... Djibouti und Jemen: Flüchtlinge und Migranten – Emirate: Internetspione und Todesschwadronen – Neues Abkommen über Hodeidah – und mehr
February 18, 2019: Stop the war on children – World leaders not really want to stop Yemen War – Land mines – MSF Emergency hospital at Mocha – Djibouti and Yemen: Refugees and migrants – UAE: Cyber spies and death squads – New agreement on Hodeidah – 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
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 Kulturerbe / Cultural heritage
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
cp15 Propaganda
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
cp18 Sonstiges / Other
Klassifizierung / Classification
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**
*
(Kein Stern / No star)
? = Keine Einschatzung / No rating
A = Aktuell / Current news
B = Hintergrund / Background
C = Chronik / Chronicle
D = Details
E = Wirtschaft / Economy
H = Humanitäre Fragen / Humanitarian questions
K = Krieg / War
P = Politik / Politics
pH = Pro-Houthi
pS = Pro-Saudi
T = Terrorismus / Terrorism
Für wen das Thema ganz neu ist / Who is new to the subject
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
cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important
(** B H K)
Stop the war on children
‘Every war is a war against children.’
One hundred years on, those words of Save the Children founder Eglantyne Jebb resonate as strongly as ever. Right now, across the world, millions of children are caught up in conflicts they played no part in creating. Often their rights are violated with total impunity.
New evidence presented by Save the Children is damning:
420 million children – nearly one-fifth of children worldwide – are living in a conflict zone; a rise of nearly 30 million children from 2016.
The number of children living in conflict zones has doubled since the end of the cold war. • 142 million children are living in high-intensity conflict-zones; that is, in conflict zones with more than 1,000 battle-related deaths in a year.
New analysis from Save the Children shows that the numbers of ‘grave violations’ of children’s rights in conflict reported and verified by the United Nations have almost tripled since 2010.
Hundreds of thousands of children are dying every year as a result of indirect effects of conflict – including malnutrition, disease and the breakdown of healthcare, water and sanitation.
The protection of children in conflict – and with it the realisation of the promises made in the declarations, conventions and statutes of the 20th century – is one of the defining challenges of the 21st century.
The nature of conflict – and its impact on children – is evolving. Intra-state conflict is increasing, as are the numbers of armed actors involved. The world is witnessing deliberate campaigns of violence against civilians, including the targeting of schools, the abduction and enslavement of girls, and deliberate starvation.
Armed conflicts are more protracted; for instance, the most prominent conflict in recent times – the war in Syria – has lasted longer than the second world war. The longer a conflict lasts the greater the indirect harm caused as essential services cease to function. And in many protracted situations the lines between ‘conflict’ and ‘peace’ have become blurred.
Conflict is also increasingly urban; in Mosul and Mogadishu, for example, children, their homes and their schools are on the front line, vulnerable to indiscriminate attack. In today’s armed conflicts, there is often no longer a clearly demarcated battlefield: children’s homes and schools are the battlefield.
Children on the frontline
Increasingly, the brunt of armed violence and warfare is being borne by children. Children suffer in conflict in different ways to adults, partly because they are physically weaker and also because they have so much at stake – their physical, mental and psychosocial development are heavily dependent on the conditions they experience as children.
Conflict affects children differently depending on a number of personal characteristics – significantly gender and age, but also disability status, ethnicity, religion and whether they live in rural or urban locations. The harm that is done to children in armed conflict is not only often more severe than that done to adults, it has longer lasting implications – for children themselves and for their societies. Children suffer in conflict in three broad ways:
They may be deliberately targeted.
The commission of atrocities against children is an exceptionally powerful way of terrorising a population – and, hence, a preferred military tactic for armed forces and groups in many of today’s conflicts. Children are also often targeted because they may be easily manipulated and exploited, for instance, as soldiers or suicide bombers. Schools become targets for tactical reasons – for example, as a recruiting ground or because they are being used for military purposes.
Children suffer as a result of indiscriminate or disproportionate military action.
For example, they may be killed or injured by landmines or the use of explosive weapons with wide-area effect in populated areas.
Children suffer on a huge scale from the indirect consequences of conflict.
These include displacement; the breakdown of markets and essential public services, such as healthcare, water and sanitation; and pervasive insecurity. While indirect effects and direct violations are both part of the same continuum of harm inflicted on children by modern conflict, these indirect consequences of conflict affect and kill many more children. More still miss out on school and the chance of a better future.
A crisis of compliance
This report argues that children suffering in conflict today are not primarily suffering from a deficit of identified rights. Rather, they are suffering from a crisis of compliance with those rights. Armed actors, often including government forces, are committing violations against children. And they are often being met by, at best, international indifference and, at worst, complicity.
https://www.savethechildren.org/content/dam/usa/reports/ed-cp/stop-the-war-on-children-2019.pdf
an report by MEE: https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/more-babies-fighters-died-conflicts-between-2013-and-2017-report with film https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUZHTuVzjzY&t=62s
(** B K P)
Have world leaders really got the will to bring peace to Yemen?
We hear much about Yemen’s crisis, but far less about the hypocrisy of states fuelling the very conflict they condemn
But whenever I hear that Yemen is the “worst humanitarian disaster” – or listen to my own words, as I address committee after committee – I feel like I’m listening to a broken record. The need to remind everyone that what we are witnessing is manmade, and not a natural disaster, is constant.
In late January, I was invited to deliver a testimony at the European parliament sub-committee on human rights, a place I had visited in 2016 to give a speech about the impact of drones. It is significant how much knowledge and interest about Yemen has increased since then.
My speech came at the same time that the UK announced more humanitarian aid to Yemen, while the EU boasted that iit is the biggest donor to the budget. Yet all the while they continue to supply arms and support to the Saudi-led coalition, providing the means to continue the war should the fragile ceasefire fail. It is hypocrisy on a grand scale.
Since 2014, my organisation, Mwatana for Human Rights, has documented hundreds of incidents where lives have been lost or violated and civilian infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed – not only by the coalition, but also by Houthi armed groups, local armed groups loyal to the Hadi government and others. They are all bound by a common factor: their behaviour.
What is really sad about the violations in Yemen is that they are preventable. They occur because the parties don’t care. The total lack of accountability, not only to their own but also to the outside world, empowers them to feel as though they can do whatever they want. The last UN Resolution on Yemen was adopted by the security council in December ; it too suggested that the way to maintain peace is though accountability on all sides.
The pope referred to “hunger”, but Yemenis are not suddenly starving. I believe starvation is being used as a weapon of war, by all sides.
Since 2017, Mwatana has been conducting advocacy visits around the world. It is clear to us that the disaster caused by the war in Yemen is being ignored as many countries actively continue to supply the weapons that fuel conflict.
Peace in Yemen is possible, it always has been. Peace is needed now even more than ever, but what we, the people of Yemen, need above all is the political will to achieve it – by Radhya al-Mutawakel
Comment: Well this is one of the few times that a genuine Yemeni spokesperson had written for a mainstream UK newspaper, and the great Radhka Mutawakkel at that. She is a really important human rights voice.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10157374573363641
(** B K)
Land Mines Block Saudi-Led Assault in Yemen, Killing Civilians
Desperate to break through enemy lines, the Saudi-backed forces fighting in Yemen are sending untrained soldiers to clear minefields, sometimes using only their bayonets.
“I removed two and the third one exploded,” said Sultan Hamad, a 39-year-old Yemeni soldier who lost a leg clearing mines on the front line near Marib, an ancient city in central Yemen. He was among more than a half dozen soldiers waiting at a clinic in Marib to be fitted for prosthetic limbs.
Nearly four years after Saudi Arabia plunged into Yemen’s civil war, Saudi and Yemeni commanders say that hundreds of thousands of unmarked land mines planted by their opponents, the Houthis, have emerged as perhaps their most formidable defense.
The hidden explosives, the commanders say, have helped keep the conflict close to a standstill despite the superior air power and other resources of the Saudi-led coalition.
Hundreds of thousands of land mines have stymied the Saudi-led forces in Yemen, and could pose a danger to civilians for decades to come.
The mines have also killed as many as 920 civilians and wounded thousands, according to mine removal experts. Rights groups and other monitors say the minefields will leave Yemen riddled with buried explosives that could kill or maim unsuspecting civilians for decades before the devices can all be removed, as they have in Afghanistan, Colombia and Cambodia.
“The scale of the problem is exceptionally large, and the impact is horrendous,” said Loren Persi Vicentic of Landmine Monitor, an independent nonprofit group. “Most of the casualties we see reported are civilians.”
A Western mine-removal company hired by the Saudis estimates that the Houthis have laid more than a million mines, more than one for every 30 Yemenis and a concentration as high as that in any other country since World War II.
Crouching behind a low stone wall over the edge of a ridge in the district of Nehim on a recent overcast afternoon, Brig. Gen. Mohsen al-Khabi could almost make out the distant lights of Sanaa, the Houthi-controlled capital, just 23 miles away.
But those 23 miles might as well be 500, he said. The Houthis had planted so many land mines among the winding roads and scattered settlements of the valley, the advance of his Yemeni forces had all but ground to halt, stuck for three years in virtually the same position.
“The problem is the enemy’s inhumane weapons, the land mines and improvised explosives,” he said.
The Geneva Conventions prohibit the use of hidden mines and anti-personnel mines.
“This is a war, so what do you expect us to do?” Brig. Gen. Yahia al-Sarie, a Houthi officer, told The Associated Press in December. “Receive the other side with flowers?
During a trip to Yemen last month arranged by the Saudi-led coalition, The New York Times examined scores of defused land mines and interviewed doctors, soldiers and victims about them.
Saudi Arabia may be eager to call attention to the Houthi mines to counterbalance allegations that the kingdom and its principal ally, the United Arab Emirates, have committed war crimes by conducting airstrikes that have killed thousands of civilians and imposing a partial blockade that has threatened Yemen with famine. Some of their airstrikes have dropped cluster munitions, which can pose a long-term threat similar to that of land mines.
But all or almost all of the land mines and other explosive devices buried in Yemen appear to have been planted by the Houthis, independent monitors say. Mining is a tactic typically employed by a military force defending territory or retreating from it, as the Houthis have been since the Saudi-led intervention began – By David D. Kirkpatrick (photos)
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/17/world/middleeast/mines-saudi-yemen-houthi.html
(** B H)
Film: MSF Emergency surgery hospital in Mocha, Yemen
Since August, MSF teams have been working in Mocha, Taiz governorate, Yemen, where they opened a surgical field hospital to provide emergency surgical care to war wounded from the Hodeidah and Taiz frontlines. The MSF field hospital in Mocha remains the only health facility performing emergency surgery in the area on the local population. Teams are also treating pregnant women with complicated deliveries that require urgent surgery. Patients often arrive late at MSF Mocha hospital and cannot access healthcare in a timely manner, sometimes with fatal consequences: pregnant women with complications arrive late, reducing the chance of survival for both mother and child; people with war-related injuries lose precious minutes before being treated, that can cost them their lives. Between August and December 2018, MSF’s teams in Mocha treated more than 2,000 patients in the emergency room and performed more than 1,000 surgeries.
Surgeon Bernard Leménager guides us around the MSF field hospital in Mocha set up during the battle for Hodeidah, a city a couple of hours drive from Mocha.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JICXHDVnHas
More films:
(** B H)
Inside Yemen: 5 Days in an Emergency Hospital
Witness the scenes at a hospital in Mocha, Yemen, providing emergency care just two hours away from the frontlines. Over five days, teams from Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) treat patients with gunshot wounds, children with landmine injuries, and pregnant women struggling with complicated deliveries. The MSF hospital in Mocha is the only place where civilians can get emergency surgery in this war-torn region in southwestern Yemen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVyvwXoWK5c&t=2s
Our new emergency surgery hospital in Mocha, Yemen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fR6hpV0uMAg
Opening a surgical field hospital in Mocha, Yemen to treat war-wounded patients
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25C1WImdFis
(** B H)
The Ethiopian migrants braving Yemen's war to find a better life in Saudi Arabia
"Yemen," the man says, citing his next destination. "From Yemen I can go to Saudi Arabia for work and send money to my mother."
About 20,000 migrants, mostly from Ethiopia, attempt the journey along this ancient and increasingly deadly route through Yemen's war zone each month, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
They all risk deportation if they come to the attention of the police. Many are unaware of the war in Yemen, the bombs, bullets, mortars, and mines. They are unaware of the dangers of the crossing, and the bodies that wash up on Djibouti and Yemen's shores.
A confluence of despair
Obock is a small fishing village on the northern shores of the Gulf of Tadjoura.
It is also the center of a confluence of despair.
On the same sliver of shoreline where Ethiopian migrants depart for Yemen and what they hope will be a better life in Saudi Arabia, Yemeni refugees -- some fleeing Saudi-led attacks -- are arriving, haunted by memories of the nightmare they have just escaped.
For many Yemenis, the hot, dusty and windswept Markazi Refugee Camp is their first stop.
It was airstrikes from the Saudi-led coalition that forced Naghuib, his wife, and two children -- 6-year-old Rasha and 8-year-old Mohammed -- to flee.
In Yemen, Naghuib's family lived near Khokha, a small village on the shores of the Red Sea. Over the past four years, Naghuib says 25 people from his rebel-held village have been killed, including neighbors and relatives. Intense fighting between the Saudi-led coalition and Iranian-backed Houthi fighters has gripped the country since war broke out in early 2015.
Naghuib says homes, schools, and mosques in his village have been destroyed. As the situation worsened, sometimes his family could not find food, he adds. When there was a lull in the fighting, he and his family decided to make a run for it
Nearly 40,000 Yemenis have fled to Djibouti since 2015, according to UNHCR. While the Djiboutian government has been praised for recent reforms, including granting refugees permission to work inside the country, the vast majority of Yemenis that arrived here have moved on to other countries.
Unaware of the Yemen war
A short drive from the Markazi Refugee Camp, dozens of male Ethiopian migrants are sheltering from the intense midday sun and the near-constant wind, under trees sparsely scattered across the barren landscape.
Under the largest tree, one group of men says they have been waiting here for their smuggler for four days, eating only rice.
The migrant route from Ethiopia to Saudi Arabia is a well-trodden one. An Ethiopian migrant called Ali says that his relatives made this same journey years ago, before the war. Many of the men have similar stories of relatives who "made it" years ago.
But when asked about the war in Yemen, the men shrug. They had been unaware of the dangers ahead.
Since 2017, the UNHCR has been running a public awareness campaign about the Yemen war, through music videos and billboards in five languages. But staffers admit that it has yet to make it here to Obock.
A cheap crossing
Finally, at dusk the Djiboutian smugglers arrive. Using long sticks, they herd the men under the trees into a single file like cattle.
One of the smugglers, his cheek full of khat -- a leaf chewed in the Horn of Africa for its stimulant effect -- says they are moving the group to another location, a crevasse where they will join hundreds of other migrants waiting to make the same journey.
Five days later, the IOM reported that two boats carrying migrants capsized off Djibouti's shores. There were 16 survivors, and 30 bodies recovered but a total of 128 were estimated dead – by Arwa Damon and Brent Swails (with films)
https://us.cnn.com/2019/02/18/africa/djibouti-ethiopian-refugees-intl/index.html
(** B K P)
The UAE’s covert web of spies, hackers and mercenary death squads
Ex-NSA operatives reveal how they spied for the UAE amidst increasing global scrutiny over illegal espionage, shady defence deals and mercenaries in the Yemen war. To what end will the UAE pursue its regional ambitions?
In a groundbreaking report, Reuters details a sweeping spy and surveillance programme, codenamed Project Raven, which made use of ex-NSA employees to spy on and hack governments, human rights activists, and American citizens.
Not long after she joined, Stroud found herself ensnared in a web of deceit and espionage as she was asked to spy on fellow Americans, underage teens, and enemies of the UAE.
Digital mercenaries for hire
But DarkMatter didn’t just make use of the knowledge and skills of its ex-intelligence operatives. It also inherited Cyberpoint’s experience with the notorious Italian Hacking Team, which sits at the top of a clandestine, multi-billion-dollar industry, supplying law enforcement, intelligence agencies and businesses with spyware and cyber capabilities.
