... Biden ist immer noch ein "Falke" im Jemen – Wie Joe Biden Donald Trumps großen Waffendeal mit den Emiraten stoppen kann – Die Emirate, eine wichtige Militärmacht – Kämpfe um Marib toben weiter – und mehr
March 10, 2021: Biden still is a "hawk" on Yemen – Houthis cause death and injury of scores of African migrants in Sanaa – Challenges to self-expression in Yemen – Daily life of Yemeni fishermen – How Joe Biden can stop Donald Trump’s massive UAE arms deal – The Emirates: An important military force – Marib battle is raging – and more
Schwerpunkte / Key aspects
Kursiv: Siehe Teil 2 / In Italics: Look in part 2: https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-725b-yemen-war-mosaic-725b
Klassifizierung / Classification
Für wen das Thema ganz neu ist / Who is new to the subject
cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important
cp1a Am wichtigsten: Coronavirus und Seuchen / Most important: Coronavirus and epidemics
cp2 Allgemein / General
cp2a Allgemein: Saudische Blockade / General: Saudi blockade
cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation
cp4 Flüchtlinge / Refugees
cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis
cp6 Separatisten und Hadi-Regierung im Südjemen / Separatists and Hadi government in Southern Yemen
cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks
cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia
cp8a Jamal Khashoggi
cp9 USA
cp9a USA-Iran Krise: Spannungen am Golf / US-Iran crisis: Tensions at the Gulf
cp10 Großbritannien / Great Britain
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
cp12a Katar-Krise / Qatar crisis
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade
cp13b Wirtschaft / Economy
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
cp15 Propaganda
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
cp17a Kriegsereignisse: Schlacht um Marib / Theater of War: Marib battle
cp18 Kampf um Hodeidah / Hodeidah battle
cp19 Sonstiges / Other
Klassifizierung / Classification
***
**
*
(Kein Stern / No star)
? = Keine Einschatzung / No rating
A = Aktuell / Current news
B = Hintergrund / Background
C = Chronik / Chronicle
D = Details
E = Wirtschaft / Economy
H = Humanitäre Fragen / Humanitarian questions
K = Krieg / War
P = Politik / Politics
pH = Pro-Houthi
pS = Pro-Saudi
T = Terrorismus / Terrorism
Für wen das Thema ganz neu ist / Who is new to the subject
Ältere einführende Artikel u. Überblicke für alle, die mit den Ereignissen im Jemen noch nicht vertraut sind, hier:
Yemen War: Older 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
(* B H K P)
Yemen: An unnecessary tragedy
The United Nations has rightly described the deaths and devastation in war-ravaged Yemen as the “world’s worst humanitarian disaster”— caused mostly by widespread air attacks on civilians by a coalition led Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
But rarely, if ever, has the world denounced the primary arms merchants, including the US and UK, for the more than 100,000 killings since 2015 – despite accusations of “war crimes” by human rights organizations.
The killings are due mostly to air strikes on weddings, funerals, private homes, villages and schools. Additionally, over 130,000 have died resulting largely from war-related shortages of food and medical care.
Saudi Arabia, which had the dubious distinction of being the world’s largest arms importer during 2015–19, increased its imports by 130 percent, compared with the previous five-year period, and accounting for 12 percent of all global arms imports, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
And despite concerns in the U.S. and U.K. about Saudi Arabia’s military intervention in Yemen, both weapons suppliers continued to export arms to Saudi Arabia — with 73 percent of Saudi Arabia’s arms imports originating in the U.S. and 13 percent from the U.K.
Dr. Simon Adams, Executive Director of the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect, a human rights organization that works on preventing war crimes told IPS the massive humanitarian crisis in Yemen is not the result of an earthquake or some other natural disaster; it is entirely man-made.
“Starvation is the result of airstrikes and a merciless war that has completely destroyed people’s lives,” he added. The bottom line is that the United States should not be selling weapons to any state that has been responsible for atrocities in Yemen, he declared.
Time and again, he said, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have been responsible for war crimes.
“The US is an accessory to these crimes if it continues to supply the bombs, drones and fighter planes used to bomb Yemeni civilians,” said Dr. Adams whose Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect has conducted advocacy with the UN Security Council since the war in Yemen began, arguing that impunity for war crimes by all sides has created the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.
In an oped piece last month, Dr. Alon Ben-Meir, professor of international relations at the Center for Global Affairs at New York University wrote, “Countless Yemeni children are dying from starvation and disease while the world shamelessly watches in silence, as if this was just a horror story from a different time and a distant place, where a country is ravaged by a senseless, unwinnable war while a whole generation perishes in front our eyes.”
Those at the top who are fighting the war are destroying the very people they want to govern; they are the evil that flourishes on apathy and cannot endure without it, he added.
http://www.dailynews.lk/2021/03/10/features/243555/yemen-unnecessary-tragedy
cp1 Am wichtigsten / Most important
(** A H P)
Ansar Allah (Houthi) Group Causes Death and Injury of Scores of African Migrants in Sana’a
The Ansar Allah (Houthi) group caused the death and injury of scores of African migrants by starting a deadly fire in an overcrowded detention facility in Sana’a on March 7, Mwatana for Human Rights said. Since the fire, the Ansar Allah (Houthi) group has detained some of the injured migrants, prevented humanitarian access, and prevented the migrants’ family members from visiting them.
The horrific incident once again underscores how desperately international investigations and credible accountability are needed for Yemen. States should immediately take concrete steps to ensure criminal accountability and reparations for Yemen, including violations and abuses committed against migrants and refugees, Mwatana for Human Rights said.
In early March, a large number of migrants held in an Ansar Allah-controlled detention facility in Sana’a began a hunger strike. The migrants, who were held in the Immigration, Passport and Naturalization Authority Immigration Holding Facility on Khawlan street in the capital, Sana’a, were protesting their ill-treatment and arbitrary detention by the Ansar Allah (Houthi) group.
A community member and migrant who had been detained in the facility explained that the Ansar Allah (Houthi) group, in addition to detaining the migrants in terrible conditions, was also extorting them, demanding a fee in exchange for their release. The community member said this practice had been increasing since early February 2021. The migrant said:
Some paid and were actually released, but most of us did not have any money to pay it. I stayed 15 months in that detention center until the fire broke out.
