Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 437 - Yemen War Mosaic 437

Yemen Press Reader 437: 25. Juli 2018: Hodeidah: Verhandlungen des UN-Gesandten, Forderungen und Drohungen der Koalition, Drohender Angriff auf Zabid; Lobbyarbeit der Emirate in den USA ...

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Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

... MSNBC, westliche Medien und Jemenkrieg – Helen Lackners Buch: „Yemen in crisis“ – Farea al-Muslimi über Jemen – und mehr

July 25, 2018: Hodeidah: Negotiations of UN envoy, Claims and threats by the Saudi coalition, Looming assault on Zabeed, Emirates lobbying in the US – MSNBC, western media and the Yemen war – Helen Lackner’s book „Yemen in Crisis“ – Farea al-Muslimi on Yemen – and more

Schwerpunkte / Key aspects

Klassifizierung / Classification

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

cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important

cp1a Am wichtigsten: Seuchen / Most important: Epidemics

cp1b1 Am wichtigsten: Kampf um Hodeidah: Deutsch/ Most important: Hodeidah battle: German

cp1b2 Am wichtigsten: Kampf um Hodeidah: Englisch / Most important: Hodeidah battle: English

cp2 Allgemein / General

cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation

cp4 Flüchtlinge / Refugees

cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis

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

cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks

cp7a Saudi-Arabien und Iran / Saudi Arabia and Iran

cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia

cp9 USA

cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain

cp11 Deutschland / Germany

cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries

cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis

cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms Trade

cp13b Mercenaries / Söldner

cp13c Kultur- und Naturerbe / Cultural and natural 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

***

**

*

(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

(* B H K P)

We've Seen This Before, and It Doesn't End Well for Anyone

The war in Yemen is a humanitarian crisis with long-term consequences for the U.S.

Now, with all of our attention focused on how the country is being sold off for parts by a half-daffy, half-criminal president* and an entire capital city full of enablers, there are things happening elsewhere in the world that, one day, may well occasion an event that has all of us wondering how it happened and why They hate us.

One of those places is Yemen, where a brutal war has been waged by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates against Houthi rebels for going on four years now. It is often described as a civil war, which is how it began, but now it’s gone beyond that. It’s a complex tangle of national agendas, ancient feuds, and proxy bloodletting.

But we have cast our lot, again, with the torturers and murderers of whom we approve. Do we honestly believe we don’t own what they do, too? All of the sick children have families. All of the tortured prisoners have children to whom they can one day tell their stories, if they so choose. Can we do this again and then be surprised one day when an uncle, or a nephew, dresses himself in an explosive waistcoat and comes knock-knock-knocking at our door? Is that now an inevitable consequence of being a superpower? I wouldn’t mind having a vote on that.

https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a22513903/war-in-yemen-explained/

Remark: Overview with many quotations.

cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(** B P)

ACTION ALERT: It’s Been Over a Year Since MSNBC Has Mentioned US War in Yemen

Why is the No. 1 outlet of alleged anti-Trump #resistance completely ignoring his most devastating war?

As FAIR has noted before (1/8/18, 3/20/18), to MSNBC, the carnage and destruction the US and its Gulf Monarchy allies are leveling against the poorest country in the Arab world is simply a non-issue.

On July 2, a year had passed since the cable network’s last segment mentioning US participation in the war on Yemen, which has killed in excess of 15,000 people and resulted in over a million cases of cholera. The US is backing a Saudi-led bombing campaign with intelligence, refueling, political cover, military hardware and, as of March, ground troops. None of this matters at all to what Adweek (4/3/18) calls “the network of the Resistance,” which has since its last mention of the US’s role in the destruction of Yemen found time to run over a dozen segments highlighting war crimes committed by the Syrian and Russian governments in Syria.

MSNBC chat show/Starbucks commercial Morning Joe did run one segment (4/25/18) that vaguely mentioned the war on Yemen, but failed to note the US’s role in it at all, much less that Washington is arming and backing the conflict’s primary aggressor. Instead, they did the perverse inversion––previously mastered by Washington Post’s Jackson Diehl (FAIR.org, 6/27/17)—of not only ignoring the US’s major role in killing thousands, but painting the US as a noble haven for refugees. The schlocky segment, an interview with writer Mohammed Al Samawi, was a shallow mixture of “interfaith” pablum, poverty porn and self-congratulations to the US for taking in refugees (without, of course, acknowledging that they’re seeking refuge from a crisis the US has created).

For a bit more context, in the time period of July 3, 2017, to July 3, 2018, MSNBC dedicated zero segments to the US’s war in Yemen, but 455 segments to Stormy Daniels. This isn’t to suggest the Stormy Daniels matter isn’t newsworthy—presidential corruption is per se important. But one has to wonder if this particular thread of venality is 455 stories more important than Trump aggressively supporting a war that’s killing hundreds of people a month, injuring thousands, and subjecting millions to famine and cholera.

Did MSNBC editors, poring over the latest academic foreign policy literature, really come to the conclusion Trump’s war in Yemen isn’t important? Or is MSNBC simply fueled by partisan Russia dot-connecting and stories that allow them to say “porn star” as much as possible?

What seems most likely is MSNBC has found that attacking Russia form the right on matters of foreign policy is the most elegant way to preserve its “progressive” image while still serving traditional centers of power—namely, the Democratic Party establishment, corporate sponsors, and their own revolving door of ex-spook and military contractor-funded talking heads (3/26/18). After all, Obama backed the war on Yemen—though not nearly as aggressively as Trump has—and it’s difficult to make a coherent left-wing, anti-war criticism when the current Republican in office is simply carrying out your guy’s policy, but on steroids.

In any event, it’s not like any Yemenis are going to pull ads, turn down appearances, or phone Comcast higher-ups complaining. So, who cares? To be poor and brown—to say nothing of not serving the immediate partisan interests of the Democratic party—is evidently to not matter much in the eyes of MSNBC producers and on-air talent – by Adam Johnson

https://fair.org/home/action-alert-its-been-over-a-year-since-msnbc-has-mentioned-us-war-in-yemen/

My comment: In the case of Yemen, MSNBC is just one (might-be a very extreme one) example of Western media (not just in the US)

(** B P)

YEMEN’S TURN

Washington has relentlessly targeted national sovereignty in those parts of the Middle East where it still exists. Countries that have resisted total submission to American hegemony, imposed directly or via local relays, are being dismantled. Regime change is accompanied by massive destruction and loss of life, followed by de facto partition along ethno-religious lines and the entry of giant corporations—some entrusted with rebuilding cities bombed by the US and its Euro-allies, others going for the oil—and all this in the midst of a generalized political chaos under the watch of the US and Israeli military.

The Arab Spring, numerically strong but politically weak, failed to break this destructive dynamic. With the corpse of Arab nationalism in a state of advanced decay and the principal opposition, the Muslim Brotherhood, desperate for a deal with Washington, the 2011 uprisings were easily confiscated by the US to further its own aims in the region. Despite its many national peculiarities, the ruinous war in Yemen has to be viewed in this context. For the past three years, a military coalition spearheaded by Saudi Arabia and the UAE, but with critical diplomatic, logistical and intelligence support from Obama and Trump, has wracked the poorest country in the Middle East

Helen Lackner’s Yemen in Crisis opens with a horrific description of the havoc they have wrought. ‘By mid-2017 Yemen faced total humanitarian disaster, its first famine since the 1940s and the world’s worst cholera epidemic.’ The situation was unprecedented and avoidable: both famine and cholera were ‘the result of a civil war dramatically worsened by foreign intervention’.

It’s been a long journey for Lackner from the hopes and struggles of the People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen in the seventies to the neoliberal wreckage that is today’s Republic of Yemen. A research associate at SOAS’s Middle East Institute and an independent consultant on rural development, Lackner has lived and studied in Yemen for long periods beginning with her arrival in Aden, capital of the PDRY, as a young SOAS-trained anthropologist and linguist, to practise her Arabic and conduct fieldwork in the only socialist state in the Arab world. Her supportive but not uncritical assessment, PDR Yemen: Outpost of Socialist Development in Arabia, appeared in 1985.

She also produced a careful study of Yemen’s powerful neighbour, A House Built on Sand: A Political Economy of Saudi Arabia (1978)—written, as she puts it, ‘from the point of view of the welfare of the Saudi Arabian population, not that of Western capitalism’. All of this accumulated experience lies behind the matchless geopolitical profile of contemporary Yemen—its political conflicts, its economic structures, and, above all, its people—that she has now provided. She knows the country at least as well, and in some respects better than the gangs in Foggy Bottom and Whitehall, not to mention Mossad operatives or the other spooks of the ‘international community’ based in Riyadh. Yemen in Crisis patiently traces the complex network of influences and rivalries which intertwine on the branching rope that constitutes Yemeni national consciousness—a rope that outside military intervention has now severed.

Many people whom I spoke with during a trip to the country in 2010, both within officialdom and outside its ranks, insisted that the presence of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula was very limited. Abdul Karim al-Iryani, a former prime minister and still an adviser to Saleh, smiled mischievously when I asked for a rough estimate of AQAP’s strength. I suggested a figure of three or four hundred fighters. ‘At the maximum’, he replied, ‘the very maximum. The Americans exaggerate greatly. We have other problems, real and more important.’ When I visited Shibam in east-central Yemen and asked the mayor if there was an AQAP base in the town, he whispered in my ear: ‘The AQAP base is in Saleh’s palace, just next to his office.’

Certainly the ‘war on terror’ proved most useful to Saleh, providing him with American weaponry and elite US-trained army units for deployment against the far more pressing Huthi insurgency in the far North, which had flickered on and off since 2004.

It was the local version of the Arab Spring, and the West’s panicked response to the unrest, that finally unseated Saleh.

The sight of such multitudes demanding jobs, incomes, dignity and free and fair elections alarmed the Western powers. Fearful that Yemen might deviate from the ‘correct path’, i.e. the agenda of the IMF and World Bank, they swung behind a Gulf Cooperation Council initiative which offered Saleh immunity from prosecution if he agreed to stand down. Saleh initially refused to sign. On 3 June, while praying in his palace mosque, he was seriously hurt by a bomb blast. Many expected him to die. He was airlifted to Saudi Arabia for emergency treatment, where the doctors saved his life—ironic, given that he would shortly become a sworn enemy of the regime. Before that, on 23 November, still in very poor health, he capitulated and agreed to hand power to a transitional government headed by long-serving vice-president Abdu Rabbu Mansur Hadi, a Saleh makeweight from the southern governate of Abyan.

The elite factions which dominated the transitional administration, Saleh’s republican General People’s Congress and the Islamist Islah party, proved supremely corrupt and incompetent. One of their last acts in power was to raise diesel prices at the IMF’s behest, thereby further antagonizing the mass of the population. Meanwhile, abandoned by the West, Saleh ganged up with the Huthi rebels against whom he had fought a number of inconclusive wars, and together they made a semi-successful bid for power. Yemen in Crisis contains an illuminating chapter on the Huthis, a religious revivalist movement within the Zaydi branch of Shi‘i Islam led by the sons of Badr al-Din al-Huthi, a notable Zaydi scholar, in the Sa‘ada province on the Saudi border, where nationalist and leftist political cultures are virtually non-existent. Zaydis account for a third of the population, but religious sectarianism doesn’t fit easily into the Yemeni mould. Closer in some ways to Yemen’s Sunni majority than to the clerical orthodoxy in Qom, the Zaydi share mosques with the Sunni and accept some of their rituals and the teachings of their legal schools. The distinguishing ideological feature of Huthism is that sada—descendants of the Prophet—have an innate right to rule: a view, it should be pointed out, that was not espoused by the Prophet, who was in favour of caliphs being elected by the ummah. However, Huthi leaders insist that they do not favour bringing back an imam from the old family

The present conflict in Yemen, therefore, is less a civil war than a proxy one. The Huthis receive a modest degree of external support from Tehran in the form of money and training. Saudi military interventionism on this scale is relatively new and linked to the palace coup which has seen Mohammed bin Salman, favourite son of the new king, make a bid for personal power with Washington’s strong backing. He has found a willing collaborator in Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Sandhurst-trained crown prince of Abu Dhabi. Obama gave bin Salman the green light to do as he pleased in Yemen in order to salve Saudi grievances over the US nuclear deal with Iran. The Yemeni debacle may well become the first nail in the crown prince’s political coffin.

For what ensued was not a Saudi blitzkrieg but a bloody stalemate. ‘The military intervention of the Saudi-led coalition failed to restore to power the transitional government, and turned a political and humanitarian crisis into a catastrophe’, Lackner argues. ‘Liberated’ from Saleh–Huthi control, southern Yemen is a morass of competing militias under loose Emirati supervision. There are almost daily protests in Aden at the lack of basic services and the non-payment of salaries and pensions.

The brave Spartans [The UAE] have increasingly preferred to let local paramilitaries and foreign mercenaries, including ex-Colombian military, do their fighting for them. They have built up extremely abusive ‘Security Belt’ Salafi militias, along with secessionist forces, prompting an impotent Hadi—kept under virtual house arrest in Riyadh—to accuse them of mounting a coup against his authority. AQAP has swelled to a force of several thousand amid the chaos, the Saudi Royal Air Force turning a blind eye to the group’s stunning capture of the eastern coastal city of Mukalla in the opening stages of the war. Meanwhile most of the more populous north of the country—including the capital, Sana‘a—remains under Huthi control, despite the pulverizing of civilian areas by Saudi bombers. The Saudis are also supporting Islah militias, including Ali Mohsen and the remnants of his First Armoured Brigade, in the northern governates of Mareb and Al Jawf on the eastern flank of Huthi-controlled territory.

Though the Saudis cry foul about alleged Iranian missile shipments to the Huthis, their own far more formidable military arsenal depends almost entirely on gunrunning from North America and Europe.

As Lackner points out, both administrations have also provided essential targeting information and in-air refuelling for Saudi-coalition aircraft. By February 2017 the Pentagon had logged 1,800 tanker sorties transferring 54 million pounds of fuel. ‘Given that many of the bombing sorties could not happen without this action, the US Air Force must be considered an active participant in the air strikes, most likely including strikes which have killed civilians and destroyed civilian facilities’, she comments.

The continuing machinations of the Western and Gulf powers play into a cut-throat competition for cash and other resources on the ground which has fractured the political forces on both sides of the conflict.

The clamour of mass protests these days is often drowned out by aerial bombing and constant drone attacks. Despite all this, a famished and tormented people still mobilize in large numbers to protest against the Saudi onslaught and against those who supply the coalition with the latest in military hardware: the giant monopolies of the global arms trade in Europe and America; the politicians who lobby for them—including the hundred or so Labour MPs who recently refused to support their own frontbench’s resolution demanding an end to this bloody trade; and the English judiciary which stamps its imprimatur on the weaponry.

The closing chapters of Yemen in Crisis zoom out from the present destruction to analyse longer-term trends in the country’s social evolution.

Across the Middle East, the imperial powers have seen to it that the democratic gains of the Arab Spring—what a misnomer that seems now—proved short-lived. The principal demand of the mass movements was for an end to autocracy. Anti-capitalism, anti-imperialism, cross-border Arab solidarity and freedom for Palestine were scarcely on the agenda, and even this minimal programme has been quashed—except in Tunisia – by Tariq Ali

https://newleftreview.org/II/111/tariq-ali-yemen-s-turn

(** B K P)

On the Ground in Yemen: Q&A with Farea al-Muslimi

Politically there is an absolute deadlock. Diplomacy has basically stopped and nothing has been done to relaunch negotiations, whether through the UN or through other routes.

Obviously, in terms of healthcare provision and the humanitarian situation there has been an extreme escalation. There is the pushover battle at Hodeidah port, the last main port of food, aid, and trade getting into Yemen. Of course, pushing the battle towards Hodeidah will be an extreme nightmare for humanitarians, businessmen, and for life in general, especially in the north under the Houthis. Unfortunately, there is less pushback now from NGOs, human rights groups, aid organizations, and some Western countries.

In terms of the consequences of this lack of pushback? Yemen is becoming increasingly cut off, and the port of Hodeidah is not the only problem.

The impact of these obstacles—the lack of movement within the country, aid being cut off, fighting between groups—is far-reaching, even in previously “good” areas. In Sanaa, for example, you now have much more hunger.

At this point, it has been 19 months since salaries were paid to 1.2 million public sector workers. By our calculations these 1.2 million supported a further six million Yemenis. Basically, the last group of Yemenis who were not hungry or in a humanitarian crisis have reached that in the last year.

Basically, a decision was made to halt salary payments for government workers and then to blame the Houthis for it, to push the people against them. This has not worked. If there is one group that is actually getting richer in Sanaa it is the Houthis.

The salary decision was the best thing that could happen for the Houthis in terms of recruitment since the main motive for people to fight is economic. The Houthis have used the trick where they pay people in the front lines. They don’t pay you your salary at home, they pay you at the front line. So, since people need money, they turn to the Houthis and fight for them.

Another major issue is the black market. If you look at the war economy, which is something we have studied closely at the Sanaa Center, there is trafficking in fuel, weapons, and goods that everyone has a share in, from [President Abdrabbuh Mansur] Hadi’s sons to the brothers of Abdel-Malek al-Houthi. Looking at this black market is important because it is rare point where all the warring sides meet, which can be an opportunity to make peace more feasible.

In 2014, the idea of having sanctions made some sense. You want to hold those responsible for what was happening in Yemen accountable. Sanctions work well for someone like [Ali Abdullah] Saleh who had money outside Yemen, but not so much for the Houthis since they still work in cash. How do you sanction someone, who never leaves Yemen, with a travel ban? From this perspective the sanctions were a bit naïve.

What was ultimately missing from the whole sanctions process was an understanding of the context.

Right now, sanctions don’t fulfill peace purposes. The sanctions were made for the idea of sanctions, not for the idea of peace. Things have changed since Saleh was killed, and again we need regional buy-in. If we have the regional buy-in, we are fine with sanctions or without sanctions. So that will be something we have to rethink as we move ahead in any new peace process or thought process

Iran is not pushing for a ceasefire and is not going to push for one. They are very happy with how things are in Yemen. From Iran’s perspective they are actually “winning”—they throw one dollar, the Saudis throw one million dollars. In fact, Iran has nothing to lose in Yemen compared to in Iraq, Lebanon, or Syria, which is contrast to the Saudis. So for now it is not in their interest to pursue peace, except in relation to the Iran deal with the US. I think their behavior in Yemen is more likely to change than in other places if keeping the deal or negotiating a different deal were offered in exchange.

I think three things need to happen for peace in Yemen. One, we will need understanding between the Saudis and Iran specifically on Yemen. Start with that, because both have an interest there and both can be convinced on the issue.

The second is about the UN process, which as faulty and as problematic as it is, and as misguided as it has been, is the only framework for peace between Yemenis themselves. The UN will need to pass a new resolution, in my opinion, that commits to peace. [Security Council] Resolution 2216 is, fundamentally, a war resolution. It has the provision that power cannot be taken by force—which is important and should be kept in another resolution—but ultimately it justifies the war, it does not push for peace.

The third is about the problems that started this war, which we keep forgetting about because of where we are now. This means examining the regional divisions that have impacted the economic development and investment in peace in Yemen, as opposed to war, on the part of other Gulf countries. Also, issues and discontent in Yemen were largely ignored by international actors and the UN in favor of Syria and Libya. Now, at least, we have a UN envoy who is more credible in the eyes of the Houthis, with more access. We should build on this.

I think if there is one overall lesson it is in relation to a question I usually get from diplomats. They ask, “What is one thing we should do to solve the war Yemen?” I say, “Don’t try to ‘solve it’ because that is based on a very short-sighted timeframe.” Peace takes time. It takes longer than a war and we need to it a shot. If we avoid short-sightedness then we avoid raising expectations and falling flat, which drains hope and backfires.

The bad news is that we have never seen anything like this war before. Eighteen countries, even more, are involved in it. The good news is—if it is even good news—that from a conflict resolution point of view, Yemenis are not new to wars. We are not new like people in Syria or other countries. Yemenis know how to manage conflicts and violence. Thus, in my opinion, whenever other countries—a coalition, the Iranians, or whoever—are ready for peace, it is possible and can happen quickly.

https://theglobalobservatory.org/2018/07/on-the-ground-in-yemen-qa-with-farea-al-muslimi/ = https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/ground-yemen-qa-farea-al-muslimi

Remark: Farea al-Muslimi, Sanaa Center: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farea_Al-Muslimi

(** A B P)

UAE talks up diplomacy as Congress curtails US involvement in Yemen war

Top Emirati officials are talking up their diplomatic efforts in Yemen as the United Nations looks to cut a peace deal and Congress adds new restrictions on US support for the Gulf-led war.

In a letter sent to congressional leaders in June and reviewed by Al-Monitor, UAE Ambassador to the United States Yousef al-Otaiba wrote that the Saudi-led Arab force fighting in Yemen is giving the Iran-backed Houthi rebels “the greatest possible opportunity” for a peaceful withdrawal from the strategic port of Hodeidah.

Otaiba also emphasized that the Saudi-led coalition had stockpiled enough food to feed 6 million Yemenis for a month if the port, which is the thoroughfare for three-quarters of humanitarian aid entering the country, is disabled. The letter was sent to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., and 15 other offices, including a handful of House Democrats who have criticized US refueling of Saudi and Emirati jets in the air war against the Houthis.

US lawmakers remain skeptical.

Publicly, Otaiba and Reem al-Hashimy, the UAE’s minister for international cooperation, are getting behind UN Yemen envoy Martin Griffiths as he tries to get Saudi, Emirati and Houthi signatures on a 17-point plan to bring peace to the war-torn country.

“They have wanted for two years to see a political process restarted,” Barbara Leaf, a former US ambassador to the UAE, told Al-Monitor. “That’s the way they’d see their goals truly achieved, not on the battlefield.”

That process appeared to move forward July 23, when the Yemeni Embassy in Washington tweeted that exiled President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi had accepted Griffiths' deal in principle. But despite giving the peace process a public boost, sources familiar with Otaiba’s talks with House and Senate leaders over the past week say the Emirati powerbroker is concealing an iron fist within his velvet glove.

After the Donald Trump administration gave the Emiratis a “yellow light” to proceed with the Hodeidah operation without US help last month, two sources told Al-Monitor that Otaiba voiced an expectation that the Pentagon would provide support if military operations resume.

The June letter to lawmakers reiterates the UAE’s spurned request for minesweepers that would be needed to resume normal flows of goods to Hodeidah, or to launch an amphibious assault into the city. Otaiba also asked the United States to condemn Houthi use of improvised explosive devices, land and sea mines, and sniper nests in crowded civilian areas. Otaiba and Hashimy also met with Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Tim Lenderking, a top US policymaker on Gulf affairs, a State Department official told Al-Monitor.

