eliminating terrorism. This message constitutes a new language for Saudi Arabia in its relations with the international community.

There is also the message he conveyed in his interview with The Wall Street Journal, where he said that the international community must keep pushing Iran economically and politically to avoid a direct military confrontation in the region, adding that “sanctions will create more pressure on the regime.”

We can see here a man who doesn’t speak in vague terms, nor issues statements he has does not intend to take action on. Prince Mohammed bin Salman has warned that it is necessary that the international community bears its moral responsibility and takes a position against Iranian terrorism, which is directed against the whole world .

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/04/10/The-Saudi-Crown-Prince-s-message-to-the-world.html

(A P)

Mohammed bin Salman and his historic visit to the US

A report by the New York Times said Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman “is rewriting Saudi history” through his recent US tour.

This description may be accurate. What’s more accurate is that the Saudi Crown Prince is in his quest to change everything in Saudi Arabia and set things straight.

Simply speaking, Saudi Arabia has changed and is different than how it was few years ago; therefore, it’s a must to deal with it in its new form and this is what the US administration has recently realized.

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/04/10/Mohammed-bin-Salman-and-his-historic-US-visit.html

(A P)

Yemen’s Ambassador Faults Iran

Iran uses Houthi tribal militia “as a proxy” to block peace in war-torn Yemen, that country’s ambassador to the United States said in Washington, D.C. early in April.

But soon after Hadi received the draft, the Houthi militia resumed action against the internationally-backed government. “This is not a war between Saudi Arabia and Yemen,” or even “between Saudi Arabia and Iran,” bin Mubarak maintained.

Rather, “Iran is using the Houthis,” who—like Iran’s theocratic rulers are Shi’a Muslims—as a bargaining chip against both Saudi Arabia and the United States, the ambassador said.

https://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/2018/04/10/yemens-ambassador-faults-iran/

(A P)

Killing people as if they are insects

This is not the first or second or even tenth time that chemical attacks target people in Syria and suffocate them like insects.

The life of thousands of Syrians may be of no value for those who are indifferent towards what’s happening; however, the entire world is in danger due to these precedents which have become familiar and acceptable due to keeping silent and not holding criminals accountable.

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/04/10/Killing-people-as-if-they-are-insects.html

My comment: What really happened in Syria stays more than dubious. – An article like this one, on a Saudi website, is rather ridiculous. Well,it exactly describes what the Saudis are doing in Yemen. They kill people as if they are insects, and westeners “become familiar and acceptable due to keeping silent and not holding criminals accountable“.

(A P)

Yemen’s Houthi militia leader says tribesmen are ‘traitors’

A source close to a senior Houthi leader who attended the meeting, said that al-Houthi repeatedly warned the attendees "not to rely on tribesmen" in the Iran-backed battle against the Yemeni people. He also referred to the tribesmen as “traitors and backstabbers.”

Al-Houthi ordered the commanders to kill all those who retreat or withdraw from their ranks on the fighting fronts, especially tribesmen, in fear of having them join the national army, said the source as quoted by local news sites.

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/gulf/2018/04/07/Militia-leader-Abul-Malik-al-Houthi-says-tribesmen-are-traitors-.html

My comment: From a Saudi side, therefor labeled as propaganda. He certainly only referred to certain tribesmen.

(A P)

Yemen PM: End nears for Houthi occupation

Daghr said that the Houthi militia are Yemen’s foremost enemy who have destroyed facilities and looted public and private property

He pointed out that the government led by exiled President Hadi will proceed in the project of building a federal state that will achieve security and justice for the population of Yemen

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1281401/middle-east

My comment: he never heard of Saudi air raids?

(A P)

Houthis commit 3000 human rights violations in Dhamar

In its annual report, Nahdat Watan, a Yemeni NGO, reported that Houthis committed 3000 human rights violations in Dhamar during the year 2017.