Saud al Qahtani, a close advisor to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (also known as MBS), who was fired for his involvement in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, tried to contract the Italy-based Hacking Team on behalf of the Saudi Arabian royal family as early as 2015. Shortly after he went on to hire the Emirati firm DarkMatter, according to anonymous sources speaking to The Washington Post.
The UAE played a role in building Saudi Arabia’s fledgeling cyber capacity. Qahtani would eventually be introduced to the Israeli NSO Group by the UAE, who brokered a deal between representatives of MBS and the Israeli NSO group.
In the deal, Saudi Arabia acquired the hacking software Pegasus, which it used to hack journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s phone prior to his murder, as well as a broad array of dissidents, enemies and political opponents.
Odd coincidences
In 2011, the UAE contracted Larry Sanchez, a CIA veteran, to build the UAE’s intelligence apparatus, also basing the operation in a villa, where training took place, according to a report in Foreign Policy.
Sanchez began training the Emiratis in surveillance, spycraft and how to work as paramilitary operators through his company CAGN Global. This would set the groundwork for the UAE’s increasingly ambition regional aims, later fuelled by mercenaries and US army veterans, intelligence operatives and cyber warfare specialists.
“The dream,” said one source, was to help the UAE make its own CIA.
The CIA had no issue with his work.
‘Enough was enough’
While working for DarkMatter, Stroud quickly discovered widespread abuses of power which she justified in the name of counterterrorism and security for a time. That was until she discovered that Project Raven was also spying on fellow American nationals.
According to former Project Raven employees, the FBI is currently investigating whether former American intelligence operatives leaked classified US information or techniques, or illegally targeted American networks during their work.
The rot runs deeper
Not to be outdone, the UAE did not just build cyber warfare and espionage capabilities. It would go on to hire death squads and Colombian mercenaries, employ former American generals to lead its forces, and act as a power broker between Saudi Arabia and Israel as part of its bid for greater regional influence.
A key figure in the UAE’s military and cyber warfare expansion was an Israeli arms dealer, billionaire and intelligence businessman Mati Kochavi.
His company, AGT International, also specialised in ‘Smart Cities’. In 2007, the UAE approached Kocahvi’s company 4D Security Solutions to build a ‘smart’ surveillance system in Abu Dhabi. AGT International won the $6 billion contract.
Mentor to Saudi Mohammed bin Salman
In time, the UAE would come to exert its own influence over its Saudi neighbours.
Instrumental to MBS’s close ties to the Trump administration was UAE Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, who introduced MBS during his debut tour of Washington, after lobbying for him extensively.
The UAE developed ties with the Israeli NSO Group as early as 2013, before brokering a meeting between the Israeli group and representatives of MBS to acquire hacking capabilities.
This took place months before MBS’s infamous purge in 2017, which saw 159 Saudi princes and business leaders imprisoned in the Ritz-Carlton.
Whistleblower Snowden, the former US intelligence contractor, believes that Khashoggi was a victim of the NSO Group’s hacking software, which enabled Saudi Arabia to violate his privacy.
How much did Washington know?
Corporate outsourced war
The US defence industry and private contractor sector is deeply invested in the UAE.
Erik Prince, the owner of Frontier Group, formerly-known-as Blackwater, provided training to South American mercenaries for combat the Saudi-UAE led coalition’s war in Yemen for $529 million.
Spear Operations Group, founded by Israeli security contractor Abraham Golan, provided the UAE with a strike force of former American soldiers who carried out “high-profile assassinations,” by his admission, and was responsible for the killing of Anssaf Ali Mayo, a Yemeni Islah party leader.
Little Sparta
It remains to be seen where the UAE’s aggressive pursuit of military and cyber modernisation will take it. In one way or another, however, the UAE has established its credentials as a power broker and middle man, as well as a regional power.
Nonetheless, repetitive violations of sovereignty and human rights by the UAE contradict its claims to be the only progressive, tolerant and forward-looking country in the region.
and on this subject, also https://www.trtworld.com/magazine/saudi-arabia-and-the-uae-hired-israeli-hackers-to-spy-on-dissidents-22000
cp1a Am wichtigsten: Seuchen / Most important: Epidemics
(* B H)
WHO Yemen: A nationwide Measles and Rubella campaign conducted from 9-14 Feb 2019 in #Yemen reached more than 11 million children (6 months- 15 years of age) with the vaccine in collaboration with #UNICEF and local health authorities.
https://twitter.com/WHOYemen/status/1096852939958898688
cp1b1 Am wichtigsten: Kampf um Hodeidah: Deutsch/ Most important: Hodeidah battle: German
(* A K P)
Krieg im Jemen: Konfliktparteien einig über erste Truppenabzüge
Die Kontrahenten im Jemen-Konflikt haben eine Einigung über die erste Phase ihres Truppenabzugs erreicht. Damit sollen auch Hilfsgüter einfacher ins Land kommen.
Vertreter der jemenitischen Regierung und der schiitischen Huthi-Rebellen haben sich auf die erste Phase eines Truppenabzugs aus der Hafenstadt Hudaida und zwei weiteren Häfen verständigt. Es handele sich um einen bedeutenden Fortschritt, erklärte die Uno. Die Gespräche seien "langwierig, aber konstruktiv gewesen". Nach zweitägigen Verhandlungen in Hudaida hätten sich beide Seiten im Grundsatz auch auf die zweite Phase geeinigt.
http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/jemen-regierung-und-huthi-rebellen-einig-ueber-erste-truppenabzuege-a-1253719.html = https://www.tagesschau.de/ausland/jemen-truppen-abzug-hodeida-101.html
und auch https://www.zeit.de/politik/ausland/2019-02/jemen-kriegsparteien-truppenabzuege-hafenstadt-hodeida
cp1b2 Am wichtigsten: Kampf um Hodeidah: Englisch / Most important: Hodeidah battle: English
(* B H K)
Scrapping for food to survive: Inside the frontline of Yemen's devastating civil war
Sky News gets rare access to spots on the front line between Houthis and pro-government forces that are leaving people starving.
And amid this grinding war a desperate population struggling to survive is scrapping in the dirt for whatever handouts they can get.
Sky News gained rare access to Hodeidah by travelling along Yemen's west coast.
We were taken to the Red Sea Flour Mills on the edge of the city.
The front line position is now controlled by the coalition - inside the stores the grain is spoiling in the heat.
Aid agencies say although the fighting has paused they can't cross the front lines to access the supplies.
Under the agreement of the new talks this should change and access should be allowed but confidence and trust between the two sides remains low.
The UN says the grain is enough to feed 3.7 million people for a month - vital food in a country where 10 million people are on the brink of famine.
Emirati forces claim it is the Houthis, who are less than a kilometre away, who are blocking distribution.
They have been accused of shelling the grain silos so that one was set alight and is still burning several weeks later.
The Houthis have meanwhile accused the coalition of violating the agreement.
At a field hospital near Hodeidah the medical staff are barely coping - the place is full of sick and hungry children.
Some 13 days after she was admitted, Bashira is still struggling to breathe.
The one-year-old's tiny lungs are weak from lack of food.
Dr Faris Ali Abdu Shami says she's one of the lucky ones.
"The situation is so bad. And there is not enough support like drugs, food, milk that children like her need," he says.
I ask him what happens to children like Bashira who don't get help.
"They will die," he replies.
We were shown 1,200 anti-tank mines and 396 IEDs collected from various locations along the west coast of Yemen.
They were taken to the town of Mocha and destroyed.
But for now the stalemate remains and it is delicate (film, photos)
(* B H K)
The horror of Hodeidah in numbers
Here are some facts and figures that explain why the withdrawal of fighters from Hodeidah will help relieve the suffering of a nation:
685,000
... people have been forced to flee from Hodeidah since June last year as a result of fighting between the Houthis and pro-government forces.
60
...percent of the 2.6 million people living in Hodeidah governorate are said to be in acute need of humanitarian assistance - a fraction of the 14.3 million overall in Yemen who need urgent help.
3.5
... kilogrammes - the weight of 17-month-old Bashira when she came in to hospital for treatment at a hospital near Hodeidah last week. Normal weight for children of her age is nine to 10kg.
50,000
... tonnes of grain - enough to feed 3.7 million people for a month - is at the Red Sea Mills in Hodeidah, which has been cut off from the rest of the population in Yemen since September due to fighting. They are at risk of rotting, says the UN. A fire has also broken out because of the fighting.
300,000
...of Yemen's 11 million children live in Hodeidah, in some of the most densely populated areas of the country (photos)
https://news.sky.com/story/the-horror-of-hodeidah-in-numbers-11641294
(* A K P)
Yemen's parties agree to start stalled troop withdrawal from main port
Yemen’s warring parties have agreed to start withdrawing forces from the main port of Hodeidah under a U.N.-sponsored deal, the United Nations said, following weeks of diplomacy to salvage a pact that stalled over control of the Red Sea city.
The Iran-aligned Houthi movement and the Saudi-backed government agreed in talks in December to withdraw troops by Jan. 7 from Hodeidah - a lifeline for millions facing famine - under a truce accord aimed at averting a full-scale assault on the port and paving the way for negotiations to end the four-year-old war.
“The parties reached an agreement on Phase 1 of the mutual redeployment of forces,” the U.N. spokesman’s office said in a statement without giving details on what was agreed.
Under Phase 1, the Houthis would withdraw from the ports of Hodeidah, Saleef, used for grains, and Ras Isa, used for oil. This would be met by a retreat of Saudi-led coalition forces from the eastern outskirts of Hodeidah, where battles raged before a ceasefire went into effect on Dec. 18.
The U.N. statement said the two sides also agreed “in principle” on Phase 2, entailing full redeployment of both parties’ forces in Hodeidah province.
and
(* A K P)
Yemen and Houthi rebels agree to withdrawal deal
UN hails pullback from Hodeidah as vital progress in ending four-year-long war
The redeployment from Hodeidah is a critical part of a ceasefire agreed in Sweden in December that calls on the government and Houthis to move forces away from ports.
The fragile truce deal marks the first step toward ending a devastating war that has pushed Yemen to the brink of famine.
After two days of talks in Hodeidah, the government and Houthis finalised a deal on the first phase of the pullback and also agreed in principle on the second phase, a UN statement said.
The talks were led by a Danish general, Michael Lollesgaard, as chair of a redeployment coordination committee (RCC) that includes the government and the Houthis.
“After lengthy but constructive discussions facilitated by the RCC chair, the parties reached an agreement on phase one of the mutual redeployment of forces,” said the UN statement.
The sides made “important progress on planning for the redeployment of forces” but no date was given to begin the demilitarisation.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/feb/17/yemen-and-houthi-rebels-agree-to-withdrawal-deal
(* A K P)
Cammeart accuses Houthis of destroying Yemen’s grain stocks
The former chief of the international monitors of Yemen truce Patrick Cammeart has accused, in an interview with the Dutch de Volkskrant newspaper, the Houthis of destroying 20 % of Yemen’s grain stocks in Hodeida.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-27761
(A K pH)
Feb. 17: US-Saudi mercenaries targeted several residential areas in Ad-durayhimi district with artillery shells and machine guns.
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=5461&cat_id=1
(* A K pS)
Three civilians were killed, including two women, in the explosion of a device in Hayes, South of Hodeidah province (photo)
https://twitter.com/BelqeesRights/status/1096819292253884426
(A K pH)
Feb. 16: US-Saudi mercenaries targeted with heavy arms and machine guns residential areas in Al-Hali district, and targeted with artillery shells Addurayhimi district.
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=5445&cat_id=1
(A K pH)
Armed Forces spokesman : US-Saudi Mercenaries Commit 508 New Violations in 72 hours, Hodeidah
The Coalition of Aggression and its mercenaries continued their intensive violations of the cease-fire in Hodeidah, the strengthening of their forces and the creation and operation of new fortifications, which confirms their intention to commit further crimes against the citizens.
The Spokesman for the Armed Forces Brigadier General Yahya Sari said in a statement that the aggression and its mercenaries committed during the past 72 hours more than 508 new violations, while flying jets of US-Saudi aggression launched 64 air raids on a number of provinces.
He said that the military aggression and reconnaissance drones continued to fly over the city of Hodeidah and a number of directorates, committing 16 breaches while the mercenaries of aggression targeted residential neighborhoods, farms and houses of citizens and the positions of the Army and Popular Committees in Hodeidah with 51 rockets, 256 missiles and 139 of medium-and light-weapons fire by mercenaries.
He added that the Army and Popular Committees have monitored eight new fortifications, as well as attempted infiltration and 37 push-ups and movements of their fighters and military materiel, confirming their intentions to commit more crimes against citizens and not being serious about implementing the UN resolution and replacing of peace in Yemen.
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=5452&cat_id=1
(A K pS)
Film: Alyemany: 'Not seeing implementation' on ceasefire deal
A ceasefire deal between the Yemeni government and the rebel Houthi movement is not being fully upheld, the Yemini Foreign Minister Khaled Alyemany has said.
He told Hardtalk's Stephen Sackur: "During the last two months we have registered more than 1,000 violations of the cessation of hostilities in the Hudaydah region...
"It is a challenging moment that we have achieved agreement so far but we are not seeing the implementation."
Comment: This is true - but BOTH sides are still behaving abominably and both are blaming the other. The words needs to wake up and take action against all participants in this horrible war.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10157374608398641
(A K pH)
Saudi mercenaries injure elderly woman in Yemen's Hodeidah
An elderly woman was injured Saturday morning in Hodeidah after the aggression mercenaries fired shots on residential areas in Alhali district.
According to the correspondent, "Almasirah Net" said that the US-Saudi mercenaries also shelled Durahmi city with a number of artillery shells.
http://en.abna24.com/news//saudi-mercenaries-injure-elderly-woman-in-yemens-hodeidah_929311.html
cp2 Allgemein / General
(* A K P)
Interactive Map of Yemen War
(* A K)
MILITARY SITUATION IN YEMEN ON FEBRUARY 18, 2019 (MAP UPDATE)
https://southfront.org/military-situation-in-yemen-on-february-18-2019-map-update/
MILITARY SITUATION IN YEMEN ON FEBRUARY 17, 2019 (MAP UPDATE)
https://southfront.org/military-situation-in-yemen-on-february-17-2019-map-update/
MILITARY SITUATION IN YEMEN ON FEBRUARY 16, 2019 (MAP UPDATE)
https://southfront.org/military-situation-in-yemen-on-february-16-2019-map-update/
(* A K)
Film: Hassan Al-Haifi war live.
https://www.facebook.com/hassan.alhaifi/videos/vb.100001109315667/2133026210077669/?type=2&theater
(* B K P)
Report : International greedy war in Yemen
The war in Yemen is far more than just a political struggle, the political struggle does not even begin to capture a fraction of what the conflict is really about.
The war on Yemen today is a brutal example of how the expansion of global capitalist interests destroys nations.
Blessed with the region’s richest human resources, massive untapped oil/gas, mineral, water, and fishery wealth, Yemen has been the target of globalists since at least the 1920s.
Ever since the 1990s, the global economy has incrementally shifted, the petrodollar, once enabling the American Empire to finance endless wars, has been undermined by a growing crisis in liquidity, the resulting desperate search for new sources of capital animates the globalists’ drive to violently subdue the Middle East today.
Once attractive “emerging markets” offering investors desperate for higher returns a “sure thing” have become over-leveraged, the resulting crash and scramble to reverse a trend that sees much of the world’s savings shift away from the West has left much of New York and London exposed. Western equity markets and banks broadly speaking are now desperate to siphon off the last of the world’s liquid wealth before it is forever absorbed by Asia or Africa, this campaign implicates members of the GCC long responsible for assisting in redirecting much of the trillions earned from oil and gas industries back to the West.
What has remained an unspoken rivalry between members of this false alliance, simmering for years, has exploded over Yemen.
Here, then, is the critical concern for observers moving forward.
What animates the calculations of those waging war on parts of Yemen requires an appreciation for the geostrategic concerns of participants otherwise assumed to be aligned in a “coalition” led by Saudi Arabia.
[…]
It is therefore the latest battle in the race for regional hegemony between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi.