On Sunday, March 7, 2021, at around 01:00 pm, armed Ansar Allah (Houthi) men tried to end the migrants’ hunger strike by force. A fist-fight broke out between some of the migrants and the Ansar Allah (Houthi) men. Soon after, Ansar Allah (Houthi) forces began to fire bullets in the air, witnesses said. Additional Ansar Allah (Houthi) forces came.
Ansar Allah (Houthi) men closed the door to the hangar, witnesses told Mwatana. They began firing projectiles, which witnesses could not identify, through the windows into the hangar. Witnesses described a lot of smoke and loud sounds. The projectiles caused a fire, which quickly spread. A survivor described what happened:
Then, the riot control came. One of the guards came up on the ladder and I heard them saying “Ready.” They started throwing projectiles emitting smoke from the top windows of the ward. We only heard the sounds of explosions and a lot of smoke.
We tried to escape but the ward doors were locked, and we were cramped inside. I could hear the sound of explosions and the sounds of my friends groaning…but I could not help anyone.
The smoke filled the place.
Another person told Mwatana they heard a loud bang coming from the compound when they walked by it that afternoon.
A large fire erupted inside the overcrowded detention facility. The migrants broke down the hangar’s door and fled.
Nearly 900 migrants, mostly Ethiopians, were being held by Ansar Allah in the overcrowded facility, and more than 350 migrants were in the hangar area that caught fire, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), whose staff were at the site at the time.
It remains unclear exactly how many people died and were injured in the fire.
A health worker confirmed that the bodies of at least 16 African migrants who were killed in the fire had been sent to various morgues in Sana’a. The health worker said all of the bodies were scorched. Around 170 people have been treated for injuries, with many, according to IOM, |remaining in critical condition.
The fate of many migrants remains unknown. One migrant said:
Our family members did not even find bodies to bury. The fate of those who survived is unknown. We are scared. We could be killed at any time!
People injured in the fire were taken to different hospitals in Sana’a, but their family members have not been allowed to visit them. One hospital in Sana’a received a group of badly burned Ethiopians, a witness said. The group was brought to the hospital on a military vehicle and escorted by armed men. The Ethiopians received medical assistance in the Burns Department, before being taken out of the hospital on the same military vehicle.
Ansar Allah has increased its security presence in hospitals treating injured migrants, prevented access to those injured, and sought to prevent the spread of information related to the fire’s victims, and about the fire itself. Dozens of Ethiopian cleaning staff at different hospitals have received instructions to leave work until further notice, witnesses told Mwatana. After the fire, dozens of migrants were seen taken in three mid-sized buses, apparently by Ansar Allah, to undisclosed locations. After the fire, Ansar Allah forces surrounded the area around the detention facility and tightly controlled access.
The day after the fire, on March 8, 2021, a group of family members tried to organize a protest in front of the United Nations building in Sana’a. Ansar Allah (Houthi) members fired shots in the air to disperse them. On March 9, family members protested again.
https://mwatana.org/en/ansar-allah-death-migrants/
and
(** A H P)
NEWS ANALYSIS: MIGRANT COMMUNITY ORGANIZER SAYS MORE THAN 350 MAINLY ETHIOPIANS PERISHED IN YEMEN DETENTION FIRE
Abdullah, an organizer of Ethiopian migrant community in the war-torn Yemen who spoke to Addis Standard recounted the continued plight of Ethiopian migrants and refugees in Yemen and said there are no known survivors out of the more than 350 mainly Ethiopian migrants who were inside the hangar area where a fire broke out on March 07. Addis Standard has also received a graphic video showing piles of countless badly burned bodies inside the detention facility.
Up to now, more than 170 were confirmed to have been treated for injuries a result of the fire that engulfed a detention center located inside the Yemeni Immigration Authority compound (locally known as Al-Jawazat) in the capital Sana’a.
Citing his sources on the ground, a Yemen based journalist, Nabil Albokairi, put the number of migrants killed in the first day at “450”, and that in the next day, about 62 were killed as a result of their wounds; there are other potential deaths due to the seriousness of the degree of the burn the victims sustained, and that they did not receive any real aid or attention.” According to him, majority victims are members of the Oromo community.
According to the IOM Yemen, however, “the total number of migrants who died in the fire at the Immigration, Passports and Naturalization Authority (IPNA) Immigration Holding Facility remains unconfirmed, as official records have yet to be released. Over 170 people have been treated for injuries, with many remaining in critical condition.”
By IOM’s estimate “nearly 900 migrants, predominantly Ethiopian, were in the overcrowded holding facility at the time of the fire. More than 350 were in the hangar area.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs admitted the incident through its spokesperson Ambassador Dina Mufti but referred to it “a fire accident.” Ambassador Dina said the ministry was working closely with the IOM to help survivors of the accident. MOFA is currently monitoring the situation through the Ethiopian Embassy in Muscat and will launch an investigation into the death that occurred. The Ambassador did not provide numbers of the victims or injured.
According to Abdullah, the fire at the holding facility was not an accident. “It all began one month ago when the immigration authority started arresting Ethiopian migrants under the pretense that they didn’t have stay papers,” Abdullah who asked to only be identified by his first name for safety reasons, said, adding that “while for some it was true that they did not possess stay papers, even those who had stay papers were arrested and rounded up.” Abdullah added that the migrants were eventually transferred to the detention facility in Sana’a, but not before they have been sent to Aden to be handled by the Saudi led coalition backed Yemeni government based in Aden and those who did not pay were moved to the detention center.” When those who did not have papers protested their arrests, they were asked to pay 70,000 Yemeni Riyals (around 279 USD) for a trip home to Ethiopia, “but instead they were sent to the Houthi led government in detention facility in Sana’a.”
Ones inside the detainees started asking to be repatriated home as the conditions in the center were worsening and their requests were denied, Abdullah recounted. “The prisoners then staged a hunger strike to protest the ill treatment and to put pressure on the Houthi led government to return them home.”