One former US official with knowledge of Emirati lobbying on Capitol Hill described a PowerPoint presentation highlighting humanitarian efforts as a “bumper crop of generic answers.” UAE lobbying shop Hagir Elawad & Associates circulated an information pamphlet to Congress in June that breaks down a five-point Emirati plan to provide aid to Hodeidah, according to Justice Department records reviewed by Al-Monitor, including a strategy to strengthen three hospitals, provide shelter to endangered families and supply two mobile desalination units to provide clean water to the beleaguered port – by Jack Detsch

https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2018/07/uae-diplomacy-congress-curtail-involvement-yemen-war.html

cp1a Am wichtigsten: Seuchen / Most important: Epidemics

(* B H)

Film: M edical System Struggles to Treat Cholera Cases in Sanaaical System Struggles to The medical system in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, continues to struggle to treat cholera cases, despite a decrease in cases in most other parts of the country, the World Heath Organization said. In this footage from Kareem Alzerii, a Yemeni journalist, a person at the 22 of May hospital says 150 cases of cholera are being treated there. He adds that the hospital’s resources are very basic, and that without interest or aid from international organizations, the situation will deteriorate.

https://www.news.com.au/video/id-5348771529001-5813731218001/medical-system-struggles-to-treat-cholera-cases-in-sanaa

(* A H)

Polio: National Campaign for Immunization against Polio from 6 to 8 August 2018 (image)

https://twitter.com/heip_yemen/status/1021450721559040000

(* A H)

Health ministry to kick off polio immunization campaign in August

Ministry of Public Health and Population on Wednesday said it is arranging a national polio immunization campaign across the country to be launched in August, the ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news503004.htm

Remark: This is by the Sanaa government.

cp1b1 Am wichtigsten: Kampf um Hodeidah: Deutsch/ Most important: Hodeidah battle: German

(A K)

Jemen: Angriff auf Hafen von Al-Muha

Die Huthis haben den Hafen von Al-Muha im Westen Jemens angegriffen.

Die Huthi-Rebellen haben einen Angriff auf den Al-Muha Hafen, der von den Vereinigten Arabischen Emiraten (VAE) als Militärstützpunkt genutzt wird, verübt.

Nach dem Angriff sei es zwischen Regierungstruppen und den Huthis zu einem Gefecht gekommen.

Auf der anderen Seite teilten die Huthis über den Kanal “Al-Mesire” mit, dass der Angriff auf die im Hafen von Muha stationierten Streitkräfte sein Ziel erreicht und man “den “Besatzungstruppen” (Koalitionsstreitkräfte) Verluste zugefügt habe.

http://www.trt.net.tr/deutsch/welt/2018/07/24/jemen-angriff-auf-hafen-von-al-muha-1018092

cp1b2 Am wichtigsten: Kampf um Hodeidah: Englisch / Most important: Hodeidah battle: English

Siehe / Look at cp4, cp7, cp13b

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(** A K pS)

The Giants and the Coalition are preparing to invade the historic city of Zabeed in Hodeidah

The joint forces and the Arab alliance are preparing to break into the historic city of Zabeed, in the Governorate of Hodeidah, western Yemen, and recover it from the al-Houthi coup d'état militia.

"The Joint forces have been able to control in the past hours a number of villages and farms on the outskirts of Zabeed city," a source on the ground said to Almasdar online.

These field movements and the removal of mines from farms and roads are leading to the invasion of the city of Zabeed, according to sources.

Large reinforcements of giants and artillery battalions of the Arab Coalition forces have reached the outposts in the past days to the east of al-Tahita on the outskirts of Zabeed.

Field commanders affirm their military and moral readiness to invade Zabeed and await the directives of the Arab Coalition leadership and the Giants ' forces to begin the battle.

In return, the al-Houthi militia reinforced their positions and planted mines in the vicinity of Zabeed City, in addition to resorting to hysterics bombarding on the al-Tahita district.

Local sources predict a humanitarian catastrophe and the death and injury of hundreds of civilians during the battle to liberate the city of Zabeed, as the al-Houthi militias are in the midst of residential neighborhoods, and dozens of families have begun to flee.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100482

My comment: This will cause another humanitarian catastrophe and the desctruction or at least damage of an UNESCO cultural heritage site. – The blame is with the assaulters, not with the defenders, as the propaganda bias of this article tries to put it.

(* B H)

International migration: 280 thousand civilians displaced from Hodeidah city

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Monday that the war in the Yemeni province of Hodeidah has led to the exodus of more than 280,000 civilians.

The United Nations Migration Organization (IOM) said the armed clashes in Hodeidah escalated in its sixth week, after a period of relative calm.

It added that the exodus to neighboring governorates continued as humanitarian activities continued to provide assistance to the displaced.

As of 18 July, 47380 families, numbering 284.280, had been abandoned and their displacement sites had not been identified.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100475

My comment: The humanitarian impact of the UAE assault on Hodeidah already is horrific – even before the assault on the city really has started.

(A H K)

Office of West Coast Front Evacuates 36 Injured to Egyptian and Indian Hospitals for Treatment

Office of West Coast Front for Injured, Martyrs and captives’ affairs transferred 36 injured through Aden International Airport for treatment in Egypt and India on Monday July 23rd, 2018 as part of regular efforts of the office. These efforts are under direct supervision of Dr. Abd Al-Rahman Al-Rukimi, chairman of the office, and Abu Zaraa Al-Mahramy, commander general of the west coast front, at the expense of UAE.
Hussain Al-Saadi, head of transfer and evacuation department in the office indicated that 12 injured were sent to Egypt and 24 were sent to India, adding that the office is working day and night to fulfill its responsibilities towards injured care as those heroes sacrificed their live to defeat coup militias.

http://en.smanews.org/office-of-west-coast-front-evacuates-36-injured-to-egyptian-and-indian-hospitals-for-treatment

My comment: “Repair” of human military equipment at places where the coasts are less.

(* A K P)

Arab Coalition Air Forces Throw Handbills over Zubai and Al-Husainia in Preparation of Break In

Arab Coalition aircrafts threw handbills over the cities of Zubaid and Al-Husinia, in preparation to break into the cities by giants brigades stationed near Zubaid. Handbills indicated that the Arab Coalition troops are coming to liberate the cities from Al-Houthi Iranian militias and demanded citizens not to cooperate with militias during fights and not to listen to rumors. Handbills also indicated that Al-Houthis push citizens of these areas into a lost war while their sons and relatives are safe in Iran and Lebanon. Handbills also demanded citizens to consider the safe situation of liberated areas and developmental projects launched in these areas (image)

http://en.smanews.org/arab-coalition-air-forces-throw-handbills-over-zubai-and-al-husainia-in-preparation-of-break-in

and

(A K P)

Arab Alliance sheds leaflets on Zabeed and Husseinieh in preparation for breaking into them

The Arab alliance, led by Saudi Arabia, has published leaflets on the cities of Zabeed and Husseinieh in the western province of Hodeidah, in preparation for the incursion.

the Coalition said in its publications, addressing the residents of the two cities,"The al-Houthi militias, supported by Iran, do not care who kills you and your children, they put you in a lost war and use you as human shields,"

"The liberated areas enjoy security, stability and development projects," the publication said, calling on citizens "not to help these militias."

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100451

My comment: New assaults are looming, now south of Hodeidah city, directed to the hinterland. UNESCO heritage site Zabid / Zubai is at risk now. – Propaganda dropped from the sky: “,"The al-Houthi militias, supported by Iran, do not care who kills you and your children”: In most cases, it’s the Saudi coalition who kills them. – “use you as human shields”: By not leaving a city when it is assaulted? This is odd. – “"The liberated areas enjoy security, stability and development projects,” this could be seen at Aden on a daily basis.

(A K pS P)

Commander of Joint Forces Discusses Liberation of Yemen’s Tihama with Province Elders

Commander of the Joint Forces to Support Legitimacy in Yemen Lieutenant General Prince Fahd bin Turki bin Abdulaziz met Monday with a number of elders from the Tihama province in western Yemen.
The meeting tackled various important subjects related to ongoing operations to continue the liberation of the remaining regions of the province.
The parties also discussed the implementation of the coordination mechanism among the leadership of the joint forces, sheikhs of the tribe and citizens of the liberated areas in the province within the next few days.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1341651/commander-joint-forces-discusses-liberation-yemen%E2%80%99s-tihama-province-elders

(* A H K)

Residents of the village of Mandhar of southern Hodeidah complain that the Giants raided their homes and looted their possessions.

It was not until a month ago that the village of Mandhar near Hodeidah International Airport, south of the city (western Yemen), was freed until the voices from inside the village began to rise against the government giants ' forces that now dominate the city.

The village had witnessed chapters of the violent war between al-Houthi and government forces backed by the Saudi-led Arab coalition last month, when the latter took control, causing death and injury to civilians.

Local residents of the village told the Al masdar online that the villagers had lived a human tragedy, as al-Houthi imposed a siege on the city to prevent them from fleeing, before the battles reached the city, and the shelling of houses by the two sides.

They added that a number of people had been killed by the war and, as a result, had appealed to the parties to the conflict to open a safe passage for the displacement, leaving dozens of them to leave their homes behind.

According to one of the residents, the village suffered appalling suffering.

Although the government Giants and coalition forces are controlling the city, their residents have not been able to return to their homes, because they have been transformed into military barracks of the Giants ' troops, according to residents.

They added that the houses had been forcibly raided, some of them looted and robbed of their belongings, and their contents were tampered with after they had been raided, "occupied, not left, and citizens were not allowed to return to their homes".

According to a resident of the source online, the 6,000 inhabitants of the village live in displacement and homelessness in the city of Hodeidah and the surrounding areas, some of whom have opted for displacement and homelessness with their children in the capital, Sana'a.

"Now we want to go back to our homes, after the war has been stalled for a month and government forces control them, why prevent us from returning to our homes, we want to go back and let it be, displacement and homelessness are harsher than death in our homes."

He pointed out that their property had been looted by forces that were supposed to secure the houses, and that aim was “according to their slogans” to protect civilians first, depending on their hair that they raised in order to move to and control the city of Hodeidah.

According to the spokesman, Al-Houthi, while in control of the city, did not exercise what the government's giants have practiced.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100450

(* A H K)

Yemen: Emergency Tracking Tool Report #10 - Displacement from Al Hudaydah (23 July 2018)

From 19 to 23 July, IOM identified an increase of 2,883 displaced households.

The largest increases being in within Al Hudaydah and Amanat Al Asimah Governorate, with:

Over 1,990 HH (estimated 11,940 individuals) in Al Hudaydah, displaced to Zabid district.

313 HH (estimated 1,878 individuals) in Amanat Al Asimah, displaced to Al Ma’an, As Sabain and Bani Al Harith districts.
Households reached Amant Al Asimah by bus using Manakhah road access

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-emergency-tracking-tool-report-10-displacement-al-hudaydah-23-july-2018

(* A K pS)

Eleven civilians killed and injured by Houthi mortar shells in Hodeidah

Seven civilians were killed and four others were wounded by mortar shells fired by the Houthi militia in the neighborhood of Hayes, south of Hodeidah.

A medical source said three mortar shells fired by the Houthi militia from their positions in Jabal Ras mountain military post targeted three houses in the city of Hayes, killing seven civilians, including four children, two women and a man and wounding four others.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-20267

(A K pH)

Naval Forces Targets Centralized Invasion Forces, Mukha Port

Yemeni Naval Forces on Monday executed a special marine operation, on centralized forces of the invasion and occupation, in Mukha port. The operation achieved its objectives with great accuracy, during which the stored military equipment and command operation rooms were bombed, resulting in dozens of deaths and injuries among the invading forces, including senior commanders.
The operation was carried out from the sea side, which is a big surprise for the enemy, and targeted the marina and the landing dock. The port was packed with military ordnance and ammunition. Loud explosions has been heard all along coastal land and the fire and these explosions are still going until the moment.

https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=1793&cat_id=1

Remark: As claimed by Houthi media.

And

(A K pS)

Arab Coalition destroys Houthi boat on Yemen's Red Sea Coast

The UAE Armed Forces, operating within the Saudi-led Arab Coalition, have destroyed a booby-trapped boat belonging to Iran-back Houthi militias near Yemen's Red Sea Coast.

The Arab Coalition targeted the Houthi militias, foiling a terrorist operation in one of the most critical international shipping and trade lanes of the Red Sea.

Houthi militias have consistently attacked and threatened international maritime traffic and trade along the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait in clear violation of UN Resolutions, international laws and conventions.

Arab Coalition naval forces continue to carefully monitor Houthi terrorist activities along the Red Sea, which include the use of booby-trapped boats and ad-hoc placement of naval and seam mines on Yemen's Red Sea Coast, clearly violating international laws and norms that criminalise such practices.

http://wam.ae/en/details/1395302700431

My comment: Saudi coalition propaganda wants to make us believe that the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea would threaten international civilian shipping. This obviously is not true: the targets are Saudi coalition’s (military) navy operations and military.

And

(A K pS)

Government and Emirati forces Blocked a violent attack on the port of Mocha

The government and the Emirati forces repelled an armed attack by al-Houthi last night on the port city of al-Mucha (Western country), which is being used by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as its military base.

According to a military source, said to Almasdar online, al-Houthi attacked the port with a booby-trapped boat, but exploded before arriving at the port, after which violent clashes with heavy machine guns erupted.

The source did not provide further details.

The attack came hours after a similar attack at dawn on Monday, where al-Houthi targeted the port with two rockets, resulting in heavy explosions at the port, Anadolu news agency reported.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100443

(B K P)

After military failure, Saudi, allies resort to diplomacy on Yemen’s Hudaydah

Political experts believe that after Saudi Arabia and its regional and international allies failed to conquer Yemen’s Hudaydah port through military force, they are currently turning to diplomatic means in order to reach a settlement with the Houthi Ansarullah fighters, thus attesting to ability of the country’s popular forces to head off aggression against the Yemeni people.

Despite US support for the Saudi war, Mohammed Abdul-Salam, the spokesman for Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement, on Sunday confirmed that the Saudi-led military alliance had dismally failed in its bid to overrun the strategic western Yemeni port city of Hudaydah.

“The enemies’ scenario to march into Hudaydah has resulted in failure, because they heavily relied on psychological warfare and media propaganda, concealing the real facts on the ground,” Yemen’s Arabic-language al-Masirah television network quoted Abdul-Salam as saying.

Abdul-Salam also added that Saudi Arabia and its allies have not allowed any peace negotiations to bear fruit ever since the Yemeni conflict broke out.

Under these circumstances, the US-led Western countries have stepped up their efforts to seek a negotiated settlement of the conflict.

Diplomatic sources said on July 18 that France’s envoy for Yemen had met the leaders of the Houthis in the Yemeni capital as part of Paris’s efforts to help alleviate the humanitarian crisis in the country.

https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/07/23/569045/Yemen-Saudis-Hudaydah-port-UAE-Trump-US-UK-France

Remark: from Iran.

(* A K P)

The UAE is resuming the Battle of Hodeidah if Griffith's efforts fail

UAE has waved the resumption of the Battle of Hodeidah, and UAE Foreign Affairs Minister Anwar Gargash said that "the liberation of the Yemeni city of Hodeidah is coming if the efforts of UN envoy Martin Griffith do not succeed in achieving a withdrawal of al-Houthi there."

Gargash's remarks came after the Yemeni government on Sunday handed over its response to the UN envoy on his proposals regarding the Battle of Hodeidah, which entered its second month of freezing under international pressure.

"We hope that the effort of the UN political envoy to liberate the city will bear fruit, without which the liberation of Hodeidah is coming, and we await the efforts of the UN envoy towards the achievement of the Houthi withdrawal from Hodeidah to spare the city,

"The coalition’s progress towards Hodeidah deserves international acclaim for the humanitarian situation and the lives of civilians, and al-Houthi wanted to fight with its own qualities, and the coalition was more astute in its observance of the humanitarian and civilian aspects," he said.

"There is a marked escape of militia elements, desperate efforts to mobilize and compensate, and our progress (the Arab Alliance) over the past months on the West Coast will culminate in the liberation of Hodeidah," he said.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100417

My comment: A clear threat to the UN envoy and the population of Hodeidah city. And again, the UN envoy’s plan and work are shortened to “Houthi withdrawal from Hodeidah“ and „liberation of Hodeidah“; this just are the Saudi coalition’s claims, but nothing more. – And again, coalition propaganda turns upside down: We shoule believe that those responsible for all the violationas and horrors this assault will cause are not the assaulters but the defenders. You must be sick in your head to believe this. – And the claim „the coalition was more astute in its observance of the humanitarian and civilian aspects“ really is bizarre when looking at Saudi coalition air raids.

(A K pS)

Government forces launch a military operation in Al-Tahita and three children killed by al-Houthi missile

On Sunday, government forces launched a military operation against al-Houthi elements in the Tahita District, Hodeidah Governorate, west of Yemen.

On another subject, three children were killed, and others injured, by a shell fired by the al-Houthi militia towards the town of Hees.

Residents said to the "Al masdar online", three children were killed and others injured, near a water reservoir in Hees City.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100403

(A K pH)

8 Saudi-led airstrikes target Hodiedah

The strikes hit al-Tuhitah and Zabid, al-Luhaih districts, as well as Kamaran Island.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news502740.htm

(* A H K)

IOM Yemen Hudaydah Response Bulletin: 22 July 2018, Situation Report: 8 - 14 July 2018

Provided shelter/NFIs to 1,400 families and separately distributed 177 transit kits and 33 mattresses as needed in Hudaydah. Additionally, served 14,573 hot meals, distributed 603 food baskets, 5,408 water bottles, 164 boxes of dry snacks and juice packs, and 400 boxes of dates in various IDP locations since the crisis began.

Distributed Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM) kits—containing enough food rations for a family for a week, basic hygiene requirements and other essentially items—among 3,036 displaced families from Hudaydah.

Provided 2,797 medical consultations, 127 antenatal care services to pregnant women, 239 reproductive health consultations, 327 MHPSS services, and 153 nutrition consultations following the Hudaydah crisis.

Situation

Escalation of armed clashes in Hudaydah is into its sixth week, with periods of relative calm interspersed with intensified conflict. Displacement within Hudaydah Governorate and to neighbouring Governorates continues, with humanitarian activities focused on delivering assistance to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at Humanitarian Service Points and Transit Sites through the rapid response mechanism. As of 18 July, 47,380 households (284,280 individuals) have been displaced

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/iom-yemen-hudaydah-response-bulletin-22-july-2018-situation-report-8-14-july-2018

(A K P)

Enemies failed in military aggression to seize Yemen’s Hudaydah: Ansarullah

The spokesman for Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement says the Saudi-led military alliance has dismally failed in its campaign to overrun the strategic western Yemeni port city of Hudaydah.

“The enemies’ scenario to march into Hudaydah has resulted in failure, because they heavily relied on psychological warfare and media propaganda, concealing the real facts on the ground,” Yemen’s Arabic-language al-Masirah television network quoted Mohammed Abdul-Salam as saying on Sunday.

He added that Saudi Arabia and its regional allies have not derived any benefit from over three-year Yemen war and are losers.

https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2018/07/22/568928/Enemies-unsuccessful-in-military-aggression-to-seize-Yemens-Hudaydah-Ansarullah-spox

My comment: This is propaganda, at least it would be much too early for such a statement.

(* B H K)

United Nations Population Fund: UNFPA Response in Yemen: Monthly Situation Report #6 - June 2018

A military operation to capture the port and city of Al Hudaydah was launched on 13 June 2018 with heavy aerial bombing and naval shelling targeting the port itself and parts of the city.

The UN and its partners estimate that as many as 600,000 civilians are currently living in and around Hudaydah. In the event of military escalation or siege of the city, the lives of an estimated 250,000 civilians could be at stake. Among these are some 62,500 women of reproductive age, of whom approximately 6,263 would be pregnant and in need of delivery services, including emergency obstetric care services. An estimated 5,200 families have fled the fighting since 1 June 2018.

A Rapid Response Mechanism has been established to accelerate the humanitarian response for those newly displaced within 72 hours as the first line response. UNFPA is among the three UN agencies (UNICEF and WFP) leading the rapid response. Some 20,000 rapid response dignity kits (locally termed 'transit kits') were prepositioned by UNFPA for distribution within the first two days of activation of the rapid response mechanism. An online tracking system has also been developed to track the distribution of these kits on a daily basis.

UNFPA is providing a range of reproductive and gender-based violence services and supplies at services delivery points in Hudaydah, Ibb, Aden and Sana'a.

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/unfpa-response-yemen-monthly-situation-report-6-june-2018

(* B H K)

WFP Yemen Country Brief, June 2018

Operational Updates

  • In response to the increased violence in Hudaydah, the UN System in Yemen has been implementing a Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM) to provide items necessary for families to survive while that will suffice until they reach the next displacement destination. Through the provisions of Humanitarian Service Points (HSP) and Humanitarian Transit Sites (HTS) WFP is providing these families with Immediate Response Rations (IRRs) sufficient for five days in addition to 2 kilograms of High Energy Biscuits (HEBs) and 2.4 kilograms of date bars.
    As of 30 June, WFP has provided Immediate Response Rations (IRRs) to 5,210 households through various HTPs and HSPs. In addition to the IRRs, HEBs have been provided to 4,175 of these households and date bars have been provided to 834 of these households.
  • In addition to providing life-saving food assistance to families fleeing violence, WFP plans to assist the 70,000 households in Hudaydah city with a one-off blanket commodity voucher distribution. However, due to the scarcity of wheat in the governorate, the sharp increase in the price of cooking oil, and to support the local economy in Hudaydah city, WFP will provide 900 pieces of bread (30 pieces of bread per day) to families in Hudaydah city rather than wheat flour. An additional 52,000 households in the district of Bait al-Faqih (Hudaydah governorate) will also receive a one-off blanket commodity voucher ration.

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/wfp-yemen-country-brief-june-2018

cp2 Allgemein / General

(* B P)

The Saudi and American Way

The U.S.-Saudi-UAE “Operation Restoring Hope” has become their plan to bomb the food-supply route that the residents in the Shiite Houthi area of Yemen rely upon in order to receive food, and thereby for the U.S.-Saudi-UAE alliance to win their war against the Houthis — who are Shiites — and to take full control over Yemen, by forcing this Houthi population to either surrender to the Sauds’ strict Sunni rule, or else starve to death. Saudi Arabia, on occasion, bombs its own Shia areas; so, doing it in its neighbor Yemen is no stretch for them. However, the Shiites inside Saudi Arabia aren’t also being starved to death. Starving Shiites to death is something new for Saudi Arabia’s troops. And, therefore, the troops who have this assignment, seem to be, perhaps, squeamish about it; but, in any case, they evidently need some ‘moral’ guidance, in order to do it.

On July 10th, the owner of Saudi Arabia, the royal Saud family (by means of the Crown Prince), issued a proclamation providing absolution in advance for any bloodshed, torture, rape, or anything else, that their troops perpetrate in their “Operation Restoring Hope.” Now, whatever the troops of Saudi Arabia do, to conquer Yemen, has been officially approved in advance. These soldiers won’t need to fear any repercussions against themselves. Whatever they do, is officially okay — it’s been authorized in advance.

For some reason, which the decree doesn’t state, this decree was viewed by Prince Salman to be necessary, in order for the U.S.-Saudi-UAE alliance to carry “Operation Restoring Hope” to a successful completion — victory. (“Restoring Hope” to the victors.) And, once victory is achieved, the royal Saud family, who are the world’s largest purchaser of U.S.-made weapons (other than the U.S. Department of Defense) and thus are the U.S. Government’s chief global ally, will control that adjoining country, too, no longer just control Saudi Arabia – by Eric Zuesse

https://www.sgtreport.com/2018/07/the-saudi-and-american-way/

(* B H P)

"Famine isn’t just about masses of people going hungry; famine tears societies apart. It means mass exodus caused by desperation. It means humiliation and collective trauma. Some people profit from the misery of others, hiking food prices or buying land at fire-sale prices. Those who pay the price — and their children and then those children’s children — can only resent the opportunists for their plight. Not to mention the aggressors.

"As the British learned in Ireland in the mid-19th century, and the Soviets in Ukraine in the 1930s, starving people is a dangerous and loaded strategy: It leaves behind a bitter legacy, and a long trail of rancor.

"If mass starvation takes hold in Yemen, expect an even more deeply divided country. Expect radicalization. Expect an exodus across the Arabian Peninsula and up the Red Sea, toward the Mediterranean Sea and Europe. Expect to see the ugly and perilous repercussions of this harrowing experience for years to come."

https://www.facebook.com/gaseem.alhmdany/posts/839205286279164

(* B P)

Saudi Arabia Teams Up with the UK to Kill Off Al Jazeera

“A channel is a very economical way to influence people. Bang for your buck, it’s much cheaper than guns. It is about controlling the discourse, and for Saudis about being in charge.”