In both the short and the long term, such differing policies will further destabilize Yemen, and ultimately the Yemeni people will suffer the most.
Yemen has become a battleground for various international ambitions, which further fragments the country. Emirati and Saudi differences alone decrease the changes of a solid political solution, even after the conflict, with various factions becoming empowered.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526838.htm
Remark: By Houthi government’s news agency.
(A P)
Film: Outcome of the #WarsawConference
Declares the failure of the coalition in the occupation of #Hodeidah, and USA and Israel announce their direct intervention to what they called emptying of the Houthis.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=784928262029676
(* B P)
Netanyahu Asks Arabs to 'Advance The Common Interest Of War With Iran'
The U.S. had called for a high level anti-Iran meeting in Poland. The purpose of the meeting was to bring with its allies and poodles into line with the U.S. agenda on Iran, to press them at least into issuing harsher sanctions. But the Europeans rejected that.
The State Department then changed the agenda:
“The idea was to have a conference, a ministerial, and basically break our diplomatic isolation on Iran,” said a person familiar with the planning of the event. “It started out as an Iran conference in disguise but has probably actually been forced to take on more actual broader Middle East content now."
The person added: “They changed some of the focus and were forced to pony up with content on Syria and Yemen particularly."
The meeting took place today but the European powers did not fall for the trick. They want keep the nuclear agreement with Iran
That State Department effort to somewhat hide the real agenda was sabotaged when the Prime Minister of Israel arrived and made it clear what the meeting is all about:
I am going to a meeting with 60 foreign ministers and envoys of countries from around the world against Iran. What is important about this meeting – and this meeting is not in secret, because there are many of those – is that this is an open meeting with representatives of leading Arab countries, that are sitting down together with Israel in order to advance the common interest of war with Iran."
Why is Netanyahoo doing this?
No other country, except maybe the U.S., has any interest in waging war on Iran. Certainly not the Arab countries near the Persian Gulf. In case of a war they are all extremely vulnerable to Iranian retaliation. Their oil and gas installations would be in serious danger. The desalination plants which provide their drinking water are all within easy reach of Iranian missiles.
By claiming that the conference is about waging war on Iran Netanyahoo is not only embarrassing the State Department and Secretary Mike Pompeo. He also makes it extremely difficult for other attendees to justify their presence.
https://www.moonofalabama.org/2019/02/netanyahoo-asks-arabs-to-advance-the-common-interest-of-war-with-iran.html = http://www.ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/featured-articles/2019/february/13/netanyahu-asks-arabs-to-advance-the-common-interest-of-war-with-iran/
and
(* B P)
Few Are Inspired to Follow America’s Lead on Iran
A conference tries to rally support for a political and economic fight, to little effect.
On Wednesday and Thursday, leaders of Israel and Arab states met publicly again, at an international conference in Warsaw staged by the Trump administration. But the goal of this meeting, drawing officials of some 60 nations, was not peacemaking. It was to rally support for economic and political war with Iran, for which the United States has found little enthusiasm among allies since withdrawing from the 2015 deal that restricts Iran’s nuclear program.
Administration officials initially tried to promote their agenda under an amorphous “seeking peace in the Middle East” rubric. But there was no denying the real purpose, especially when Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s militantly anti-Iran prime minister, sent out a since-deleted tweet that proclaimed “an open meeting with representatives of leading Arab countries, that are sitting down together with Israel in order to advance the common interest of war with Iran.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/15/opinion/trump-iran-warsaw-netanyahu.html
and
(* B P)
All This Should Remind You of the Run-Up to the Iraq War
The march to war against Iran is echoing the drumbeats of America's last major Middle Eastern invasion.
T he Trump administration has repeatedly stressed that last week’s Middle East conference in Warsaw, Poland—officially dubbed the Ministerial to Promote a Future of Peace and Security in the Middle East—was merely an effort to demonstrate international solidarity and support for isolating Iran. But it sure felt like a war summit—a very familiar, and exceedingly ominous, war summit.
The meeting—which was attended by Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the Israeli prime minister, a smattering of Arab foreign ministers, Poland’s chief diplomat, and the British foreign secretary—coincided with the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Republic. U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton marked that occasion by posting a video on Twitter outlining Washington’s long list of grievances and accusations leveled at Iranian leaders.
Pence used the conference to aim harsh words at U.S. allies in Europe, whom he essentially accused of aiding and abetting an enemy of the United States.
Taken together—the Warsaw conference, Pence’s bullying of the Europeans, Bolton’s threatening video, and the broader background noise in Washington—the events of the past week were familiar in a foreboding way. The chatter about Iran has not become the war fever that gripped Washington in 2002 over Iraq, but the echoes of that year are not hard to miss in the Trump administration’s effort to shape the domestic and international debate about Iran. No one has made a reference to smoking guns and mushroom clouds, but how far off are we when the most senior U.S. officials have essentially declared their Iranian counterparts to be little more than a murderous gang hellbent on dominating the region? This was the same message that the George W. Bush administration stressed over and over again about Saddam Hussein and Iraq.
https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/02/17/all-this-should-remind-you-of-the-run-up-to-the-iraq-war/
and
(* A B P)
Hate-Fest in Warsaw
The point of this cynical exercise was to lay the diplomatic groundwork for an anti-Iranian coalition to act as a fig-leaf for an upcoming attack on Iran planned by President Donald Trump and his close ally, Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu.
The real question is who is calling the shots in bleak Warsaw, Trump or Bibi Netanyahu? It seems to many that the Israeli tail is again wagging the American dog.
This is thanks to the power of America’s born-again evangelicals, hoodwinked into believing that a Greater Israel is somehow a key part of the Second Coming of Christ.
The three horseman of the hard right Republican Apocalypse, Vice president Mike Pence, Insecurity advisor John Bolton, and State Secretary Mike Pompeo (who reportedly keeps an open bible on his desk) joined their voices to the Warsaw jamboree to excoriate Iran for being a "sponsor of terrorism," and a danger to world peace and stability.
The never understated Bibi Netanyahu, whose nation has at least 100 nuclear weapons, claimed Iran, which has no nukes and feeble armed forces, was planning a "second Holocaust" for Israel.
An over-excited Netanyahu even tweeted that the Warsaw meeting was preparing for "war with Iran." He was forced to retract his tweet. But he did get to sit next to the delegate from war-torn Yemen, a stooge put into place by the Saudis and Emiratis whose aggression against Yemen has so far cost hundreds of thousands of lives, mass starvation and epidemics.
http://www.ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/featured-articles/2019/february/16/hate-fest-in-warsaw/
cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation
Siehe / Look at cp1
(* B H)
Villinger Kinderärztin im Jemen: Einsatz war eine "heftige Erfahrung"
Gudrun Adams half Kindern in dem kriegsgeschüttelten Jemen. Nach sechs Wochen brach die Villingerin ihren Einsatz ab, da sie durch den Mangel an medizinischer Ausstattung nicht mehr an Hilfe anbieten konnte als das jemenitische Personal. Das empfand sie auch emotional als sehr belastend.
Für die Villinger Kinderärztin Gudrun Adams war es kein Einsatz wie die anderen zuvor: Drei Monate wollte sie in einem Krankenhaus im Norden des Jemens helfen, nach sechs Wochen, Mitte Januar, kehrte sie zurück nach Villingen. „Es war eine heftige Erfahrung“, berichtet die Medizinerin, die sich für Ärzte ohne Grenzen engagiert. Sie brachte sehr, sehr gegensätzliche Eindrücke mit, für sie der gravierendste und folgenreichste: Hilfe ist notwendiger denn je, doch es ist unglaublich anstrengend, diese Mission zu erfüllen.
Bereits zum fünften Mal war sie im Kriseneinsatz, dieses Mal in Abs im Nordwesten des arabischen Landes. Die wenigen dort existierenden Krankenhäuser sind überlebenswichtige Anlaufstellen für die Jemeniten; oft unter großen Schwierigkeiten versuchen sie dorthin zu kommen. „Viele schwangere Frauen würden eine Hausgeburt gar nicht überleben“, berichtet Adams.
Die meisten Hilfesuchenden waren mit Abstand Kinder. 160 Betten zählt das Spital, zwischen 100 und 120 benötigten die jüngsten Patienten. Doch nicht nur kranke Neugeborene und schwer mangelernährte Kinder versorgte ein Ärzte ohne Grenzen-Team von drei Medizinern, zwei Krankenschwestern und einer Hebamme zusammen mit den einheimischen Mitarbeitern. „Die waren sehr gut ausgebildet und leisteten Unglaubliches.“ In dem Gebiet wüteten auch Masern und Diphtherie, auch hier sind vor allem Kinder, die ebenfalls Hilfe in dem Krankenhaus suchten, die Leidtragenden.
Dabei mangelte es an vielem, Desinfektionsmittel, Antibiotika oder Sauerstoffschläuche waren nur noch schwer zu bekommen. Nachschub hing in Containern fest; wo die genau steckten, war schwer herauszubekommen.
(B H)
I met those extremely committed nurses in Sana'a in June 2017 and they were complaining bitterly against lack of salaries for nearly 1 year. They r still working tirelessly without salaries for over 30 months. Really unbelievable! (photo)
https://twitter.com/sadeqalwesabi/status/1097222639964381186
(* B H)
There have been 14 deaths from malnutrition since the end of 2018 in Aslam district in Hajjah province
https://twitter.com/BelqeesRights/status/1097293730917347333
(B H)
Yemen Aid US
In the month of January, our ambulance service assisted 93 citizens within the province of Hodeidah, #Yemen. From births to victims of car accidents and shelling. This service has witnessed the blessings of new life (newborns) and unfortunate ends of life (death). (photos)
https://twitter.com/YemenAid_US/status/1097223562992205825
(* B H)
Film: Schools in Yemen (in Arabic)
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2921769831197207
(* B H)
Film: Nur Haut und Knochen: Zwölfjährige, die zehn Kilogramm wiegt, als Schreckensbild des Jemenkriegs
Hunderttausende von Kindern leiden im Jemen aufgrund des andauernden Konflikts unter einer Hungersnot. Am Sonntag wurde in einer Klinik in der jemenitischen Stadt Hajjah die Zwölfjährige Fatima Qoba gefilmt, die aufgrund schwerer Unterernährung nur zehn Kilogramm wiegt.
Ihre Schwester zeigte sich besorgt über ihre jüngere Schwester und erzählte: "Wir leben unter einem Baum. Ich weiß nicht, ob wir uns um sie kümmern können oder ob sie wegen der harten Bedingungen, unter denen wir leiden, unterernährt bleibt. Wir haben nichts, womit wir sie ernähren könnten."
Der Leiter der Hajjah-Klinik, Makiah al-Aslami, erklärte, dass das Mädchen "aufgrund des harten Lebens ihrer Familie nur noch Haut und Knochen" sei. Die Familie seien "Vertriebene aus dem Gebiet von Al-Sha'ab, die nicht mit Unterkunft, Nahrung oder Medikamenten versorgt werden."
Aslami betonte, dass sie mehr Unterernährungsfälle bei Kindern erwartet, wobei vor allem schwangere Frauen an akuter Unterernährung leiden.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=einc89cY7rM
Bemerkung: Bericht: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-hunger/starving-girl-shows-impact-of-yemen-war-economic-collapse-idUSKCN1Q323Z .
(* B H)
Films: 12-year-old Yemeni girl weighs 10kg due to severe malnutrition
Starving girl shows impact of Saudi war on Yemen
Footage filmed on Sunday shows 12-year old Fatima Qoba weighing just ten kilogrammes due to severe malnutrition, in a #malnutrition clinic in the Yemeni city of Hajjah. Qoba is one of hundreds of thousands of Yemeni children who have been driven to the brink of #famine due to Saudi Arabia's war on the country. Her sister, also called Fatima, expressed concern for her younger sister, noting that "we live under a tree, l don't know if we can take care of her or if she will be malnourished again because of the hard conditions we're suffering from. We don't have anything to feed her with." Head of the Hajjah malnutrition clinic, Makiah al-Aslami, explained that the girl was "skin and bones due to the hard life of her family," who she said are "displaced persons from Al-Sha'ab area who are not provided with shelter, food or medications." Aslami stressed that she expects more malnutrition cases among children, with more pregnant women suffering from acute malnutrition.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vh4TDQM-SyQ = https://www.facebook.com/PRESSTV/videos/vb.145097112198751/425692711515977/?type=2&theater
and also https://twitter.com/AJEnglish/status/1097209062595444736
Remark: Report https://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-hunger/starving-girl-shows-impact-of-yemen-war-economic-collapse-idUSKCN1Q323Z
(A H)
Open air swimming pool on the outskirts of #Sanaa restored by @SFDYemen cultural heritage team the project was great for community bonding (photos)
https://twitter.com/Wesamqaid/status/1096498832085528577
(A H P)
Yemen's Mocha sees opening of Al Ruwais fishery
A project to enable the fishing industry in Yemen has been inaugurated in Mocha, following reconstruction works by the Emirates Red Crescent, ERC.
Al Ruwais fishery will enable the small-scale fishing industry to thrive once again, opening up opportunities for Yemenis to improve their economic situation.
https://www.sharjah24.ae/en/uae/397747-yemen-s-mocha-sees-opening-of-al-ruwais-fishery
cp4 Flüchtlinge / Refugees
Siehe / Look at cp1
(* B H)
International Organization for Migration: Flow Monitoring Points | 2018 Migrant Arrivals and Yemeni Returns from Saudi Arabia - January 2019
Flow Monitoring Points | 2018 Migrant Arrivals and Yemeni Returns from Saudi Arabia - January 2019
Displacement Tracking in Yemen includes the monitoring of key migrant and return locations on Yemen's northern border with Saudi Arabia and southern coastal border. Enumerators placed at Flow Monitoring Points (FMPs) monitor the arrivals and departures of migrants and Yemeni nationals in order to identify different patterns and types of migration, including estimations to help define the population of irregular migrants present in the country. Access constraints limit the ability to collect data at all migrant departure and arrival points. Utilizing data collected at key migrant departure points throughout the Horn of Africa (66,747), and in combination with Yemen migrant arrival data (93,091), IOM estimates that 159,838 migrants entered Yemen in 2018.
(* B H)
Feature: Newly displaced Yemeni families face bad humanitarian conditions
Hundreds of families were displaced from different war-torn Yemeni areas because of the ongoing fighting between the warring factions.
They are currently facing bad humanitarian conditions in other safe provinces in the impoverished Arab country.
Government officials told Xinhua that more than 260 internally displaced families arrived recently in the southern provinces such as Lahj and Aden that are completely controlled by the Saudi-backed Yemeni government.
They said that most of the newly displaced families evacuated their homes in the strategic Red Sea port city of Hodeidah because of the exchange of random artillery shelling between the government forces and the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.
On the outskirts of Aden near Lahj province, the local Yemeni government authorities, in cooperation with international humanitarian organizations, established only one displacement camp to receive families fleeing the conflict-battered areas.
The officials responsible for the displacement camp on Aden's outskirts said that it was fully crowded and couldn't cope with the inflow of the newly displaced families.
They added that a number of displaced families are now sheltering in the open in the government-controlled provinces of Lahj and Aden, amid acute shortages of food, clean drinking water, and medicines.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-02/16/c_137827279.htm
cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis
(A P)
UN Expert Team: Houthis detain civilians for prisoner exchange
A report issued by the UN Expert Team on Yemen has said that the Houthis detain civilians with the purpose of using them for exchanging their fighters captured by the Yemeni government.
The report said that the tem documented some cases that were detained by the Houthis, pointing out that such behavior violates the International Humanitarian Law.
The team documented eight cases that were detained for the purpose of prisoner exchange, pointing out that five out of these case are still disappeared.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-27791
(A P)
Supreme Political Council directives to facilitate parliamentary elections to fill vacant seats
The Supreme Political Council on Sunday directed the concerned authorities to facilitate holding the parliamentary elections to fill vacant seats due to the death of representatives of those constituencies.