The Houthi militias were sent in to intimidate the prisoners into ending the hunger strike; but the prisoners refused to respond to the militias’ presence and demands and got holed up in their wings, Abdullah said. According to journalist and writer Nabil, there were also “attempts to recruit refugees to fight on the fronts. The fire resulted from Houthi elements throwing bombs on Bodrum detention after those inside refused to respond to the Houthis and go to the fronts.”
Abdullah’s account matches that of Nabil’s when he said “the militia responded with opening fire at the gates and throwing grenades inside the hanger to force prisoners out which [initially] resulted in the death of two prisoners. The situation escalated when blankets and other inflamables inside the hangar caught fire quickly spread though the locked closed wing hosting more than 350 prisoners mainly Ethiopians.”
The fire has consumed the entire hanger “before the militias agreed to open the gates to allow the prisoners to leave.” The Houthi militia cordoned off the surrounding areas and did not allow community organizers inside the facility or IOM officials inside the compound. “We called the Ethiopian authorities, they did not take us seriously and I do not think our complaints were registered.”
The IOM confirmed that its “personnel were present at the site” when the fire broke out in a hangar next to the main building – by Bileh Jelan
and
(** A H P)
Yemen immigrant holding facility fire kills 60
At least 60 people were killed due to a fire at an immigrant holding facility in Yemen's capital Sanaa, a Houthi official said on Tuesday.
The fire, which broke out on Sunday, has also injured more than 100 people, Xinhua news agency quoted the official as saying to the media.
Overcrowding and chaos at the facility, in addition to the fire, caused heavy casualties, said the official, adding that victims included both African migrants and facility staff.
The Houthi group has formed a commission to investigate the incident, he said.
According to the official, the facility is for holding migrants who entered the country "illegally" before the procedure of deportation starts.
In a statement issued on Monday evening, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) confirmed that the fire and called for "urgent humanitarian access to migrants injured".
"We are facing challenges accessing the injured due to an increased security presence in the hospitals. Humanitarians and health workers must be given access to support the treatment of those affected by the fire," it added.
https://menafn.com/1101723620/Yemen-immigrant-holding-facility-fire-kills-60 = https://www.daijiworld.com/news/newsDisplay?newsID=809210
and
(* A H P)
Film: The Houthis are burning a group of African migrants
https://twitter.com/Abdulra88341995/status/1369467107788922881
and
(* A H P)
Film: The neo-Nazi Houthis are burning hundreds of Ethiopians
https://twitter.com/abdallh_m123a/status/1369414579244171268
https://twitter.com/d0558880000/status/1369450918039740425
and another film: https://twitter.com/BelqeesTV/status/1369611239211474946
and
(* A H P)
Film: African refugees demonstrate for the second day in front of the #UNHCR office in #Sanaa, denouncing the burning of dozens of their fellows & injuring hundreds others & demanding an independent investigation, penalizing those responsible & releasing all detained #refugees.
https://twitter.com/Alsakaniali/status/1369415837631799303
and
(* A H P)
A health worker confirmed that the bodies of at least 16 African migrants who were killed in the fire had been sent to various morgues in Sana’a. The health worker said all of the bodies were scorched.
https://twitter.com/AliAlmurtada/status/1369390633656410126
(** B H P)
The Voice of the Other in Yemen: Challenges to Self-Expression in Times of Conflict
This article summarizes the findings of an extensive academic study I am conducting on self-expression during times of continued political polarization and conflict in Yemen. The survey tested the extent of participants’ desire to express their views on three controversial issues related to the Yemen crisis – This study is based on the findings of a field survey of 438 respondents selected using the snowball sample method,[1] and covers the five governorates of Yemen: Amanat al-Asimah (Sana’a City), Aden, Ma’rib, al-Hodeidah and Hadhramaut. The research was conducted from 6 April to 18 May 2018.
The study concluded that there are five main inhibitors to self-expression in Yemen, as they pertain to the three issues mentioned above. In general, these disincentives or obstacles are linked to a network of relationships that connect the person willing to express their views with others who may keep them from doing so, as well as with the medium through which the expression takes place and the social and political environments. These obstacles can be summarized in the following points.
The impact of anticipated hostility
People usually prefer to avoid engaging in discussions with those who hold different views on certain contentious issues. This is due to the desire to maintain personal psychological security. The expected hostility reveals a state of psychological blackmail of the other, often involving an act of aggression. According to the Camden Principles on Freedom of Expression, hostility “refers to strong and irrational feelings of contempt, hostility, and hatred toward the target group”.[4] This takes the form of three types of aggressive behavior:
physical aggression, such as physical assault on others or their property;
verbal aggression, such as cursing, denigrating or stigmatizing others; and
symbolic aggression, which is acting in a way that expresses contempt, belittlement and ridicule of the other.[5]
Our study findings reveal a rise in participants’ anticipation of hostility from those who disagree with them on the issues of the Yemen crisis. This is regardless of the nature of the communication channels, whether online or offline, which confirms the dominant society’s pursuit of social control by threatening dissenting voices with isolation. It is noteworthy that the expected rate of hostility among the participants of the study through social networks reached 53.4 per cent, surpassing offline communications, 48.9 per cent. Malaspina’s study confirms that online communication tends to be negative, and therefore can be said to be hostile for people sharing personal opinions.[6] This interesting finding indicates the role of digital bullying in fostering user fear, driven by anxiety of censorship and other’s monitoring of what is being published, and from . Sometimes virtual battles become heated following a posting or the suspension of individuals or groups, causing a rapid fallout of supporters of a party to suppress dissenting opinion. There is also cyberbullying, which seeks to corrupt public debate, and the defamation of a publication and its writers that seeks, in a sense, to terrorize users.
We have also found in the increase of cyber hostility a reflection of the state of the freedom of expression in Yemen during times of conflict.
Fear of isolation and its impact on the individual
An individual’s anxiety during the communication process stems from their fear of exposure to criticism, or from how others view them and from any negative views they may develop towards them. They also fear abuse, harm and social exclusion. Such fear leads the individual to self-police and self-censor, so they begin to avoid expressing their views and debating topics. Our study shows an increased fear of isolation among the participants, as well as an increased concern about negative evaluations, whether in their online or offline communications.