Long satisfied to attempt to dominate pan-Arab media and battle it out with Qatar’s state-owned Al Jazeera television network, Saudi Arabia has now set its hegemonic sights on influencing the media landscape of the non-Arabic speaking greater Middle East.

In the wake of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s concentration last year of control of Saudi-owned pan-Arab media in an anti-corruption power and asset grab, Saudi Research and Marketing Group (SRMG) this week announced a tie-up with Britain’s Independent news website to launch services in Urdu, Turkish, Farsi and Arabic.

The announcement provided no details of the business model or whether and, if so, how the SRMG-owned, independent-branded websites would become commercially viable. That may not be an issue from the Independent’s perspective, given that the deal amounts to the British publication licensing its brand and content to a Saudi partner.

A cache of Saudi diplomatic cables leaked in 2015 documented a pattern of Saudi chequebook diplomacy that aimed to buy positive coverage of the kingdom by European, Middle Eastern and African media who were encouraged to put “learned” Saudi guests on talk shows and counter “media hostile to the kingdom.”

Cables by the late Saudi foreign minister, Prince Saud al Faisal, suggested that Ash-Sharq Al-Awsat, and another Saudi-owned pan-Arab daily, Al Hayat, refrain from criticizing Lebanon and Russia.

Saudi funding ranged from the bailout of financially troubled media to donations, the purchase of thousands of subscriptions, and all-expenses paid trips to the kingdom. It was often driven by Saudi Arabia’s covert public diplomacy war with Iran.

Saudi Arabia’s near monopoly on staid pan-Arabic media was broken in 1996 with the launch of Al Jazeera and its free-wheeling, hard hitting reporting and talk shows. Al Jazeera’s disruption of conservative, Arab state broadcasting prompted Waleed bin Ibrahim Al Ibrahim, a brother in law of the late King Fahd, to launch Al Arabiya as an anti-dote.

The rise of Al Jazeera cemented a realization in the kingdom that it needed to expand from print media into broadcasting. The need for broadcasting was initially driven home six years earlier when Iraq invaded Kuwait. Saudi authorities banned Saudi media from reporting the invasion only to discover on the third day that Saudis were getting their news from foreign media outlets, among which CNN.

https://www.mintpressnews.com/saudi-arabia-teams-up-with-the-uk-to-kill-off-al-jazeera/246348/

(B K)

Film: The conflict in Yemen

New Maritime security threats in the Red Sea and port of Hodeida, due activity by the rebel Houthi movement.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=e_S1slFFcoM

(* B H K P)

Film: Nasser Arrabyee: More millions of Yemenis could be killed by Saudi-Emirati starvation or by bombs, if the Congress does not take action now. Message from Yemen to US Congress before its recess!

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1021821953370411009

(* B H K)

Film: Carlos Aznarez: Riad perpetra crímenes sin precedentes en Yemen

La hambruna acecha a Yemen, tras un aumento del 25 % en los niveles de hambre severa este año y una ofensiva en la ciudad portuaria de Al-Hudayda.

Así lo anunciaron las organizaciones humanitarias. De este modo, miles de personas se han sumado al grupo de desplazados por la agresión saudí.

Además, unos 8,4 millones de personas ya están al borde de la inanición. Desde marzo del 2015, Arabia Saudí bombardea Yemen. Esta campaña militar ha dejado más de 13 000 muertos.

El analista político Carlos Aznarez aborda el tema en una entrevista con HispanTV desde Buenos Aires, capital de Argentina.

(* A H K)

UN Children's Fund: Access to water continues to be jeopardized for millions of children in war-torn Yemen

Attributable to Geert Cappelaere, UNICEF Regional Director in the Middle East and North Africa

“UNICEF deplores in the strongest terms yet another attack on vital and lifesaving water systems in Yemen.

“A large water facility in Sa’ada, northwest of the country, came under attack this week. This is the third such attack on the same facility. More than half of the project is now damaged, cutting off 10,500 people from safe drinking water.

“Continuous attacks on water systems in Yemen are cutting off children and their families from water; increasing the likelihood of water-borne diseases spreading in the war-torn country.

“For families in Yemen, these crumbling basic services, are a matter of life and death. Access to these services is about the sheer survival of boys and girls in Yemen. If they continue to come under attack, more lives- among them many children- will be lost, unnecessarily.

“Attacks on civilian infrastructure including water systems are a violation of international humanitarian law. UNICEF calls, once again, on parties to the conflict wherever they are in Yemen and those who have influence over them, to stop all attacks and military activity on or near civilian infrastructure including water systems and facilities, schools, hospitals and clinics”.

The attack on the water project in the Nushour area in the Sa’ada governorate, immediately disabled the system and damaged the solar power system, the pump and the storage tank.

In March 2018, the Nushour water project was attacked twice in one week causing damage estimated at US$ 20,000. UNICEF repaired this damage. The current damage to the water system is estimated at US$ 300,000.

The conflict has already run down the water and sanitation system in Yemen leaving 8.6 million children without regular access to safe water and at risk of water borne diseases, including cholera and acute watery darrhoea.

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/access-water-continues-be-jeopardized-millions-children-war-torn-yemen-enar

(* B H P)

God Only Knows – OpEd

Along with three countries in North Africa’s “Sahel” desert region, Yemen has been cited as part of the worst famine crisis in the 70-year history of the UN. In the past three years of aerial and naval attacks, Yemen’s key port of Hodeidah has remained partially or fully closed despite the country’s vital need for relief supplies. And, while Yemenis suffer the chaos and despair characteristic of war, the Saudis and UAE refer to the war as “Operation Restoring Hope.”

Many thousands of Yemenis, subjected to consistent bombing and threats of starvation and famine, have fled their homes. Many seek refuge out of Yemen. For instance, close to 500 Yemenis have traveled nearly 500 miles to reach a visa-free port on South Korea’s Jeju Island. On July 21, during an international phone callhosted by young friends in Afghanistan, listeners heard Kaia, a resident of Jeju Island, describe the “Hope School.” She explained how she and several other young people are trying to help welcome Yemenis now living in their village of Gangjeong. The young people are already committed to peacefully resisting U.S. and South Korean military destruction of their shoreline and ecosystem. Now, they have started an informal school so Yemeni and South Korean residents can learn from one another. Small groups gather for conversational exchanges translated from Arabic to English to Korean. Many South Koreans can recall, in their own familial history, that seven million Koreans fled Japanese occupation of their land. Their Korean forebears relied on hospitality from people in other lands. The Catholic Bishop of the Jeju diocese, Monsignor Kang Woo-il, called on Koreans to embrace Yemeni refugees, labeling it a crime against human morality to shut the door on refugees and migrants.

Kaia’s account of the newly launched school describes an effort that truthfully involves restoring hope. The cynical designation of Saudi and UAE led war in Yemen as “Operation Restoring Hope” creates an ugly smokescreen that distracts from the crucial need to investigate war crimes committed in Yemen today.

US citizens bear responsibility for the US government’s support of these crimes.

The Yemenis mean us no harm and have committed no crime against us. Congressional votes have come quite close, with bipartisan support, to ending US participation in and support for the Saudi and Emirati led Coalition war against Yemen. Ending arms sales to the UAE and Saudi monarchies, supported by both sides of the aisle, will signal to the UAE and Saudi Arabia the US will no longer assist their efforts to prolong war and siege in Yemen. On cue from the initiative and energy shown by young South Koreans, people in the US can and should organize campaigns to educate their communities, educational institutions, and media outlets about the plight of people in Yemen. Conscious of the nightmare faced by Yemenis whose husbands, brothers, fathers and sons have been disappeared or detained by shadowy military enforcers, US people can work toward implementing each recommendation in Amnesty’s devastating report – by Kathy Kelly

http://www.eurasiareview.com/24072018-god-only-knows-oped/ = https://www.opednews.com/articles/God-Only-Knows--The-Tort-by-Kathy-Kelly-Chaos_Disappeared-Persons_Famine_Yemen-Destruction-180725-865.html

(* A K)

Saudi-led coalition forces Red Cross plane to land

A Saudi-led coalition battling in Yemen on Tuesday said it forced a Red Cross plane to land in southern Saudi Arabia after it veered off course to fly over a military operation area in Yemen.

The plane heading to Djibouti changed its course after taking off from Yemen's rebel-held capital Sanaa, the coalition said in a statement published by the official Saudi Press Agency.

"Coalition forces communicated with the aircraft on the international distress frequency... but the crew did not respond," a coalition spokesman said.

"Commands were given to redirect the aircraft away from the operations zone but to no avail. The aircraft was forced to land in Jizan" in the south of the kingdom.

The coalition accused the crew of air space violation and jeopardising the safety of four passengers onboard.

The International Committee of the Red Cross later said the plane headed from Sanaa to Djibouti had made "an unscheduled stop" in Jizan "due to technical issues".

"The issue was resolved and the plane has landed in Djibouti this evening," it said in a statement, adding that the ICRC was "investigating".

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-5987875/Saudi-led-coalition-forces-Red-Cross-plane-land.html

https://www.rt.com/news/434172-yemen-red-cross-saudi/

and

(A P)

An @ICRC_ye plane that took off from Sana’a airport on 24.07 en route to Djibouti changed its assigned course by 15 miles to the south due to weather conditions shortly after takeoff from Sana’a

When radio contact failed, 2 Saudi planes were sent to escort the @ICRC_ye aircraft, to the King Abdullah Airport in Jizan in order to clarify the change of route.

https://twitter.com/ICRC_ye/status/1022031893938819074

My comment: New maneuvres: Pummeling the ICRC.

(* B P)

The mayhem in Yemen and the crisis of meaning in the Arab World

Are Yemenis Arabs? And why are other Arabs bombing them?

You may have completely forgotten the causes of the war in Yemen. The answer is simple: counter-revolutionary mobilisation against the 2011 democratic uprising. This was and remains the main cause of this mayhem.

The counter-revolutionary effort transformed Yemen into a theatre for proxy wars. Outside interference by the Saudis and Iranians radically distorted the popular mobilisation into a sectarian conflict in which the Houthis turned from one of the voices of the uprising to puppets of Tehran. The counter-revolutionary commotion succeeded, the revolutionary momentum receded.

Foreign interference was detrimental to the Yemeni revolution and to the interests of both Saudis and Iranians. They are also victims of this counter-revolutionary mobilisation against a transnational uprising that endangered the Saudi and Iranian regimes alike. Needless to say, the US and British support and massive military sales to Saudi Arabia are a key factor in exacerbating this catastrophe.

The Houthis are entrenched more than ever, resisting the onslaught of an international coalition armed with the latest military technology and are still launching missiles at Saudi Arabia. The Saudi-Iranian rivalry is growing and spreading to include the rise of a regional Arab alliance (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, and Bahrain) against Qatar.

At the same time, Saudi Arabia has joined forces with Israel to push the US towards an all-out war against Iran. The Trump administration has happily obliged and increased economic pressure on the Islamic Republic, putting more strain on the US-European alliance. In Syria, Israel has sought support from Russia to open yet another front against Iran.

In short, the war in Yemen has become integral to an all-out regional conflict from which only arms manufactures in the US and the UK and the aggressive and militaristic government in Israel can benefit - all to the delight of reactionary Arab regimes.

What has been the political result of so much brutality and bloodshed we have witnessed in Yemen? Nothing. There is no diplomatic, political or even military solution to this carnage in sight.

Now, in the midst of all these vertiginous numbers, a very simple question arises: What in the world does "the Arab world" actually mean anymore? Are Yemenis Arabs, too - are they part of this "Arab world"? What does it mean when a gang of Arab nations bomb the poorest Arab nation in their midst? To what extent does this benefit Iran? What could possibly an Iranian intervention offer the Yemenis that they would sacrifice the future of their children for?

Finally, imagine if a fraction of the Saudi-Emirati military budgets was spent on reconstruction of Yemen from the ground up.

What do masses of millions of Arab people have in common with their corrupt leaders? How much more in common Arab people have with their counterparts in Iran, in Turkey, in Pakistan, in India, and by extension in the rest of Asia, Africa, and Latin America, and than with the myriad of immigrant communities in Europe and the US?

Does a common language (spoken with widely differing dialects) from Morocco to Syria really define the "Arab World"?

The ludicrous, state-sponsored, ideologies of pan-Arabism, or its counterparts pan-Turkism and pan-Iranism, are all without an exception colonial delusions - racialised ideologies pacifying the inner dynamics of class struggles, gender segregations, racialised exclusions, sectarian hostilities within nations, compromising their democratic aspirations.

The idea of "the Arab world" is a living organism. It comes to life in the streets and squares of revolutionary uprisings against tyranny and imperialism, in the art and literature of revolt, and it dies and withers away in the halls of power when the Saudis and the Israelis and the Emiratis conspire to mobilise their counter-revolutionary designs and get the US on board.

Today, the Arab world dies with every bomb that the Saudis and Emiratis drop on Yemenis, with every bullet the Israelis fire at Palestinians protesting their cruel fate. And the self-same Arab world comes to life when, against all odds, it still dreams of a revolution, of people pouring into their streets and squares singing "People demand the overthrow of the regime!" – by Hamid Dabashi

https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/mayhem-yemen-crisis-meaning-arab-world-180724121333300.html

(* B K P)

The fight for Yemen's capital fueled by drugs, witchcraft and fierce fire

“They sleep until noon and then start chewing khat,” Hatemi said of the Houthi’s routine chomping on the widely used Yemen drug of choice. “And then they get moving.”

But khat is seemingly not the only substance casually proliferating through the battlefield. According to several Yemeni military leaders and medical personnel, Captagon -- the meth-like variant of the banned pharmaceutical Fenethylline, which is often manufactured in and trafficked out of Lebanon -- is also being used across enemy lines, as it was under ISIS command, to keep young rebels hard-wired and fearless in attacking.

“There is that and witchcraft, too,” Hatemi vowed. “Making young fighters believe they are protected from all bullets.”

Intelligence findings, according to the forces in the Sana’a governate, also claim that the “uneducated and poor” are preyed upon by the Houthis to take up arms and in many cases are made to believe that they are fighting “America and Israel” rather than their own countrymen.

Moreover, an estimated 60,000 landmines have been planted on Sana’a city’s rim, taking the lives and limbs of those who dare to flee.

In one case, documented with photographs to Fox News during an evacuation and humanitarian briefing this week by the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Defense, a 3-year-old girl named Jameela had her hair chopped off so she would resemble a boy during a rescue by the agency’s child protection unit. Jameela had been recruited for use as a human shield to those planting the explosives.

While the case could not be independently verified, numerous military officials, activists and residents from the region bemoaned that children -- including in rare circumstances young girls -- are being forcibly propelled to imbed such deadly devices.

“We know the Houthis are becoming weaker because now they are trying to recruit from schools and houses by force,” Hatemi charged.

He [Hatemi] surmises that around 13,000 of his fellow Yemeni fighters have been killed in action since the war’s 2015 inception. While painful, the commander contends it’s nowhere near the number of Houthis taken down in the conflict.

“Last month, we killed at least 1,200 Houthis and we have killed tens of thousands since the beginning,” Hatemi boasted. “But the number doesn’t matter to us; we consider them to be like slaves. Yemen people are peaceful people, but what the Houthis stand for is death and destruction.”

However, the Houthis -- or as they formally refer to themselves “Ansar Allah” meaning “helpers of God” -- have a markedly different take from their side entrenched in the city and its surroundings. Shielded by local tribes protecting the city’s periphery, the rebel group has made it clear that they have no intention to simply surrender. The leadership maintains that they are resisting the rampant government corruption and the rise of Sunni-Islamist militant groups that expanded under Hadi’s leadership.

But the longer the war drags on, the more civilians will pay the price – by Hollie McKay

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2018/07/24/fight-for-yemens-capital-fueled-by-drugs-witchcraft-and-fierce-fire.html and film https://www.msn.com/en-us/video/peopleandplaces/the-violent-fight-for-yemen%E2%80%99s-capital/vp-AAAm1Wz

Remark: “Embedded” journalism with “president” Hadi forces.

(* A K P)

Interactive Map of Yemen war

https://yemen.liveuamap.com/

(* B H K P)

Yemen Is On the ‘Knife’s Edge’ of Famine

Aid organizations are warning that famine is very close.

The U.N. projects that there will be an additional ten million people on the verge of famine by the close of 2018 if conditions do not improve. More than sixty percent of Yemen’s total population could be at serious risk of starving to death by year’s end. Nowhere on earth are there more people at risk of dying from preventable causes than in Yemen.

In a few months, that statistic will increase to two-thirds of the total population. The crisis there is entirely man-made and caused in large part by the Saudi coalition and its Western backers. The sheer number of innocent lives at risk from starvation is shocking, but what is even more shocking is that the profound suffering of the people of Yemen barely registers in the rest of the world, especially in those countries whose governments are aiding and abetting the coalition in its crimes.

International attention to this disaster remains limited, and the response has been slow and inadequate. Media coverage of the war is sparse. The scale and severity of the crisis demand a much larger and more urgent response from the world’s governments, but even after three years of steadily worsening conditions this hasn’t happened. As we know, many of the most powerful governments, including ours, are complicit in creating the disaster and have done whatever they can to shield their clients from scrutiny. Yemen’s own so-called “legitimate” government is a partner in the destruction of the country, and the vast majority of Yemen’s population has no one to speak for them or stand up for them in front of the world.

The Hodeidah offensive threatens the lives of millions if it continues. Conditions in and around the port city are already deteriorating quickly.

Any damage to or disruption of the port could be potentially fatal for millions of Yemenis. The U.S. has the influence with coalition governments to avert this catastrophe, but it has to be willing to use it. If the administration keeps refusing to do that, Congress has to act instead – by Daniel Larison

http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/yemen-is-on-the-knifes-edge-of-famine/

(* B H K P)

Deutschlands Rolle beim Völkermord im Jemen

Hadi, Bin Salman und Obama - wie der Krieg im Jemen begann

Ohne Zustimmung der US-Regierung unter Präsident Obama hätte Saudi Arabien diesen völkerrechtswidrigen Krieg nicht begonnen, ohne die Unterstützung und Rüstungsexporte genannter NATO-Länder hätte Saudi Arabien diesen Krieg und Völkermord bereits nach kurzer Zeit beenden müssen.

Seit dem 26. 03. 2015 versucht also die Kriegskoalition unter Führung des saudischen Kronprinzen Bin Salman mit dem Militär der Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate, Bahrain, Katar, Kuwait, Jordanien, Ägypten, Sudan, Marokko, Senegal und zahlreichen Söldnertruppen aus Südamerika und der arabischen Welt, den Ex-Präsidenten Hadi als US/saudische Marionette wieder in sein Amt zu verhelfen.

Weitere Unterstützung erhält die saudische Kriegskoalition von Ländern wie Pakistan, Türkei, Eritrea, Mauretanien und vielen anderen Ländern, deren Unterstützung bisher noch nicht durch die Medien bekannt wurde.

Geheimdienstliche und logistische Beihilfe sowie Rüstungsgüter und hochmoderne Waffen für mehrere hundert Milliarden US-Dollar kommen vor allem von den NATO-Staaten USA, Frankreich, Großbritannien, Norwegen, Finnland, Belgien, Italien, Spanien, Kanada, Australien und natürlich auch aus Deutschland und selbst aus der Schweiz – als ob sich die gesamte arabische Welt (außer Iran und Oman) und die westliche „NATO-Wertegemeinschaft“ gegen das ärmste Land der arabischen Welt verschworen hätte.

Jemen – die weltweit größte humanitäre Katastrophe seit dem 2. Weltkrieg

Der Jemen, so wie wir ihn heute kennen, ist etwa 1,5-mal so groß wie Deutschland. Etwa 28 Millionen Menschen leben in dem Land.

Aufgrund der totalen saudischen Blockade des Jemen zu See, Land und Luft – die nur durch die Unterstützung der USA, Großbritannien, Frankreich und Deutschland Bestand haben kann -, erreichen internationale Hilfsgüter nur punktuell die Zivilbevölkerung.

Das hat verheerende Folgen

Von den 28 Millionen Jemeniten sind so laut UN 22 Mio. Menschen auf humanitäre Hilfsgüter angewiesen.
8 Mio. Menschen stehen vor dem akuten Hungertod.
Alle 10 Minuten stirbt im Jemen ein Kind.
Laut WHO März 2018, sind mehr als 1.300 Menschen an Diphterie erkrankt.
Laut UN-OCHA Februar 2018, sind mehr als 1 Mio. Menschen an Cholera erkrankt.

Jemen und Deutschlands Mittäterschaft am Genozid im Jemen

Um die Verantwortung und Mittäterschaft deutscher Politiker*innen, Banker und Manager von Rüstungskonzernen beim Völkermord im Jemen zu verdeutlichen, ist eine kurze Übersicht auf die internationale und nationale Rechtslage notwendig. Würden die westlichen Unterstützerstaaten von Saudi Arabien und dessen Kriegskoalition – allen voran die USA, Großbritannien, Frankreich und Deutschland - internationales und jeweiliges nationales Recht respektieren und diesem folge leisten, wäre der völkerrechtswidrige Krieg mit seinen tagtäglichen Menschenrechtsverletzungen und Opfern im Jemen so nicht möglich.

https://www.gt-worldwide.com/kategorie/thema/reisen-index/jemen-index/jemen-2018/deutschlands-rolle-beim-voelkermord-im-jemen.html

(* B H K)

Yemen close to famine after port offensive, aid groups warn

Yemen is close to famine after a 25-percent increase in levels of severe hunger this year and an offensive on the main port city of Hodeida, a lifeline for millions, humanitarian organizations warned on Monday.

Thousands more people have been displaced by the conflict and many are having to skip meals and beg on the streets, they said, with an estimated 8.4 million people already on the verge of starvation.

“We perceive the country to be sitting on a knife edge in terms of famine - it could tip at any time really,” Suze van Meegen, spokeswoman for the Norwegian Refugee Council, told the Thomson Reuters foundation by phone from the capital, Sanaa.

“The desperation we are seeing is becoming greater - more people are begging in the streets.”

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said four in every 10 children under five were now acutely malnourished, and put the number of people displaced since the Hodeida offensive began at 200,000.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-hunger-famine/yemen-close-to-famine-after-port-offensive-aid-groups-warn-idUSKBN1KE04B

(* A K P)

Völkerrechtliche Zeitenwende?
Seit gestern (17.7.2018) darf der internationale Strafgerichtshof in Den Haag auch Anklage wegen Durchführung eines Angriffskrieges erheben. Die Süddeutsche Zeitung berichtet: „An diesem Dienstag bricht eine neue Phase des Völkerrechts an. Weitgehend unbeachtet ist das jahrelang vorbereitet worden. Die internationalen Regeln, vor allem aus der Charta der Vereinten Nationen (UN), wurden zuletzt oft ignoriert, gebrochen, geschwächt. Jetzt läuft es einmal umgekehrt. Das Völkerrecht wird stärker. Es bekommt mehr Biss. Der 17. Juli 2018 ist der Stichtag: Der Internationale Strafgerichtshof in Den Haag darf erstmals auch das Verbrechen des Angriffskriegs verfolgen.“
Das eröffne ganz neue Möglichkeiten. Allerdings weist die SZ auch auf die Probleme und Schwächen des Gerichts hin: Es gilt als wenig neutral und habe bislang ausschließlich Verfahren gegen afrikanische Personen eröffnet. „Strafanzeigen gegen westliche Politiker und Soldaten gehen in Den Haag laufend ein. Die Reaktion ist stets dieselbe. Es wird eine sogenannte Vorermittlung eingeleitet, sie läuft still und leise. Noch nie hat die Chefanklägerin, Fatou Bensouda aus Gambia, sich bereit gezeigt, auch den nächsten Schritt zu gehen, also tatsächlich eine Anklage gegen einen Nicht-Afrikaner bei den Richtern zu beantragen.“

http://www.imi-online.de/2018/07/18/voelkerrechtliche-zeitenwende/

(A K pH)

Civil Conglomerate Condemns US-Saudi Paid-fighters Execution of War Prisoner, Lahj

The civil conglomerate for Development and Freedoms, on Tuesday, condemned the crime of executing one of the prisoners of the Army and the Popular Committees and the throwing of his body from a top of a mountain cliff, in Karash area of Lahj governorate. In a statement, it condemned the crime, which is a clear violation of the Third Geneva Convention articles, which clearly guaranteed the rights of prisoners.