The report which was unveiled at a press conference held today in Marib

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17308

My comment: this seems to be another episode of pro-Saudi Hadi government supporters’ figure plays. – This seems to be another dubious organization. In YPR 271, I wrote: In the former report, it was another rather ephemeral human rights organization which had made such a statement. What is the work of “Nahdat Watan”? I found this facebook account: https://www.facebook.com/%D9%85%D9%86%D8%B8%D9%85%D8%A9-%D9%86%D9%87%D8%B6%D8%A9-%D9%88%D8%B7%D9%86-Nahdat-Watan-Oragnization-1331241993566212/ and this youtube upload: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCukXdzD8xXVeQxqbKTs2YKA and the article above, on various sites. That’s it.

(A P)

Panic among Houthis as Yemeni Army Advances

Leader of Houthi militia is worried of the recent field advancements of Coalition-backed Yemeni army in Saada. This, as tribal and military sources confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat, led him to call upon a number of leaders descending from Houthis to develop plans to defend the group’s stronghold and warn them of tribesmen’s treachery.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1231861/panic-among-houthis-yemeni-army-advances

(A P)

Iran is on the brink of a new popular uprising

New sanctions against Iran can be viewed as a warning to Tehran to halt the activities of Qassem Soleimani, the head of the Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force. Trump has set a deadline that ends in the first two weeks of May to amend the nuclear deal with Iran.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/04/08/Iran-is-on-the-brink-of-a-new-popular-uprising.html

(A P)

A Yemen political solution is needed, but which one?

Iran depends on three militias to expand and “export the revolution.” The first and most important militia and probably the most successful one is Hezbollah in Lebanon. The second one is the Islamized Hamas militia in Gaza while the third, and which is so far considered the weakest, is the Houthi militia in Yemen.

Avoiding the Lebanese scenario

Due to objective reasons, Saudi Arabia and the UAE cannot allow repeating Lebanon’s mistake, i.e. replicate Hezbollah’s model in Yemen. The war in Yemen may last for 10 years or more and so be it as the Houthis’ victory there means that Iran would be at our south. The Saudi people and government totally and irrevocably reject this regardless of any pressure or arguments under the pretext that the Yemeni war destroyed everything like human rights organizations, which are generously funded by the Qatari regime, claim.

The Saudis do not reject a political solution, but they strictly reject that the political solution in Yemen resembles the solution reached during the Lebanese civil war.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/04/08/A-Yemen-political-solution-is-needed-but-which-one-.html

My comment: Keeping the Iran story (which is irrelevant for Yemen), for US ears, to make sure that Yemen will stay a Saudi puppet state for ever.

(A P)

On teaching philosophy in Saudi Arabia

It’s been 70 years since philosophy has been taught in the Arab world. Results have not been satisfactory mainly because teaching it relies on memorization techniques or sanctifying information. Philosophy sessions did not allow students to think freely and ask whatever questions came to their minds. I think Arab and Islamic societies reject this and it’s sometimes even strictly punished. Philosophy sessions at schools need an atmosphere where students can freely ask any question and respond to theories or reject them. This environment is what makes philosophy a developed field. Only then we can notice reasonable results from teaching philosophy.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/04/08/On-teaching-philosophy-in-Saudi-Arabia.html

(A P)

Iran’s doublespeak on peace and security

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1281096

(A P)

A breath of fresh air: What it takes to work for MBS

Working with him is a duty. He will not compliment you; he will detect your mistakes, measure your performance, and foresee your work path. The crown prince is a reference point in these sciences, which are alien to our government culture. I have seen it many times.
I do not mean that we were wrong in the past; other times, other ways. In the past, the government had its own way of managing its work in light of changing variables. Now, Saudi Arabia, surely, is renewing itself and developing with our young crown prince’s vision, and in the eyes of our king. Our power is our ability to interact, to move, to develop, to deal with our mistakes and address them. Nothing stops us. “The sky is the limit.” So said the crown prince. This is who we are.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1281211 = https://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/04/08/OPINION-How-to-work-with-Mohammed-Bin-Salman-.html

(A P)