The effect of the network in stimulating self-censorship
Preconceptions about others and their expected reactions play a key role in influencing their communicative behavior and choices of what opinions to express. This is also because individuals tend to protect social harmony, even in social communication environments. Moreover, informal and silent social censorship (such as family members, peers, Facebook friends) pressurizes people to adhere to a dominant view when they share certain content.
Findings show that all the participants practiced self-censorship on social media: 34.7 per cent of them to a high degree, 56.2 per cent an average amount, and 9.1 per cent the least amount. The fear scale we used indicates that 62.6 per cent of the participants confirmed reading the comments on posts or tweets before expressing their own views on the crisis in Yemen. It also shows that 53 per cent of the participants expressed a desire not to discuss the Yemen crisis on social media platforms altogether.
Influencing the climate of online self-expression
Concerns of negative self-presentation – by Abdullah Bakhash
https://almadaniyamag.com/2021/03/07/voice-of-other-media-yemen/
(** B E H)
Photo Essay: Mahwat al-Hodeidah: The Daily Saga of Yemen’s Fishermen
In the middle of the coastal strip, between al-Khokha and al-Lahia, lies the city of al-Hodeidah, the capital of al-Hodeidah Governorate with its three directorates. Most of the city’s inhabitants fish for their livelihood. If you were to visit the Sabaliya neighborhood, located in the heart of al-Hodeidah, you would find at least one fisherman living in each house there. To the west of that neighborhood, on the border with the Red Sea, there is the largest and most famous fishing port in all of al-Hodeidah, where hundreds of specialized fishing boats dock. A fish market extends alongside the port’s marine life, otherwise known as the Hiraj (Forest), where people buy and sell in bulk. This market is also where fishermen go to distribute their fish to the local market or load them on boats to export.
The fish market is controlled by a group of large traders, or so-called wukala (agents). They are often the holders of capital and the ones who barter with the fishermen over the quantities of fish caught when unloaded from the boat. Whoever wins the auction gets to take the fish away to sell.
Fishing expeditions, or sea tours, vary. There are early morning day trips that end at night when the catch is divided somewhere close to the shore or the neighboring islands. And there are long-term expeditions that can last weeks or months. These trips use large, customized boats that are enough to carry dozens of fishermen with the necessary supplies to last them the intended sailing period. These fishermen are supplied with fuel and food as well as fishing gear and refrigerators, and they roam for long distances. Some even reach the shores of Eritrea and Ethiopia.
The team on the boat consists of a group of fishermen, most of whom are young men who have enough patience to endure the hardships and dangers of sailing. This, in addition to their excellent swimming and throwing skills, is why the name nakhouzhah (captain) is given to the head of the ship.
Fishermen stay at sea until their supplies of fuel and food run out, then they return to the port to unload and sell their cargo hoping to earn their livelihood in exchange for their hard and painstaking efforts. This back-breaking work shows on the fishermen’s physical features.
https://almadaniyamag.com/2021/03/03/al-hodeidah-fishermen-abdulkarem-almarbooa/
(** B P)
Biden Is Still a Hawk on Yemen
Joe Biden has never been antiwar. From Syria to Iraq to Yugoslavia, he’s proudly displayed a high-stakes bellicosity that’s cost millions of American and foreign lives. That’s why many were shocked when he began pushing "to end U.S. support for the war in Yemen" on the campaign trail in 2019. More surprising, still, is the fact that he’s already taken action on the topic as president. In his first foreign policy address barely two weeks into his presidency, Biden announced that the US would be withdrawing its support from the conflict. But did he mean it?
The media has grossly oversold his stance. After all, he never said he was withdrawing all support from the Saudi-led coalition.
In an article for SouthFront, foreign policy analyst Dr. Leon Tressell expressed his worries:
"Biden has not specified whether US support for Saudi ‘offensive operations’ includes the continued supply of American surveillance such as satellite imagery and other intelligence. He said nothing about the US taking action to end the air, land and sea blockade of Yemen by Saudi Arabia and its allies that is responsible for mass hunger and malnutrition. 80% of the 30 million people in Yemen are on the verge of famine. According to the World Food Programme over 400,000 children under the age of five are in danger of dying from acute malnutrition [in Yemen] this year."
To find out what Biden actually meant by "offensive operations," we’ll have to simply wait and see. Hopefully, there will at least be an overall reduction in arms sales to the Saudi-led coalition. But other than that, there’s reason to think the verdict won’t be good, for Dr. Tressell’s worries are already ringing true.
But that’s not the only "non-offensive" tactic Biden intends to continue. Despite rolling back some sanctions imposed late in the Trump era, Biden’s Secretary of State Anthony Blinken signaled plans last month to foist new rounds of sanctions on members of the Houthi movement.
When Biden announced the end of American support for "offensive operations" in Yemen, he made sure not to cut ties with the Saudis, and in fact, left the door wide open for continued intervention.
If the Houthis continue to carry out targeted, large-scale attacks against the Saudi regime (and, so far, they have), one must wonder – will the US step forward again and aid the Saudi counteroffensive?
Almost certainly, at least, Biden’s commitment to defending Saudi Arabia will mean continuing to sell its government defensive weapons, like anti-ballistic missiles systems. Even if used in an exclusively defensive manner, weapons like these help the Saudis solidify their hegemonic control in the region and thus indirectly aid them in their offensive engagements.
Pacific rhetoric means nothing if the US remains complicit in the Yemenis’ suffering. So why’s Biden playing pretend about withdrawing?
To consider Biden’s policy on Yemen some great moral achievement, then, is naïveté of the highest degree. In his mind, the Yemenis are nothing more than "pawns" – easily disposable and well worth the price – to help line the pockets of his saber-rattling confrères. Of course, if Biden were to make a serious move towards peace and disengagement, he should be celebrated – unfortunately, though, that doesn’t seem to be what the future has in store.