The organization called on the United Nations and the international community to intervene immediately to stop this unjust war, against the Yemeni people, and to establish an independent and impartial international commission for inquiry the crimes committed against them.

https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=1818&cat_id=1

and by another NGO: https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=1816&cat_id=1

referring to

(A K pH)

Video reported to be #Saudi #UAE backed forces n #Yemen killing injrd #Houthi &throwing him frm mountain U can hear a guy calling by radio the command centre asking: "we have #POWs the boys want2kill him Shall we kill him He is injrd" Then , same guy said: "Film it&get rid of him"

https://twitter.com/HussainBukhaiti/status/1021174114072125440

second video: https://twitter.com/Ibnuyemen/status/1021675042424250370

(* B K P)

Dr. Yusuf al-Hathery: More Than 200 Thousand Yemenis Were Murdered in the War on Yemen

Sondoss Al Asaad: Can you brief the political situation in Yemen before the imposed war?

Dr. Yusuf al-Hathery: Before the US-Saudi aggression on Yemen, the political situation in Yemen was not stable due to the escalating unrest because of two important things:

Firstly; the revolution of the 21st of September 2014, which was an accumulation of inaccurate, unjust and corrupt policies during the previous decades. In addition that this revolution was not led by the previous leaders of the 2011 revolution, who disturbed and worsened the situation. Also, the revolution was purely Yemeni, without the interference of regional and foreign powers, which had the first decision during the 2011 revolution. Through the “Peace and Partnership Agreement,” after the 2014 revolution, the revolutionaries insisted on the involvement of all the political forces and not to exclude any component whatever its previous policies were.

Secondly, The National Dialogue Conference (NDC), which is a transitional dialogue process, held at the Movenpick Hotel in Sanaa, from 18 March 2013 to 24 January 2014, as part of the Yemeni crisis reconciliation efforts, was an extension of the 2011 revolution. All the political forces were involved without exception. The talks were close to their success as emphasised by the former UN envoy to Yemen Gamal Ben Omar. However, the talks failed due to the intervention of the Saudi-led coalition’s so-called 'Operation Decisive Storm', on 26 March 2015.

Why did the coalition launch its war, and what was the main objective of the aggression?

I have already mentioned that among the Saudi-led coalition’s objectives was to return Yemen to its custody, as before the 21st of September 2015. On more than one occasion, many Saudi and Emirati politicians had emphasised that if Yemen’s human and geographical resources get independent from the American and Gulf custody, as between 1978 and 2014, this would reflect negatively on many things.

What has coalition obtained after its four years of the imposed war, and has it achieved its objectives?

After four years of the aggression and its siege, more than 200 thousand victims were murdered as a result of the continuous bombardment. Yemen has been entirely sieged, the central bank has been transferred and Sanaa’s airport has been closed. Therefore, many patients have died as their medicines were cut off and were unable to travel abroad for treatment.

https://ahtribune.com/world/north-africa-south-west-asia/war-on-yemen/2387-yusuf-al-hathery.html

My comment: A pro-Houthi viewpoint, interesting for the opinion about the 2011/2014 events in Yemen. – 200,000 victims: This figure only can relate to all those killed by the war and by the effects of the Saudi blockade (starved; missing health care). – Dr. Yusuf al-Hathery, Yemen’s Ministry of Health and Population Spokesman (Sanaa government)

(B H K)

8 Instagram accounts that will help reshape how you view the Middle East

Yemen

@thanafaroq7

Much like Syria, Yemen is buried deep within a brutal civil war. @thanafaroq7 is a Yemen-born photographer who aims to shed light on the stories of Yemenis who have been displaced by the conflict as they work to rebuild their lives in other parts of the world. She highlights not only the people but also the stories behind them — where they came from, where they’re headed, and what it took to get there. Her account is at times uplifting and at others distressing, but it’s never short of informational and inspiring.

https://matadornetwork.com/read/8-instagram-accounts-will-help-reshape-view-middle-east/

Comment: Yemen is represented in the article by the outstanding Thana Faroq, but we give you an advice: if you are on #Instgram, follow the hashtag #Yemen and see what the country has to say. How it looks, speaks, breathes. How it shines. It is not only #war

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1836893996363622

(* B H K)

World Food Programme: WFP Yemen Country Brief, June 2018

99,000 mt of life-saving in-kind food commodities distributed in June 2018

USD 65 m six-months Net Funding Requirements (August 2018 – January 2019)

7.6 m people assisted in June

In response to the increased violence in Hudaydah, the UN System in Yemen has been implementing a Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM) to provide items necessary for families to survive while that will suffice until they reach the next displacement destination. Through the provisions of Humanitarian Service Points (HSP) and Humanitarian Transit Sites (HTS) WFP is providing these families with Immediate Response Rations (IRRs) sufficient for five days in addition to 2 kilograms of High Energy Biscuits (HEBs) and 2.4 kilograms of date bars.
As of 30 June, WFP has provided Immediate Response Rations (IRRs) to 5,210 households through various HTPs and HSPs. In addition to the IRRs, HEBs have been provided to 4,175 of these households and date bars have been provided to 834 of these households.

In addition to providing life-saving food assistance to families fleeing violence, WFP plans to assist the 70,000 households in Hudaydah city with a one-off blanket commodity voucher distribution.

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/wfp-yemen-country-brief-june-2018

cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(* B H)

Film: Cancer patients in Yemen struggle to survive as options diminish

Even before the war, many Yemenis could not afford treatment, but now it has become nearly impossible as one specialised cancer treatment facility, that does not even have the means to provide chemotherapy, may soon shut down.

The World Health Organization says thousands of terminally ill cancer patients in Yemen are struggling to get basic palliative care and medicines.

But the possible closure of one cancer treatment centre could make matters worse.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/07/cancer-patients-yemen-struggle-survive-options-diminish-180725101957640.html = https://www.msn.com/en-ie/video/headlines/cancer-patients-in-yemen-struggle-to-survive-as-options-diminish/vi-BBL1XEY = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xzd2PzZV_RI

(* B H)

Film: Traurige Schicksale aus Syrien und Jemen: Kinderklinik schenkt jungen Kriegsopfern neuen Lebensmut

Die Kinder in einer jordanischen Klinik teilen ein trauriges Schicksal: Vielen von ihnen hat der Krieg in Syrien oder dem Jemen Eltern, Geschwister oder Freunde genommen. Sie selbst sind schwer verletzt. Ein Team von "Ärzte ohne Grenzen" und eine Lehrerin kümmern sich um sie.

https://www.n-tv.de/mediathek/videos/panorama/Kinderklinik-schenkt-jungen-Kriegsopfern-neuen-Lebensmut-article20544743.html = https://www.rtl.de/cms/kinder-als-opfer-der-buergerkriege-aerzte-ohne-grenzen-rettet-sie-in-eigenem-kinderkrankenhaus-in-jordanien-4196292.html

(* B H)

#Yemen’s #education time-bomb needs attention now. Schools destroyed, teachers unpaid, families uprooted. Already 1year ago, 2million kids were out of school & 3/4 teachers struggled to get paid. Even if peace is found, how can Yemen recover with its next generation unprepared? (text in image)

https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/1022031821633191936

(* B H P)

UN Development Programme: Forging Resilient Social Contracts: A Pathway to Preventing Violent Conflict and Sustaining Peace

‘Forging Resilient Social Contracts: Preventing Violent Conflict and Sustaining Peace’ is an 11-country research and policy dialogue project that aims to revitalise the social contract amidst conflict and fragility and to advance policy and practice for preventing violent conflict and for achieving and sustaining peace. The comparative findings provide evidence and insight into what drives social contracts that are inclusive and resilient, and how they manifest and adapt in different contexts, transcending what are often unsustainable, ephemeral elite bargains into more inclusive ones, with durable arrangements for achieving and sustaining peace.

https://reliefweb.int/report/world/forging-resilient-social-contracts-pathway-preventing-violent-conflict-and-sustaining

(* B H)

Yemen's child soldiers face long road after sexual, physical abuse

Two dozen boys sit quietly in a small classroom in crisp uniforms, their nation’s flag draped around their necks. Colorful drawings decorate the walls, yet a sense of deep darkness punctuates the air: These boys have been heavily traumatized by Yemen’s ongoing civil war, and almost all of the students were forcibly recruited as child soldiers.

At least half of the child soldiers -- who all appear far smaller and younger than their 12 to 15 years -- are believed to have been victims of sexual assault while under control of the militia, experts say.

“The most difficult thing is helping those who come from the battlefields having been sexually abused. It takes a long time to help,” Dr. Mahyob Almechlatky, a psychiatrist at the Rehabilitation of Children Recruited and Impacted by War in Yemen Project in Ma’rib, Yemen, told Fox News. “Sadly, it’s very common. A big amount of the students have faced this and we are trying to take away the shame.”

The rehabilitation center, with a staff 25 health professionals, is now trying to heal those silent scars. Financed by the King Salman (KS) Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, the project aims at rehabilitating the children and reintegrating them into society and back to school.

“Sexual abuse is very common, maybe 50 to 60 percent,” said Mohammad Mobarak, the project manager for the school and the KS Relief Center.

The center’s expert staff say they don’t ask which militia or military outfit the boys were abducted into, but the large majority are thought to have been abducted by Houthi factions.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2018/07/23/yemens-child-soldiers-face-long-road-after-sexual-physical-abuse.html

Comment: Well is this true or is it propaganda? It's almost Impossible to differentiate.

https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10156866455408641

My comment: I think it’s both. The truth is used for propaganda purpose. This report is going parallel with Emirati new site: https://www.thenational.ae/world/mena/children-conscripted-by-houthis-subject-to-sexual-abuse-1.752981. Sexual assault against children when exposed to total subjection to adults especially in extreme situations like war is rather probable. – Nevertheless, the purpose of this article is propaganda. Keep in mind that the Houthi media just objected to UAE soldiers and mercenaries raping children and women (YPR 436, cp6; YPR 435, cp6). – Saudi coalition’s stories are quite more often adopted by Western media, than stories from the Houthi side.

(* B H)

World Food Programme: Yemen: Concept of Operations, July 2018

The scale of the needs and the scope of the emergency response have required a large, multi-agency and multisector response to be undertaken. However, the humanitarian community continues to face a number of critical logistics challenges; therefore, additional logistical support has been required to ensure humanitarian organisations responding to the crisis can deliver efficient and effective assistance to affected people.

The major constraints on the ability of humanitarian organisations to respond to the crisis in Yemen include damaged road infrastructure, disruptions in access to many parts of the country in terms of both cargo and staff, and fuel shortages. Specifically, the following logistics gaps have been identified:

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-concept-operations-july-2018

Yemen: Concept of Operations Map, July 2018

https://reliefweb.int/map/yemen/yemen-concept-operations-map-july-2018

Map: Logistics Capacity Strengthening, January - June 2018

https://reliefweb.int/map/yemen/logistics-capacity-strengthening-january-june-2018

Yemen ETC Services Dashboard July 2018

https://reliefweb.int/map/yemen/yemen-etc-services-dashboard-july-2018

(* B H)

YEMEN: “IN TAIZ PEOPLE ARE STILL HOPEFUL FOR A STRONGER FUTURE”

Senseless violence, lawlessness, a brave people tired of conflict, and a nation in chaos: these were my impressions of Yemen before I arrived. It was visceral. And then there was Taiz City; the last bastion of hope for peace. Many citizens chanted the same thing: “If Taiz falls, so does the future.”

Taiz, the third largest city in Yemen, is separated by a frontline. Locals are exposed to violence on a daily basis and the constant sound of shelling and gunfire crackling through the days and blaring through the nights became the norm. I remember at one point in January this year, when we were hearing five explosions every minute for a period of two weeks.

Today, the main issue for people in Taiz is still insecurity. Day-to-day, there’s the fear of being killed by stray gunfire or shelling into the city. There’s the fear of family members never returning home from work. Freedom of movement is far more restricted than what it was before the war and checkpoints are dotted everywhere, making it difficult for people to carry on as normal. You can imagine that living in these conditions is incredibly tough for the locals and as a result, I think there will be a devastating psychological footprint that lasts long after this war is over.

Very broadly, we have seen a collapse of the secondary and tertiary healthcare systems in Yemen. MSF has spoken openly about this over, and over again. Over the last two years, public hospital staff have been paid little to no salaries, and without incentive-based support, the public health system cannot function.

MSF has been supporting three hospitals in Taiz city for almost two years, focusing on the main emergency priorities including medical care for people injured from the war and paediatric and maternal healthcare. Indeed, in war, surgery is an enormous part of our work, but the reality is there is also a real need for quality services for children and pregnant women.

In Taiz city, we had on average, 2,000 maternal health consultations per month – these were women that would otherwise not have had access to care. Staff were seeing malnourished children, and children who had advanced respiratory infections. They also treated children for common illnesses that were amplified because of the lack of provisions available.

Unfortunately, there is no infrastructure supporting waste management in Taiz. The situation is equally dire in terms of access to clean water and sanitation facilities. Last year, this contributed to the rise of cholera and the fear is that there is potential for future outbreaks as the seasons change.

One of the lesser known, long-term consequences of the war in Yemen is anti-microbial resistance.

What struck me most was seeing our staff interact with patients. Due to the collapse in public infrastructure, professionals are working in different fields. Teachers, for example, don’t have jobs anymore because the education system is defunct. Some have come to work with MSF under various administration and logistic roles.

Everyone has a story in Yemen. Everyone has something to say about how their life has changed because of the war. In most situations, in most communities, you would expect to see a broken people. Year, after year of being forgotten, not being able to access healthcare services, and not being able to afford food, you would feel broken. But that’s just not the case for the people of Taiz.

The people continue to do their best to make what they can out of the situation, even though war and the fear of death is a daily reality for them. Locals are still hopeful for a stronger future and together with the international community, our role is to help them get there – by Arunn Jegan

https://www.msf.org.au/article/stories-patients-staff/yemen-%E2%80%9C-taiz-people-are-still-hopeful-stronger-future%E2%80%9D = https://reliefwAeb.int/report/yemen/yemenis-war-torn-taiz-still-hope-more-peaceful-future and film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guNjWseyDHo = https://twitter.com/MSF/status/1021686910677344257

(A H)

A ray of sun, today, in #Sanaa:
Humanity Giving Organization HUGO distributed Food Baskets for 25 needy families.(photos)

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1838631472856541

(B H)

SMEPS: They have passion in #learning! These great #women are focused not to miss one piece of information. #Livestock breeders are trained on correct practices in feeding sheep and taking care of its health. This is women #empowerment! (photo)

https://twitter.com/SMEPSYEMEN/status/1021079825572859904

(A H)

Funded & supported by @WorldBank and in #partnership with @PWPYEMEN, life of people of Al Mansoura area in Ash Shihr district in #Hadrmaut becomes much easier and safer with a 300 cubic meters #water reservoir. Thanks to #donors and implementers. (photo)

https://twitter.com/UNDPYEMEN/status/1020919468892049408

(* B H)

Film: The War in Yemen: Increase in psychiatric and mental health cases

Three months ago, the United Nations asked the world to donate 3 billion dollars to help 13 million people in Yemen. Three years of war has created what the UN calls a catastrophic situation. Volunteers are now working to make sure aid reaches those who need it most. But as Staci Bivens reports, those food and medical supplies are not a cure for the rising cases of mental health problems.

https://www.trtworld.com/video/featured/the-war-in-yemen-increase-in-psychiatric-and-mental-health-cases/5b54c6fd0ab8e2110bae9dab = https://twitter.com/AhmadAlgohbary/status/1021141106560466944

(B H)

Photo: Taghreed Hassan weighs less than a quarter of her healthy weight #Yemen

https://www.facebook.com/YemenNotATarget/photos/a.503825863377023.1073741829.496501684109441/577600019332940/?type=3

(* B H)

Yemen could be 'worst' humanitarian crisis in 50 years

UN's aid chief says war-torn country could become the world's worst humanitarian disaster in half a century.

People in war-torn Yemen are facing a situation that "looks like the Apocalypse", the UN's humanitarian chief has told Al Jazeera, warning that the country could become the worst humanitarian disaster in half a century.

The situation in Yemen - today, right now, to the population of the country - looks like the apocalypse," Mark Lowcock, the head of the UN office for the coordination of humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said on Friday.

"The cholera outbreak is probably the worst the world has ever seen with a million suspected cases up to the end of 2017."

Lowcock said "a terrible new epidemic" of diphtheria, a bacterial disease which should be completely preventable by immunisation, has already "affected up to 500 people with dozens and dozens of deaths" in the past few weeks

"That is going to spread like wildfire," he added.

"Unless the situation changes, we're going to have the world's worst humanitarian disaster for 50 years". (with interview in film)

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/01/yemen-worst-humanitarian-crisis-50-years-180105190332474.html

Remark: From January 2018, I had missed it that time.

cp4 Flüchtlinge / Refugees

Siehe / Look at cp1b2

Eingebetteter Medieninhalt

(B H)

UN High Commissioner for Refugees: Yemen: CCCM Factsheet – June 2018

ADO (Abs Development for Women and Children) and SRA Foundation for Sustainable Development have completed the baseline assessment in 464 IDPs hosting sites in Sana’a, Al Mahwit, Hajjah and some districts in Al Hudaydah. The assessment will enable Cluster Partners elicit the multisectoral needs in IDP Hosting Sites and mobilize support to meet them through the Site Management support systems.

ADO and DRC started Site Management activities in Hajjah in some 13 pilot priority sites and IOM started in Ibb and Taizz in 30 priority and critical sites.

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-cccm-factsheet-june-2018

(B H P)

The story behind photo of smiling Yemeni boy, as told by the photographer

Shalhoub added that this young boy in particular, whose picture circulated across social media, was displaced from Sanaa.

A picture of a Yemeni child smiling at the King Salman Center for Relief and Humanitarian Action (KSRelief) was admired by many social media users. The photographer, Ibrahim Abdullah al-Shalhoub, captured the moment which was seen as a break away from the regular painful images coming out of Yemen.

Shalhoub told Al Arabiya that he was part of a KSRelief delegation who were visiting one of their relief projects at camps for displaced Yemenis in Maarib.

“While the delegation was providing food for Yemenis at the camps, I was walking around and taking pictures as usual, but I was focused on finding genuine facial expressions, and I found it in the faces of children,” Shalhoub said.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/variety/2018/07/16/The-story-behind-photo-of-smiling-Yemeni-boy-as-told-by-the-photographer.html

My comment: From a Saudi website. The propaganda purpose seems evident, as part of the Saudi “We are humanitarian benefactors” propaganda. The refugees under care of Saudi KSRelief must smile, of course.

(A K pS)

Two raids of the alliance on Saleh house in Hodeidah and a new exodus of the citizens from Hees

The Arab coalition fighters launched two raids on the house of former President Ali Abdallah Saleh on Monday in the western province of Hodeidah.

According to eyewitnesses to the "Almasdar online", Arab Coalition fighters just before evening on Monday, raided the home of former president Saleh, where smoke plumes were seen rising from the scene.

The al-Houthi militia has been in control of a Saleh house since his death in mid-December last year.

On another subject, a local source for "Almasdar online" said that a number of residents of Hees City in Hodeidah had begun to migrate again, despite the city's liberation from the al-Houthi militia half a year ago.

The source explained that the new exodus of citizens was caused by the continued fall of Katyusha rockets and projectiles falling on residential buildings, which were shelled by the al-Houthi armed group.

The government forces supported by the Arab Coalition were not able to protect civilians, and the city and provide protections from those projectiles and rockets fired from near distances.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100438

(B H)

Yemen | Assisted Spontaneous Return (ASR) As of 12 July 2018

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-assisted-spontaneous-return-asr-12-july-2018

(* B H)

Feature: Longing for peace, Yemen's displaced families struggle to survive

On the western edge of Yemen's rebel-controlled capital Sanaa, around 60 internally displaced families live in a slummy neighborhood and suffer from very rough humanitarian conditions.

The families in old Madhbah quarter are part of more than 35,000 families displaced from war-torn Red Sea port city of Hodeidah since June. More families are fleeing the war everyday, according to the UN reports this week.

In old Madhbah quarter, Hadi al-Hajori, a father of nine children, has welcomed two other displaced families of 17 members into his rented home with three small rooms.

"I sold everything to collect money for the travel spending ... and I rent this house for 20,000 riyal (nearly 50 U.S. dollars) a month," the 47-year-old vegetable vendor told Xinhua.

Al-Hajori family arrived in Sanaa three weeks ago. They were received by rebel-controlled local authorities and were accommodated in a tent in the backyard of a school dedicated for the displaced families in southwestern Sanaa.

But, he said, the classrooms were full of other families and the small tent could not hold his big family and therefore, like other displaced families, he moved to old Madhbah area.

Fattom, al-Hajori's wife, said she wants peace and hopes to return to their hometown very soon. "We fled our home near Hodeidah airport to escape the war, and finally found ourselves live a vagabond life," said Fattom.

"They gave some food and mattresses to the displaced families in the schools only, but we have not received yet any humanitarian aid," she said.

"They (authorities) said they will phone us ... but they didn't," she added in a sad voice while throwing dirty plastic bags into a small fire between two rocks to cook their lunch.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported this week that only six public schools in Sanaa have been dedicated for receiving and accommodating the displaced families.

"The schools are due to reopen in few weeks, as discussions and assessments are underway to move the IDPs to the Olympic Center dormitory in the capital," it said in its recent report.

Fattom complained about cold and rain. "We need clothes and blankets for the children ... when my child gets sick, I don't know what to do ... we have no medicine or money to go to the hospital," Fattom said.

"We were comfortable in our home in Hodeidah, but endless war, missiles, artillery and airstrikes changed our fate and turned us into beggars," she said.

When temporary peace was reached in the city, residents took the chance to sell some of their belongings and flee, fearing that the UN-brokered peace negotiations could collapse – by Mohamed al-Azaki

http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-07/24/c_137343765.htm

(B H)

Registered Persons of Concern Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Jordan (15 July 2018)

From Yemen: 11,779.

https://reliefweb.int/report/jordan/registered-persons-concern-refugees-and-asylum-seekers-jordan-15-july-2018

https://reliefweb.int/report/jordan/registered-persons-concern-refugees-and-asylum-seekers-jordan-excluding-syria-and-2

(* A H)

Film: More than 18000 families displaced from #Hodeidah in western #Yemen to the capital Sana'a are still waiting to be helped by all Int'l NGOs. IDPs left everything behind due to ongoing fighting in the city and now they dream to get any kind of assistance from anywhere.

https://twitter.com/Fatikr/status/1021065060582600705

photos: https://twitter.com/Fatikr/status/1021068019131404289

https://twitter.com/Fatikr/status/1021151659341287426

cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis

(A P)

Houthis Exerting Pressure to Control Yemen’s General People’s Congress

The Iran-backed Houthi militias in Yemen have demanded from their loyalists in the General People’s Congress (GPC) in Sanaa to pressure a prominent member of the party to step down from his position as head of its parliamentary bloc.
The Houthis are seeking the ouster of Sultan al-Burkani and several other members of the GPC in order to complete their takeover of the party that used to be headed by late former President Ali Abdullah Saleh until his assassination by the militias in December.
The Houthis are seeking complete control of the GPC to transform it into a political arm that can serve their agenda in upcoming negotiations with United Nations special envoy Martin Griffiths.
This prompted leading member of the party and parliament Speaker Yehya al-Rahi to boycott for over a week parliament meetings in protest against the Houthi actions. The militias took no heed, however, and forced lawmakers to hold parliament sessions even though they hold no legal basis.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1342746/houthis-exerting-pressure-control-yemen%E2%80%99s-general-people%E2%80%99s-congress

Remark: By Saudi news site.