How the Gulf states can lead an Arab renaissance

It is simple to conclude that these six countries that formed the GCC in 1981 have all the necessary ingredients to become major players in global economics and politics. Since they established their single market and coordinated their policies, they have been moving fast to position themselves prominently in world affairs. The real challenge is to manage this breakneck rate of social and economic change and scale it up in a controlled manner without jeopardizing the stability and foundation that made this success and growth possible, especially given global interference and regional upheaval.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1280441

Comment: I mean, this article should be nominated for a Hugo Award for its fantasy & science fiction. Quote: "The GCC, undoubtedly, will trigger a new renaissance in the region. Just as in Asia, the GCC can indeed soon be called the new Arab tigers."

https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/982662762936590337

(A P)

Terrorism and the ‘Freedom of Speech’ Argument

“We’ve asked that Osama bin Laden, should get arrested. He was outside Saudi Arabia. He should have been arrested. And The Independent answered us in ’93 that Osama bin Laden was a freedom fighter practicing free speech,” Crown Prince Mohammad told the Times magazine.
This phrase, described by the Saudi crown prince in his interview with the US-based magazine is enough to clear up any misguided ideas still resonating in Western circles on how to deal with extremism. Especially the dull repetition and an illogical connection made between al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and his Saudi nationality.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1230856/salman-al-dossary/terrorism-and-%E2%80%98freedom-speech%E2%80%99-argument

Comment: This is BS, for U.S. consumption. All it will take to destroy AQAP is 6,000 good men of #Yemen. And they are ready, waiting.

#Saudi crown prince MBS: "It will take about 20 years, and require a coalition of over 60 countries to expel Al Qaeda from Yemen."

https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/983036998117150720

https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/983048104114049024

(A P)

King Salman Relief Center Delivers 8 Relief Caravans to Al-Jouf Governorate in Yemen

http://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1749199

Comment: Every day I get hundreds of these from Saudi press agency to say they are delivering a basket of dates here or are spending money on food to be delivered in Yemen. It seems like a real PR exercise but they can't hide the reality - they are starving Yemenis to death.

https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156575776483641

and more of this kind of propaganda (by Saudi and Emirates) here:

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/erc-delivers-water-sanitation-equipment-yemen

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/ksrelief-delivers-more-assistance-yemeni-people

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/erc-examines-humanitarian-needs-abyan-governorate-yemen

http://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1750249

http://en.smanews.org/uae-red-crescent-visits-elderly-house-in-adan

(A P)

Yemeni minister lauds KSrelief in the field of health

http://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1748999

My comment: A main task oft he Hadi government: To praise the Saudis.

(A P)

The Houthi Militia Leader picture In The Yemeni Embassy In Damascus

https://www.qasioun-news.com/en/news/show/140089/The_Houthi_Militia_Leader_picure_In_The_Yemeni_Embassy_In_Damascus

My comment: Keep calm, he is president (at Sanaa)

cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids

(* A K pH)

Saudi coalition air raids day by day:

April 9: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1523356699./1008017116015320/?type=3

April 8: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1523296643./1007437062739992/?type=3

April 7: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1523245450./1006848469465518/?type=3

April 6: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1523245450./1006276136189418/?type=3

April 5: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1523245450./1006275776189454/?type=3

April 4: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/a.551858951631141.1073741828.551288185021551/1006275279522837/?type=3

(A K pH)

Film: Targeting the American - Saudi Aggression The Road between Maran and Haidan 10-04-2018

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

(* A K pH)

At least 4 Yemeni civilians killed in fresh Saudi airstrikes in Ta'izz, Sa'ada

At least four civilians, including women and children, have been killed and several others wounded when Saudi fighter jets conducted multiple airstrikes against residential areas in Yemen’s Ta’izz and Sa’ada provinces as Saudi Arabia continues with its atrocious bombardment campaign against its southern neighbor.

Yemen's Arabic-language al-Masirah satellite television network, citing its correspondence in the area, reported on Tuesday that the four lost their lives after Saudi warplanes hit a house in Dabwan area of Khadir city in the southwestern province of Ta’izz.

The airstrike also inflicted injuries on at least three other inhabitants of the residential building, the report further said, adding that at least 15 members of a family lost their lives after a Saudi airstrike hit their house in the same area a day earlier.