With the hackneyed excuse of fighting terrorists and protecting allies, the Yemeni crisis will continue forth, fueled in large part by American sanctions, American intelligence, and American weapons. After that, if the Saudis do someday crush the Houthi rebels, it’s hard to deny what the US will do next – continue an indefinite military presence and cash out on the conflict’s spoils. It won’t be the end of American hegemony – that’s for sure. For a long time moving forward, Yemen will have to bear the cross of the war hawks’ sins – and Biden, let the record show, is himself hardly a penitent – by James Ketler
https://original.antiwar.com/james_ketler/2021/03/09/biden-is-still-a-hawk-on-yemen/
(** B K P)
How Joe Biden Can Stop Donald Trump’s Massive UAE Arms Deal
The president has temporarily paused the $23 billion weapons package. His final decision will show if he’s serious about building a more progressive foreign policy.
The weapons sale, Trump’s largest, would make the Emirates one of a handful of countries to own the top-of-the-line F-35 fighter jet and give Abu Dhabi its first American-armed drones, as well as associated bombs and missiles. It’s a multiyear project that would drastically change the balance of power in the volatile Persian Gulf. Supporters say that would benefit the U.S. by deterring adversaries like Iran, but critics believe the move will create fresh tension in the region, worsen the UAE’s already
Biden halted the transfer one week into his tenure by placing it under review. It seemed like an early win for progressive legislators and activists who want Washington to stop fueling Middle East conflicts and hope the president will deliver on his campaign promises to build a more restrained U.S. foreign policy.
But it’s still unclear whether the pause in the arms deal will prove temporary.
Biden could ultimately permit Trump’s deal.
That choice would track with the United States’ history of overlooking horrifying behavior by its friends ― a tradition that many Biden administration appointees have publicly described as making the world more dangerous for Americans by fueling resentment abroad.
It wouldn’t be entirely surprising, however.
As the Obama-Biden circle considers how to use its power this time around, hawks outside the administration are trying to box them in by treating the deal as a fait accompli and arguing that tweaking or canceling it would be an insult that threatens the Emirates’ recent decision to establish diplomatic ties with U.S. ally Israel. Yousef Al Otaiba, the UAE’s high-profile ambassador in Washington, told a Feb. 1 conference that the review was simply “pro forma” and the process of completing the transfer was ongoing.
Biden’s decision ― expected in April ― will show how far he’ll go to resist America’s militaristic impulses and learn from Obama’s mistakes.
Leading figures in the debate over Washington’s approach to global affairs say his review must be significant and ambitious to the extent that it might tank the billion-dollar deal.
Erica Fein, the advocacy director at Win Without War, told HuffPost that many activists believe ending the weapons sales and accounting for the damage the Emiratis and the Saudis have done to Yemen with previous U.S. support is now a test of Biden’s “credibility.”
“Until that happens, we will keep pushing to end the culture of impunity for this war and demand … an end to arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the UAE,” she said.
The Art Of The Review
Close observers of Biden’s team do not expect them to double down on the policies of Trump and Obama.
“There’s space now to make major, dramatic change … unlike in the last two or three administrations,” said Daniel Mahanty, a former State Department official who is now at the Center for Civilians in Conflict.
“So long as arms continue to flow,” the U.S. “remains entangled,” Rachel Stohl of the Stimson Center think tank tweeted after the UAE’s Otaiba said the weapons deal will help the U.S. be less involved in the Middle East.
Two of Biden’s recent appointees to the State Department are expected to channel progressives’ skepticism of the package: Christopher Le Mon, who rallied skeptics of the Yemen war at the nonprofit Crisis Action and now works on human rights policy, and Mira Resnick, a former congressional aide who now works in State’s office for arms sales.
But defenders of the deal will lobby the administration hard as well, and they can also count on internal support.
White House Middle East official Barbara Leaf, a former U.S. ambassador to the Emirates, has publicly pushed back against criticisms of the sale.
Proponents of the arms deal say it also helps the U.S. pull back by solidifying the Emiratis’ new bond with Israel so they can tackle shared concerns in the region. A recent tweet from the UAE embassy said Trump’s deal would free “US assets for other global challenges, a long-time bipartisan US priority.”
And the Emiratis have experience in addressing one of the chief worries about the transfer: that it could help Beijing and Moscow, which often work with the UA
Well-connected weapons manufacturers are helping the Emiratis. A defense industry source told HuffPost the Biden administration should consider that the UAE is unlikely to use the F-35 jets in regional civil wars as they are too advanced for that purpose and suggested the Pentagon would have designed effective ways to monitor the UAE’s use of the equipment.
Those arguments have been around for months, however, and deep skepticism about the deal persists in Washington, particularly on Capitol Hill.
Biden’s move on the UAE sale is not just about one big weapons deal. Permitting it is also almost certain to fuel a new arms buildup in the Middle East that could threaten more regional instability ― and embroil the U.S.
The upshot is that continuing Trump’s policy likely commits Biden to new military support for Israel. Pro-Israel advocates have outlined a number of options.
Because the arms deal was presented as “the cost” of the UAE recognizing Israel, the question of what arms the U.S. must supply to Israel became inescapable, said Lara Friedman of the Foundation for Middle East Peace. Ultimately, the situation “really does look a lot like an arms race,” she added.
Jeff Abramson of the Arms Control Association noted that permitting the sale would increase the already serious gap between the capabilities of Iran and those of the U.S., Israel and their partners.
“There really is not a sudden surge in Iranian capacity that proponents of this arms sale could legitimately point to ― there’s just this massive influx that is really unnecessary,” Abramson told HuffPost.
Playing Politics
Beyond the strategic reasons for Biden to rethink the UAE sale, the president could decide that it’s politically costly to simply let it go forward given Congress’s assertiveness on the issue.
Proponents of the policy say the December vote settled the matter. “Congress didn’t have the votes” to crush the deal, the defense industry source said. All Republicans and two crucial Democrats ― Sens. Mark Kelly and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, where Raytheon has large operations ― together shielded the arms sale.
But legislators’ persistent skepticism of the UAE and other Gulf partners like the Saudis, and the way they began to more aggressively exert influence over national security in the Trump era, will make it hard for Biden to preserve Trump’s policy without addressing the fact that the vast majority of his own party explicitly rejected it.