(A H P)

Minister of Water discuss cooperation aspects with UNICEF

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news502969.htm

(* A P)

Houthis torture a new prisoner to death in Sana'a jail

The Houthi militia have tortured a new prisoner too death in their Sana'a jails, according to political activists on social network activists.

Abdurahman Lawyer a well-noted Yemeni lawyer in exile posted on his facebook page that "prisoner Omar al-Riyami died on Sunday in the militia-controlled National Security Agency's jail after more than one year of arrest, forced disappearance and torture."

Al-Riyami was a social network advocate of the government.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-20265

(A P)

Houthis abduct tens of people into radicalization courses

The Houthi militia, in the northern province of Al-Mahweet, abducted dozens of preachers, educators and former army officers to an unknown place for subjecting them to a radicalization program before arming them and deploying them to the warfronts against the government.

Anonymous sources in the province said the militia terrorist theologians have abducted about 200 educators, preachers and officers by force and forced them to attend a brain-washing program that is set to last a whole month.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-20268

Remark: As claimed by anti-Houthi Islah Party news site.

(A P)

Al-Houthi militias storms villages of "Otmah" in Dhamar and inspect the houses of the citizens

In the early morning hours of Monday, the al-Houthi militia raided the villages of Otmah directorate in the province of Dhamar, south of the Yemeni capital, Sana'a.

Local sources of "Almasdar online" said that the al-Houthi militia raided the village of "Yalooth and Sheab Al Safa, Gamomah and Qadam" in the Otmah directorate.

According to the sources, the villagers were awake at 2 p.m. after midnight, on the sounds of slogans of “You are the Hussain Killers”, bullets and explosions believed to be the sounds of bombs fired by al-Houthi in the direction of villages, following the siege of villages from all directions.

A citizen had been shot as a result of shots fired at the residents of those villages by the Houthi, while children and women had been hit by a state of great panic and fear.

The sources pointed out that al-Houthi was then raided the villages, searched the houses of citizens, tampered with their contents and terrorized children and women.

More than 40 houses were searched during raids on houses in those villages, which lasted until 10:00 a.m. Monday, he said.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100432

(A H)

A young man who returned from the front throws himself and a child from a mountain in Manakha

The young man was fighting among al-Houthi and two months before his suicide returned to his family, but that he was suffering from severe psychological and living pressure, which might have led to suicide.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100409

(A K P)

Hodiedah tribal rally protests against coalition war crimes

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news502732.htm

(A H P)

Minister of Planning praises WHO's support for Yemen

Minister of Planning and International Cooperation, Dr. Abdulaziz al-Komim, on Sunday praised the humanitarian and relief support provided by the World Health Organization (WHO) for Yemen.
The UN humanitarian and relief aid, which arrived on board seven planes to Sanaa International Airport, included 168 tons of medicines and vital medical supplies needed by health facilities throughout Yemen, the minister said in a press statement.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news502741.htm

(A P)

Jemen: Huthi-Rebellen bitten Putin um Hilfe

Der Vorsitzende des Obersten Politischen Rates der Huthi-Rebellen, Mahdi al-Mashat, hat Russland um Hilfe bei der Regelung des militärischen Konflikts im Jemen gebeten. Dies berichtet die Nachrichtenagentur SABA.

Mahdi al-Mashat hat an den russischen Präsidenten Wladimir Putin einen Brief gerichtet, in dem er auf „die Aggression gegen Jemen“ sowie auf die „militärische Eskalation seitens der von Saudi-Arabien angeführten Koalition“ hinweist.

https://de.sputniknews.com/politik/20180724321681211-jemen-huthi-rebellen-putin-hilfe/

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

(A P)

The government approves the transfer of the higher authority for medicines and medical supplies from Sana'a to Aden

The government approved, on Wednesday, the transfer of the higher authority for medicines and medical supplies from Sana'a to the interim capital of Yemen, Aden.

The decision to transfer the authority was made during a regular cabinet meeting chaired by the Vice-President of the Council, Interior Minister Ahmed al-Mayseri.

The Ministry of Public Health and population has tabled a draft decision to transfer the authority from Sanaa to Aden, due to the al-Houthi's control over the authority.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100479

My comment: There is a health Ministry at Sanaa; why the Sanaa government should care?

(A T)

Two gunmen assassinate a soldier in the center of Taiz

Two masked gunmen on a motorcycle killed Tuesday evening a soldier in the government forces on the lower Tahrir Street in the southwestern city of Taiz.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100471

(A T)

The police chief of the Al basateen district of Aden survived an assassination attempt

The police chief of the basateen District of Sheikh Osman in Aden, a southern country, the Colonel Musleh al-Dharhani, escaped an assassination attempt on Tuesday evening by unidentified gunmen.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100472

(A P)

Minister of Transportation Causes Al-Makla Seaport a Complete Halt

City of Al-Makla witnessed complete halt of works on Tuesday July 24th, 2018 as workers and employees initiated a strike in front of the seaport gate. Seaport syndicated called for demonstration and strike of all workers and employees on Monday to protest against a decision issued by Saleh Al-Gabwany, minister of transportation, that appointed a person from outside the Arab Sea Association of Seaports, who has no qualifications or previous experience in running seaports, as deputy of the seaport, because of his close relation with the minister, according to the syndicate.

http://en.smanews.org/minister-of-transportation-causes-al-makla-seaport-a-complete-halt

(A P)

Clashes erupted on Wednesday between pro-Hadi forces and UAE-backed security belt forces in #Aden. In regions liberated from Houthi militants, situation is more dangerous than those under Houthi control. And the coalition insists they have secured 85% of Yemen's land. How?

https://twitter.com/FuadRajeh/status/1022152394715607046

(A T)

#Aden: 3 attacks on Wednesday. Army commander escaped roadside bomb explosion while driving on Enma-Caltex road. Several soldiers injured after an adhesive bomb exploded at their vehicle in Sheikh Othman. 6 civilians injured in a hand-grenade attack on Khat market in Attawahi.

https://twitter.com/FuadRajeh/status/1022183214889295872

(A T)

New assassination in Aden south Yemen now! A senior official not loyal UAE occupation forces,Shiek Al Kahoom, survived an assassination attempt, but 3 of his bodyguards killed in Aden south Yemen today Not only one assassination per day, but many! UAE occupation force failed (photo)

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1022038095674392577

(A P)

President Hadi directs the formation of a committee to examine the situation and developments in Al-Mahrah

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100455

Remark: There is civilian uprising at mahrah because of the occupation by Saudi troops. The population of the province claims more autonomy.

(A P)

Aden Islah calls for partnership, denounces its exclusion

Commenting on published chats of the representations of parties in the administrative structure of Aden local government which show Islah's total exclusion, the head of the Media Department of Aden's Islah office, Khalid Haidan, said: It sends a clear message that Islah is innocent of administrative failure for three years."

"It is our right today to be in partnership with others in the construction and administration of Aden," he said stressing that the policy of exclusion practiced against Islah all has become unacceptable.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-20293

(A P)

Minister: The Transitional council publicly rejects the holding of Parliament in Aden and the deputies targeted

A minister in the Yemeni government said the so-called "Southern Transitional Council" is openly refusing to hold the Yemeni parliament in Aden, despite the president's repeated invitations to hold sessions.

"The activation of the parliament in Aden faces many obstacles and difficulties, including the conditions that have prevented the legitimate government from moving and remaining fully in Aden," said Mohammad al-Himiary, Minister of State for the Parliament and Congress Council affairs.

"The transitional council publicly refuses to activate the role of the parliament from Aden," he said, quoting an alien who was quoted as saying, adding that the beneficiaries of the Parliament's failure were the al-Houthi coup d'état and small entrepreneurs.

"The deteriorating security situation in the interim capital, as well as the lack of housing for the members, is part of the reasons that do not allow the meetings to be held," he added.

"Members of the Parliament are targeted and their stay in Aden requires security arrangements," he added.

In response to whether the legitimate government impeded the activation of the Parliament in Aden for reasons of its desire to maintain the lack of regulatory instruments for its work, the state Secretary for the Yemeni parliament said that even if there were impediments by the Government, the decision to activate the Parliament was not in its hands but with the presidency and the Heads of Parliamentary blocs.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100440

My comment: How many MPs really are at Aden? The majority still will be at Aden, holding sessions there.

(A T)

Zwei Zivilisten im Jemen bei Bombenanschlag getötet

Bei einem Bombenanschlag in der jemenitischen Stadt Aden sind zwei Zivilisten ums Leben gekommen.

Den Quellen des Polizeipräsidiums zufolge sei ein Militärfahrzeug das Ziel des Anschlags in der Stadt Inma bei Aden gegenüber des Hotels El-Kasr in der Nähe eines Kontrollpunkts gewesen. Bei dem Anschlag auf der Hauptstraße zwischen den Städten Mansura und Berika wurden vier Soldaten verletzt, als die Autobombe hochging. Der Zustand von zwei der ins Krankenhaus gebrachten Verletzten sei kritisch. Ziel des Anschlags sei ein ranghoher Verantwortlicher in dem Militärfahrzeug gewesen.

http://www.trt.net.tr/deutsch/welt/2018/07/24/zwei-zivilisten-im-jemen-bei-bombenanschlag-getotet-1018421

(A T)

Suicide attack kills two in south Yemen

Two people were killed Tuesday and six, including a security commander loyal to Yemen’s government, wounded in a suicide attack in Aden, a security source said.
The attacker blew himself up while riding a motorbike near a vehicle carrying the commander of a battalion of UAE-backed forces, the source told AFP.
The explosion killed a female passerby and a soldier driving the vehicle that was carrying the commander, who was among four wounded passengers, the source said.
Two civilians were also wounded, added the source, who is loyal to Yemen’s internationally recognized government.
A doctor in Aden confirmed the toll of two dead and six wounded to AFP.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack in the southern city.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1344546/middle-east

and

(A T)
The commander of the battalion4 of the Aden security forces was the target of this suicide bombing today in Aden south Yemen. UAE occupation forces are in conflict Saudi occupation forces (photos)

Some passers-by were killed & injured today when a suicide bomber riding a motorcycle blew himself up on an armored car with a high profile security official inside (photo)

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1021690999666561024

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1021687661755547649

https://twitter.com/ammar82/status/1021724067978719232 (photo)

(A T)

Local media are reporting the attempted assassination today of Mazin al-Sha'bi, #UAE's Sharjah channel correspondent. His car reportedly crashed & overturned when gunmen fired on it in #Aden's Inma' area (image9

https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/1021505149079105536

(* A T)

Two IDPs were killed and five others injured in a hand-grenade attack on a basement shelter of a group of people displaced from Yemen's city of Hodeidah in Aden on Monday. UAE-run Aden: everyone is killed--police and army officers, politicians, clerics, intellectuals and now IDPs

https://twitter.com/FuadRajeh/status/1021389033782632448

https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=1788&cat_id=1

(A P)

Al-Alaimy Prevents Shabwa Handicapped from Meeting Hady and Humiliates Them

Abdullah Al-Alaimy, director of President Hady’s office, prevented members of Shabwa Handicapped association from meeting president Hady to explain their suffering as they headed to Maasheek palace for four consecutive days to meet the president

http://en.smanews.org/al-alaimy-prevents-shabwa-handicapped-from-meeting-hady-and-humiliates-them

(A P)

Al-Muiasery Choses a Provocative Logo for Abian University

In a provocative step from Abian University officials who are loyal to the reform and conference northern parties, the University chooses a logo that is provocative to southern feelings.

http://en.smanews.org/al-muiasery-choses-a-provocative-logo-for-abian-university

(A T)

#Aden: 3 soldiers killed & 2 injured in a drive-by attack on their vehicle in Al-Mansourah district. A civilian was killed & another injured after driver of gunmen lost control of car & hit a bus at a car maintenance workshop during attack. FYI, Pres. Hadi is in Aden these days!

https://twitter.com/FuadRajeh/status/1021064460314857472

cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks

(* A P)

The Foreign minister is disclosing the content of Griffith's initiative about Hodeidah

Yemeni Foreign Minister Khaled al-Yamani said Tuesday that the initiative of Martin Griffith, the UN envoy to Yemen in the western part of the country, included three points, the first of which was the withdrawal of militants of the al-Houthi group.

On the sidelines of his first visit to Abu Dhabi on Sunday, the UAE news agency WAM said the withdrawal of al-Houthi from the city was matched by the replacement of the Yemeni force from the Interior Ministry.

The second point concerned the transfer of the resources of the port of Hodeidah to the central Bank of Hodeidah Branch, under the supervision of the central Bank of the Yemeni government.

He recalled that the third point was the introduction of United Nations observers to help improve port performance and to verify that article 14 of Security Council Resolution No. 2216 on arms embargoes is not being violated.

The Yemeni minister stressed that the initiative was matched by the intransigence and prevarication of al-Houthi, and that their betting on the time factor is a loser.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100470

My comment: Hadi government’s Foreign minister. – if this really would be the ominous UN initiative, I think it’s really worthless: by this, the Houthis actually would hand over Hodeidah port and city and the revenues to the Hadi government. From their point of view, wherefor they should do that? This would not be handing Hodeidah to a neutral party (as the UN), the Un just would send “observers”.

(* A P)

UN envoy returns to Yemen's Sanaa for fresh talks

The UN's Yemen envoy returned to the capital Sanaa on Wednesday for fresh talks with rebels, as the government threatens to resume its offensive on a key port city if mediation fails.

Pro-government forces backed up by a coalition led by Saudi Arabia have paused their assault on Hodeida port in a bid they say to give UN-led peace efforts a chance.

UN envoy Martin Griffiths has been pushing for weeks to relaunch negotiations between Yemen's internationally recognised government and Iran-backed Huthi rebels.

The government is looking for the Huthis to withdraw from Hodeida before peace talks can resume and insists Yemeni authorities must take control of the city.

A senior official said the government would accept the presence of international observers to "oversee the management of the port and the delivery of financial revenues" to the central bank it controls.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-5991653/UN-envoy-returns-Yemens-Sanaa-fresh-talks.html

(A P)

The UN envoy to Yemen,Martin Griffiths,arrivedNSanaa airport now The man is hard on it! He's been shuttling back and forth between Sanaa, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi But nothing has come out yet Saudis arrogantly wants surrender not peace! It's only peace of brave or war forever (photos)

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1022059075721469952

(A P)

Hodeidah peace deal running out of time, says Yemeni Minister of Foreign Affairs

The Houthis stall Hodeidah peace talks and look to rope coalition into costly civilian battle

Houthi rebels in Yemen are stalling UN peace negotiations in a bid to further entrench themselves in Hodeidah and drag the coalition into urban warfare in Yemen’s biggest port city, the country’s Foreign Minister said Tuesday.

Minister Khaled Al Yemany said the Houthis are “buying time” through the UN negotiation process, which is taking place during a month-long ceasefire in Hodeidah, to deploy more fighters in the densely populated city. But the Yemeni government official warned that if rebels don’t completely withdraw from the town, “they will be buried in Hodeidah.”

He said Houthis were attempting to readjust the terms, delivered by UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths, to say they would only be willing to withdraw from the port area but not the city.

“If they just withdraw from the seaport it’s meaningless, they will be within 1 kilometre of the seaport and it will be a clashing point to disrupt all efforts. So, we say the full withdrawal from Hodeidah is a prerequisite for any successful outcome for these efforts,” the minister said.

https://www.thenational.ae/world/mena/hodeidah-peace-deal-running-out-of-time-says-yemeni-minister-of-foreign-affairs-1.753695

and

(A P)

Houthis’ bets on buying time will prove futile: Yemeni Foreign Minister

The UN Special Envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths’ new initiative on Hodeidah is being met with intransigence and evasive manoeuvers, on the part of the Houthi militias, said Yemeni Foreign Minister Khalid Al Yamani, affirming that the insurgents’ bets on buying time will ultimately prove futile.

Speaking to the Emirates News Agency, WAM, Al Yamani said, following a media briefing he had today in Abu Dhabi, that the UN Envoy's initiative is crystal clear and consists of three main points. "The first is the full withdrawal of Houthis from Hodeidah and handing over their control over the city to the Yemeni Ministry of Interior. The second point is ensuring the control of the legitimate government's Central Bank over the financial resources of the Hodeidah Port, while the third point is to allow UN supervisors access to help improve the performance of ports and ensure enforcement of Article 14 of UNSC Resolution No 2216 on banning the supply of arms."

"We are extending our hand to the UN Special Envoy who has had enough time to contact the Houthis," he added.

"If the Houthis do not withdraw from Hodeidah and Yemen's Red Sea Coast, Yemen's Legitimate Government and the Saudi-led Arab Coalition have all options, under the international law and with the blessing of the international community, to accomplish the mission and ensure full liberation of our territories until Sanaa," he stated.

http://wam.ae/en/details/1395302700565

My comment: The propaganda machine is working. This statement wants to make us believe that the UN envoys initiative would be identical to the Saudi coalition claims, which would be highly dubious. The Houthis would not have any reason to accept this. – Furtheron he wants to male us believe that in case the Houthis do not agree “Yemen's Legitimate Government and the Saudi-led Arab Coalition have all options with the blessing of the international community, to accomplish the mission and ensure full liberation of our territories until Sanaa," that means he wants to justify the pending assault of Hodeidah and make us believe that the assault is taken to be granted, that this is a “mission”. And he also tells that it’s not just Hodeidah, the Hadi government not at all would be satisfied by obtaining Hodeidah or greater parts of the coast – they want war until the total defeat of the Houthis.

(A P)

Griffiths Seeks Houthi Withdrawal From Hodeidah City, Port

UN special envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths is preparing to visit Sanaa in the coming days, following his return Monday to the Jordanian capital after he met with Yemeni parties in Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh.
The envoy is expected to receive the Iran-backed Houthi militias’ response to his proposal on resolving the Yemen crisis. He had met the Houthis during his most recent trip to the war-torn country.
An informed western source told Asharq Al-Awsat that Griffiths is working on protecting Hodeidah from the hostilities and preventing the militias from remaining in the city.
On Sunday, Yemeni Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr had handed Griffiths the legitimate government’s response to his Hodeidah suggestions.
The envoy also met with Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir in Riyadh on Sunday.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1341556/griffiths-seeks-houthi-withdrawal-hodeidah-city-port = https://www.albawaba.com/news/un-envoy-griffiths-prepares-visit-sanaa-soon-1163814

My comment: For Jaber’s statements, cp15. – Saudi coalition politics and media want to make us believe that the UN solution would be identical to the Saudi coalition’s preconditions.

(A P)

Organization of Islamic Cooperation chief meets Griffiths to discuss Yeme

The secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Dr. Yousef bin Ahmed Al-Othaimeen, on Monday met with Martin Griffiths, the special envoy of UN secretary-general to Yemen.
During the meeting, they discussed the latest political, security and humanitarian developments in Yemen as well as the efforts of the UN envoy to reach a political solution to end the conflict in Yemen according to the GCC initiative, the outcomes of the National Dialogue Conference in Yemen, and Security Council Resolution No. 2216.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1344201/saudi-arabia

My comment: This organization is a Saudi mouthpiece. – “a political solution to end the conflict in Yemen according to …” is the three preconditions of the Saudi coalition and the Hadi government, having blocked any peace efforts so far.

(A P)

Peace plan of UN special envoy for #Yemen, Martin Griffiths, does not call on Western regimes to stop warmongering and arms sales to Gulf proxies as a step to pave way for restarting negotiations. He would say then "I spare no effort to facilitate a political settlement"!!

https://twitter.com/FuadRajeh/status/1021302525218181120

(A P)

Al-Jubair discusses the situation in Yemen with the UN envoy

The Saudi foreign minister, Adel al- Jubair, met Sunday evening with the UN envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffith, who is visiting Riyadh as part of a regional tour to contain the Battle of Hodeidah.

According to the Saudi Press agency SPA, al- Jubair received the Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General and discussed the situation in Yemen.

The meeting came hours after the UN envoy met with Yemeni government president Ahmed Obeid bin Dadger, who handed him written replies to his Government on Griffith's proposals to resolve the Battle of Hodeidah.

According to the agency, al- Jubair discussed with Griffith the Kingdom's support for the United Nations efforts for Yemen, as well as the humanitarian efforts to rescue the Yemeni people.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100418

My comment: This means he told propaganda stories to Griffith.

(A P)

After having bombed, killed maimed, staved and put #Yemen under blockade for over 3 years, the government in exile said on Sunday that it will return to the negotiating table if 'Houthis release all the prisoners and facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid'.
Adding that the goodwill to resume talks must include withdrawing fully from the capital #Sanaaand all cities, hand over weapons, and the legitimate power [must] return.
While asking Yemenis to retreat (to where?) Hadi's exiled government is confirming no willingness to peace

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1837856176267404/?type=3

cp7a Saudi-Arabien und Iran / Saudi Arabia and Iran

(* B P)

Dollars and pilgrims: Iranians fear Hajj cash will fund Saudi's Yemen war

For decades the Hajj has been a sporadic flashpoint between Iran and Saudi Arabia, on whose soil the pilgrimage is held.

But for this year's pilgrimage, which begins on 19 August, a new factor has been thrown into the volatile mix: Iranian government plans to offer a $200 subsidy to every pilgrim.

Critics say that the money, provided by the state, will ultimately trickle into the war that Riyadh is leading against rebel forces in Yemen – a war in which Tehran backs the Houthis, the group fighting the Saudi coalition.

The strength of feeling on Iranian social media is so strong that it has managed a near-impossible feat: uniting opinion between the traditional rival blocs of hardliners and reformists.

"We may have a number of problems with Saudis, but people from around the world go to Mecca to perform the Hajj,” says Shamsedin. “Our presence amid such an atmosphere can help to defeat the propaganda against us. Saudis attack Iran verbally more than Israel.

"I don’t think Iranian Hajj pilgrims' money will benefit Saudi Arabia and will be used in the war against Yemeni people. The amount of money we carry to Mecca and Medina is nothing comparing to Saudi war spending."

But there are those in Iran who disagree.

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/hajj-iran-dollars-and-pilgrims-iranians-fear-cash-fund-saudis-yemen-war-mecca-1146409403

cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia

(* B P)

Saudi Arabia’s ‘liberal’ Crown Prince is a year into his tenure – how is he doing?

When Mohammad bin Salman, first announced his ambitious, nationwide reform programme – bearing the rather theatrical title, Vision 2030 – targets included diversifying the economy, improving public services such as health and education, and, front and centre, drastically reducing dependence on oil. Two years on – and now Crown Prince – bin Salman’s reforms continue apace.

There have been improvements to economic infrastructure, and some development of a previously poor transport system – but no major movement on the kingdom’s oil addiction. Most members of the country’s ruling elite have been noncommittal on reform, and have refused to address structural problems in both the economy and the government.