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/04/10/558052/Yemen-Saudi-Arabia-Taizz-Saada-airstrike

(* A K pH)

Several citizens killed, wounded by Saudi aggression in Saada

More than seven citizens killed and injured when the US-Saudi aggression coalition shelling attacked and waged raids on Razah directorate in Sadaa province, A secretary official told Saba on Tuesday.
The aggression launched a raid on Brkeen area in Razah directorate, killed and wounded three citizens, a child killed and the other a child injured.
Meanwhile, the Saudi warplanes launched a raid on Sadaa, two killed and seven injured between them girls students.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492809.htm and http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492796.htm

and

(A K pH)

Three civilians were killed and four others wounded when Saudi fighter jets pounded border areas in Razeh district of the Northern province of Sa’ada, according to Yemen's Arabic-language al-Masirah satellite television network.

The report, citing local sources, added that a separate airstrike in the same province killed at least four people, including a young girl and old woman, and injured a child.

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13970121000528

(* A K pH)

29 civilians killed, injured in Saudi airstrikes in Sadaa, Taiz, Hodeidah

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492811.htm

(A K pS)

Rebel commanders killed in airstrike on their military meeting

A number of Houthi rebel commanders were killed in an airstrike conducted by the Arab Coalition on their military meeting in Saadah, north of Yemen.

The sources said that an Arab Coalition jet struck a meeting of the rebel figures as they were convening in Bani Fadhel area of Haydan district

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17274

(A K pH)

Film: Targeting the Saudi - American aggression on the property of citizens in the Directorate of Baqam, Sa'ada Governorate

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6GKVhRfmaw

(A K pH)

Today there was an airstrike close to Tawhid school in midtown #Saada city.
Two killed were killed, schoolgirls are reported to have been injured along with 2 other citizens (photo)

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1705316789521344/?type=3&theater

and

(A K pH)

4 Yemeni girl students were injured today when US-Saudi war criminals dropped bombs to streets nearby their school in Saada city. The photo is for three of the victims, by the Reuters photographer based in Saada Naif Rahma.

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/983373204105367552

Yemen students screaming & yelling in panic After US-Saudi war criminals bombed nearby their school, Tawheed school in the middle of Saada city north Yemen earlier today. 2 civilians were killed, 7 injured including 4 girl students. (photos)

https://www.facebook.com/SaudiArabia.war.crimes.against.Yemen/posts/1799134397049213

https://www.facebook.com/SaudiArabia.war.crimes.against.Yemen/posts/1799119370384049

http://www.newnewss.net/nine-yemeni-civilians-killed-wounded-in-saudi-air-strikes/

films: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF7ak-H5KXg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AJu7s2rPjo

(A K pH)

Film: Targeting the Saudi - American aggression, the two directorates of al - Tahita and Zubaid in Hodeidah

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPYPfyS1MVk

(A K pH)

Film: A citizen injured in a raid on the Saudi-American aggression on the Directorate of Shada, Saada Governorate 06-04-2018

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7V7w1xU4Ys

(A K pH)

Film: Targeting the aggression of Saudi American citizen car in the Directorate of Baqam, Saada Governorate

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQUP6R-3lIk

(* A K pH)

Fresh Saudi airstrikes leave some 2 dozen civilians dead across Yemen

At least 22 civilians have lost their lives and several others sustained injures when Saudi warplanes carried out multiple airstrikes against residential areas across Yemen as the Riyadh regime continues with its atrocious bombardment campaign against its impoverished neighbor.

According to Yemen's Arabic-language al-Masirah satellite television network on Monday, three civilians were killed and four others wounded when Saudi fighter jets pounded border areas in Razeh district of the northern province of Sa’ada.

The report, citing local sources, added that a separate airstrike in the same province killed at least four people, including a young girl and old woman, and injured a child.

Earlier on Monday, Saudi warplanes also carried out a number of airstrikes on Mohoal area in Kodeer district in the southwestern province of Ta’izz, killing 15 members of a family. Moreover, one civilian was killed and five others were injured in a separate strike in the same area.