Critics of the UAE package include powerful legislators who are strongly supportive of Israel like Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Congress could influence Biden’s decision before it is finalized or tweak U.S. policy regardless of what the president does, through tactics like inserting limits on the transfer in must-pass appropriations bills. “We have our ways,” the staffer said – By Akbar Shahid Ahmed
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-trump-uae-arms-deal_n_5fea4a8dc5b64e442105a673?oc7
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Marib: Sturm auf die Wüstenstadt
Seit sechs Jahren tobt ein Vielfrontenkrieg im Jemen. Das geostrategisch wichtig gelegene Marib blieb bislang verschont, wurde zum Zufluchtsort für Hunderttausende. Nun droht ein Blutbad.
»Wir hören die Kämpfe jede Nacht. Es ist Furcht einflößend, fühlt sich an, als würde sich langsam ein großes Monster der Stadt nähern«, sagt Maged al-Madhaji. Der Politik-Analyst ist dieser Tage in Marib, einer Stadt im Jemen, die bislang vom Bürgerkrieg verschont geblieben ist. Nun aber tobt ein heftiger Kampf um Marib.
In Marib findet nun eine der entscheidenden Schlachten des Krieges statt. Und es droht ein Blutbad:
Die Stadt wird von Verbündeten der international anerkannten jemenitischen Regierung kontrolliert.
Sie wehren sich seit Wochen erbittert gegen eine Offensive der schiitischen Huthi-Miliz.
Mitte Februar hat die Miliz ihre bisher intensivsten Angriffe auf Marib gestartet. Doch die erste große Offensive begann schon vor über einem Jahr. Seither sollen über 17.000 Soldaten aufseiten der Regierung ums Leben gekommen sein. Das zumindest sagte Sultan al-Aradah, der Gouverneur von Marib, am Montag in einem Videobriefing zu Journalisten. Würde die Stadt mit ihren reichen Öl- und Gasvorkommen fallen, so glauben viele, dann hätten die Huthi den jahrelangen Krieg im Jemen gewonnen.
Lange Zeit war Marib eine Oase für Binnenflüchtlinge, umgeben von Krieg und Elend. Der umtriebige Gouverneur Aradah, der zugleich ein mächtiger Stammesführer ist, nutzte den Zerfall des Zentralstaates zum Ausbau der lokalen Autonomie
Seit Beginn des Krieges vor sechs Jahren ist das einstige Wüstennest Marib zudem zu einem bevölkerungsreichen Wirtschaftszentrum angewachsen. Flüchtlingslager sind an den Rändern der Provinzhauptstadt wie Pilze aus dem Boden geschossen; insgesamt sind es 139 Camps aus Wohncontainern und Zelten.
Den Huthi gelang es bis jetzt nicht, den Balaq-Berg einzunehmen. Doch in einer einzigen Nacht kamen aufseiten der Huthi-Gegner Hunderte ums Leben. Einer von ihnen war der mächtige Feldherr Abdulghani Shaalan, auch bekannt als Abu Mohammed.
Seine Sondertruppe gilt als schlagkräftigste Einheit in ganz Marib. »Sie kamen aus dem Nichts. Man sah sie kaum, aber sobald es irgendwo Alarm gab, rasten sie aus allen Richtungen mit ihren Pickup-Trucks herbei, bis an die Zähne bewaffnet«, erinnert sich ein lokaler Kontakt.
Daneben stand Abu Mohammed wohl auch hinter einem Netz von berüchtigten Geheimgefängnissen und Informanten, mit denen er Spionagezellen der Huthi aushob – und Menschen verschwinden ließ.
Aufseiten der Huthi sind die Verluste vielleicht noch größer. Ein Totengräber in Sanaa sagt am Telefon, er sei seit Kriegsbeginn noch nie so beschäftigt gewesen. Ein Schuldirektor berichtet, die Huthi hätten von ihm verlangt, Schüler für den Kampf zu rekrutieren. Sie müssen die Reihen füllen.
Die zwei Millionen Binnenflüchtlinge in Marib stammen aus allen Landesteilen. Und sie haben neues Leben in die einstmals verschlafene Wüstenstadt gebracht.
»Wir haben keinen anderen Ort, wo wir hingehen können«, sagt al-Mansuri
Der Analyst al-Madhaji geht jedoch nicht davon aus, dass die Eroberung der Stadt gelingen wird. Der Widerstand sei zu heftig – von Monika Bolliger
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HOCHGERÜSTET AM GOLF
Die Vereinigten Arabischen Emirate haben sich zu einer ernstzunehmenden Militärmacht in der Region entwickelt
Die VAE sind der fünftgrößte Waffenimporteur der Welt.3 Und sie begnügen sich nicht mit Simulationen. Vielmehr führen sie reale Kriege, provozieren sie oder tragen aktiv zu ihrer Verlängerung bei. Das alles sei Teil einer „Strategie zur Sicherung von Einfluss und Macht in der Region“, sagt Emma Soubrier vom Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington.
Während des Arabischen Frühlings intervenierten die VAE im März 2011 gemeinsam mit Saudi-Arabien in Bahrain und halfen, den Volksaufstand gegen die Al-Chalifa-Monarchie niederzuschlagen. Im Jemenkrieg, wo sie seit 2015 zusammen mit Riad die Anti-Huthi-Koalition anführen, sehen sie sich wie ihre saudischen Bündnispartner dem Vorwurf ausgesetzt, gegen das Völkerrecht zu verstoßen und die Spaltung des Landes zu betreiben.4 Und in Libyen unterstützten sie – unter Missachtung des Waffenembargos – den Kampf des Marschalls Chalifa Haftar gegen die Regierung der Nationalen Einheit (GNA).
Die Waffenshow und die Scheußlichkeiten des realen Kriegs gehören zusammen und fügen sich zum Bild einer Monarchie, die ein „modernes“ Image vermitteln will und zugleich die Spannungen in der arabischen Welt verschärft. Wie im Fall der regionalen Blockade gegen Katar (Juni 2017 bis Januar 2021), bei der Abu Dhabi die treibende Kraft war.
Wie erklärt sich der Aufstieg dieses Landes, dessen Bevölkerung zu 90 Prozent aus Ausländern besteht (siehe Karte Seite 17)? Die Antwort ergibt sich aus einem Rückblick auf die Gründung der Föderation vor 50 Jahren, im Januar 1971. Damals verweigerten Bahrain und Katar den Beitritt, weil sie befürchteten, unter die Fuchtel Abu Dhabis zu geraten. So blieb es bei sieben Emiraten, deren Territorium von mächtigen Nachbarn wie Saudi-Arabien, Irak und Iran umringt ist. Damit stellte sich für die Föderation und ihr damaliges Staatsoberhaupt Scheich Zayid Al Nahyan von Anfang an die Frage nach der eigenen Sicherheit.