In order to meet these goals, bin Salman quickly introduced a liberalising agenda for both the economy and society.

There is also a political angle. When bin Salman became Crown Prince he did so at the expense of incumbent Mohammad bin Nayef, his cousin, who was summarily stripped of all his official duties, angering sections of the public and the Saudi ruling elite. Bin Salman’s strident reforms are intended to help consolidate his position, build legitimacy, and send a message to those who would oppose him.

Bin Salman’s unyielding style of governance, however, mixed with Saudi Arabia’s unique political culture, may make for a rocky road ahead. First, tensions are rising with the conservative elements in the kingdom’s powerful religious and tribal establishments. It remains to be seen how obstructive they might be to the implementation of reforms.

Second, bin Salman’s aggressive, provocative stance towards Iran raises the possibility of war between the two states. Besides the obvious human cost, this would distract from reform and drain the Saudi coffers

There is no doubt that the current reform programme is a giant step forward for the kingdom’s future welfare, and will surely facilitate further integration with the West. But how these reforms are implemented is more important than the garish manner with which they have been announced. Given how provocative and aggressive bin Salman has been in his foreign and domestic policies, this “progressive” prince may soon face a whole new set of challenges.

https://theconversation.com/saudi-arabias-liberal-crown-prince-is-a-year-into-his-tenure-how-is-he-doing-99743

My comment: No word on Yemen at all – this war until Salman’s death and might it happen in 50 years will render his appearance on the stage a catastrophe.

(A P)

Saudi Crown Prince hires CEO for giant Riyadh tourism project

Jerry Inzerillo to oversee development of a number of major new historical and tourism assets as CEO of the Diriyah Gate Development Authority

Saudi Arabia has hired a "tourism visionary" to spearhead its plan to develop a number of major new historical and tourism assets.

Mohammed Bin Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince of the Saudi Arabia and chairman of the Diriyah Gate Development Authority (DGDA) has named Gerard “Jerry” Inzerillo as CEO of the authority.

Inzerillo will oversee the restoration of Diriyah and the development of new museums, academic institutions and “edutainment” facilities, as well as resorts, restaurants, wellness facilities and high-end retail in a 7.1 million square metre development on the west side of Riyadh.

“I am deeply honoured to have the privilege to contribute to His Royal Highness’ dynamic vision for the nation,” said Inzerillo

https://www.arabianbusiness.com/travel-hospitality/401501-saudi-crown-prince-hires-ceo-for-giant-riyadh-tourism-project

Comment: In #Yemen, MbS has deliberately bombarded and destroyed archaeological sites, hotels, tourism infrastructure, museums, occupied/looted protected land.
Taking away Yemen's beauty and heritage will not make Saudi Arabia THE destination of the Middle East.
If you care, on any level, for Yemen, we ask you to boycott until peace is brought back to our land.

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1841406409245714

(A E P)

Exclusive: General Electric's power unit faces threat in Saudi Arabia

One of General Electric Co’s (GE.N) largest and most valuable customers, Saudi Arabia, is lining up competitors to bid against GE for lucrative power plant work.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-ge-saudi-exclusive/exclusive-general-electrics-power-unit-faces-threat-in-saudi-arabia-idUSKBN1K90HU

(B H)

Why domestic abuse victims in KSA are turning to Twitter

Numerous Saudi women have taken to the social media site, with domestic violence incidents stirring up the nation several times

Saudi Arabia has a law against domestic abuse, but most people are not familiar with the regulations, lawyer Dimah Al-Sharif tells Arab News

Twitter has become a platform for victims of domestic abuse in Saudi Arabia to speak out about their suffering, seek help and urge authorities to take action to change their fate.

Numerous Saudi women have taken to the social media site, with domestic violence incidents stirring up the nation several times.

The law protects those who report abuse cases if they appeared to be well-intentioned, according to Article 6 of the Protection from Abuse Law, which stipulates that “a bona fide individual reporting a case of abuse shall be exempted from liability if it is established that such case is not a case of abuse, in accordance with the provisions of this Law.”

Early in 2017, Saudi women, once again, found a way to break their silence and expose stories of domestic violence, harassment and rape they face often on a daily basis through the viral hashtag #Break_Your_Silence_Speak_Up in which Saudi women started sharing their bitter stories that usually go untold.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1343046/saudi-arabia

Remark: This is a Saudi news site.

(* B P)

On Sunday, Saudi women will start driving, consigning, at last, a conspicuous symbol of such oppression to the scrapheap. These are heady days in the Saudi Arabia of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, known as M.B.S., who became heir to the throne in a virtual palace coup a year ago, ousting his cousin Mohammed bin Nayef. He’s a hard-charging 32-year-old disrupter.

President Trump has embraced the prince as his lost Middle Eastern son, a young man who hates Iran, hates political Islam and loves money. It’s a risky bet that a rash upstart can end the Saudi bargain with the devil that contributed to jihadist terrorism around the world. To some degree, the level of violence and instability in the Arab world will depend on the Saudi experiment.

The prince’s apparent aim is to upend just about everything, except the absolute rule exercised since 1932 by the House of Saud, with the help of oil and American power. He wants to liberalize, at least economically and socially, and so demonstrate that Islam, in the nation of its holiest cities, Mecca and Medina, is not a harsh, unbendable rule book based on ancient scripture but is rather compatible with modernity and tolerance.

During a week in the capital, Riyadh, and the Red Sea port of Jeddah, I found a dizzying nation where ultrachic malls are full of stores that close five times a day for prayer and modern restaurants are still enmeshed in the regulatory minutiae of segregating men from women. There’s a heavy dose of glitzy Houston and a repressive hint of Pyongyang. People marveled when the country’s first movie theaters opened this year.

The prince’s makeover could, in theory, change more than Saudi Arabia. Five times a day many of the world’s 1.8 billion Muslims turn toward the country in prayer. “When people look at Saudi Arabia, see Mecca and Medina, they want to emulate it,” the Saudi foreign minister, Adel al-Jubeir, told me in an interview. “When they see openness and moderation and tolerance and innovation, that’s what they want to be.” No other country, he argued, has “that soft power.”

In other words, change Islam in its Saudi nucleus and you change the world. It was not, of course, Saudi moderation that put 15 Saudis on the 9/11 planes. It was the well-funded metastasis of extreme Saudi religious intolerance — its Wahhabi orthodoxy — into forms of murderous Islamist hatred of the apostate West. It was the House of Saud’s unseemly deal with fundamentalist clerical firebrands: Spare us here at home, and we’ll grant you license abroad.

Unshackling women is part of the prince’s effort to show he’s broken with all that. But as the arrests last month of several female activists, including Loujain al-Hathloul, suggested, he faces a delicate balancing act. The arrests reek of hypocrisy and fear.

If the prince can indeed change his mind, Qatar and Yemen would be good places to start. Qatar is not going to genuflect to every demand. Yemen is not going to be an Iran-free zone.

“Where would we be if the Yemen war had not taken place?” Helaissi, the Shura member, asked me. “But this has been terrible for our image around the world. I think it’s our Vietnam.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/21/opinion/sunday/saudi-arabia-women-drivers.html

cp9 USA

Siehe / Look at cp1

(* A B K P)

Congress Needs to Stop All U.S. Support for the War on Yemen Now

Anything that could limit U.S. involvement in the war is an improvement, but I fear that conditioning U.S. assistance on this certification won’t reduce support for the war in practice. This provision leaves it up to the Secretary of State to certify that the Saudi coalition is doing all these things, and we have to assume in advance that Pompeo will do just that. The problem is that the Saudi coalition isn’t doing any of these things and it isn’t going to start doing them. There is no evidence that the Saudi coalition is making efforts to end the war, alleviate the humanitarian disaster, reduce delays in aid shipments, or reduce risk of harm to civilians.

On the contrary, the Saudi coalition is currently in the process of escalating the war with its Hodeidah offensive. The coalition continues its blockade and diverts and delays ships coming to Yemen. The Saudis and their allies continue to strike civilian targets with the same blatant disregard for civilian life that they have shown throughout the conflict. The administration has given them carte blanche for the last eighteen months, and there is no reason to think that will change because of this provision. This has always been the flaw in the Young-Shaheen approach, and it is why the Senate should have adopted the Sanders-Lee resolution earlier this year.

The White House rejects the addition of this provision to the bill just as they have opposed every measure that would restrict or end U.S. involvement in and support for the war. If there is a loophole that allows U.S. support for the war on Yemen to continue, this administration is going to take advantage of it regardless of the facts. That is why the only way that Congress can rein in the coalition and end U.S. complicity in their crimes is to cut off all military assistance at once. Anything less than that won’t reduce U.S. involvement in the war, and it won’t help the Yemeni civilians that need the U.S. to halt the coalition’s war on their country – by Daniel Larison

http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/congress-needs-to-stop-all-u-s-support-for-the-war-on-yemen-now/

(* A B K P)

Limits on support for Saudi campaign ‘nothing but fig leaf to shield US complicity in Yemen’

Congress is trying to camouflage US responsibility for civilian deaths in Yemen – it’s an attempt to put lipstick on the pig of the Saudi-led criminal war against Yemen, Brian Becker from Answer Coalition told RT.

The US Senate revealed this year's defense policy bill which puts conditions on US arms sales to Saudi Arabia for its operations in Yemen. It wants assurances from Saudi Arabia that it will do everything to end the Yemeni civil war and eliminate civilian deaths.

Becker from Answer Coalition believes that this measure won’t end the bloodshed and the war in Yemen.

“I would say in many ways this measure is something of a sham,” he told RT. “Here you have the US Senate requiring the secretary of defense and the secretary of state to certify in Congress that, in fact, the money being used by the Pentagon for Saudi Arabia isn’t done in such a way as to commit war crimes or crimes against humanity. But in fact the entire war is premised on illegal conduct. It’s an illegal war from the beginning.”

The provision, included in the Senate-passed NDAA, says that if the US cannot certify that the Saudis are not engaged in criminal conduct, the US will stop refueling Saudi aircraft, said Becker.

Becker explained that the US itself “is not simply giving money to the Saudis to carry out an illegal criminal war in Yemen,” but is coordinating and refueling Saudi aircraft and helping to select the targets for Saudi bombs. According to Becker, this resolution is toothless and an embarrassment for parts of the American political establishment.

“The US is neck-deep into this criminal war against the people of Yemen, so it is trying to distance the US from the criminal conduct but it doesn’t actually do anything effective in that regard,” he noted. It’s simply a bid to whitewash American complicity “with the terrible criminal war by the Saudi government against the people of Yemen.”

"Now as the whole world is pointing its finger and saying to the Saudis, ‘You are engaged in criminal conduct, you are engaged in crimes against humanity, this must end.’ Congress is trying to camouflage, shield or absolve the US for the responsibility of this government, the US government in this terrible criminal war. This resolution is nothing other than a fig leaf or a mask to shield American complicity,” claimed Becker.

https://www.rt.com/usa/434252-yemen-saudi-us-bill/

(* A P)

Democrats back massive Pentagon budget for war and repression

Senate Democrats joined Republicans this week to approve a massive expansion of the US military as demanded by President Donald Trump. Congressional action on the near-record Pentagon budget is taking place behind a veil of silence, with no public discussion and virtually no media coverage.

The so-called “John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019”, which passed the Senate 85-10 Monday after having been approved by the House of Representatives in May, allocates $716 billion for the Defense Department, an increase of $82 billion.

This increase alone is larger than the total budget of the Department of Education, approximately $70 billion.

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2018/06/23/pers-j23.html

(B P)

Anyone who says the US cares about democracy/equality in other countries is either deluding themselves or lying. Countries are deemed good/bad based on their subservience to US empire. That’s why Saudi Arabia, Israel & Honduras are good while Russia, Iran & Venezuela are bad.

https://twitter.com/RaniaKhalek/status/1021717992621649922

(B K P)

Essential Imperatives for U.S. Arms Transfer Policy

U.S. arms sales abroad are booming but not without controversy, as seen in recent sales to Turkey and Saudi Arabia. The Trump administration’s new arms transfer policy aims to make it easier for U.S. industry to sell weapons to other countries, but there has been debate in national security, industry, and humanitarian circles about what has changed. It is clear that the administration wants to sell more arms abroad, in theory to create American jobs and empower allied and partner countries so that they can tackle their own security challenges. Arms transfers, however, are a foreign policy tool. The Trump administration’s successful implementation of its new arms transfer policy requires two steps: first, a balance of the economic, security, and humanitarian imperatives that undergird these types of foreign policy decisions; and second, transparency of the rationale, process, and timeline of the arms transfer decisions.

This is the first update to U.S. conventional arms transfer policy since the Obama-era Presidential Directive-27. The elevated focus on economic gains as an incentive for defense trade seems to be the major change. While the prospect of new economic opportunities for industry is positive, stakeholders involved from government, industry, partner nations, and civil society should distinguish between rhetoric and reality. Upfront and regular communication with stakeholders about the balance of economic, security, and humanitarian imperatives in any arms transfer decision, coupled with rigorous policy planning and evaluation, will facilitate smooth execution.

Security Imperative

Arms transfers are an extension of U.S. foreign policy, and thus, the U.S. government should link them to U.S. interests and objectives, driven by U.S. national security and defense strategies. Arms transfers should be designed as part of an overall U.S. security cooperation approach to build allied and partner defense capability and interoperability in ways that mitigate risk in U.S. plans for managing crises and contingencies

Humanitarian Imperative

Arms transfers may prompt humanitarian risks, because once arms are transferred, the United States may have limited leverage or control over how they are used. While enhanced end-use monitoring and evaluation accountability may mitigate risks, uncertainty remains in terms of how a partner might use its equipment (e.g., Saudi Arabia and UAE’s intervention in Yemen, which has prompted significant humanitarian concerns).

Looking Forward

While the economic imperative associated with arms transfers is important for industry stakeholders, the security and humanitarian imperatives inherent in this issue should not be forgotten

https://www.csis.org/analysis/essential-imperatives-us-arms-transfer-policy

My comment: This is a typical US politic al mainstream product which does not question nor arms sales at all, nor US’ playing the role of world’s mafia boss, but is oriented on “U.S. interests and objectives”, whatever this really means. It’s certainly not the “interests and objectives” of this US lady who was badly hurt and begged bystanders not to call an ambulance because she could not afford the costs: https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2018/07/03/video-rescue-woman-trapped-injured-boston-subway/756068002/ and the great majority of her fellow countrymen who would be constrained to do the same as she did.

(* A P)

Final defense bill would limit US support to Saudi campaign in Yemen

The final version of this year's defense policy bill would put conditions on the U.S. refueling of Saudi Arabian and Emirati planes bombing Yemen.

The compromise National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) unveiled by House and Senate Armed Services Committee staffers Monday retained and modified a provision from the Senate-passed version that would require the Saudi-led coalition to meet certain criteria before the U.S. military can refuel its planes.

“Yemen remains an area of intense interest and concern for our members, and we have aggressive oversight in the conference report,” a senior staffer told reporters at a background briefing.

Under the provision included in the Senate-passed NDAA, the secretary of State would have to certify to Congress that the Saudi coalition is undertaking efforts to end the civil war; alleviate the humanitarian disaster by increasing access to food, fuel and medicine; reduce delays in shipments of humanitarian supplies; and reduce the risk of harm to civilians.

Without the certification, the United States would be banned from refueling Saudi coalition aircraft for missions exclusively focused on the war in Yemen. The United States could still refuel coalition aircraft for certain other missions, such as those against al Qaeda and the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

The secretary could also issue a waiver allowing the refueling for national security reasons. The waiver could not be granted without submitting a detailed justification to Congress.

On Monday, a staffer told reporters the language in the final NDAA was adjusted to specify Emirati planes also would be banned from getting U.S. refueling without the certification.

The White House said last month that it "strongly objects" to the provision in the Senate bill that would place restrictions on Saudi Arabia.

http://thehill.com/policy/defense/398457-final-defense-bill-includes-limit-on-us-support-to-saudi-campaign-in-yemen

My comment: A little bit more of bureaucracy and a few more ltters to Congress, and nothing will change at all.

(* B P)

Making Sense Of U.S. Moves In The Middle East

Geopolitics (and a common enemy) can make strange bedfellows. In a recent New Yorker article, Adam Entous suggests that a new ménage-à-quatre was formed in the region in the run-up to Donald Trump’s election, bringing Israel, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the United States ever closer.

Does Anyone Remember Yemen?

If there is a place in the greater Middle East even more desperate than Syria, it has to be Yemen. With U.S.logistical and financial support, Saudi Arabia has waged a cruel air war against the Houthis, a home-grown movement that in 2015 overthrew the government of president Ali Abdullah Saleh. What is the Saudi interest in Yemen? As in their support for a potential UAE-Israel-Russia-U.S. alliance in Syria, they’re intent on fighting a proxy war — and someday perhaps via the U.S. and Israel, a real war — with Iran.

In this case, however, it seems that the other side in that war hasn’t shown up. Although, like the Iranian government and most Iranians, the Houthi are Shi’a Muslims, there is little evidence of Iranian involvement in Yemen. That hasn’t stopped the Saudis (with American support) from turning that country into “the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.”

We Have to Talk about It

With President Trump and his secretary of state now talking openly about a possible “escalation between us and the Iranians,” there is a real risk that some combination of the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia could initiate a war with Iran. If there’s one lesson to be learned from U.S. wars since 9/11, it’s “don’t start another one.”

For more than 70 years, Americans have largely ignored the effects of U.S. foreign policy in the rest of the world. Rubble in Syria? Famine in Yemen? It’s terribly sad, yes, but what, we still wonder, does it have to do with us?

That Part of the World doesn’t wonder about how U.S. actions and policies affect them. That Part of the World knows — and what it knows is devastating. It’s time that real debate about future U.S. policy there becomes part of our world, too – by Rebecca Gordon

http://www.tomdispatch.com/blog/176449/ = https://lobelog.com/making-sense-of-u-s-moves-in-the-middle-east/

(* A P)

Otaiba: Washington Refused to Provide More Support to Saudi Coalition in West Coast of Hodeidah

United Arab Emirates ambassador in Washington, Yousif al-Otaiba, said his country had complained about the United States' refusal to provide more support to the Saudi Coalition in the West Coast of Hodeidah of Yemen.

At a symposium organized by the American Aspen Institute, al-Otaibi said that a US official told him that the American public opinion refused to offer any support for doing more in the Middle East, pointing out that his country would take on the task itself and would bear the consequences of such a decision.

"One time a US official told me there was no public support for US to do more in the Middle East," Otaiba said.

"We find someone who says you can not do that in Yemen. The United States can not be duplicated in its positions, it must define its role in the world: do they intend to engage or not?", UAE ambassador in Washington stressed.

https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=1786&cat_id=1

(* A P)

Trump zu Rouhani: "Drohe niemals wieder den Vereinigten Staaten"

Der iranische Präsident hatte zuvor Trump vor der "Mutter aller Kriege" gewarnt

Nach dem Showdown mit Kim Jong-un, der in ein Treffen mündete, das nach Donald Trump die "Denuklearisierung" Nordkoreas zur Folgen haben wird, was aber nur ein Wunschtraum zu werden scheint, fand das Treffen zwischen Trump und Wladimir Putin statt. Konkrete Ergebnisse gibt es nicht, womöglich ist sich Trump nun sicherer, dass eine Konfrontation mit dem Iran nicht automatisch Russland zum Gegner der USA machen würde. Jedenfalls hat die Trump-Regierung, die schon lange Iran als den schwächeren Gegner im Vergleich zu Nordkorea, China oder Russland ausgemacht hat, das Land schon seit Beginn der Präsidentschaft im Visier. Der Ausstieg aus dem Iran-Abkommen und der gegen den Iran gerichtete Zusammenschluss mit Saudi-Arabien folgten.

Den Anfang durfte nun Außenminister Mike Pompeo machen, der auf einer Rede am Sonntag in Kalifornien die iranische Führung wegen ihres Reichtums und ihrer Korruption als "Mafia" bezeichnete und den Iranern, die mit ihrer Regierung unzufrieden sind, Unterstützung zusicherte. Bis Anfang November will die US-Regierung den Iran von Geldeinnahmen austrocknen. Die Regierung, so Pompeo, werde mit den Staaten, die iranisches Öl importieren, zusammenarbeiten, um die Ölimporte auf nahe Null zu drücken. Zusammenarbeit ist nett ausgedrückt, es wird um erheblichen Druck gehen.

In einer Kaskade an Tweets zeigt Pompeo, wie die USA Einfluss auf andere Länder nehmen, dagegen verblassen die russischen "Beeinflussungskampagnen". In einer "Botschaft" an das iranische Volk verkündet Pompeo auf Persisch und Englisch: "Die USA hören euch. Die USA unterstützen euch. Die USA sind mit euch." Und in der oben erwähnten Rede sagte Pompeo auch noch, dass der U.S. Broadcasting Board of Governors den Iranern helfen wird, die Internetzensur zu umgehen und dass ein neuer 24/7-Kanal in Persisch (Fernsehen, Radio, Digital und Soziale Medien) gestartet wird.

Man hat nur darauf warten müssen, dass der zornige Mann aus dem Weißen Haus in die Tasten greift, um die Drohungen gegenüber dem Iran zu verstärken, wie man das bereits aus dem Umgang mit Kim Jong-un kennt. Seinen Tweet richtete er direkt an Rouhani und schrieb dann in Großbuchstaben weiter, mit denen er seine Botschaft aufblähte: "Drohe niemals wieder den Vereinigten Staaten oder du wirst Konsequenzen erfahren, wie sie nur wenige jemals in der Geschichte erlitten haben. Wir sind kein Land mehr, das deine schwachsinnigen Worte von Gewalt und Tod dulden wird. Sei vorsichtig!"

Man kann ahnen, wie sehr die Warnung Rouhanis den amerikanischen Präsidenten schäumen ließ. Er ließ sich zumindest zu einer Drohung hinreißen, die man eigentlich als Kriegserklärung verstehen muss. Und er zog eine rote Linie, die absehbar bald vom Abgehörigen des iranischen Regimes überschritten werden wird, um ihn zu provozieren – von Florian Rötzer

https://www.heise.de/tp/features/Trump-zu-Rouhani-Drohe-niemals-wieder-den-Vereinigten-Staaten-4118069.html

und

(* A P)

Trump weiter auf Konfrontationskurs mit dem Iran - USA gründen persischen Propagandasender

Die Spannungen zwischen USA und dem Iran verschärfen sich. Während Trump mit militärischen Konsequenzen droht, kündigte Außenminister Pompeo die Gründung eines Fernsehsenders an. Dieser soll rund um die Uhr auf Farsi gegen das islamische Establishment senden.

Ziel sei es, die Iraner zu Hause und im Ausland wissen zu lassen, dass die USA auf ihrer Seite stehen. Geplant sind außerdem noch ein Radioprogramm sowie Inhalte in den sozialen Medien.

Des Weiteren warnte Pompeo, die USA würden auch vor den härtesten Sanktionen nicht zurückschrecken. Andere Länder forderte der Außenminister auf, sich dem Druck auf den Iran anzuschließen (mit Film)

https://deutsch.rt.com/der-nahe-osten/73401-trump-weiter-auf-konfrontationskurs-mit-iran-persischer-propagandasender/ und Film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruQggtCH-uI&t=47s

(* A P)

The #Iran/#US/#Trump discourse is childishly absurd. USA: We should start a war with Iran! IRAN: If you start a war with us you will lose! USA: HOW DARE YOU THREATEN AMERICA?!?!?

https://twitter.com/OffGuardian0/status/1021331368922558466

Rouhani's "mother of wars" made headlines in US media but if you read the entire speech he's preparing the public for the possibilities of a defensive war on Iranian soil, disintegration and sanctions.

https://twitter.com/thekarami/status/1021369584870281217

(* A P)

Pompeo assails Iran's leaders, compares them to 'mafia'

Pompeo, in a California speech to a largely Iranian-American audience, dismissed Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, who negotiated a nuclear deal with the United States and five other countries, as “merely polished front men for the ayatollahs’ international con artistry.”