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526900.htm
(A P)
Parliament discusses latest developments at national arena
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news527002.htm
(A P)
Parliament listens to Shura's letter on candidates list for SNACC membership
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526873.htm
(A P)
Houthi rebels free Yemeni activist Awfa Al Naami after three weeks
Awfa Al Naami released after pressure from fellow activists and UN special envoy
A Yemeni humanitarian worker whose detention highlighted the intimidation and torture of activists by Houthi rebels was freed on Saturday, the UN said.
Awfa Al Naami, the country manager for Saferworld, a UK-based organisation helping people in conflict zones, was summoned for questioning at the Houthi national security office in Sanaa on January 28 and had not been heard from since.
“The Special Envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, urged Awfa’s release during his last trip to Sanaa where he met with Houthi leaders,” a UN official told The National. “She is now reunited with her family."
Yemeni lawyers and activists also campaigned for Ms Al Naami's release and have called for an end to the rebels' intimidation campaign.
“This is only a small part of what Yemen’s civil society is facing on the ground. This important space shrinking every day is what makes Yemen even darker,” said Radhya Almutawakel, co-founder of Mwatana Organisation for Human Rights, a Yemeni NGO.
Remark: Finally some good news in war torn #Yemen our colleague member of @WoSolidarityYe network has been released #FreeAwfaa We welcome this important step and thank all who sincerely campaigned for her release, special thanks to the @OSE_Yemen and intermediates and @RashaJarhum
https://twitter.com/munaluqman/status/1096765538624331776
Comment by Judith Brown: This is good news. Why she was arrested is anyone's guess. She was travelling in a car with two work colleagues and was arrested for having illegal sex - with no evidence whatsoever - and she is a married woman with children. Her husband was also arrested initially for allowing his wife to have illicit sex - again there is absolutely no evidence whatsoever that such acts occurred - they were just travelling in a car together. This is an appalling case of wrongful arrest, libel, and restriction of women's rights. In the Yemen I knew she worked in this was just normal. Are the Houthis trying to outdo Al Qaeda in restricting women's rights?
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10157379524313641
My comment to comment, last question: It seems so.
(A P)
According to lawyer @alsarare2013, Houthi group intends to carry out the execution sentence on Asmaa all-Omeissy on Monday. Her father pleads to all organizations to intervene and stop it, she adds.
Update on the case of Asmaa Al-Omeissy, her case will be in the the court of appeals decision tomorrow. News of the execution tomorrow has not been confirmed according to her lawyer Widad Ahmed.
https://twitter.com/Women4Yemen/status/1096552762085654534
and
(A P)
[Hadi] The Yemeni government has demanded the international community to intervene and halt a death sentence against a female Yemeni activist.
The Human Rights Ministry called the UN Special Envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths to immediately intervene and halt the death sentence.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-27792
(A P)
Film: Yemen: Mass pro-Palestine rally denounces US-led Warsaw Conference
Tens of thousands of Yemenis took to the streets of Sanaa on Sunday, to voice their support for the Palestinian people and to denounce the US-led Middle East conference in Warsaw, where the leaders of some Arab countries held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The protesters exhibited numerous placards and banners supporting Palestine and its people, as well as slogans against the Arab leaders, the US, Israel and Netanyahu, with many others holding the Houthi flag. Similar protests were reportedly held in other cities across the country. Demonstrators at one point mimed stabbing and punching a banner bearing Netanyahu's face alongside that of Yemeni Foreign Minister Khlaed Alyemany, presumably in response to the foreign minister sharing a smile with the Israeli prime minister after being seated alongside him in Warsaw.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuZ8gglPuyM
(A P)
Responding Call of Leader of Revolution, Yemen Prepares for Great Marches to ’Innocence of Traitors’
Mass rallies are held on Sunday entitled "Innocence of Traitors" in the capital Sana'a and the governorates of Sa’adah, Hodeidah, Mahweet, Amran, Dhamar, Ibb, Taiz, Al-Jawf, Al-Dhalea, Hajjah and Al-Baidha, in response to the call of the leader of the revolution, Sayyed Abdulmalik Al-Houthi.
In the meantime, huge crowds are pouring into more than 20 squares in a number of governorates to participate in the marches.
Sayyed AbdulMalik, has called on the Yemeni people to take part in mass rallies Sunday to condemn the traitors' normalization steps with the Israeli Zionists and to show steadfastness against the US-Saudi aggression.
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=5455&cat_id=1
and
(A P)
Under “Disown the Traitors”, Millions of Yemenis in more than 20 squares of all major cities including the capital Sanaa, Cheered chants against the Saudi-UAE attempts to normalize with Israel. The outraged nation-wide protests came as a backlash after Warsaw “feast”! (photos)
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1097158917468110850
and
(A P)
Mass rallies are held on Sunday entitled "Innocence of Traitors" in the capital Sana'a and the governorates of Sa’adah, Hodeidah, Mahweet, Amran, Dhamar, Ibb, Taiz, Al-Jawf, Al-Dhalea, Hajjah and Al-Baidha, in response to the call of the leader of the revolution, Sayyed Abdulmalik Al-Houthi.
In the meantime, huge crowds are pouring into more than 20 squares in a number of governorates to participate in the marches.
Sayyed AbdulMalik, has called on the Yemeni people to take part in mass rallies Sunday to condemn the traitors' normalization steps with the Israeli Zionists and to show steadfastness against the US-Saudi aggression.
A Yemeni court received 2day a lawsuit filed against Saudi-backed minister who attended Warsaw summit for charges of spying&cooperating with enemies While millions in all cities angrily protest against normalization attempts with Israel. Chanting: Disown of the Traitors (photos)
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1097036528554004480
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526905.htm
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526874.htm
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526866.htm
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526950.htm
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526992.htm
more photos: https://twitter.com/mamashami/status/1097175246237503488
https://twitter.com/alneamyyy88/status/1097176233174056960
film: https://www.facebook.com/PRESSTV/videos/vb.145097112198751/1161464290679834/?type=2&theater
(A P)
Yemeni protesters slam ‘Arab traitors’
Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets across Yemen to slam some of the country’s fellow Arab states’ attempts at normalization of relations with Israel.
The rallies took place in the capital, Sana’a, as well as in the western provinces of Sa’ada, al-Hudeydah, Ta’izz, and al-Jawf, among other places in the country, on Sunday, Yemen’s al-Masirah television network reported.
The demonstrators specifically criticized a recent United States-led conference held in the Polish capital of Warsaw, during which Arab leaders met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Film: https://www.facebook.com/PRESSTV/videos/1161464290679834/
And
(A P)
I think the world does not know that for generations at least, and maybe for centuries or millennia, Yemenis have protested and demonstrated in a very civilised way against injustices. This surprised me when I first went to live in Yemen, but I always noted the large and very peaceful pro Palestinian demonstrations that were regularly held. These Yemeni women are protesting today against the growing links between Hadi's government and Israel. (photos)
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10157377645488641
Yemenis are the most insistent supporters of Palestinian rights and I saw massive marches and demonstrations along the ring roads in Sanaa when I lived there. They are very angry about the government of Hadi taking part in a conference with Israel in Warsaw last week.
https://www.facebook.com/judith.brown.794628/posts/10157377617513641
(* B P)
ANSARULLAH: «DER FRIEDEN IM JEMEN KANN NICHT DURCH KAPITULATION VOR ISRAEL GESICHERT WERDEN»
Ein Sprecher der jemenitischen Ansarullah-Bewegung sagt, Frieden und Stabilität im Land können nicht durch Unterwerfung unter dem israelischen Regime hergestellt werden.
Sie verurteilen die Teilnahme von Vertretern, die dem ehemaligen jemenitischen Präsidenten Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi gegenüber auf einer kürzlich abgehaltenen Konferenz in Warschau loyal waren.
„Die Teilnahme von Khaled al-Yamani [dem Außenminister des ehemaligen jemenitischen Regimes] an der lächerlichen Konferenz weist auf die Erniedrigung der Verräter in Jemen hin. Die Teilnahme der Söldnerregierung an der Veranstaltung zeigt, dass sie völlig unentschlossen und unterwürfig ist.
Eine solche Präsenz stellt ein nationales und religiöses Verbrechen dar “, zitierte der arabischsprachige Fernsehsender al-Masirah am Freitag Mohammed Abdul-Salam.
(* B P)
Ansarullah: Peace in Yemen Can’t Be Secured by Submission to Israel
The spokesman for Yemen’s Ansarullah movement said peace and stability in the country cannot be established through submission to the Israeli regime, condemning the participation of representatives loyal to former Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi in a recent conference in Warsaw.
“The attendance of Khaled al-Yamani [the foreign minister of the former Yemeni regime] in the ludicrous conference points to the abasement of traitors to Yemen. The participation of the mercenary government in the event demonstrates that it is completely indecisive and submissive. Such a presence amounts to a national and religious crime,” Arabic-language al-Masirah television network cited Mohammad Abdul-Salam as saying on Friday.
The Houthi official was referring to the Warsaw Conference, an international gathering organized by Washington in the Polish capital, which was held between February 13 and 14. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had earlier claimed the gathering would focus on “stability and peace, freedom and security” in the Middle East.
“The establishment of an administration in exile has forced former Yemeni regime officials to consent to normalization of ties with Israel, and follow in the footsteps of Riyadh and Abu Dhabi,” Abdul-Salam added.
He went on to say that the Warsaw Conference was aimed at weakening the Palestinian cause. The official denounced as treachery the participation of delegates from countries involved in the ongoing military aggression against Yemen as well as Hadi loyalists.
“Peace in Yemen can’t be secured through capitulation to Israel,” the Ansarullah spokesman stated.
http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13971127000453
(* A P)
Houthis open a new front in their war against Hajur tribes and the coalition intensifies its raids
Militants of the al-Houthi group on Saturday opened a new front in the war against Hajur tribes in the district of Kushar in the northwestern province of Hajjah, while coalition fighters launched violent raids on their positions.
A field source told Al-Masdar online that the Houthis started an attack from the direction of the Directorate of Aflah al-Sham south of Kushar, in addition to their previous attack on the directorate from Al-Obaiseh area east of the Directorate of Amran Governorate.
He added that the large-scale attack by the Houthis met with great defensive moments for the men of Hajur tribes.
The fighting in that area led to the deaths of dozens of militants of the group following airstrikes by Saudi Arabian coalition fighters, as well as the killing of tribesmen in the fighting against the Houthis.
On one hand, the fighting led to the exodus of residents from the villages of Bani Shariah, Bani Rassam, Sha'athma, and Beni Shous, due to the heavy shelling by the Houthis of various types of weapons on those areas, most of them displaced to the open.
http://almasdaronline.com/articles/164353
and also https://republicanyemen.net/archives/14512
and
(* A P)
Tribal leader: Residents of the Directorate of Kasher live a terrible tragedy due to siege and shelling of Houthis
Tribal leader Abu Musallam al-Zu’kuri, commander of the Hajur tribesmen in the district of al-Hajjah Province in the northwest, said the directorate's residents are living in a terrible tragedy as a result of the blockade and shelling by Houthi militants for weeks.
In his blog post on Facebook, al- Zu’kuri explained that the Houthis ' anti-tribal siege and ongoing war is unjustified, except "arrogance, barbarism, superiority and hegemonic domination."
He added that the Houthis prevented food the drugs from reaching which resulted in the starvation of the children, while the wounded were bleeding to death, and that the siege of the Houthis extended to the siege of Qara tribes and some of Qaflat Ather tribes in Amran Governorate (eastern Hajjah).
He noted that the Houthis were waging a "massive war and systematic sectarian genocide condemning and depriving all divine religions".
He called on the men of the neighboring tribes to intervene
http://almasdaronline.com/articles/164387
and, by the Hadi government at Aden:
(A P)
Yemen calls international community to intervene, lift siege against Yemeni tribe
Yemen Local Administration Minister Abdul-Raqeeb Fatah has called the UN's humanitarian coordinator in Yemen, Lise Grande, to immediately intervene to lift the siege imposed by the Houthis against a Yemeni tribe, Hajour, in Hajja governorate.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-27760
(A P)
Houthis recall conflict between Al-Baydha tribes and kidnap three tribal leaders
Militants of the al-Houthi group kidnapped three leaders of Bani Abbas tribes in Radaa, in the central Yemeni province of al-Baydha, in an effort to pressure the tribe and provide support to their loyal Ryam tribe, local sources said on Saturday.
According to Al-MAsdar online, the kidnapping comes in the context of pressure on the Bani Abbas tribe, which is fighting with the Ryam tribe, and the latter is one of the most important tribes of the Baydha loyal to the armed group.
He noted that this came days after the Houthis attacked Bani Abbas tribe with Ryam tribesmen.
http://almasdaronline.com/articles/164375
cp6 Südjemen und Hadi-Regierung / Southern Yemen and Hadi-government
(* A P)
The Association of Mothers of abductees in Aden on Monday morning staged a protest in front of the attorney general's office, demanding the speedy release of the arbitrary detainees and revealing the fate of those who were forcibly hidden.
The protest came in response to statements circulated by the media about the public prosecutor, who denied the existence of secret prisons in Aden.
In a speech to the Public Prosecutor's Office, the association said: we are not keen to prove the existence of secret prisons in Aden, but the association has certain information about the existence of secret prisons, and that the official authorities have denied this in the light of the continued enforced disappearance of those who did not find any influence in the official prisons the horror of their families and their relatives about their fate.
The participants also reiterated the responsibility of the leadership of the Aden Security Department, the Interior Command, the presidency of the Government, the attorney general and the Presidency of the Republic, for the continued arbitrary arrest of scores and the enforced disappearance of dozens of others.
http://almasdaronline.com/articles/164422
photos: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1019132051607815&id=505200403000985
https://twitter.com/abducteesmother/status/1097509181232422912
(* A P)
Decisions and Suggestions Issued by the Second Round of the Southern National Assembly held in Al-Makla – Hadhramaut between February 16th and 17th, 2019
The Southern National Assembly suggests that the Southern Transitional Council should empower elites’ troops in Hadhramaut desert and valley, Shabwa, Al-Mehra, Socotra and Mukiras – Abian.
The Southern National Assembly suggests that the Southern Transitional Council should revive the relationship with president Abd Rabu Mansour Hady to serve the interests of the southern cause and empower southern citizens to run their organizations and resources away from extremist political and terrorist powers.
The Southern National Assembly suggests that the Southern Transitional Council should face all tries of the corrupt government that aims to disturb the security, stability and social peace in the south in addition to marginalizing southern cadres. The assembly warns the corrupt government that the assembly will take all necessary measures to stop this miss.
[total: 15 points]
(* A P)
Al-Zubaidi Heads the First Session of of the Southern National Assembly in Al-Makla
General Aidarous Kassem Al-Zubaidi, president of the Southern Transitional Council, headed the first session of the second round of the Southern National Assembly held in Al-Makla on Saturday February 16th, 2019, under the slogan of “Restoring Homeland and Building the Federal Independent Civil Southern State”. the round will last for three days.
He added that the upcoming stage is based on performance and establishing the pillars of democratic organizational transparent work. He said: Our approach is to establish national organizations that work accurately, correctly and transparently.
Addressing the attendants, he said: You are representing the struggle and sacrifices of the glorious southern people. You are representing a history of struggle, patience, hopes and expectations. A history of seeking freedom and partnership.
President Al-Zubaidi indicated that: Hadhramaut suffered a lot from terrorism, just like Aden, Abian, Lahj, Shabwa and every other part in the south. We suffered from political terrorism and extremism. We suffered from extremist thinking that was created to kill our voices and break up our will. But we fought it with all our strength.
and
(A P)
Speech of President Aidarous Kassem Al-Zubaidi at the Opening Ceremony of the Second Round of the Southern National Assembly – Al-Makla
Hail to Hadhramaut, hail to the south and hail to our glorious southern people and their representatives. Peace be upon the soles of martyrs who sacrificed their lives so that we can live and here we are on their path, walking towards their dream that we will never abandon as we will never abandon our legitimate rights for which they died.
Respectful Members of the Southern National Assembly:
Today, you are holding the second round of the southern national assembly. We are all responsible for maintaining a suitable degree of representing the will of the southern people as we lived more critical moments when we established this legislative body that is a glory for every southern.
One year after the founding round, here we meet again.