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/04/09/557938/Yemen-Saudi-Arabia-airsrike-Saada-Taizz

(* A K pH)

12 members of a family killed by raid in Taiz

The US-Saudi-led aggression warplane launched an airstrike to a citizen's house in the early morning on Monday on Domna Kodeer area in Taiz province, a military official told saba.
The strike hit a house causing twelve members from one family killed ,including them women and children.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492697.htm

and

(* A K pH)

Names,ages of 14 members of the Yemeni family of Sadek Hajj who were all killed by US-Saudi airstrike while sleeping last night in their house N Khadeer Taiz central Yemen The ages range from female baby of 7 days to 55 of the father Sadek ( this man with white head cover ) (photos)

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/983402470843002881

and

(* A K pH)

Names of children killed in Domnat Khadeer in #Taiz, yesterday (via @HussainBukhaiti, Yemeni journalist)

Sammar, 15

Yagoob, 14

Ahmad, 13

Safaa, 12

Iz Aldeen, 11

Abdullah, 10

A 7days old girl who had not yet been named

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1705585316161158/?type=3 and also https://twitter.com/HussainBukhaiti/status/983452615664074752 (photos)

https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/983359300176400386 (photos)

and films: https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/videos/1705486499504373/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKlqRSUL9bc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5kj-Y0KP0Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFMjW_3Y1F8

(* A K pH)

5 killed and injured by a raid on Taiz

Four citizens wounded and one killed when the US-backed Saudi aggression warplane waged a raid on a farm in Mohoal area in Kodeer district in Taiz province, a local source told Saba on Monday.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492702.htm

(B K pS)

Photo: Two Royal #Saudi Air Force Typhoon fighters receive fuel from a #UAE Air Force A330 MRTT. By: Rihan

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/982691964515692544

(* A K pH)

Four children, woman killed in 44 Saudi-led airstrikes on Yemen

Saudi-led coalition fighter jets waged 44 raids on four Yemeni provinces over the past 24 hours, a military official told Saba on Sunday.

In Hajjah province, four children and a woman were killed and another was injured in an airstrikes targeted a home in Ram area of Mostaba district. Meanwhile, 23 raids targeted Haradh and Medi districts.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492674.htm

(* A K pH)

More Saudi coalition air raids recorded on:

April 10:

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492793.htm Hodeidah p.

April 9:

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492787.htm Saada p.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492688.htm Taiz p.

April 7:

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492575.htm Hajjah p.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492570.htm Saada p.

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1704343712951985/?type=3 Hodeidah p.

April 6:

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492531.htm Amran p.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492478.htm Amran p.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492495.htm Hodeidah p.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492477.htm Saada p.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492463.htm Hodeidah p., farm

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492452.htm Hajjah p.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492451.htm Hodeida p.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492443.htm Saada p.

cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War

(A K pS)

Five civilians injured in Houthi shelling on Taiz

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17310

(A K pS)

For the 3rd day in a raw, the Army forces continue to comb the southern & western areas of Midi district in the province of #Hajjah, northwest of #Yemen. It comes as special teams march on clearing the mines from liberated areas in the district (photos)

https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/983718260259672064

(A K)

Army claims to capture Houthi positions in NW Yemen

Yemeni army backed by Saudi-led coalition continues push to ‘liberate’ Houthi-held Hajjah province

Dozens of Houthi fighters have been killed in clashes with Yemeni army forces backed by a Saudi-led Arab coalition in Yemen’s northwestern Hajjah province, according to a Tuesday army statement.

For the third consecutive day, the statement read, coalition-backed army forces had continued operations aimed at “liberating” Houthi-held parts of Hajjah’s Midi district.

Within the past two days, the statement added, the army had penetrated Hajjah’s Houthi-held southwestern regions amid frequent clashes with Houthi militants.

https://aa.com.tr/en/middle-east/army-claims-to-capture-houthi-positions-in-nw-yemen/1113944

Remark: Saudi-backed “president” Hadi army / militia.