Iran “is run by something that resembles the mafia more than a government,” Pompeo said, citing what he called Iranian leaders’ vast wealth and corruption.

Pompeo’s speech was the latest step in a communications offensive launched by the Trump administration that is meant to foment unrest in Iran and help pressure its government to end its nuclear program and support of militant groups, U.S. officials familiar with the matter said.

The offensive is meant to work in concert with severe economic sanctions that Washington plans to reimpose in the coming months, including on Tehran’s oil exports, its principal revenue generator.

The United States will work with countries that import Iranian oil “to get imports as close to zero as possible” by Nov. 4, Pompeo said.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-iran-pompeo/pompeo-assails-irans-leaders-compares-them-to-mafia-idUSKBN1KD049

(A P)

On Fox, Iraq War booster Ari Fleischer says the US should destabilize Iran to initiate regime change

Fleischer: "The more unstable we can help Iran to become, the better it is to actually secure peace if we can get rid of that theological regime one day"

Iran is going through turmoil in its streets and its cities right now and has been for months, and it's a leaderless rebellion that's taking place because there is such a dissatisfaction throughout the Iranian society with its government. And [Secretary of State] Mike Pompeo put his finger on one of the biggest problems and it's corruption. The people want their basic needs, they want their food, they want their healthcare, they want their environment -- and the Iranian government is so corrupt it's making it much harder for people to live in that country. So fascinating changes underway inside of Iran, no one can predict where they're going to go. But the more unstable we can help Iran to become, the better it is to actually secure peace if we can get rid of that theological regime one day, or if the Iranian people can get rid of it themselves.

https://www.mediamatters.org/video/2018/07/23/fox-iraq-war-booster-ari-fleischer-says-us-should-destabilize-iran-initiate-regime-change/220755

Remark: Ari Fleischer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ari_Fleischer

(* A P)

U.S. launches campaign to erode support for Iran's leaders

The Trump administration has launched an offensive of speeches and online communications meant to foment unrest and help pressure Iran to end its nuclear program and its support of militant groups, U.S. officials familiar with the matter said.

More than half a dozen current and former officials said the campaign, supported by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and national security adviser John Bolton, is meant to work in concert with U.S. President Donald Trump’s push to economically throttle Iran by re-imposing tough sanctions. The drive has intensified since Trump withdrew on May 8 from a 2015 seven-nation deal to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

The current and former officials said the campaign paints Iranian leaders in a harsh light, at times using information that is exaggerated or contradicts other official pronouncements, including comments by previous administrations.

The White House declined comment on the campaign. The State Department also declined to comment on the campaign specifically, including on Pompeo’s role.

A review of the State Department’s Farsi-language Twitter account and its ShareAmerica website - which describes itself as a platform to spark debate on democracy and other issues - shows a number of posts critical of Tehran over the last month.

Iran is the subject of four of the top five items on the website’s “Countering Violent Extremism” section. They include headlines such as “This Iranian airline helps spread violence and terror.”

Some of the information the administration has disseminated is incomplete or distorted, the current and former officials said.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-iran/u-s-launches-campaign-to-erode-support-for-irans-leaders-idUSKBN1KB0UR

My comment: Propaganda, lies and deception, bullying, blackmailing, warmongering, regime change, assaults, wars: This is US foreign policy already very long time before Trump got president. – It’s really amazing to compare this to “Russiagate”: The US hysteria on supposed Russian meddling into US politics – which even more and more proofs to be a mostly invented propaganda story.

Comment: As if to say the Middle East is not chaotic and troubled enough, the #US is fomenting a new mechanism to cause unrest and help pressure Iran to end its nuclear program and its support of militant groups. The 'militants groups' part is almost hilarious.

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/1837067553012933

and on this subject also:

(* B P)

For those wondering who the aggressor is, here's a map showing the proximity to Iran of US military bases, assets and NATO installations. Imagine if there were that many Iranian bases on the border of and within a few hundred miles of the US (map)

https://twitter.com/ggreenwald/status/1021400630693449733

To be fair to the US, it's Iran's fault for putting their country so close to all the bases.

https://twitter.com/Will4Privacy/status/1021401114242158599

And just by the way, here's the official map from NATO's site about where its member-states now are in relation to Russia's border

https://twitter.com/ggreenwald/status/1021401776463974400 and also

https://twitter.com/Queeroolant/status/1021430000556363776

Why do people around the world believe the USA is NOT fighting for freedom & stability; but is trying to violently force #AmericanDemocracy on other nations? The answer is: America's continuing history of #GlobalWarmongering.

https://twitter.com/ArmonRaE/status/1021425961177268224 referring to https://www.quora.com/Why-is-it-hard-for-people-around-the-world-to-understand-that-the-USA-is-not-trying-to-dictate-things-but-rather-fighting-for-world-peace-freedom-security-and-stability

Weaselly #WesleyClark, who wasted $100 billion forcing a regime change in #Yugoslavia, was at least honest enough to reveal the evil plan for forced #AmericanDemocracy in #Iraq, #Syria, #Lebanon, #Libya, #Somalia, #Sudan, & #Iran. (text in image)

https://twitter.com/ArmonRaE/status/1021426328426311680 referring to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXcu29fFs2M

cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain

(* B P)

Tony Blair hits peak hypocrisy as his latest dodgy dealings are exposed

Tony Blair has come under fire over secretive dealings with a human rights abusing country. On 22 July, it was revealed [paywall] that the former prime minister made a £9m deal to advise the Saudi Arabian government through his institute.

The Tony Blair Institute For Global Change made an agreement earlier in the year to support the Saudi ‘modernisation’ programme. The “not for profit” arrangement is said to be centred around the planned Vision 2030 reforms in the country.

Although the funding is not mentioned on the institute’s website, there is an article praising the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman. The article claims that bin Salman showed a “level of conviction, clarity and coherence” in tackling Islamist extremism that the west should seek to “learn from”.

The former PM’s office said it was “under no duty to disclose donors or donations” and declined to give details on Blair’s discussions and meetings with Saudi royalty.

Social media users were quick to notice the hypocrisy of Blair’s words. Journalist Jamie Maxwell tweeted:

https://www.thecanary.co/trending/2018/07/22/tony-blair-hits-peak-hypocrisy-as-his-latest-dodgy-dealings-are-exposed/

and

(* B P)

Saudis Buy Fmr UK Prime Minister Blair for $12 Million

Tony Blair is available as a mercenary to modernize Saudi Arabia for $12 million, but not only that, China and oil companies have also hired him says Medea Benjamin, the author of Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the U.S.-Saudi Connection.

Medea Benjamin: Well, first let’s put it in the context of what Tony Blair has done since he left office. Unlike other heads of state like George Bush, who went on to paint puppies, Tony Blair has made himself into a real mercenary out for hire. Prior to this contract he worked for a Saudi oil company in which he was paid 41,000 pounds a month, plus a 2 percent commission on getting jobs that he was using his old contacts for, particularly among the Chinese government. He’s also worked for the governments of and companies, mostly oil companies, for the Emirates, the Kuwaitis.

Well, it’s disgusting that Tony Blair is working for the Saudis. But Tony Blair himself, let’s remember, is the architect of the invasion of Iraq, an Islamophobe, and somebody who is, as I said, out for hire. He is now putting his lot in with the Saudis, and justifying their bombing of Yemen that has caused the greatest human catastrophe in the world right now. So Tony Blair certainly is not known as somebody with great ethics, and I guess that’s what they want in Saudi Arabia, someone who will help cover for them the horrendous deeds they’re doing in Yemen, and the repression inside Saudi Arabia while they are trying to paint themselves around the world as a model of reform.

In fact, in Tony Blair’s own organization they put out a gushing article on Mohammed bin Salman as this great reformer, and how the Western countries, including Britain, should take him as a model of how to tackle the issue of the politicisation of Islam. So it’s quite remarkable that Tony Blair is touting the Saudis as someone that the Western world should model themselves after.

The Crown Prince Salman has hired about two dozen PR firms, lobby firms, law firms in the D.C. area to paint this image of him as a reformer. And corporate media has bought this. In fact, as you said, when you traveled around the United States, it was in the media after media that kept calling him a reformist because he would be granting women the right to drive, and would be opening up movie theaters. What a low bar for reform.

https://therealnews.com/stories/saudis-buy-fmr-uk-prime-minister-blair-for-12-million

Remark: Earlier reporting: YPR 436, cp10.

cp11 Deutschland / Germany

(B H P)

Familiennachzug – 54.000 Menschen kamen 2017 aus sechs Staaten

Wie aus dem Auswärtigen Amt verlautete, wurde diese Gesamtzahl für Angehörige von Menschen aus Eritrea, Syrien, Irak, Iran, Jemen und Afghanistan erhoben.

https://www.welt.de/politik/deutschland/article179976148/Familiennachzug-54-000-Menschen-kamen-2017-aus-sechs-Staaten.html

(A K P)

Patrouillenboote für Saudi-Arabien erneut hinterfragt

Die Patrouillenboote der heute zur Lürssen-Gruppe gehörenden Peene-Werft in Wolgast für Saudi-Arabien stehen abermals im Fokus.

In einer Kleinen Anfrage im Bundestag erkundigt sich jetzt Die Linke nach eventuellen Kriegseinsätzen der Marineschiffe. Speziell geht es darum, mit welcher Ausstattung die Einheiten Deutschland verließen und wofür sie eingesetzt wurden. Die Abgeordneten verweisen dabei auf die Rolle Saudi-Arabiens im Jemen-Krieg. Das Land könne nur mit Waffenlieferungen aus dem Ausland Krieg führen und einen wichtigen Hafen blockieren. Diese Blockade trage wesentlich zur katastrophalen humanitären Situation im Jemen bei. Trotzdem habe die Bundesregierung den Export von 33 Patrouillenbooten genehmigt

https://www.thb.info/rubriken/single-view/news/patrouillenboote-fuer-saudi-arabien-erneut-hinterfragt.html

(* A K P)

Rüstungsgeschäfte mit Türkei und Saudi-Arabien fast gestoppt

Die neue Bundesregierung hat die Rüstungsexporte nach Saudi-Arabien und in die Türkei in den ersten Monaten ihrer Amtszeit fast ganz gestoppt.

Aus einer Antwort des Wirtschaftsministeriums auf eine Anfrage der Linksfraktion geht hervor, dass für beide Länder zwischen dem 14. März - dem Tag der Vereidigung des neuen Kabinetts - und dem 30. Juni nur noch in wenigen Einzelfällen Ausfuhrgenehmigungen erteilt wurden.

Von den Exportanträgen für Saudi-Arabien bewilligte die neue Regierung nur noch einen über 28.563 Euro. In den ersten zehn Wochen des Jahres waren es noch vier Rüstungsgeschäfte über 161,8 Millionen Euro gewesen.

Noch heikler sind die Exportbeschränkungen für Saudi-Arabien. Im vergangenen Herbst hat die militärisch und wirtschaftlich stärkste Regionalmacht im Nahen Osten ihren Botschafter aus Berlin abgezogen, weil der damalige Bundesaußenminister Sigmar Gabriel ihr "Abenteurertum" vorgeworfen hatte. Das Königshaus in Riad ist aber auch über die kritische Haltung der Bundesregierung zur Intervention Saudi-Arabiens im Jemen verärgert.

https://www.zeit.de/news/2018-07/23/ruestungsgeschaefte-mit-tuerkei-und-saudi-arabien-fast-gestoppt-180723-99-256678 und http://www.ostsee-zeitung.de/Nachrichten/Politik/Ruestungsgeschaefte-mit-Saudi-Arabien-und-Tuerkei-fast-gestoppt

cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries

Emirates: Siehe / Look at cp1

(A P)

Warner Bros indoor theme park inaugurated in Abu Dhabi

The 1.65 million sq ft amusement park has been set up at a cost of $1 billion.

Dubai’s Crown Prince Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammad bin Rashid al-Maktoum alongside the deputy prime minister and ministry of interior, Shaikh Saif bin Zayed al Nahyan, visited the newly constructed Warner Bros World Indoor Theme Park on Monday, July 23.

The leaders inaugurated the theme park and inspected six of its main features. They were also briefed on the construction and planning process being followed for the construction of this phase of the project.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/life-style/travel-and-tourism/2018/07/24/Warner-Bros-World-theme-park-inaugurated-in-Abu-Dhabi.html

cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis

(* A P)

Top UN court rules UAE blockade violated Qataris' rights

International Court of Justice rules in discrimination case brought by Doha against the United Arab Emirates.

A provisional ruling by the United Nations' top court has found that measures put in place by the United Arab Emirates as part of its boycott against Qatar amount to racial discrimination.

Last month, Qatar filed a case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing the UAE of violating international laws by expelling thousands of Qataris - many of whom have family or own property in the UAE - and closing UAE airspace and seaports to Qatar.

It alleged the boycott violates the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) - including discrimination on the basis of nationality - a treaty signed by both the UAE and Qatar.

Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt are not signatories of the CERD convention.

On Monday, judges at the ICJ ruled that Qatari families affected by the UAE's measures must be reunited, imposing a measure before The Hague-based court hears in full the discrimination case.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/07/top-court-rules-uae-blockade-violated-qataris-rights-180723131444047.html

and the judgement in full: https://www.icj-cij.org/files/case-related/172/172-20180723-SUM-01-00-EN.pdf or via https://twitter.com/CIJ_ICJ/status/1021418711322976256

My comment: What about the Yemen blockade?

cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade

(A K P)

Alsalam awarded $59.7M contract for Saudi F-15 upgrades

The contract will enable Alsalam Aerospace Industries to upgrade six Saudi F-15S aircraft to the newer F-15SA configuration.

Work on the contract will be performed in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and is expected to be completed by August 3, 2020.

https://www.upi.com/Defense-News/2018/07/25/8261532522438/

(A K)

Photo: Saudi soldier with his Canadian Streit Group Spartan armored vehicle "In Saada, [Yemen] after being hit by an [IED]"

https://twitter.com/anthonyfenton/status/1021784041815662592

(A K P)

#RSAF F-15SA flight of 5 departs St. Louis on delivery to #SaudiArabia. (photo)

With the arrival of this flight to the kingdom, the Royal #Saudi Air Force will boost up their fleet of Advanced F-15 fighters to 43 (41 new builds + 2 rebuilds). Many more SAs to come!

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/1021376508068356096

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/1021409731485855744

(* B K P)

Riyadh seeks partners for local defence manufacturing

Vision 2030 and the National Transformation Programme 2020 present unprecedented opportunities for defence contractors to invest in Saudi Arabia

Riyadh has sought to build its military as a key deterrent against the growing threats to its national security, and allocated more than $55bn to defence spending in 2018 alone.

Under the stated goals of Vision 2030 and the National Transformation Programme 2020, the Saudi government has also begun partnering with the world’s leading defence contractors with the aim of incubating an indigenous defence manufacturing sector.

This strategy has been led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has pledged to make Saudi Arabia – a top-four military spender globally and the world’s second-largest importer of military supplies – a global leader in the industry.

Traditionally, opportunities for defence contractors in Saudi Arabia have been limited to the sale of armaments and other military equipment to the government and ancillary services, such as maintenance, repair and overhaul.

The sphere for defence firms has been further restricted by regulations prohibiting defence contractors from engaging agents on a commission basis and a ban on foreign investment in the manufacture of military equipment, devices and uniforms.

Vision 2030 could modify these restrictions under its stated goal of developing manufacturing to meet the kingdom’s military needs, create job opportunities and retain resources within the country.

Citing how only 2 per cent of Saudi Arabia’s military spending is conducted within the kingdom, the Vision 2030 plan is to localise more than 50 per cent of military equipment spending by 2030, beginning with “less complex industries such as those providing spare parts, armoured vehicles and basic ammunition” and to “expand this initiative to higher value and more complex equipment such as military aircraft”.

This would see Saudi Arabia build “national expertise in the fields of manufacturing, maintenance, repair, research and development”, before working to become an international exporter of military equipment.

While Vision 2030 promises foreign defence firms opportunities in establishing Saudi Arabia’s local military and defence capabilities, it is not yet clear whether there will be a formal lift of restrictions on foreign ownership in local defence manufacturing by the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority.

https://www.meed.com/saudi-arabia-defence-contractors-local-manufacturing/

cp13b Mercenaries / Söldner

(* B H K)

How Saudi cash is luring desperate Yemenis onto the battlefield

The battle for the strategic port of Hodeidah is drawing in men who recently fled the city, drawn by hefty payments

The battle for Hodeidah has been one of the most intense of the three-year Yemen war. It is no place for civilians.

Across the city, snipers' nests, trenches and roadblocks have sprung up. The Houthis have scattered landmines around the city’s outskirts. Pro-Houthi media reported that a coalition air strike hit a bus full of civilians heading for Taiz.

There is currently a relative lull in the fighting - but both sides of the conflict are continuing to send reinforcements to the region.

Forces loyal to President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi need fighters with knowledge of the city's streets and suburbs, airport and roads. Who better than the men who have recently left?

A friend told Fuad of a camp, 180km south in Lahj province, which is controlled by pro-Hadi forces. There, women and children lived, while the men returned to Hodeidah to fight for high salaries, paid by Riyadh in Saudi rials, a more stable currency than its ever-depreciating Yemeni counterpart.

"Some of my friends have already joined the battle of Hodeidah with pro-Hadi forces," Fuad said, "and they receive SR 4,000 ($1,065) per month, so they recommended a good broker."

Compare that to the $120 that Fuad used to get from his courier work or the $60 a labourer in Hodeidah would expect to earn.

But reaching the camp was to prove another problem. The Houthis would not let Fuad leave Ibb and enter pro-Hadi territory, despite his attempts to persuade them that he was going to work with old friends.

"Finally, a friend told us that there are smugglers transporting people via mountains and valleys," he says.

The trip cost $60 and took eight hours, taking the family along hidden routes, often on foot, to bypass Houthi checkpoints.

On 8 July, Fuad and his family arrived at a camp in Lahj's al-Ribat desert which houses around 120 families from Hodeidah.

Once Fuad knew that his family were secure, he called a broker who recruits men to fight in Hodeidah and quickly cut a deal to fight for three months.

Jamail, a major with the Yemeni army in Lahj province, is tasked to recruit men like Fuad (he asked his real name not be given as he is not authorised to speak publicly).

“The displaced people of Hodeidah hope to liberate their province from the Houthis," he said. "They’ve risked travelling to liberated areas so they can go and join the battle of Hodeidah.

"They only join the battles of Hodeidah because they know the area very well and because they want to liberate Hodeidah from Houthis and return to their houses."

The new recruits do not receive military training before they head out. Instead they rely on the knowledge that most Yemeni men have of how to handle firearms (the country has one of the highest gun ownership rates in the world). The rest they have to learn on the battlefield.

In early July, pro-Hadi forces in Hodeidah announced that 7,000 new recruits from the city had joined that battle and other fighters had joined before that in several batches. Jamail said that hundreds of displaced people from Hodeidah had already headed back in July, with hundreds more like Fuad joining the fight later in the month.

Fuad plans on fighting for three months, then using that money to come home and rent a family home in Aden province.

The rewards for fighting the Houthis are rich on Yemen’s bloodiest battlefields. But that does not mean men enjoy what they are doing.

"Fighting is the best choice for me because I will get money that will enable me to help my family. If I am killed then the government will help my family. I do not like to beg people to help me."

“Some people have two choices,” he says. “Either to see their children starve to death inside camps or to join the battles. So they prefer to fight to save their children."

http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/saudi-cash-hodeidah-battlefield-yemen-war-airport-1640347342

cp13c Kultur- und Naturerbe / Cultural and natural heritage

(* A K)

Saudi/UAE aggression fighter jets launch three air raids on the historic city of #Zabid western #Yemen , Zabid city is a @UNESCO World #Heritage Site (photos)

https://twitter.com/B4Zaman/status/1021361680763277312

(* B)

In pictures: Flora and fauna of Socotra

The BBC's Frank Gardner visits the island chain of Socotra, famed for plants and animals found nowhere else on the planet.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-44846904

and film:

(* B)

Yemen's island 'jewel' under threat

The island of Socotra has so far escaped largely unscathed as civil war rages on mainland Yemen, but the foreign powers bringing aid and infrastructure to the impoverished region could threaten its unique ecosystem.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-middle-east-44924534/yemen-s-island-jewel-under-threat = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrGWT1_mjhY

(A)

Art and Yemen in Cairo

If you are in Cairo, you still have eight days to imagine, along with a group of artists, Arabia Felix, the Happy Yemen, before the years of internal conflict, beyond the sky covered with shrapnel of explosions, ashes of flying shells, madness and pain. Loss. In the exhibition, which has kicked off on July 15 and will be running up to the 30th at Dr. Mokhtar Abdul Jawad Hall at the Academy of Arts in Al-Haram in Giza, adjacent to Cairo, the public sees a different Yemen, in a different time, so distant from the scenes running on the news channels. Yellow and red houses on green-clad mountains, bucholic sceneries, clean water and skies, pastures. Although the exhibition focuses on the cultural diversity of Yemen's ancient environment, it carries a message of a "the desire to live" and go beyond the war.

https://www.facebook.com/notes/living-in-yemen-on-the-edge/art-and-yemen-in-cairo/1837124313007257/

cp13d Wirtschaft / Economy

(A E P)

Exchange Companies in Aden Start a Strike Due to Collapse of Yemeni Riyal

Several money exchange companies in Aden issued a statement on Monday evening and declared strike starting from Tuesday July 24th, 2018. The following is the Statement:
Because of continuous increase in exchange prices and deterioration of Yemeni Riyal in front of foreign currencies and the direct negative effects of this increase on prices of food supplies and other goods, leading citizens to more suffering, we decided to launch a strike during the day shift of Tuesday July 24th, 2018 in protest of this increase.

http://en.smanews.org/exchange-companies-in-aden-start-a-strike-due-to-collapse-of-yemeni-riyal

(* A E)

Shabwah.. Re-export of 500, 000 barrels of oil after a break for years

Oil exports from Shabwah province began Monday, and the first vessel arrived in the “Alalam” zone to transport oil after the export ceased in 2016, a source in the oil ministry office said Tuesday.

According to the source online, crude oil is transported from the S-2 sector in the Al Oqlah area, via the OMV company to the central pumping station in the Al Alam area via the oil tankers, and the pump is carried out to the Nashimah tanks.

He said the initial quantity was estimated at 500,000 barrels, which would be sold by the Ministry of Oil of the Yemeni government.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100444

Remark: In Southern Yemen.

(B E H)

In Duran Anas #smeps with #modern #technologies and #solar #power Did not intervene to address the problems of the farmers only, but changed their mind and became inventive solutions to his land and became the village planted several types of vegetables according to market needs (film)

https://twitter.com/Noura_Eryani/status/1021105354401374208

(* A E P)

Yemen seeks a loan of 3 billion dollars from the World Bank. With oil repayment

A report by the Yemeni Ministry of Planning and International cooperation, obtained by the new Arabic, revealed that the government had begun negotiations with the World Bank on a three billion dollar loan, which would be used to pay the salaries of state employees, including about 1 million employees in the capital Sana'a and the rest of the areas controlled by Al-Houthi did not receive their salaries for 20 months.

Discussions are under way with the World Bank on the provision of a guaranteed sovereign loan to Yemen to be placed in the central bank in exchange for ensuring that the proceeds of crude oil exports (sovereign supplier) go to repay the loan.