(A P)
Nabiha Ba Farag: The Second Round in Hadhramaut has Political, Geographic and Military Significance
“Holding this round in Al-Makla – Hadhramaut is politically significant because of the geographic and political weight of Hadhramaut after Aden. The council proved its ability for political arrangement and organization in a very short time. The council is working on establishing political and military bases and pillars of the southern state on a solid ground that is totally different from what happened before in previous stages of the revolution.
(A P)
Ben Brik Invites Southern Members of the Expired Yemeni Parliament to Join the Southern Parliament
General Ahmed Said Ben Brik, chairman of the southern national assembly, invited southern members of the expired Yemeni Parliament to join the southern parliament.
In his speech at the opening of the second round round of the Southern National Assembly in Al-Makla – Hadhramaut, Ben Brik said: The Southern National Assembly reaches for every southern with the legitimacy or the expired Yemeni Parliament to return home to the south. We invite them all to join the southern parliament.
https://en.smanews.org/11073-2
Remark: Southern separatists heavily oppose president Hadi’s attempts to achieve a session of parliament by the representatives who had taken his side.
And, by a pro-Hadi government news site:
(* A P)
Southern transitional movements in Al-Mukalla did not offer new and force shows led to lose sympathy
The session of the so-called "General Assembly" of the Southern Transitional Council ended on Saturday at the Ramada Hotel in al-Mukalla, the center of Hadramawt Province, without further mention.
The leaders of the Southern Transitional Leadership addressed a number of supporters of the Council to the promises to build the state of the South and to address the movements of the legitimate government by holding a prospective session of the House of Representatives in the city of Aden, the interim capital.
Repeated speeches have confirmed that the people of the South will not be allowed to hold such a meeting.
They directed their outrage to the government forces of the first Military District in the provinces of Wadi and Desert of Hadramawt, mostly from the northern governorates of the country, and loyal to President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.
Meanwhile, the governor of Hadramawt, commander of the second military region, Major General Faraj al-Bahssani, security and military leaders in the province and local authority leaders, ignored the emergence of the southern transitional leadership.
The poor attendance of the southern transition led to the holding of a small ceremony on Friday in the remote city of Ghail Bawazir, east of Mukalla, in which the transitional leaders also spoke with repeated words.
This comes in tandem with a state of great discontent in the Al Hadhrami Street, following the presence of large military forces loyal to the southern transition brought in from Aden to show the force in the city.
http://almasdaronline.com/articles/164376
(A)
Assassinations, crimes still plunge Aden
A young man was found killed Friday in the port city of Aden, security sources affirmed.
The sources said that gunmen intercepted Mohammed Ali close to Aden Airport, abducted him, threatened his friends to not move from inside his car, killed him and threw him on road.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-27762
and
(A)
This is the Liberated #Aden under ISIS & the UAE death militias and their gangs.
This young #Yemen-i man went to spend a civilian purpose in Aden city, they uprooted his eyes after being restrained & kidnapped,then threw him dead on roadside after looting all his possessions! (photos)
https://twitter.com/I4Yemen/status/1096864776104407040
(A P)
Warsaw Conference proves that Saudi-backed Hadi regime collaborates with “Israel”
The so-called Warsaw conference has revealed the extent of mutual cooperation between the Saudi-led coalition and the “Israeli” Zionist entity.
An Israeli expert confirmed that the Foreign Minister of the Saudi-backed Hadi “government”, Khaled al-Yamani, attended the Warsaw Conference along with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and that this meeting was no coincidence.
Roy Kays, an Israeli writer and journalist, told BBC during an interview that Khaled al-Yamani’s sitting alongside Netanyahu in Warsaw was not a coincidence, but a sign of “normalization from under the table.”
Khaled al-Yamani appeared alongside Netanyahu in the Warsaw conference, which aroused great indignation in Yemen.
http://en.ypagency.net/88708/?fbclid=IwAR3zZOwIrCkJn_SpW_P1chxcu-T-tAs3BC6PJppyncO5oGZjq4rJlrawTbc
Remark: As claimed by the Houthi side.
cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks
Siehe / Look at cp1b
(A P)
Al-Yamani: We will not go for another round of talks unless the Stockholm agreement is implemented
Yemeni Foreign Minister Khalid al-Yamani said the legitimate government team he heads will not go to any other round of talks unless the implementation of the Stockholm Agreement is adhered to.
In remarks to the newspaper "Independent Arabia", Minister Al-Yamani stated that the newly appointed Chairman of the Coordinating Committee for Redeployment in Hodeidah, Michael Lolisgaard, is currently working on rebuilding new perceptions leading to two goals.
http://almasdaronline.com/articles/164438
My comment: It’s half your side’s fault.
(A P)
"Griffith" leaves Sanaa after a one-day visit in which he met the Houthi leader
The UN envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffith, left on Monday the capital, Sanaa, after a day-long visit, coinciding with the deployment of the Al-Hodeidah (Western) Committee to an agreement to partially withdraw the troops from the seam zones.
Griffith had met with Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi and the head of the so-called "supreme Political Council" of Houthis Mahdi al-Mashat, and discussed the implementation of the Sweden Agreement.
Griffiths is scheduled to present a new statement today to the Security Council on the course of implementation of the Stockholm Agreement and the UN Observer Mission led by General Michael Lolisgaard to follow up on the implementation of the agreement.
http://almasdaronline.com/articles/164440
(A P)
UN envoy arrives in Yemen to discuss truce around port city
U.N. envoy Martin Griffiths arrived on Sunday in the capital, Sanaa, to discuss the "complex situation" in and around the key port city of Hodeida, Yemeni security officials said.
The Houthi rebels said their leader, Abdul-Malek al-Houthi, met with Griffiths to discuss the implementation of peace deals from December talks with Yemen's internationally recognized government.
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/article226405575.html
and
(A P)
Sayyed Abdulmalik al-Houthi meets UN envoy
Spokesman of Ansaruallah Mohammed Abdulsalam on Sunday said the Revolution Leader Sayyed Abdulmalik Badr al-Din al-Houthi met with the UN Special Envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths and discussed with him the implementation of Sweden agreement.
In the meeting, Sayyed al-Houthi confirmed the anti-aggression forces’ keenness on bringing peace and the implementation of Sweden agreement.
Sayyed al-Houthi criticized the other party’s continued rejection of Sweden agreement and their intransigence towards the plan provided by head of the Coordination and Redeployment Committee.
(* B P)
Path to Yemen peace has been carefully laid
The building blocks are in place for a political solution but there is much at stake
If there were any obstacles to finding a pathway to peace in Yemen, they are being systematically dismantled, one by one.
A provisional date has been set for early December for all parties in the three-year conflict to meet on neutral territory in Sweden.
UN special envoy Martin Griffiths is in the capital Sanaa and is expected to meet Houthi rebels in Hodeidah tomorrow. The Saudi-led coalition and the US have both pledged their commitment to a political solution to bring an end to the three-year conflict. Kuwait has offered to provide air transport to all factions to ensure they meet for initial peace talks in Stockholm and Mr Griffiths has offered to accompany the Iran-backed Houthis to Sweden.
There is a momentum and a will, both regionally and from the international community, to bring to an end the suffering of millions of Yemenis in a country on the brink of widespread famine.
There are no quick fixes to a war which has raged since 2015 and claimed the lives of more than 80,000 children.
As Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation said, the talks in Sweden are a first step on a long and as yet unforeseen path. “Stockholm talks may not be the last round of negotiations,” he warned, “but we hope it would be a basis for more serious talks from the Houthis.”
Indeed, these are but the initial building blocks for a framework for peace, but they are essential groundwork and the furthest all parties have travelled in terms of meeting on a level playing field and agreeing to co-operate. Mr Griffiths faces a precarious task ahead.
The slightest provocation could set back negotiations and worsen an already dire situation before that critical point in December arrives.
It is up to him and international partners like the US to steer a course for all factions to ensure they halt hostilities and take part in mediation talks.
They might not agree once there – but sitting down to negotiate is further than they have been along this road.
https://www.thenational.ae/opinion/editorial/path-to-yemen-peace-has-been-carefully-laid-1.794804
My comment: This is from the UAE. Of course, not just one side, but all sides must be equally blamed.
cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia
Besuch in Pakistan / Pakistan visit: cp12
(* B H P)
Frauen fliehen aus Saudi-Arabien: "Du hättest wenigstens Tschüss sagen können"
Noch ein letztes Mal stiehlt die junge Frau mit den langen schwarzen Haaren das Handy ihres Vaters. Draußen, in einer hinteren Ecke im Hof, hat sie drei Taschen zwischen einigen Kisten versteckt. Sie öffnet die App, die ihr Leben reglementiert und kontrolliert die Einstellungen. Dann steigt sie in ein Taxi Richtung Flughafen. Am nächsten Tag sitzt Dania (Name geändert) in einer Sammelunterkunft in Deutschland.
Junge Frauen aus Saudi-Arabien beantragen sei einigen Jahren vermehrt Asyl in Deutschland und der EU. Sie wollen der Bevormundung durch ihre Familien entgehen. Denn auch als Erwachsene können Frauen in dem konservativen Königreich nicht selbst einen Pass beantragen oder nach eigenem Willen heiraten, sie brauchen dafür das Einverständnis eines Mannes der Familie.
Verglichen mit den insgesamt 130.000 Asylanträgen allein im vergangenen Jahr in Deutschland ist die Zahl von etwas mehr als 160 saudischen Anträgen in den letzten drei Jahren verschwindend gering. EU-weit waren es in den vergangenen vier Jahren auch nur knapp 700 Saudis, die um Asyl gebeten haben. Aber in den Jahren zuvor hatte es kaum einen Antrag aus dem arabischen Königreich gegeben. Zuletzt haben immer mehr junge Saudis versucht zu fliehen.
Digitale Kontrolle durch "Absher"-App
Eine App und eine Computersoftware des saudischen Innenministeriums haben zuletzt für Aufsehen gesorgt: "Absher", was im saudischen Dialekt so etwas heißt wie: "In Ordnung!" Das Programm regelt digital alle möglichen Behördengänge von der Zahlung eines Strafzettels bis zur Beantragung eines Passes. Über die App verwalten Männer und Väter auch die Daten ihrer Schutzbefohlenen und können für Frauen festlegen, an welchem Flughafen sie Saudi-Arabien verlassen dürfen. Die App gibt es in dieser Form seit 2015 – seitdem gibt es immer mehr Asylanträge.
Politiker und Menschenrechtsgruppen in den USA hatten Apple und Google zuletzt aufgefordert, die App nicht mehr anzubieten. Das Europäische Parlament kritisierte das elektronische System erst in einer Sitzung am Donnerstag und forderte Saudi-Arabien auf, Vormundschaften für Frauen endlich zu beenden. Trotz der bislang durchgeführten Reformen wie der Stärkung von Frauenrechten und dem Ende des Fahrverbots für Frauen bleibe das politische und soziale System für Frauen weiter diskriminierend, heißt es in der Resolution des EU-Parlaments.
Kurzer Abriss: https://www.nau.ch/news/ausland/immer-mehr-saudis-beantragen-asyl-aus-angst-vor-strafe-65484782
(* B P)
If Saudi’s MBS remains in control, more tensions with Morocco will come
Saudi-Moroccan relations are witnessing an unprecedented period of tension. Morocco has decided to pull its Ambassador from Riyadh. The Ambassador, Mustafa Al-Mansouri, has explained to 360 that the reason for his recall was Al Arabiya’s broadcasting of a video report against the “territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Morocco,” which was interpreted as indicating support for the Polisario Front’s independence campaign in the Western Sahara region of Morocco. This came just a few days after Morocco left the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.
The decision to leave the war in Yemen indicates that the coalition is becoming increasingly weak. What started as a nine-nation coalition appears, now more than ever, to be a coalition led only by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Yet despite the longstanding relations between Rabat and Riyadh, relations have reached their lowest point in decades.
“Morocco’s decision to leave the Saudi/UAE-led coalition, as well as the diplomatic row involving the recall of the ambassador, came in the aftermath of a number of issues, including the Qatar crisis, which has created tension between Rabat and Riyadh,” CEO of Gulf State Analytics Giorgio Cafiero told me. “Morocco did not join the anti-Qatar Quartet in 2017, and has maintained warm relations with Doha since this [Gulf Cooperation Council] GCC dispute broke out,” he added, referring to the ongoing Saudi-UAE blockade of Qatar.
(* B P)
European Commission put Saudi Arabia on ‘dirty money’ list
On the same day that the European body slapped Saudi on the list, Pompeo sat next to the Saudi foreign minister at a summit in Poland.
As Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was meeting with Saudi Arabian officials and others in Poland on Wednesday to discuss the war in Yemen, the European Commission added the Gulf Arab kingdom to its “dirty money” list.
Ben Freeman, director of the Foreign Influence Transparency Initiative at the Center for International Policy, said he was very surprised to see that that Saudi Arabia had been added to the dirty money list.
“No, I was not expecting that. Especially with having this conference in Poland!” said Freeman, referring the meeting in Warsaw where Pompeo and Vice President Mike Pence sought to build Middle Eastern and European alliances against Iran.
“I think the timing from the E.U. sends a signal,” he added.
When asked what he thought the odds were that the United States would ever do the same, Freeman responded: “Oof… yeah, you can quote me on that. The probability of that is non-existent.”
The United States has an openly transactional relationship with Saudi Arabia
[Trump is] also benefited from Saudi largesse via real estate sales and the amount of money they spend at his hotels.
“He has significant ties to Saudi Arabia, there is a significantly close connection to his son in law, Jared Kushner, and the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman… so the president, in a variety of ways, has a vested interest in staying involved in Saudi Arabia that certainly isn’t the American interest, in this case,” said Freeman.
Saudi spending in the United States has grown under Trump. During President Barack Obama’s last year in office, Saudi Arabia spent $10 million on its lobbying in the United States. The first year of the Trump presidency saw that spending jump to $27 million, which, while eyebrow raising, was perfectly legal.
Freeman explains that the last spending to go will probably be U.S. lobbying because what it buys (American investments and apparently unconditional backing on the world stage) is worth so much more than the monetary cost.
For now, the millions and millions they spend in the United States is chump change, and shows no signs of slowing.
(* A P)
SAUDI CROWN PRINCE, BRISTLING FROM MILD CRITICISM OF BONE-SAW MURDER, GOES LOOKING FOR NEW FRIENDS
Mohammed bin Salman is turning to Asia after getting bad vibes from the U.S.
And yet, according to The Wall Street Journal, the young prince is pissed!
Saudi Arabia’s crown prince is embarking on a five-country sweep through Asia to nurture alliances there as the murder of a Saudi dissident and the Saudi-led war in Yemen continue to disrupt the kingdom’s relations with the U.S. and European powers.
Angered by Western criticism, Prince Mohammed Bin Salman has told aides that he would seek diplomatic support from Asian powers including China and India, according to senior Saudi government advisers. . . . The tour includes stops in China and India—for whom a stronger relationship with the heir to the Saudi throne could help secure energy resources for their expanding economies—along with Malaysia, Indonesia, and Pakistan.
According to reporters Jared Malsin and Summer Said, bin Salman “will likely receive a warmer reception on his Asia tour, as he focuses on trade and relations” with governments that are unlikely to raise pesky, downright offensive objections to Saudi Arabia’s less-than-stellar human-rights record.
The tour is set to begin on Sunday in Pakistan, where the crown prince is bringing the promise of billions of dollars in support to an ally facing an economic crisis. Prince Mohammed is expected to sign at least $12 billion in agreements, including plans for a new oil refinery, investments in renewable energy, and an umbrella agreement to invest in the mining sector.
Remark: For Pakistan, look at cp12.
(A P)
Afghan Taliban likely to meet Saudi crown prince in Pakistan: sources
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is likely to meet Afghan Taliban representatives during his visit to Pakistan starting on Sunday, Pakistani government sources said, part of efforts to broker an end to Afghanistan’s 17-year-old civil war.
cp9 USA
(with some further comments by me)
(* B P)
WALTER JONES AND THE VOTE TO END US WAR ON YEMEN
Ending senseless US wars is an idea whose time has come
In a fitting legacy for my friend Walter Jones, Jr. who passed away last week, the US House made history by voting in favor of H.J.Res. 37, a resolution “Directing the removal of United States Armed Forces from hostilities in the Republic of Yemen that have not been authorized by Congress.”