(A K pH)

The Saudi aggression shelling artillery to citizens, causing an old woman and child killed. A woman injured in Razeh district, Saada province.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492809.htm

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492796.htm

(A K pS)

Houthis killed one man and injured three children in heavy shelling on Salah district in the eastern part of the central Yemen city of Taiz on Saturday.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17242

(A K pS)

An unidentified number of Houthis were killed as a cache of landmines that belongs to the rebel group exploded in al-Barakat camp in the central Yemen province of al-Beidha.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17242

(A K pS)

Houthi invasion of new Yemeni county threatens eruption of fighting

Houthis have for the first time invaded Sharaab Arrownah, a rural county, in Yemen's central Taiz province, creating high tensions that may soon trigger a new war zone.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-17164

(A K pH)

Saudi artillery and missile shelling targeted Razeh district in Saada province

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492787.htm

(A K pS)

Houthis kill a child, wound 3 others by shelling eastern Taiz

the Houthis had shelled residential neighborhood, killing the 16 years old, Ahed Saeed Ahmed, , and wounding three other children, Gamal Jamil Ali, 14, Jane Amer Ali, 6, Hanan Anwar Ali, 2 years old.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/98126

and

At least one person was killed and three other children wounded due to #Houthi artillery shelling against al-Humaira area of Salat Sharq district in the city of Taiz. (photos)

https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/983058706307960833

(A K pS)

#civilian causalities due to #Houthi shelling on houses of citizens in the district of Hais in southern #Hodeidah (photo)

https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/982780574040391682

(A K pS)

VIDEO: Early morning today, #Yemeni forces back by the #Saudi Armed Forces stormed the #Houthi positions in Midi district.

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/983051869923827713

and

VIDEO: More than 20 #Houthi militants killed during the operation and 4 captured, one of which was injured and he's now receiving medical treatment in #SaudiArabia

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/983054419355951105

(A K)

Troops carrying the #SouthYemen flag (from the Counterterrorism and Special Forces Brigade) are participating in a new operation against the al #Houthi movement in western Sa'ada governorate, northern #Yemen. (photos)

https://twitter.com/MaherFarrukh/status/983492412994662400

(A K pH)

Badr-1 missile hit Saudi Radar brigade in Asir

The missile force of the army and popular forces launched on Sunday a ballistic missile of Badr-1 type on Radars Brigade of Saudi enemy in Khamis Mushait area of Asir region, a military official told Saba.
The missile hit its target directly

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492607.htm

and

(A K pH)

Yemeni forces, allies target Saudi radar station in Asir with ballistic missile

A military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Yemen’s Arabic-language al-Masirah television network that the Badr-1 missile struck the designated target just outside Khamis Mushait city, located 884 kilometers southwest of the capital Riyadh, with great precision on Sunday.

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/04/08/557838/Yemeni-forces-allies-target-Saudi-radar-station-in-Asir-with-ballistic-missile

Remark: Absolutely nothing from the Saudi side.

(* A K)

Rebels kill dozens of Sudanese troops in Yemen: military sources

A rebel ambush in Yemen killed dozens of Sudanese soldiers belonging to a Saudi-led coalition fighting on the side of the government, military sources and the insurgents said Saturday.

The Iran-backed Huthi rebels hit the Sudanese military convoy in the northern province of Hajjah before dawn on Friday, according to military sources.

The losses were reported to be the heaviest suffered by Sudanese troops in Yemen since they were deployed in the war-torn country in 2015.

"The Sudanese soldiers were lured into a trap by the rebels" who allowed them to advance into areas where they were waiting to attack them, a Yemeni military officer told AFP on condition of anonymity.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-5589885/Rebels-kill-dozens-Sudanese-troops-Yemen-military-sources.html = http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/houthi-rebels-kill-dozens-sudanese-troops-yemen-ambush-1768796048

and photos https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/982848467608461312 and https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/982847675044425728

and

(A K pH)

Yemeni troops ambush Sudanese mercenary convoy in desert

Yemen’s Ansarullah fighters have killed dozens of Sudanese mercenaries hired by Saudi-the led coalition which is waging war against its war-torn neighbor.