According to the report released in early July, the agreement includes conditions set by the World Bank, including that the parties to the conflict commit themselves to providing the necessary security protection for oil and gas production and pumping them to export ports in the areas controlled by each party.

The agreement emphasizes the importance of relying on an impartial and transparent mechanism that gives confidence to all parties through the establishment of an agreed technical unit in cooperation with the United Nations to commercialize oil and gas and deposit its revenues into the central bank to repay the loan.

As a result of the war, the general budget saw a suffocating liquidity crisis that hindered even the payment of state employees.

About 1 million government employees in Sana'a and the rest of the Houthi-controlled areas have been suffering since their salaries were interrupted in September 2016.

According to the Ministry of Planning, the salaries of 33.1 % of 124.015, 000 retirees have been suspended since March 2017.

The operating expenses of State institutions and basic social services, such as education, health and water, have also been halted, strongly affecting the continuity and quality of public services, as well as the inability to pay the benefits of the domestic public debt, which jeopardized the banking sector.

Yemen suffers from the division of financial institutions amid the three-year war, with the al-Houthi group retaining the central Bank branch in the Yemeni capital, following a decision by the legitimate government to relocate the central bank's headquarters and operations to the interim capital of Aden.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100413

cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism

Siehe / Look at cp6

(A T)

Add this to your Top 10 Ways to Annoy a Jihadist. #IslamicState defector in #Yemen complains that #ISIS "used to drive right through #alQaeda brothers' checkpoints without stopping, at high speed". Imagine how irritating that must have been... #AQAP's neat black flags sent flying

https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/1021759096595382272

(A T)

Significantly, none of #IslamicState's July weekly bulletins mentions any #Yemen activity

https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/1021389961453621248

(* A T)

10 suspected jihadists killed in Yemen drone strike, clashes

Ten suspectedAl-Qaeda jihadists and two soldiers fighting for Yemen's government have been killed in clashes and a drone strike, local officials and security sources said Sunday.

The US military is the only force known to operate armed drones over Yemen.

Officials in Marab loyal to Yemen's internationally recognised government said a drone on Sunday targeted a house used by Al-Qaeda in the central province, killing four jihadists.

Separately, six Al-Qaeda members and two pro-government soldiers were killed in clashes Friday following an attack on a jihadist site in southern Shabwa province, security sources said.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-5980053/10-suspected-jihadists-killed-Yemen-drone-strike-clashes.html

and

(* A T)

A suspected #US drone strike has reportedly killed four alleged al-Qaida militants in the central province of #Marib.
Tribal leaders said the alleged operatives' charred bodies were later found after the unmanned aircraft targeted a house while they were inside in the district of al-Rawda.

https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/photos/a.961595153893515.1073741828.961126490607048/1837032259683129/?type=3

and

(* A T)

Four unidentified people killed by an air raid by a US drone in Marib

Four unidentified people were killed by an air raid by a US drone in the eastern city of Marib, Sanaa, local sources said Monday.

An air raid targeted a car carrying four people in the Al-Rawdah area of Serwah District, southwest of Marib, on Sunday, causing a full fire, the source told the Almasdar online.

The people of the region were unable to identify the people after their bodies had been completely roasted.

At the moment, no statement or comment has been made by the Yemeni government or the US forces, which have been waging raids on al-Qaeda operatives in Yemen.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100415

My comment: So what?? House? Car? “bodies had been completely roasted“: And everybody seems to know: „alleged al-Qaida militants”.

(A T)

Coalition says it killed Islamic State members targeting Saudi Arabia, West

The U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State said on Tuesday it has killed high-value leaders from the group who were planning attacks targeting Saudi Arabia, the United States and Sweden.

On April 24, a coalition air strike killed Syrian-based Islamic State member Munawwar al-Mutayari in Operation Inherent Resolve, the coalition said in a statement. He had been planning attacks on Saudi Arabia.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-islamic-state/coalition-says-it-killed-islamic-state-members-targeting-saudi-arabia-west-idUSKBN1KE2G1

cp15 Propaganda

(A P)

Our world before and after Mohammed bin Salman

A New York Times journalist recently visited Saudi Arabia and saw the rapid transformations, which happened during a short period of time. Saudi women are driving cars after being banned for decades and are working freely in new fields of business.

There are massive projects and investments that aim to achieve radical change in the economy away from oil. The voice of extremists has now disappeared, after being, only a short while ago, loud and creating consecutive crises that contributed to dividing the society. In brief, the Saudi society is living a new phase, and optimism fills the air.

It’s according to these notes that the journalist wrote his piece with the headline “The Prince Who Would Remake the World.” Saudi Arabia has a huge soft power on millions of Muslims and Arabs. Its transformation into a country with a modern economy that exports tolerance and openness will have a huge impact.

Success is contagious. Many countries will be influenced by Saudi Arabia as a model and others will imitate it. The culture of religious tolerance will gain unprecedented momentum and legitimacy and will influence minds and hearts. The project of this cultural and modernist change will go beyond Saudi Arabia’s borders and contribute to changing the region, therefore the world; this is where the article’s title came from.

We can in fact clearly notice the difference between the two worlds, before and after Mohammed bin Salman. Before Mohammed bin Salman, many were hopeless that hordes of extremists will ever go away. People hoped that oil wealth does not quickly deplete so we don’t get lost.

However, in the world after Mohammed bin Salman, we live in a totally different reality. There is a positive spirit that replaced despair and we can see with our own eyes how the extremists’ hateful rhetoric evaporated. After people worryingly observed the decline of oil prices, everyone began to hopefully look forward to the future specifically to 2030.

The mixture of enlightening intellect, moderation, development and modern economic ideas imposed by a brave and strong leadership are the only solution to the unfortunate region we live in. This reflects the Saudi Crown Prince’s will and supplies the world with optimism to get the region out of its deteriorating situation, which is due to many reasons and which is so bad, the region was dubbed the world’s ‘bad neighborhood’.

https://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/news/middle-east/2018/07/24/Our-world-before-and-after-Mohammed-bin-Salman.html

My comment: Whow. The best place to visit to see the effects of Salman’s rule would be Yemen. – The NYT article (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/21/opinion/sunday/saudi-arabia-women-drivers.html ) is somewhat enthousiastical with critical elements. Linked here above at cp8.

(A P)

Jaber: Houthi Practices Behind Deterioration of Humanitarian Situation in Yemen

UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock said that Yemen was witnessing the world’s biggest humanitarian operation, valuing the role of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in implementing the humanitarian response plan and the living conditions of the Yemeni people.
He stressed that efforts were deployed to verify that humanitarian aid entering Yemen did not include weapons or prohibited materials, noting that all vessels passing through Yemeni ports were currently subject to a mechanism of verification and inspection.
Speaking during a press conference held in the presence of Saudi Ambassador to Yemen Mohammed Al Jaber and Dr. Sultan Al Shamsi, Assistant Foreign Minister of the UAE for International Cooperation for Development, Lowcock said: “Our talk about the humanitarian situation in Yemen has been positive and fruitful.”
He added that an agreement was reached on the need to deliver aid to as many Yemenis as possible, in line with the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy’s plan for the benefit of the Yemeni people.

Saudi Ambassador to Yemen Mohammed Al-Jaber, Executive Director of “Isnad” Center for Comprehensive Humanitarian Operations in Yemen, said: “We are saying very clearly that the main reason for the current deterioration in the humanitarian situation in Yemen is the Iran-backed Houthi militias that are usurping power in Sanaa,” he noted, adding that the militias have rejected the political solution, which has consequently prolonged the humanitarian crisis in Yemen.

https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1341576/jaber-houthi-practices-behind-deterioration-humanitarian-situation-yemen

My comment: Saudi coalition air raids and the Saudi blockade are the main factors pushing the humanitarian catastrophe. Denying this, is propaganda. – “valuing the role of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in implementing the humanitarian response plan and the living conditions of the Yemeni people“ is like prostituting oneself, as the catastrophe largely was created by the Saudis and the UAE. – „the militias have rejected the political solution“: a „political solution“ according to the Saudis coalition is unconditionally acceptting the coalition’s preconditions, which include the capitulation of the Houthi forces.

(A P)

No Peace in Yemen without Houthi Disarmament

Let this be clear: there can be no political solution in Yemen that allows the Houthis to keep their weapons. Anyone who reads history and knows anything about Middle East politics will understand this.

Today, Hezbollah is the most dominant party in Lebanon. It exerts direct power over the president, the speaker of the parliament, and the prime minister. And it takes direct orders from Iran. Now imagine the same situation happening with the Houthis in Yemen. How can we ever allow this to happen? Indeed, this is the exact path that Tehran is interesting in paving for the Houthis. It seeks to promote a ceasefire agreement that would empower the Houthis and allow them to take over Yemen through the use of force and intimidation. This is a scenario that neither Saudi Arabia nor the UAE can allow. Both nations would be much better off continuing their fighting than accepting a new reality in which Iran—via its Houthi militias—is establishing a presence in their backyards. Finally, the demand to disarm the Houthi militias is more plausible today than ever before. Qatar—perhaps the Houthis’ largest supporter in the Gulf—is facing severe financial setbacks due to the embargo imposed on it by its neighbors. Similarly, Iran is facing both internal and external political upheaval.

http://www.themedialine.org/new-from-the-arab-press/no-peace-in-yemen-without-houthi-disarmament/

My comment: “No Peace in Yemen without Houthi Disarmament” is required again and again: May 2018: http://www.arabnews.com/node/1309741/saudi-arabia; June 2018: http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/yemens-houthis-must-withdraw-and-disarm-any-peace-deal-government-17377567 . Disarming means capitulation, leaving the Saudi coalition as main force in Yemen (the Hadi government being little more than puppets). They do not claim peace, they claim victory. Of course, the Iran story cannot be omitted. – Surprise, new propaganda story: “Qatar—perhaps the Houthis’ largest supporter in the Gulf”.

(A P)

Aden's STC says Qatar is giving Houthis financial support

The Southern Transitional Council said Doha is helping Iran-backed rebels to buy weapons

Yemen's Southern Transitional Council has accused the Qatari government of supporting the Houthi rebels in an attempt to destabilise the region.

The Aden-based group, whose fighters are battling the Iran-backed rebels alongside the government troops backed by the Arab Coalition, said Doha was contributing financially to the rebels.

“Qatar has played a very negative role in destabilising the situation in Yemen by offering the Houthis and other terrorist groups all the support needed to remain alive to serve Iranian agendas, which aim to destabilise the Arab world,” said Salem Thabet Al Oulaqi, an STC spokesman.

Nazar Haytham, director of STC’s Department of Youth, told The National that the Qatari government has been financially contributing to the Houthi group so that “they can buy more weapons”.

“Qatar also provides media support to the Muslim Brotherhood and the Houthis via their Al Jazeera news channel as well as other networks in Iran and Lebanon,” he said.

https://www.thenational.ae/world/mena/aden-s-stc-says-qatar-is-giving-houthis-financial-support-1.753172

and by STC website: http://en.smanews.org/qatar-supports-al-houthis-and-other-terrorist-groups-to-serve-the-iranian-project-in-the-arab-region-spokesman-of-the-southern-transitional-council

My comment: This sounds very much like propaganda – Houthis and Muslim Brotherhood are great foes to each other, the Southern separatists are foes to both. And the propaganda campaign is even more fired:

(A P)

Southern Social Media Activists Launch the Hashtag #Doha_Kills_Aden

http://en.smanews.org/southern-social-media-activists-launch-the-hashtag-doha_kills_aden

(A P)

Colonel Al-Maliki: Coalition Forces Are making Efforts to Contact with Political and Social Components in Yemen

Official Spokesman of the Coalition Forces Supporting Legitimacy in Yemen Colonel Turki Al-Maliki stressed that the Command of the Coalition Forces has been making a lot of effort to contact with the political, social and tribal components of Yemen.
This came during a press conference held by Colonel Al-Maliki at the Armed Forces Club in Riyadh today.
Colonel Al-Maliki said that the people of Yemen reject the actions of Houthi militias, highlighting the statement of the Yemeni Religious Scholars' Association which condemned the Houthi militias for looting humanitarian aid and called on the international communities and organizations to stop these acts.
Colonel Al-Maliki also said that an educational campaign was launched by King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center to provide 5,000 chairs and 5,000 tables for Yemeni schools.

https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1787631

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1344181/saudi-arabia

(A P)

Why Iran’s malign behavior must be confronted — not appeased

It is encouraging to hear US President Donald Trump make clear that we will not approach Iran with the sort of appeasement policies that failed so miserably to halt Nazi Germany’s rise to power, or avert the costliest war ever waged. Now, we all need to unite on a broader strategy to address the Iranian regime’s destabilizing behavior.

Despite the best intentions of its architects, the 2015 nuclear deal and subsequent easing of financial restrictions on Tehran did nothing to stem the regime’s expansionist ambitions or eliminate its support for the Middle East’s most destabilizing extremists — in Syria, Yemen, Lebanon and elsewhere. Instead, it served only to grant the world’s most egregious sponsor of global terrorism rewards for temporarily suspending its apocalyptic pursuit of nuclear weapons.

Saudi Arabia is committed to doing everything we can to help the United States. There is still time for a determined international response that stops Iran from spreading its tentacles of mischief to every corner of the region — from the Hezbollah terrorist organization that has put a stranglehold on Lebanon’s future, to the Houthi militia that has wrought misery on Yemen and tried, unsuccessfully, to intimidate my country by firing Iranian-provided missiles into Saudi Arabian territory.

The pernicious threat posed by Iran is at the core of its regime – by Prince Khalid bin Salman

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1343571

My comment: This is really odd by a representative of the Wahabis and Salafism spreading Saudi regime, who is the master in support of terrorism, in destabilizing countries from Afghanistan to Libya, Syria, and Yemen, in arming „rebels“.

Comment: Well, go bomb Tehran.

https://twitter.com/BaFana3/status/1021189269967302656

(A P)

More Saudi / UAE „We are benefactors“ propaganda

https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/erc-provides-emergency-relief-assistance-displaced-people-shabwah-yemen

cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids

(* A K pH)

Saudi coalition air raids day by day

July 24: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1532521509./1087366468080384/?type=3

July 23: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1532429927./1086212761529088/?type=3

July 22: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1532336985./1085026254981072/?type=3

(* A K pH)

Aggression’s Daily Update for Sunday, July 22, 2018

https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=1784&cat_id=1

(A K pH)

Woman killed in coalition airstrike on Saada

A woman was killed and another wounded when the US-Saudi aggression warplane struck a house in Dhahir district in Saada province late on Sunday

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news502756.htm

(* B K pH)

Health ministry condemns Saudi-led airstrikes on water projects

Ministry of Public Health and Population on Monday condemned the systematic targeting to water sources in Yemen by the Saudi-led coalition fighter jets, in a statement obtained by Saba.

The statement denounced destroying a water project in Nashor area at Saher district of Saada province by the coalition and cutting off the pure, healthy water to more than 15,000 people.
The statement said that the coalition targeted more than 1090 water projects to create the environmental conditions to spread the epidemic and infectious diseases.

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news502863.htm

and protest by UNICEF: https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/access-water-continues-be-jeopardized-millions-children-war-torn-yemen-enar

and

(A K pH)

Film: Aggression destroyed by four raids of the water project Nashour in the province of Saada 24-07-2018

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

photos:

https://twitter.com/UNICEF_Yemen/status/1021822797637668871

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1022030581322924032

(A K pH)

More Saudi coalition air raids at:

July 25:

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news503059.htm Saada p., Jizan

July, 24:

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news502922.htm Bayda p.

(A K)

#Saudi Advanced test aircraft SA-2 (12-1002) and SA-4 (12-1004) rejoin over the #PacificOcean to aerial refuel during a Load Limiter envelope-expansion test sortie conducted off the coast of #California. (photo)

https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/1021475587414781953

My comment: For better bombing Yemen, with US support.

cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War

Siehe / Look at cp1b2

(A K pS)

Two civilians killed and others injured by al-Houthi missiles west of Taiz City

Two civilians were killed and two others injured on Wednesday in artillery shelling by the al-Houthi militia on the Al Dhabab road line southwest of Taiz, central Yemen.

"The al-Houthi militia, positioned on the streets of al-50th Street, bombed the Al Dhabab line with mortar shells," a military source told Almasdar online.

According to the source, two civilians were killed, and two others injured as they passed through a car adjacent to the construction building in the Al Dhabab zone.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100483

(* A K)

Huthi-Rebellen versuchen Angriff auf Saudi-Kriegsschiff vor Küste Jemens – Medien

Die Huthi-Rebellen haben laut Angaben des Senders Al Masirah TV ein Saudi-Kriegsschiff vor der Westküste Jemens angegriffen.

„Die Seestreitkräfte zielen auf das Saudi-Dammam-Schiff“, heißt es im Twitter-Feed des Senders.

https://de.sputniknews.com/politik/20180725321694833-huthi/

Bemerkung: Mehr auf Englisch!

(* A K)

Houthis target Saudi warship off Yemen coast: Al Masirah TV

The Iran-aligned armed Houthi movement targeted a Saudi Arabian warship off the western coast of Yemen, the group’s Al Masirah TV said on Wednesday.

“The naval force targets the Saudi Dammam ship,” the broadcaster wrote on its Twitter feed.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties, or comment from the Saudi-led coalition that is battling the Houthis in Yemen’s civil war.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security/houthis-target-saudi-warship-off-yemen-coast-al-masirah-tv-idUSKBN1KF0XN

and

(* A K)

Naval Force Targets Saudi Dammam Barge off West Coast

The US-Saudi aggression coalition admitted, on Wednesday, the hit on one of his ships, claiming it was an oil tanker and that it was slightly damaged. This comes after the Yemeni Navy announced the targeting of the Saudi battleship, Dammam, off the West Coast. Damam is the latest among the series of battleships targeted by the Yemeni Naval Forces in the epic defense of Yemen against the forces of US-Saudi aggression.

https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=1829&cat_id=2

https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=1826&cat_id=1

(* A K)

The Saudi warship destroyed by Yemeni navy forces off the western coast (Red Sea) today is French-made, offensive Frigate ( Dammam 816). Saudi navy forces have only 3 Frigates: Riyadh 812 Mecca 814 Dammam 816.

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1022043297563516929

and

(* A K)

Yemen's Houthis hit Saudi oil tanker causing slight damage: Saudi TV

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement attacked a Saudi oil tanker in the Red Sea, causing slight damage, Saudi state television quoted the Saudi-led coalition as saying on Wednesday.

The statement followed an earlier claim by Houthi-run Al Masirah TV that the group had targeted a Saudi Arabian warship off the western coast of Yemen.

“The Saudi oil tanker was subjected to slight damage due to the attack by the Houthi militia,” Saudi state media said.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-tanker/yemens-houthis-hit-saudi-oil-tanker-causing-slight-damage-saudi-tv-idUSKBN1KF1H5

and somewhat later, Reuters had changed again:

Houthi attack damages Saudi ship off Yemen's coast

Yemen’s Houthis attacked a Saudi oil tanker in the Red Sea, causing slight damage, an Arab coalition said on Wednesday, after the Houthis reported targeting a Saudi warship in the area.

A coalition statement said that the tanker was attacked at 0115 (2115 GMT) west of Yemen’s Hodeidah port, but did not name the vessel or describe how it was attacked.

“The Saudi oil tanker was subjected to slight damage due to the attack by the Houthi militia,” it said. “Thankfully the attack failed due to immediate intervention of the Coalition’s fleet.” It provided no details.

Saudi shipping group Bahri said on Wednesday that one of its oil tankers had been damaged in the Red Sea. “The VLCC (Very Large Crude Carrier) suffered minor damage and no human injuries or environmental damage have been reported,” Bahri said in a statement without elaborating.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security/houthi-attack-damages-saudi-ship-off-yemens-coast-idUSKBN1KF0XN

and how the Saudi coalition puts it, using this for further propaganda against the Houti presence at Hodeida:

(A K P)

The Joint Forces Command of the Coalition “Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen”: A Terrorist (Iranian-Houthi) Attack Targets Freedom of Navigation and International Trade. Almost Caused An Environmental Disaster

Colonel Turki Al Malki, the Official Spokesman of the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen, stated that at (01:15) this morning, a Saudi oil tanker was subjected to a terrorist (Iranian-Houthi) attack in the International Waters West of Port of Hodeida, which is controlled by the terrorist Iranian-Houthi militia. Thankfully the attack failed due to immediate intervention of the Coalition’s fleet. The tanker sustained minimal damages as a result of this terrorist attack.
Col. Al Malki emphasized: “This terrorist attack is a dangerous threat to the Freedom of Navigation and International Trade in the Red Sea and Bab-El-Mandeb Strait, which might result in environmental and economic losses.”
He added: “The continuation of such attempts proves the real threat of this militia and the ones supporting it to Regional and International Security. Port of Hodeida is still the starting point of terrorist attacks.”

https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1788318

Comment: Now, Saudis admitted, but saying it’s oil tanker not warship! No. It’s warship. And the water ways are very safe for all. But Saudis r in war with Yemen.

https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1022159246430035968

(A K pS)

Al-Houthi bombing the city of Marib with two Katyusha rockets

The al-Houthi militia bombed two Katyusha rockets, the town of Marib, the capital of the province, which landed in residential neighborhoods.

http://almasdaronline.com/article/100454

(A K pH)

Yemeni Army: Dubai No More Safe for Foreign Firms

Spokesman of the Yemeni Army Brigadier General Sharaf Luqman stressed the country's high missile and drone power, warning foreign companies in the UAE and Saudi Arabia to leave.

"The Yemeni missiles and drones are capable of hitting any region in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and Yemen is in possession of thousands of home-made missiles and it is trying to modernize its missile and drone systems," Luqman told the Arabic-language al-Alam news channel on Monday.

He underlined that Abu Dhabi and Dubai are within the range of the Yemeni missiles, warning the foreign companies of the danger of investment in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13970502000433

Remark: By Houthi Sanaa government army.

(A K pS)

Lahj: Army experts extract Houthi landmines mines in Kabbeita

The army experts have managed to remove several landmines planted by the Houthi militia in several areas of the district of Kabbeita, north of Lahj province, south of the country.

https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-20266

(A K pH)

Army shoots down Saudi reconnaissance plane in Najran

http://www.sabanews.net/en/news502861.htm

(A K pH)

In Lahj: a child was martyred by mercenaries randomly bombing on Al-Komah village in Karsh area.

https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=1794&cat_id=1

cp18 Sonstiges / Other

(C)

Singapore’s Arab community traces ancestral roots to Yemen’s Hadhramaut Valley

Though the Indian Ocean separates the Asian metropolis of Singapore and the Arabian deserts of Hadhramaut, the ties that bind them run deep and go back centuries.

Almost all Arabs in Southeast Asia trace their ancestry to Hadhramaut, a region on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula in present-day Yemen. Referred to as Hadhrami Arabs, they began migrating to Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore in large numbers from the mid-18th century.

Names such as Aljunied, Alkaff and Alsagoff are familiar to most Singaporeans, as streets, buildings, mosques, schools and even a district have been named after these prominent Arab clans. Yet few realize the impact the early Muslim settlers had on colonial Singapore, or on the families they left behind in the homeland.

“When Sir Stamford Raffles founded Singapore in 1819, one of the first things he did was to persuade Hadhrami families to come here,” recounted Singapore’s former foreign minister George Yeo at the launch of a 2010 exhibition about Arabs in Southeast Asia.

http://www.arabnews.com/node/1342016/world

Vorige / Previous:

https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-436-yemen-war-mosaic-436

Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-436 / Yemen War Mosaic 1-436:

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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