Als kleines Land mit schwacher Armee suchten die VAE alsbald Rückhalt beim Westen. Für die Rolle des Beschützers und Waffenlieferanten boten sich die USA an, die eine Ausweitung des sowjetischen Einflusses befürchteten. Und natürlich wollte Washington den Nahen Osten als Energiemarkt absichern.
Die VAE wiederum waren dank ihrer reichen Öl- und Gasvorkommen in der Lage, umfangreiche Rüstungskäufe zu finanzieren und damit die westlichen Beschützer an sich zu binden.
Die Beziehung zu Washington wurde zum „Rückgrat der emiratischen Armee“, erklärt Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, Politikwissenschaftler an der Universität der VAE.
Heerscharen angelsächsischer Kommunikationsberater verpassten der Monarchie das Image eines modernen und visionären Staats. 2006 hatte man die Zweifel in Washingtons so weit zerstreut, dass US-General Peter Pace, der damalige Vorsitzender der Joint Chiefs of Staff, die stabile Partnerschaft zwischen beiden Ländern öffentlich loben konnte.5
Mitte der 2000er Jahre kam eine junge Generation ans Ruder.
Die neue Politik setzte auf die Entwicklung von Handel, Tourismus und Freizeitindustrie, Stadtplanung und neuen Technologien. Im Rahmen der wirtschaftlichen Diversifizierung sollte aber auch eine eigene Rüstungsindustrie aufgebaut werden, und zwar nach dem Prinzip der „Kompensationsgeschäfte“: Als Gegenleistung für ihre Waffenverkäufe mussten die ausländischen Lieferanten zur Infrastrukturentwicklung vor Ort beitragen.
Dass die VAE an zahlreichen Waffenlieferungen beteiligt war, kritisiert auch die niederländische Organisation Pax. So versorgten die VAE „unter Verstoß gegen das Waffenembargo in Libyen gleichzeitig die Rebellen und die dort stationierten emiratischen Truppen“
Für die VAE boten die Intervention in Bahrain 2011 und – viel stärker noch – der Krieg im Jemen eine willkommene Gelegenheit, ihr Rüstungsmaterial und ihr militärisches Personal unter realen Kriegsbedingungen einem Praxistest zu unterziehen.
Der Politikwissenschaftler Harchaoui sieht allerdings ein Dilemma: „Wenn die Emirate ihre geopolitischen Ziele realisieren wollen, brauchen sie Truppen, die sie an die Front schicken können.“ Deshalb heuern sie zunehmend private Sicherheits- und Militärfirmen an. 2011 enthüllte die New York Times, dass in der Nähe von Abu Dhabi einige hundert Söldner stationiert waren, die teils aus Kolumbien stammten.
Die VAE zogen sich 2019 zwar offiziell aus dem Jemenkonflikt zurück, doch damit haben sie ihre eigenen Ziele keineswegs aus dem Blick verloren. Bis heute halten sie im Jemen den wichtigen Industriehafen Balhaf und die Insel Sokotra besetzt. Laut Soubrier ist dies Teil einer Strategie, die darauf abzielt, „eine Kette von Handels- und Militärstützpunkten vom Horn von Afrika bis zum Mittelmeer zu errichten“.
Zudem unterstützen die Emirate nach wie vor einzelne Fraktionen in Jemen, wie etwa den sezessionistischen Südlichen Übergangsrat (STC).
Die NGOs Rights Radar for Human Rights und Institute for Rights and Development (IRD) erklärten im September 2020 gegenüber dem Menschenrechtsrat der Vereinten Nationen, dass die VAE US-Söldner für eine Mordkampagne im Jemen angeheuert hätten,
Von diesen Gräueltaten nimmt die breite Öffentlichkeit im Westen keine Notiz. Und die Touristenattraktionen von Dubai lockten – zumindest bis zum Beginn der Coronapandemie – scharenweise westliche Urlauber in die Metropole der Emirate.
Warum das so ist, zeigt Ben Freeman in seiner Untersuchung über die Lobbyarbeit der Emirate in den USA: Dank dieser Aktivitäten hätten es die VAE geschafft, „dass ihre Schandtaten weitgehend im Dunkeln bleiben“.13
Inzwischen hat die Lage sich allerdings verändert.
Doch wenn der Partner in Washington weiterhin die kalte Schulter zeigt, wird das „Klein-Sparta“ seine ehrgeizigen Ziele wohl zurückstecken müssen.
PANZER AUS FRANKREICH
In der Geschichte der privilegierten Beziehungen zwischen Frankreich und den Vereinigten Arabischen Emiraten (VAE) spielt der Leclerc-Panzer eine zentrale Rolle.
2009 wurde in Abu Dhabi die erste französische Militärbasis für alle drei Teilstreitkräfte eingeweiht. Das 700-köpfige Personal dient nach Aussage des französischen Verteidigungsministers als ein „Truppenreservoir für Kriseninterventionen in dieser strategisch wichtigen Zone“.
2011 unterzeichnete Nexter (wie GIAT seit 2006 heißt) einen neuen Vertrag zur Umrüstung von Panzern für den Straßenkampf. Diese Investition sollte sich für Abu Dhabi ein paar Jahre später auszahlen: Im Sommer 2015 eroberten die Koalitionstruppen den Hafen von Aden, und Anfang August wurden dort Leclerc-Panzer entladen, die danach unter anderem bei der Wiedereinnahme des Militärstützpunkts al-Anad eingesetzt wurden.
Der Praxistest erfreute die französischen Hersteller – von Eva Thiébaud
https://monde-diplomatique.de/artikel/!5754440
cp1a Am wichtigsten: Coronavirus und Seuchen / Most important: Coronavirus and epidemics
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41 cases of COVID-19 reported, 2,586 in total
The supreme national emergency committee for coronavirus reported on Tuesday, 41 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in five governorates; Hadramout (21), Aden (9) al-Mahra (5), Taiz (3) and Shabwa (3).