Walter Jones did not care who controlled Congress. He was happy to join forces with any Member to end the senseless US global military empire, which sends thousands of young men and women off to patrol foreign borders, overthrow foreign governments, and needlessly put themselves at risk in missions that have nothing to do with the safety and security of the United States.
US participation in the Saudi war on Yemen is a classic example of the abuse of the US military that made Walter Jones most angry.
Why this ongoing support for Saudi death and destruction in Yemen? Washington’s neocons have successfully promoted the lie that the Saudi attack on Yemen is all about preventing Iran from gaining more strength in the Middle East. Ironically it was the neocon-backed US attack on Iraq in 2003 that provided the biggest boost for Iranian influence in the region. Now, after Iraq’s “liberation,” Baghdad’s ties to Tehran are closer than ever.
Meanwhile, who exactly are we supporting in Yemen?
So we should be encouraged that Walter Jones’ legacy is being honored in the House vote to end the US participation in the Yemen war – by Ron Paul
http://ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/featured-articles/2019/february/18/walter-jones-and-the-vote-to-end-us-war-on-yemen/ = https://www.infowars.com/walter-jones-and-the-vote-to-end-us-war-on-yemen/
(B P)
Want to help #Yemen? And don't know where to start? Check out this toolkit created by @ActionCorpsNYC, @justfp and the Yemeni Alliance Committee, a guide on how to be a peace advocate & end US support to the Saudi-led coalition that's been bombing #Yemen for almost 4 yrs (texts in images)
https://twitter.com/Jehan_Hakim/status/1097027846105489408
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Trump's Iran obsession gives Saudis blank check
Unfortunately, Saudi Arabia under the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has good reason to think that this administration will continue to give it the benefit of the doubt _ and not just on Yemen.
Part of the problem is that Trump, that most transactional of presidents, sees the economic relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia as a good deal _ so good that he has all but said that spending by the Saudis on U.S. weapons and other goods and services is a reason to overlook the likely complicity of the crown prince in the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey last October.
Trump isn't alone in being reluctant to confront the question of the crown prince's culpability.
The administration failed to act on a demand issued by Congress under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act for a report on whether the crown prince is personally responsible for Khashoggi's death.
The indulgence the administration shows to Saudi Arabia isn't totally a matter of dollars-and-cents calculation. It also reflects the administration's fear and loathing of the Islamic Republic of Iran. (In fact, the statement Trump released after Khashoggi's killing criticized Iran's "bloody proxy war against Saudi Arabia in Yemen" before it got around to mentioning the journalist's death.) If Iran must be opposed as uniquely evil, the administration seems to think, then Saudi Arabia, its regional competitor, must be embraced, regardless of its misdeeds.
But the Trump administration has become monomaniacally focused on Iran.
The administration's Iran obsession has also strained relations with America's European allies.
A free ride for Saudi Arabia may be the most conspicuous consequence of the administration's obsession with Iran, but it's not the only one.
https://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-yemen-saudis-20190215-story.html = http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/opinion/2019/02/197_263874.html
(A P)
US Sen. Ron Wyden: After I raised the alarm about the Saudi government helping Saudi fugitives evade the U.S. justice system in Oregon and elsewhere, federal law enforcement agencies have launched an investigation to get to the bottom of these cases and hold the Saudis accountable (film)
https://twitter.com/RonWyden/status/1096440947464945664
(B P)
Photo: In New Orleans on the occasion of their Mardi Gras celebrations, the relationship between MBS and Trump could not be more clear....!
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US army says still helping Saudi-led coalition in Yemen
The US is still supporting the Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen, an American army general told AFP Sunday, days after lawmakers voted to end involvement in Riyadh's war effort.
The US continues to "provide support to the coalition, in particular to help them... be discriminative in targeting and to minimise the risk of civilian causalities", said Major General David C. Hill, deputy commander of US Army Central.
In other comments to AFP on the sidelines of a military exhibition in Abu Dhabi, Hill said US Central Command remains focused on fighting Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group in the Middle East.
"I believe that the end of the physical caliphate doesn't mean the end of ISIS" he said, using an alternative acronym for IS.
"We will continue to work closely with our partners across the region here to do just that."
(B P)
Washington Double Standards Apparent When Dealing with Sana’a and Caracas
That double standards strategy is a Known feature of the United States policy, both internal and external. Washington raises the slogans of democracy and freedom, but in actual practice is completely contrary to those slogans. Slogans are used only to control other States. Where democracy conforms to the strategic and economic interests of the United States, it favors and stands by its side. When democracy is in conflict with its interests, its value becomes less, neglected and disregarded.
This is evident if we consider US policy in both Yemen and Venezuela. It deals with the two countries in the name of democracy, with a contradiction that exposes Washington and reveals its ugly face as it unfolds day after day. It also reveals its false democracy and the fact that it does not stand by the will of the people and does not support human rights.
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=5389&cat_id=6
My comment: Well, this simply is it. Do not forget Ukraine, Syria, Libya.
(* A P)
Rep. Amash Calls Out Dangerous Loopholes in Yemen War Bill and Offers Remedy
Though it is similar to H.J. Res 37, Amash’s new bill contains neither dubious loopholes nor implicit expansions of the executive branch’s power to wage war unilaterally without express congressional approval.
While many opponents of the U.S.-backed and Saudi-led war in Yemen celebrated the House’s recent passage of a bill aimed at ending U.S. support for that war, Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI) has claimed that the bill – H.J. Res. 37 — had been “sabotaged” in order to expand the controversial 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) that has allowed the U.S. government to wage war without congressional approval under the guise of “fighting terrorism.” In order to remedy the “sabotaged” bill, Rep. Amash has introduced a new bill that would require President Donald Trump to remove all U.S. armed forces from Yemen without any loopholes or the implicit expansion of the 2001 AUMF.
Yet, as MintPress reported last year, and as Rep. Amash recently pointed out, both H.J. Res 37 and S.J. Res. 54 would not actually end the war in Yemen because both pieces of legislation contain a major loophole that will allow the majority of U.S. troops in Yemen – if not all – to stay.
This loophole states that the president is required to remove troops “except United States Armed Forces engaged in operations directed at al Qaeda or associated forces.”
As MintPress pointed out this past December, the only U.S. troops “on the ground” in Yemen that are involved in “hostilities” (i.e., combat operations) are those that are allegedly involved in operations targeting al Qaeda — operations that the U.S. frequently conducts jointly with the countries waging war against western Yemen, such as the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
Furthermore, U.S. troops currently stationed in Yemen that target Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) also collaborate with the UAE and Saudi Arabia in “intelligence sharing,” “midair refueling,” and “overhead reconnaissance” for forces involved in counterterrorism operations that the U.S. is leading. This cooperation is what the text of S.J. Res. 54 claims to want to end, but only in regard to the coalition’s war in western Yemen. However, the current text of the bill would allow all of this cooperation to continue, just not in areas where there are no claims of AQAP presence.
In addition, the bill would not end the U.S. drone war in Yemen and could allow U.S. involvement in the coalition’s war in Yemen to continue unchanged if the Saudis — themselves just caught funneling weapons to AQAP — or the Emiratis supplied even dubious “intelligence” that linked Yemen’s resistance movement Ansarullah or the Houthis to AQAP.
Slipping in a military mickey
Rep. Amash recently pointed out via Twitter that this loophole contained in H.J. Res 37 would also have troubling implications far beyond Yemen, as it would expand the 2001 AUMF. As Rep. Amash noted, the AUMF authorizes military force without express congressional approval only against those responsible for the attacks of September 11. However, the language of the new bill would authorize the president to use military force “against nebulous ‘associated forces’” linked to Al Qaeda. This point is particularly troubling given that the Trump administration – like past administrations — has experience in linking countries it doesn’t like to Al Qaeda, without evidence, in order to justify an aggressive foreign policy.
Amash, however, did not blame the bill’s top sponsor, Rep. Khanna, for the problem presented by this loophole and instead claimed that Khanna “is doing great work here, but others keep sabotaging his efforts.”
Owing to the troubling implications hidden within H.J. Res. 37, Rep. Amash voted “present” on the measure as opposed to “yes” or “no.” He was the only representative who voted in this way on account of the presence of the loophole and the implicit expansion of the 2001 AUMF. Five other representatives chose not to vote on the measure at all.
Fixing the fix
Rep. Amash, however, went even further than merely speaking out against the bill’s loophole and what the bill’s passage would mean for the executive branch’s ability to wage war without congressional approval in Yemen and beyond. Amash stated on Friday that he had introduced H.J. Res 142, a short but direct bill that reads as follows:
Congress directs the President to terminate the use of the United States Armed Forces with respect to the military intervention led by Saudi Arabia in the Republic of Yemen not later than the end of the period of 30 days beginning on the date of the enactment of this joint resolution unless and until a declaration of war or specific authorization for such use of the Armed Forces has been enacted into law.”
Though it is similar to H.J. Res 37, Amash’s new bill contains neither dubious loopholes nor implicit expansions of the executive branch’s power to wage war unilaterally without express congressional approval – by Whitney Webb
MintPress News is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 International License.
(* A P)
Jared Kushner will unveil Trump’s Middle East (economic) peace plan
...which is not quite what was promised.
For foreign policy watchers, President Donald Trump’s State of the Union Speech was missing some crucial talking points, among them: His long-promised Middle East peace plan.
But according to a piece published by Politico on Friday, the wait is somewhat over: Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and the man tasked with drafting a plan, will soon unveil the plan’s “the economic portion.”
Kushner, we’re told, will head at the end of February to the Gulf Arab states of Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.
He will not go to Israel, nor the Palestinian territories. Two more stops might be added to the itinerary (perhaps Jordan and Kuwait), but the trip includes Yemen, Iraq, or Syria, Kushner will likely not need to pack his flak jacket on this trip.
So, what can we expect from all of this?
If you were unaware of an economic war going on in the Gulf Arab countries, that’s because there isn’t one. Saudi Arabia maintains its blockade at its border with Qatar, so perhaps Kushner will try to address that. It remains to be seen if he will he address the humanitarian disaster created by the Saudi coalition intervention in Yemen, or address the Trump administration’s decision to cut reconstruction aid to Syria.
Kushner’s entourage will include the hawkish Brian Hook, the State Department’s special representative for Iran, so expect more tough talk on Iran, and perhaps some pressure on Qatar to cut ties with Iran
My comment: This just refers to the Israel-Palestine problem. Be realistic, what to expect: Nothing.
and
(* A P)
Kushner to visit Mideast for peace plan push
The president’s son-in-law will reveal significant details of the economic portion of the Trump administration’s Middle East peace plan.
Jared Kushner will crisscross the Middle East later this month seeking buy-in for his peace plan from leaders throughout the region.
During the trip, the president’s son-in-law will for the first time share significant details of the economic portion of the Trump administration’s Middle East peace plan, whose development he has spent nearly two years overseeing.
Kushner’s weeklong trip — which begins the last week of February — will include stops in Oman, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. Joining him will be Jason Greenblatt, the president’s Middle East envoy, the State Department’s Special Representative for Iran, Brian Hook, and Deputy Assistant to the President Avi Berkowitz.
The White House has tightly held details of the peace plan, which many Middle Eastern officials thought might be unveiled last year.
The forthcoming trip is intended in part to gauge regional reaction to the economic portion of the plan, which would create economic incentives — likely including job opportunities — for Palestinians.
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/02/07/kushner-mideast-peace-plan-1157710
cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain
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UK statement on Yemen welcoming progress on Stockholm agreement
The UK welcomes progress made on agreeing redeployment of troops from Hodeidah by the Government of Yemen and the Houthis this weekend.
This encouraging progress represents a significant step forward in the political process
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-statement-on-yemen-welcoming-progress-on-stockholm-agreement
My comment: Insane bla bla by the government which fuels the war by delivering arms.
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Trillionaire Saudi Prince Mohammad bin Salman steps up $6.8bn takeover of Manchester United
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman is stepping up his A$6.8 billion takeover bid of Manchester United – in the hope of becoming the new owner by next season.
It comes with United chiefs spending an increasing amount of time in Saudi Arabia.
Now the Saudi royal, whose family are worth around £850BILLION, will hope current owners the Glazer family can be tempted into selling.
Sources around Old Trafford have always denied the Glazers want to sell, but the mega offer could be too good to turn down.
The American family purchased United for £790million almost 14 years ago but saddled the club with huge debt.
But it seems like it will work out pretty well for them if they do sell - making an astronomical £2.2billion profit.
The Sun first reported the Saudi interest back in October, and that buying the club outright was the top choice.
But the skids were put on a potential offer after the Crown Prince became embroiled in the diplomatic row after journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed.
My comment: What????????????
And
(* B P)
Saudi prince set to hold Manchester United talks over investment deal and £3bn takeover
Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman wants to take on Middle East rivals like the Abu Dhabi-based owners of city rivals
MANCHESTER UNITED are a prime target for investment and a potential takeover from Saudi Arabia.
Well-placed sources believe Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman - whose family is worth around £850bn - wants to take on Middle East rivals like the Abu Dhabi-based owners of Manchester City.
And they think he is ready to sanction a bid by an individual or a move backed by the money of the oil-rich state to take a stake in United or, ideally, to buy the club outright.
Even if United’s owners, the Glazer family, were willing to consider selling, it would cost the Saudis more than £3billion.
But the Saudis have the money and, it is said, the desire to make a big splash in football.
The country has already made investments in sport through deals with F1 and WWE.
(* B K P)
Film: UK 'clearly on the wrong side of history' in Yemen
Oliver Feeley-Sprague, the Military, Security and Police Programme Director at Amnesty International, says that the UK is "clearly on the wrong side of history" with regard to the licensing of arms sales to Saudi Arabia during the current hostilities in Yemen. The House of Lords International Relations Committee has published a report which says the British government is "narrowly on the wrong side" of international humanitarian law.
https://www.aol.co.uk/video/view/uk-clearly-on-the-wrong-side-of-history-in-yemen/5c67e5f3023e75021760fb2b/ = https://video.channel24.co.za/show/89505
cp11 Deutschland / Germany
(A K P)
Industrie wehrt sich gegen Exportstopp für Saudi-Arabien
Die Industrie wehrt sich gegen den von der Bundesregierung verhängten Exportstopp für Rüstungsgüter nach Saudi-Arabien.
Der baden-württembergische Würth-Konzern bestätigte der Deutschen Presse-Agentur, dass er beim Bundesamt für Wirtschaft und Ausfuhrkontrolle Widerspruch gegen die Aussetzung einer Ausfuhrgenehmigung eingelegt habe. Dabei geht es um die Lieferung von Schaltern für gepanzerte Polizeifahrzeuge aus französischer Produktion. Das Unternehmen behält sich rechtliche Schritte vor.
(A K P)
Merkel will Rüstungsexporte erleichtern
Bundeskanzlerin Merkel will einheitliche europäische Regeln für Rüstungsexporte.
In der Praxis würde das eine Liberalisierung der im Vergleich zu Frankreich oder Großbritannien strikten deutschen Rüstungsexportpolitk bedeuten.
Vom Koalitionspartner SPD kommt bereits Kritik.
Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel (CDU) hat sich dafür ausgesprochen, Rüstungsexporte zu Gunsten einheitlicher Regeln in Europa zu erleichtern. Damit steuert die Koalition in Berlin auf einen neuen Konflikt zu.
https://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/sicherheitskonferenz-merkel-waffen-ruestungsexporte-1.4333412
(A P)
Grüne verlangen Aufklärung über Vereinbarung mit Frankreich zur Rüstungspolitik
(A P)
Demonstranten "umzingeln“ den Bayerischen Hof
Heute war auch der Tag des Protests gegen die Münchner Tagung. Am Nachmittag nahmen an der zentralen Großdemonstration laut Polizei 3.500 und laut Organisatoren 4.000 Menschen teil.