According to Yemen's Arabic-language al-Masirah satellite television network on Saturday, the Sudanese forces were killed as Yemeni forces ambushed their convoy in the northwestern province of Hajjah.

During the attack, large amounts of Saudi weaponry, including several tanks, was also destroyed.

Earlier in the day, Yemeni army troops, backed by Popular Committees’ fighters, killed an unspecified number of Saudi troopers after their vehicle came under a volley of Yemeni Katyusha rockets in the Arab kingdom’s southwestern region of Jizan.

http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/04/07/557762/yemen-saudi-sudanese-ansarullah and https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2018/04/08/1695021/dozens-of-sudanese-troops-killed-in-yemeni-forces-ambush-video (with video)

(A K pS)

Yemeni Army Destroys Several Sites of Houthi Militia Groups in Marib

http://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1749237

Remark: As claimed by the Saudi side.

(A K H)

Saada province:a number of livestock were killed by Saudi artillery and rocket shelling on separate areas of Manbah district and Razeh district, caused damages to the property of citizens and farms.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492443.htm

(A K pH)

Badr-1 Ballistic missile hit Qwat al- Wageb camp in Najran

The missile force of the army and popular committees fired a ballistic missile of the type Bader-1 on Qwat al- Wageb camp in Najran

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news492453.htm

(A K pH)

Yemen targets SW Saudi Arabia with ballistic missile

Yemeni missile unit has fired a ballistic missile at Najran military base in southwestern Saudi Arabia on Friday.

http://www.irna.ir/en/News/82879090

and

(A K pS)

Saudi air defense forces shoot down Houthi ballistic missile over Najran

Saudi air defense forces have intercepted and destroyed a Houthi militia-launched ballistic missile heading toward Najran

Col. Turki Al-Malki, a spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition, said in a statement that at 09:32 on Friday evening, Coalition air defense forces have monitored that a ballistic missile was launched from Saada, inside Yemen, toward the southern city of Najran
It was subsequently shot down by the Kingdom's Patriot missile defense system before it could hit land.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1280206/saudi-arabia

cp18 Sonstiges / Other

(* B)

Behind the lens as a woman: Yemen's female photographers strive to overcome barriers

Feature: Several Yemeni women photographers have been sticking to their passion despite the formidable challenges in a male-dominated society and a war-ravaged country.

Fatima Al-Aghbari, a Yemeni journalist and activist, agrees with Amal, explaining that a photographer could be targeted in any place given the sensitive status quo the country is undergoing.

"As a journalist, I suffer a lot when I take photos because the photographer or the photojournalist is being dealt with as an agent who seeks to provide information for a political or military authority. It is a dangerous task since photography uncovers facts which the warring sides do not want to disclose."

Fatima has first-hand experience on how photography could risk one's personal safety.

Despite this ongoing war, these female photographers believe that perseverance is their sole principle, and one thing is very clear – their enthusiasm is powerful and unbreakable.

https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/indepth/2018/4/9/yemeni-women-photographers-strive-to-overcome-barriers

(* B K)

Film: Ahmed Jahaf, an artist and graphic designer in Sanaa, Yemen, explains how he uses art to raise awareness about the crushing US-Saudi war and blockade on his country. You can see more of Ahmed's art at his website, http://ajahaf.com.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZnzskKGwbw&t=1s

(* A H)

Film: A team from Manchester University have invented a graphene sieve that turns salt water into drinking water. This could revolutionise water filtration and provide safe drinking water for millions of people.

https://twitter.com/PrecisionHomes_/status/982236211338072068

(-)

The Yemeni teacher who’s setting up a national orchestra, despite war

http://observers.france24.com/en/20180406-teacher-yemen-orchestra-music-sanaa

(-)

Photo: Socotra Island, off the southeast coast Yemen

https://twitter.com/UniqBeauties/status/981909508397174785

Vorige / Previous:

https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-401-yemen-war-mosaic-401

Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-401 / Yemen War Mosaic 1-401:

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

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