"Wir setzen uns ein, um ein bisschen Aufmerksamkeit auf den Krieg im Jemen zu lenken. Deutschland liefert natürlich Waffen an Saudi-Arabien. Das ist die größte humanitäre Katastrophe zurzeit, und deswegen sind wir heute hier." Demonstrationsteilnehmer
Der Krieg im Jemen, deutsche Waffenexporte und die Furcht vor einem neuen Wettrüsten nach Aufkündigung des INF-Vertrages sind Themen bei der Schlusskundgebung.
https://www.br.de/nachrichten/bayern/demonstranten-umzingeln-den-bayerischen-hof,RIGhsRt
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
Emirates: cp1
(A P)
European Union: The Council today adopted conclusions on Yemen. The EU reaffirms its commitment to the unity, sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Yemen.
The EU reaffirms that only a negotiated and inclusive political solution can end the conflict in Yemen. The EU calls on all parties to maintain their commitment to the UN-led process in view of the upcoming talks
https://www.consilium.europa.eu/fr/press/press-releases/2019/02/18/yemen-council-adopts-conclusions/ = https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-council-adopts-conclusions-18-february-2018
My comment: Bla bla by those who supply arms to fuel this war.
(A P)
Außenamtssprecher Ghasemi: Iran ist in der Jemen-Frage keine Verpflichtungen eingegangen
Der Sprecher des iranischen Außenministeriums Bahram Ghasemi hat auf die jüngste Äußerung des britischen Außenministers Jeremy Hunt reagiert und bekräftigt, dass Iran in der Jemen-Frage keinem Land oder keiner Partei gegeüber Verpflichtungen eingegangen ist.
"Der Jemen ist ein unabhängiges Land und nur die Jemeniten dürfen über ihr Land entscheiden", sagte Ghasemi am Sonntagabend der Nachrichtenagentur FarsNews und fügte hinzu: "Iran mischt sich nicht in die internen Angelegenheiten des Jemen."
(A P)
Iran denies claims of ‘commitments’ to UK on Yemen
Iran has dismissed claims by British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt that it has made special commitments to comply with the West’s demands in order to end Saudi Arabia’s ongoing war on Yemen.
“Iran has made no commitments to any party or country about Yemen,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said in a statement on Monday.
He made the remarks a day after Hunt claimed in an interview with London-based Saudi paper Asharq Al-Awsat that Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had made certain promises to help end the conflict when they met in Tehran back in November.
Qassemi said Zarif had only discussed the ongoing international efforts to end the war and doubled down on Iran’s position that no country other than Yemen should decide what is best for its people
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2019/02/18/588851/Iran-UK-Zarif-Hunt-Yemen-commitments-Qassemi
(* A B P)
Pakistan rolls out red carpet for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed
For a country running out of foreign reserves, facing a yawning current account deficit and fighting to secure its financial future, Pakistan is putting on quite a show for Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler - Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
And it's easy to see why: Prime Minister Imran Khan needs money, and he needs it fast.
MBS, as he's known, has come to town promising billions.
But money is just one dimension of a relationship that goes much deeper. The two countries have a nexus of interests.
Pakistan was meant to be the first stop on an Asian tour taking in five countries but the crown prince's trips to Indonesia and Malaysia have been postponed. He is still scheduled to visit China and India in what is being seen as a charm offensive by the controversial prince.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-47255560
and
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Pakistan welcomes Saudi crown prince with hoopla and high security
Fighter jets escorted his plane through Pakistani airspace, and a 21-gun salute greeted him upon landing Sunday evening. The capital was blanketed with enormous posters of the royal guest, grinning beneath his familiar red and white-checked headscarf. Banners welcomed him to his “second home.”
But in Pakistan, where Mohammed arrived Sunday for a 20-hour visit crammed with ceremonies and meetings, he is viewed as an answer to the nation’s prayers: a powerful benefactor who officials hope will deliver a generous package of loans and investment deals to help revive Pakistan’s struggling economy and reverse its steep slide into insolvency and debt.
The red carpet being rolled out for Mohammed, the first Saudi leader to visit Pakistan in 15 years, has surpassed all foreign state visits in recent memory. With high security planned for the capital and nearby garrison city of Rawalpindi, several luxury hotels emptied to accommodate his large entourage, and breathless news coverage advancing his trip, nothing has been left to chance.
(A P)
Pakistan says Saudi crown prince orders 2,100 Pakistani prisoners released
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has ordered the release of about 2,100 Pakistani prisoners from the kingdom’s jails during a high-profile visit to Islamabad, Pakistan’s information minister said on Monday.
The fate of thousands of Pakistani workers locked up in jails across the Middle East is a sensitive issue in Pakistan, where there is a perception the prisoners are mostly poor laborers who have no real legal recourse.
Huge numbers of Pakistanis travel to the Middle East every year, with many working on construction sites or as domestic helpers. The remittances they send back are vital for Pakistan’s dollar-starved economy.
(A P)
Saudi Arabia signs oil agreement to supply Pakistan: minister
Saudi Arabia has signed an agreement to supply Pakistan with crude oil and petroleum products to secure its fuel needs, Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said on Sunday on Twitter.
(A P)
VIDEO: HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman delivers remarks following the signing of $20 billion worth of joint agreements with #Pakistan.
VIDEO: HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman responds to two requests from PM Imran: “Consider me in #SaudiArabia the ambassador of #Pakistan. We cannot say no to Pakistan. Whatever we can do, we will deliver”.
https://twitter.com/MbKS15/status/1097192375770861568
and
(A P)
Saudi crown prince begins Asia tour with $20 billion Pakistan investment pledge
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Sunday said Saudi Arabia has signed investment agreements worth $20 billion during his high-profile visit to Pakistan, where tensions were flaring up with nuclear-armed rival India.
Kicking off his tour of South Asia and China with a far higher Pakistan investment than expected, the crown prince said the $20 billion figure represents only the start of an economic tie-up that would bring the historic Muslim allies even closer.
and
(* A P)
Saudi crown prince heads for Pakistan amid India tensions
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is due to arrive in Pakistan on Sunday at the start of his tour of South Asia and China, but the visit risks being overshadowed by escalating tensions between nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan.
Prince Mohammed had also planned to visit Indonesia and Malaysia during the tour, but those trips have been postponed, according to Malaysian and Indonesian officials. No reasons for the postponements or alternative tour dates were given.
The tour is seen as a attempt by the crown prince to rebuild his reputation after the murder of Saudi critic and journalist Jamal Khashoggi, analysts say.
Cash-strapped and in need of friends, Pakistan is welcoming the crown prince with open arms for a visit during which he is expected to sign investment agreements worth more than $10 billion.
Saudi Arabia has in recent months helped keep Pakistan’s economy afloat by propping up its rapidly dwindling foreign exchange reserves with a $6 billion loan, giving Islamabad breathing room as it negotiates a bailout with the International Monetary Fund.
Analysts say the crown prince’s trip is being treated by Islamabad as the biggest state visit since Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2015.
As the guardians of most holy sites in the birthplace of Islam, the Saudi royal family carries vast religious clout in Pakistan, a staunchly conservative and mainly-Muslim nation of 208 million people.
“What is happening in this relationship is a renewal of Pakistan’s commitment to help protect the royal family and the order as it exists in Saudi Arabia,” said Mosharraf Zaidi, Senior Fellow at Tabadlab, a Pakistani think tank focused on global and local public policy.
(A P)
Saudi Crown Prince Postpones Pakistan Visit Amid Widespread Protests
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Pakistan has been postponed amid widespread protests against him as well as heightened tensions in the region.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said that a two-day visit by the crown prince to Islamabad that was scheduled for Saturday had been postponed.
The ministry said bin Salman will arrive in Islamabad on Sunday, but had no further explanation over the postponement.
Protesters took to the streets after Friday prayers in Rawalpindi, northern Pakistan, calling on the government not to allow the Saudi prince into the country.
Leaders and activists of different parties and organizations as well as political and religious figures attended the rally.
Demonstrators say bin Salman has been behind the killing of thousands of people, including the people of Yemen.
http://www.newnewss.net/saudi-crown-prince-postpones-pakistan-visit-amid-widespread-protests/
(A P)
Warsaw conference: Gulf ministers slam Iran in leaked video
Deleted clips show Bahrain's FM saying Iran poses 'more toxic challenge' to Middle East than Israeli occupation.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has leaked video of Gulf Arab ministers slamming Iran during a closed-door session of a Middle East conference in Warsaw, Israeli media reported on Friday.
Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states that do not recognise Israel sent top diplomats to attend this week's conference alongside Netanyahu, something the prime minister and his United States ally have talked up as a new regional axis against Iran.
Israeli correspondents who travelled with Netanyahu to the two-day conference said the prime minister had hinted to them during a briefing that his staff had footage of Gulf ministers addressing a session on Iran on Wednesday.
(* B P)
The UAE’s Torture in the Shadows
In the UAE, a young woman has been imprisoned and tortured since 2015, but no one has heard about her.
As the world’s media has once again picked up on the story of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s involvement in the brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, another story is receiving scant attention.
Alya Abdulnoor is a young Emirati woman who was arrested in July 2015 and eventually charged with financing international terrorist groups, though the only evidence presented was a record of websites she had visited. Abdulnoor was not politically active; she was concerned about the impact of the civil war in Syria on women and children and had been collecting donations on their behalf.
When she was arrested, Abdulnoor was already suffering from cancer. She was detained in an unknown place for four months, according to the Geneva-based International Centre for Justice and Human Rights (ICJHR). She was subjected to torture and forced to sign a false confession that was used to convict her. This is standard practice in the United Arab Emirates; it was used against the acclaimed human rights activist Ahmed Mansoor and the noted academic Nasser bin Ghaith, as well as dozens of other political prisoners.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20190209-the-uaes-torture-in-the-shadows/ = https://www.fairobserver.com/region/middle_east_north_africa/united-arab-emirates-news-uae-alya-abdulnoor-arab-world-news-43490/
(A P)
Schweiz: Initiative zu Waffenexporten kommt wohl zustande
Für die Initiative «Gegen Waffenexporte in Bürgerkriegsländer» sind zweieinhalb Monate nach der Lancierung bereits genügend Unterschriften gesammelt.
https://www.nau.ch/news/schweiz/initiative-zu-waffenexporten-kommt-wohl-zustande-65481364
cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis
(* B P)
Außenminister von Katar warnt: „Es droht ein atomares Wettrüsten am Golf“
Der Vize-Premier kritisiert die schwierige Sicherheitslage im Nahen Osten.
Wann, glauben Sie, wird die Blockade Katars beendet?
Das müssen sie die Blockadestaaten fragen. Wir haben sie von Anfang an gebeten, uns ihre Vorwürfe mit konkreten Belegen zu beweisen. Da kam nichts. Und die ganze Welt weiß jetzt, dass die Blockade jeder Grundlage entbehrt und nutzlos ist.
Hat Ihre Regierung Zahlen, wie viel die Blockade Ihr Land gekostet hat – etwa für Qatar Airways“ teure Ausweichrouten?
Die Zahlen haben wir intern berechnet, und wir werden jetzt die Schäden mit Prozessen gegen die Verursacher vor internationalen Gerichten einklagen. Sie haben geltende Verträge gebrochen und werden dafür zahlen müssen.
(* B P)
Russia, Qatar move forward on military cooperation
Moscow and Riyadh have entered the final stages of negotiations on the sale of Russian S-400 air missile defense systems to Saudi Arabia. But Riyadh isn't the only one looking to acquire these systems form Moscow. A month ago, on Jan. 25, Qatar’s Ambassador to Russia Fahad bin Mohammed Al-Attiyah told the Russian state news agency TASS that Doha was holding “advanced negotiations
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade
Siehe / Look at cp11
(* A K P)
UAE signs $1.3bn in deals as arms fair opens amid criticism
Abu Dhabi criticised for displaying weapons used by Emirati-aligned armed groups in Yemen war.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has signed weapons deals worth $1.3bn with local and international companies at the opening day of an arms fair in Abu Dhabi.
The Gulf nation, which alongside Saudi Arabia has been mired in the devastating war in Yemen for nearly four years, announced 33 deals on Sunday, including a $355m deal with Raytheon to provide surface-to-air Patriot missiles.
Other deals at the International Defense Exhibition in Abu Dhabi (IDEX) saw Australian firm EOS Defence awarded with a $316m contract to provide ground and naval systems, while contracts awarded to UAE firms amounted to around $300m.
One manufacturer at IDEX displayed a model of a machine gun for sale that is in the hands of Emirati-backed groups in Yemen. Armoured personnel carriers and tanks used in the war could also be seen at the show.
(A K P)
Amid its Defeat in Yemen, UAE Announces $1.1 Billion of Military Deals with Int. Companies
The United Arab Emirates said on Sunday it had signed military deals worth 3.87 billion UAE Dirhams ($1.1 billion) with international companies, this came after suffering heavy losses in the aggression against Yemen.
A spokesman for the IDEX defense conference said that "the UAE had also announced military deals worth 1.1 billion UAE Dirhams with local companies and international companies."
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=5463&cat_id=2
(A K P)
Abu Dhabi arms fair opens amid Yemen war criticism
A biennial arms fair has opened in the United Arab Emirates as the country faces increasing scrutiny over its involvement in the Saudi-led war in Yemen.
While the war went unmentioned at the opening ceremony of the International Defense Exhibition and Conference in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, it was clearly present in the theatrical show offered to spectators.
In it, a militia threatens an unknown country with both launchpad-based and mobile ballistic missiles.
https://apnews.com/664e27aa853241caae0adfd5a51110a7
and
(* A K P)
A feast of war and terror as Abu Dhabi fair showcases military might
One manufacturer displayed a model of a machine gun on sale that's now in the hands of Emirati-backed militiamen in Yemen, while the armoured personnel carriers and tanks used in the war in the Arab world's poorest country could also be seen at the show.
… event profitable for arms dealers: the Emirates signed a $US355-million deal on Sunday with Raytheon, a Massachusetts-based firm that produces surface-to-air Patriot missiles to protect against ballistic missile launches like those in the display.
Western-made arms like those on display on Sunday have long ago ended up in the hands of militiamen in Yemen.
Amnesty International criticised Belgium's FN Herstal for displaying its 5.56 mm Minimi machine gun at the arms fair as it has been seen in the hands of Emirati-aligned militiamen. FN Herstal officials at the fair declined to comment.
China's weapons ranged from missile launchers to drones. Already, China has sold armed drones to Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
(* A P)
Saudi, French groups sign preliminary deal for naval joint venture
State-owned Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI) and France’s Naval Group signed a memorandum of understanding on Sunday to form a joint venture to produce and develop naval systems.
The two companies plan to manufacture warships, frigates, and submarines in Saudi Arabia, SAMI’s Chief Executive Andreas Schwer said.
SAMI, launched by the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund in 2017, will hold 51 percent of the joint venture.
“Through design, construction and maintenance activities the joint venture will contribute significantly to further enhancing the capabilities and readiness of Royal Saudi Naval Forces,” Schwer said.
My comment: This is heinous.
cp13b Mercenaries / Söldner
Siehe / Look at cp1
cp13c Kulturerbe / Cultural heritage
(* B K)
Many calls but little action to stop cultural destruction in Yemen
Four years ago, at the onset of the war, UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova described Yemeni heritage as a reflection of “centuries of Islamic thought, rich exchange and dialogue.” She also called on the people of Yemen, as well as on countries in the region engaging in military operations in Yemen, to do all they can to protect Yemen’s invaluable cultural heritage.
Today, it is clear the call had little effect. Yemen witnessed the destruction of 101 heritage and archaeological sites, whether by airstrikes or bombings, according to the country’s General Organization of Antiquities and Museums (GOAM).
Mohanad al-Sayani, the chairman of GOAM, told Al-Monitor that the war caused massive damage to Yemeni archaeological sites. “GOAM has so far identified 66 archaeological sites and monuments that were hit by airstrikes," he said. "Also, 35 religious sites and shrines were destroyed and vandalized by terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda and others, who believe such shrines and monuments are forbidden [by God].”
As a precautionary method, GOAM closed museums and archaeological sites at the beginning of the war and stored some antiquities at safe locations, he said. “But the continuation of this long, drawn-out war threatens many of these historical pieces which are not in a suitable environment,” he added.
“The war has not spared heritage sites across the various governorates of Yemen. Besides shelling [of the monuments and museums], archaeological sites were used as military sites by the warring parties,” Sayani said. “Artifacts were stolen and smuggled. Slum areas were constructed in an arbitrarily and chaotic manner over parts of archeological sites amid the weakness of government agencies.”
Sayani’s description can be seen on the ground in Aden, a multifaith strategic port city in the southeastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, between the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The city has been home to churches, synagogues and Hindu temples, all serving as witnesses to the diversity that is currently struggling to survive. Half the buildings are now destroyed.
The Washington Post published an article last month, co-written by Deborah Lehr, the founder and chair of the Antiquities Coalition, and Ahmed Awad Bin Mubarak, Yemen’s ambassador to the United States. The co-authors called for an end to the smuggling of Yemen’s antiquities and their sale in US markets.
In November, a report by the independent Yemeni group, Mwatana for Human Rights, reiterated the concerns on the destruction of heritage. The report stated that “all parties to the conflict” have been involved in attacks and hostilities against many cultural properties, including archaeological sites and historical landmarks dating back more than 2,000 years.
GOAM Chairman Sayani said the prevailing conditions of war and division among state organs made it very easy to destroy or illegally smuggle archaeological objects out of the country – by Mohammed Yahya Gahlan
https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2019/02/yemen-war-devastating-for-countrys-heritage.html
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
(* B T)
Au Yémen, les liaisons dangereuses entre la coalition et el-Qaëda
L’alliance conduite par l’Arabie saoudite et les EAU a transféré des armes américaines aux combattants d’AQPA dans le cadre d’accords secrets.
Corruption, transferts d’armes, rapprochement de circonstance… Dans la guerre au Yémen, tous les moyens sont bons pour tenter de gagner du terrain face à l’ennemi. Dans une longue enquête sortie la semaine dernière par la chaîne américaine CNN, la coalition menée par l’Arabie saoudite et les Émirats arabes unis est pointée du doigt pour avoir transféré des armes de fabrication américaine à des milices yéménites et à el-Qaëda dans la péninsule Arabique (AQPA). Une méthode ayant pour objectif d’« acheter la loyauté de milices ou de tribus, de renforcer les acteurs armés choisis et d’influencer le complexe paysage politique » au Yémen, ont indiqué des experts à la chaîne. Les images filmées par les journalistes montrent notamment des véhicules blindés MRAP envoyés depuis Beaumont, au Texas, à destination d’Abou Dhabi alignés non loin de la ville portuaire de Hodeida et portant l’inscription « Alwiyat al-Amalqa » (Brigade des géants), nom d’une milice yéménite composée majoritairement de combattants salafistes.
Ce n’est toutefois pas la première fois que des éléments pointant du doigt la nature ambiguë des liens entre la coalition et les milices liées à el-Qaëda sont mis en lumière dans la presse. Le 6 août 2018, l’agence Associated Press avait déjà révélé l’existence d’accords secrets entre des combattants d’el-Qaëda et la coalition.
Derrière ces relations ambiguës se cache un objectif commun à AQPA et à la coalition : combattre les rebelles houthis. « Lorsque la coalition dirigée par l’Arabie saoudite est entrée en guerre pour la première fois en 2015, elle s’est retrouvée à combattre aux côtés d’AQPA sur certains fronts », rappelle Elisabeth Kendall, chercheuse en études arabes et islamiques à l’université d’Oxford, contactée par L’Orient-Le Jour. « Ce n’était pas tant par intention ou par coopération active. C’était plutôt parce qu’ils partageaient un ennemi commun, les houthis, et un objectif commun, repousser ce qui était perçu comme une influence de l’Iran », nuance-t-elle.
Remark by Elisabeth Kendall: My comments in L'Orient Le Jour on #Saudi/#UAE coalition's alleged collaboration with #AQAP in #Yemen. I consider this overstated. Yes they fought on same fronts early in war as share mutual enemy. But now it's more about undercutting AQAP than coopting it.
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/1096772084171239424
cp15 Propaganda
(A P)
Saudi Arabia provided $13bn in support to Yemen since 2014: Arab coalition
Saudi Arabia has provided more than $13 billion in support to Yemen since 2014, the Arab coalition said on Monday.
“We are providing political and humanitarian relief efforts to support the Yemeni people in addition to combating terrorism in Yemen,” coalition spokesman Turki Al-Maliki said.
Speaking in Riyadh, Al-Maliki gave details about a series of successful military operations throughout Yemen.
He also said the Iranian-backed Houthi militia have breached the Stockholm agreement more than 1,400 times
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1454201/saudi-arabia
(A P)
Saudi Arabia's Jubeir condemns Iran for willingness to plot assassinations
Saudi Arabia's minister of state for foreign affairs has accused Iran of using assassinations to advance its policies, attempting to draw a contrast between the Gulf kingdom and the Islamic Republic.
Adel al-Jubeir's comments come less than five months after the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
"This regime has no morals. They have no problem assassinating diplomats and blowing up embassies. We don't do this," Jubeir said on Thursday at an anti-Iran conference in Warsaw, according to a video leaked by Israel National News.
Speaking on an off-the-record panel alongside Bahraini Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa and his Emirati counterpart, Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Jubeir on Thursday blamed Iran for the ills of the region.
"Who's destabilising Lebanon? Iran through Hezbollah," Jubeir said.
Lebanon recently formed a new government headed by Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who was kidnapped and forced to resign by the Saudi government in late 2017, according to Western diplomats and US lawmakers.
Jubeir was the kingdom's foreign minister at the time.
My comment: LOL, LOL, LOL.
(B P)
Don't defend Iran, you'll only look dumb
Guardian columnist Simon Tisdall disagrees. Criticizing the summit on Iran hosted in Poland this week, Tisdall says America's focus is skewed away from what matters.
This is silliness. But it's also ironic, in that Iran is the primary problem on each of the issues that Tisdall lists! Iran fuels terrorism and bad governance in the Palestinian territories. It uses Yemen as a launchpad for ballistic missile attacks on Saudi Arabian cities. It blocks aid from getting to Yemeni civilians.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/dont-defend-iran-youll-only-look-dumb
(B P)
It’s been eight years since Yemen’s ‘youth revolution.’ So what are we celebrating?
Eight meagre years have passed and the people of Yemen received nothing from the high priests of sedition except destruction and desolation.
It’s been eight years since the outbreak of the “youth revolution” in Yemen, driven by the winds of the “Arab spring” uprisings coming from Tunisia via Egypt.
At the beginning and for most people, these uprisings seemed spontaneous and popular but they turned out to be an excuse for the execution of a malicious and carefully calculated plan to overthrow Arab regimes, destroy their countries and displace their populations.
“The people want to overthrow the regime.” Brandishing this loathsome slogan, young Yemenis began their movement, thinking that it was only an expression of their desire to oust President Ali Abdullah Saleh and solve Yemen’s social problems caused by the corruption of his regime. Little did they know that whoever developed that slogan meant it literally and nothing less.
The only thing that Yemen has seen so far is the literal application of “overthrow the regime” without leading to any improvement. This meant the destruction of the institutions of the state, of the army and of the police plus the ensuing political, economic and social catastrophes.
Today, the leaders of that movement are celebrating the anniversary of their movement despite the destruction, devastation and corruption they brought about.
https://thearabweekly.com/its-been-eight-years-yemens-youth-revolution-so-what-are-we-celebrating-0
My comment: Smearing the “Arab Spring” and the 2011 Yemen revolution by the Saudis.
(B P)
Audio: Dictators Spinning Clueless Media: Iran’s Yemen Propaganda (and More)
Jim and Austin talk about Iran's successful propaganda campaign in Yemen that makes them look like the good guys and the Saudis the bad guys. Along with a number of other bad players that know how to manipulate western media
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BrAlRXb90o
My comment: This is not about propaganda, this IS propaganda.
(A P)
Chief of Staff praises Saudi Arabia's roles in supporting Yemen
General Chief of Staff (Lt Gen) Abdullah Annakha'ee highly praised the roles Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has played in supporting Yemen, its unity, security, stability and regaining the state's institutions that Iran-allied Houthi rebel militia has sought to take control over.
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=1886404
(B P)
Window for long-term peace in Yemen shrinks
Al Houthis have to be held to account for repeated breaches of truce accords
British Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt warned on Wednesday that the window of opportunity to turn the ceasefire in Yemen into a plan for peace was shortening. While he said real progress has been made, Hunt also noted that a trust gap remains between Yemen’s warring parties alluding to the fact that the Sweden agreement was not being implemented entirely.
The Saudi-led coalition fighting Iran-backed Al Houthis in Yemen has said that the militants have violated the Sweden deal — which calls for their withdrawal from the Hodeida part among other things — more than 970 times. Repeated calls by UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash warning Al Houthis over breaches has gone unheeded. The UAE is part of the Saudi-led coalition aiming to restore the legitimate and internationally-recognised government of Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi after an Al Houthi coup in 2014 unseated him.
International players and the United Nations must put the onus on Al Houthis for their repeated violations of the Sweden agreement.
https://gulfnews.com/opinion/editorials/window-for-long-term-peace-in-yemen-shrinks-1.62069506
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
(* A K pH)
Saudi coalition air raids and shelling day by day
Feb. 16: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1550432008./1245590472257982/
Feb. 15: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1550377320./1244888195661543/
Feb. 14: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1550377320./1244887408994955/
Feb. 13: https://www.facebook.com/lcrdye/photos/pb.551288185021551.-2207520000.1550377320./1244886605661702/
(A K pS)
SAUDI-LED COALITION AIRSTRIKES DESTROY HOUTHIS’ EQUIPMENT IN HAJJAH (VIDEO)
Warplanes of the Saudi-led coalition carried out a series of airstrikes on Houthi forces in the district of Kushar in the northwestern Yemeni province of Hajjah on February 16.
The coalition released a video showing its warplanes destroying five vehicles, some armed with heavy weapons, and a mortar position of the Houthis. Precision-guided munitions (PGMs) were clearly used in the airstrikes.
These airstrikes were carried out in support of Saudi-backed Yemeni forces, which are currently besieged by the Houthis in the area of Hujur, near Kushar.
https://southfront.org/saudi-led-coalition-airstrikes-destroy-houthis-equipment-in-hajjah-video/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EW1Kspk52w
(A K pH)
#Hajja:The coalition warplanes launched on Saturday a number of indiscriminate air strikes targeting a home of the citizen “Jabbar Sariee Shawui Jalhuf” in al-Jalaheef area of Abbs district, killing one child and injuring two women and another child from the same family. Some of them were seriously wounded (photos)
https://www.facebook.com/SaudiArabia.war.crimes.against.Yemen/posts/1980887912207193
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/2142784165774602
https://www.facebook.com/LivingInYemenOnTheEdge/posts/2142784165774602
www.newnewss.net/us-saudi-coalition-warplanes-kill-injure-women-and-children-in-yemens-hajja/
https://twitter.com/narrabyee/status/1096808949867839489 = https://twitter.com/A_mtrz/status/1096797373882396672
(A K pH)
More Saudi coalition air raids recorded on:
Feb. 17: https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=5445&cat_id=1 Saada p., Asir
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526918.htm Sanaa p.
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
(A K pS)
After a mine exploded. Six Houthis killed, while planting mines west of Taiz city
Six militants of the al-Houthi group, who were working for a mine-planting team, were killed near the al-Rubaie area west of Taiz City (southwest) on Monday.
A government military source told Al-Masdar online that the Houthi gunmen were planting mines west of Jabal al-Munim, which overlooks the al-Rubaie area, and that a mine exploded during the installation on the ground.
He noted that the Houthis had started planting new mine networks in the outskirts of Taiz.
http://almasdaronline.com/articles/164439
(A K pS)
Yemeni army kills 20 Houthi militants, injures several others in Dhale governate
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1453996
(A K)
Film: Yemen's Houthi forces kill Saudi soldiers in combat
Houthi fighters in Yemen say they have launched a major attack across the border with Saudi Arabia reportedly killing Saudi soldiers.
Saudi state media say Yemen's Houthi rebels have killed at least nine Saudi soldiers in a renewed military offensive.
The attacks happened in the southern Saudi provinces of Aseer, Jazan, and Najran.
It is the worst spate of violence since a UN-brokered peace deal was signed in December.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/02/yemens-houthi-forces-kill-saudi-soldiers-combat-190217123515892.html = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5zw5Hw9WmU
(A K pH)
Citizen Dies of Saudi Border Guards’ Gunfire in Sa’adah
Saudi border guards continued their attacks on Yemeni citizens in the border areas, leading to the death of a citizen Sunday, in Sa’adah province.
Al-Masirah Net reporter confirmed that the Saudi border guards opened fire on the citizen in Munabih border district.
https://english.almasirah.net/details.php?es_id=5457&cat_id=1
(A K pS)
More than 85 Houthis killed in battles across Yemen
More than 85 Iran-backed Houthi militants were killed and more wounded in clashes with the Yemeni army supported by the Arab Coalition across the country on Saturday, Saudi state-news agency SPA reported.
According to the reports, more than 40 militants were killed in the southern Taiz province, and 18 others were killed on the Damt front in the southern Ad Dali province, while more than 30 were killed in clashes with the Hajour tribe northwest of the country.
Scores of militants were wounded, while the army seized military-grade equipment and ammunition.
http://www.arabnews.com/node/1453456
(A K)
SAUDI-LED COALITION PREPARES FOR LARGE OPERATION IN NORTHWESTERN YEMEN
The Saudi-led coalition is preparing to launch a large-scale military operation in the northwestern Yemeni province of Hajjah in order to left the Houthis’ siege of its proxies in the area of Hujur, the al-Arabia TV reported on February 15.
According to the UAE-based channel, the operation is being prepared upon the request of Saudi-backed Yemeni forces, which suffered from heavy loses while repelling several attacks by the Houthis in the last few days.
The most recent Houthi attack on Hujur occurred few hours ago. I
Observers believe that the Saudi-led coalition is not only planning to lift the Houthis’ siege, but also to capture key positions in Hujur, which is located 150km north of the city of al-Hudaydah.
https://southfront.org/saudi-led-coalition-prepares-for-large-operation-in-northwestern-yemen/
(A K pH)
9 Saudi soldiers killed in Yemeni fire on southern border posts
At least nine Saudi soldiers have been killed in renewed wave of fire from Yemeni fighters of the Houthi Ansarullah movement on military positions south of the kingdom.
Saudi authorities said in a statement late on Saturday that the soldiers had been killed in battles with the Houthis in the southern border regions.
The Saudi military also published images of a funeral of one of the soldiers in the al-Ahsa region.
Houthis said they had inflicted considerable losses of the ranks of the Saudis in attacks on Saudi military positions, adding that fighters had taken control of a number of sites in areas east of Jaffan and Jizan regions.
A military source from the Houthis said that fighters had also launched attacks on Saudi army personnel stationed in Najran and Asir regions on Friday, leading to scores of deaths among the ranks of the Saudi military.
The new clashes in the Saudi-Yemen border regions come after a period of relative calm in the area.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2019/02/17/588748/Saudi-fatality-Yemen-conflict-Houthis
http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526730.htm and http://www.sabanews.net/en/news526729.htm
cp18 Sonstiges / Other
(? B P)
“Im Jemen werden Leute verprügelt, weil sie ein Instrument spielen” (Zahlschranke)
(-)
In pictures: Yemen’s hot spring water
https://www.thenational.ae/uae/in-pictures-yemen-s-hot-spring-water-1.597249
(B)
A man in Aden transferred a dumpster area into a little park (photos)
https://twitter.com/Ndawsari/status/1097112183589212160
Vorige / Previous
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-513-yemen-war-mosaic-513
Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-513 / Yemen War Mosaic 1-513:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose oder / or http://poorworld.net/YemenWar.htm
Der saudische Luftkrieg im Bild / Saudi aerial war images:
(18 +, Nichts für Sensible!) / (18 +; Graphic!)
http://poorworld.net/YemenWar.htm
http://yemenwarcrimes.blogspot.de/
und alle Liste aller Luftangriffe / and list of all air raids:
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