The committee also reported in its statement the death of 1 coronavirus patient in Taiz and the recovery of 4 patients in Hadramout.
According to the daily counts of infections over the past hours, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the liberated areas of Yemen has reached 2,586, including 654 deaths and 1,451 recoveries.
http://en.adenpress.news/news/32428
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72 cases of COVID-19 reported in 5 governorates
The supreme national emergency committee for coronavirus reported on Monday, 72 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in five governorates; Hadramout (32), Aden (20) Taiz (11), Shabwa (8) and Marib (1).
The committee also reported in its statement the death of 2 coronavirus patients and the recovery of 1 patient in Hadramout.
According to the daily counts of infections, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the liberated areas of Yemen is 2,545, including 653 deaths and 1,447 recoveries.
http://en.adenpress.news/news/32422
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Yemen: 77 COVID-19 cases recorded on Monday
Aden-based Supreme National Emergency Committee for COVID-19 said 77 new coronavirus cases were recorded on Monday, with two deaths and one recovery, the largest number to be officially recorded since late-2020.
“A number of 77 COVID-19 cases were recorded as follows: 32 cases in Hadhramaut, 20 cases in Aden, 11 cases in Taiz, 8 cases in Shabwah, and 1 case in Marib, with one death and one recovery in Hadhramaut, adding up to 2545 cases in total — including 653 deaths and 1447 recovered cases,” the committee said on Twitter.
The number of cases officially recorded on Monday only include areas under the control of the internationally recognized government, whereas Houthis refrain to announce infections in areas under their control.
https://republicanyemen.net/archives/27453
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33 new cases of COVID-19 reported in 4 governorates
http://en.adenpress.news/news/32415
(A H P)
[Hadi] Yemeni gov't warns risky health situation as Covid-19 cases surge
Health minister in the Yemeni official government on Saturday warned against a dangerous situation, amid the second wave of Covid-19 in the war-torn country.
The Covid-19 cases are in the rise, Qasim Bohaibih tweeted, calling on all the citizens to take necessary precautions and abide by protective measures to prevent a further spread of the pandemic.
He expressed concerns at looming risky conditions, citing the increasing pressure seen by hospitals and health facilities in the last few days.
https://debriefer.net/en/news-23615.html
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The polio campaign in Yemen is continuing, with a total of 3.8 million doses of the vaccine shipped into the country on 6 January for the implementation of the Polio outbreak response campaign in 14 governorates.
cp2 Allgemein / General
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Interactive Map of Yemen War
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Yemen War Map Updates
March 9: https://southfront.org/military-situation-in-yemen-on-march-9-2021-map-update/
March 8: https://southfront.org/houthis-launch-another-missile-drone-strike-on-saudi-arabia/ = https://southfront.org/saudi-arabia-strikes-yemens-capital-sanaa-in-response-to-houthi-offensive-map-update/
March 7: https://southfront.org/military-situation-in-yemen-on-march-7-2021-map-update/
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Jemen-Krieg: Ohne Druck kein Ende
Der geplante Strategiewechsel der USA kann nur ein erster Schritt im Bemühen um Frieden im Jemen sein. Der Konflikt droht durch das Erstarken der Huthis weiter zu eskalieren
Gleichzeitig ist dieser Beschluss aber erst einmal vor allem symbolischer Natur und wird sich nicht direkt auf das Konfliktgeschehen auswirken.
das liegt vor allem erst einmal an der Natur des Krieges, der nicht – wie oftmals fälschlich dargestellt – ein reiner Stellvertreterkrieg ist. Der Krieg im Jemen ist ein Bürgerkrieg mit regionaler Beteiligung. Das heißt vor allem erst einmal, dass die multiplen lokalen Konfliktparteien im Jemen sich auch dann weiterbekämpfen würden, wenn sich morgen alle regionalen Akteure vollständig aus dem Konfliktgeschehen zurückziehen würden.
Das liegt aber auch daran, dass mit dem erhöhten internationalen Druck auf Saudi-Arabien die Anti-Huthi-Koalition im Jemen in eine Position der Schwäche gegenüber den Huthis geraten ist.
Dies macht sich derzeit vor allem im östlich von Sanaa gelegenen, öl- und gasreichen Gouvernement Marib bemerkbar.
Sollten die Kämpfe Marib-Stadt erreichen und sollte es den Huthis tatsächlich gelingen, die Provinz Marib einzunehmen, drohen ein neues humanitäres Desaster und das Übergreifen der Kämpfe auf weitere Provinzen.
Es droht aber auch ein Zusammenbruch der diplomatischen Bemühungen um einen landesweiten Waffenstillstand, für den sich der UN-Sondergesandte Martin Griffiths seit nunmehr mehr als eineinhalb Jahren als Voraussetzung für breitere politische Verhandlungen um einen nachhaltigen Frieden einsetzt. Sollten die Huthis Marib einnehmen, werden sie zu stark und die international anerkannte Regierung zu schwach für die Bereitschaft zu Kompromissen sein. Auch ohne einen Sieg der Huthis in Marib ist dies aber inzwischen eigentlich schon längst der Fall.
Was also können internationale Akteure tun, um dem Land den Weg zurück zu einer Friedenslösung zu ebnen? Hier werden zuvorderst viel internationales diplomatisches Engagement und eine starke Koordination untereinander notwendig sein, um den Druck auf alle Seiten zu erhöhen, vor allem auch im Hinblick auf die internationale Haftbarkeit für Menschenrechtsverletzungen. Die USA und die EU stehen hier mit an vorderster Front.
Insbesondere im Hinblick auf die Huthis, die in den von ihnen kontrollierten Gebieten einen repressiven Polizeistaat aufgebaut haben, ist dies jedoch schwierig
Der Weg zu einer Friedenslösung für den Jemen war aufgrund der Komplexität des Konflikts mit seinen vielfältigen lokalen und regionalen Dimensionen schon vor den aktuellen Entwicklungen schwierig. Die Huthi-Offensive auf Marib verstärkt noch einmal die Dringlichkeit dieser Bemühungen – von Marie-Christine Heinze
https://www.derstandard.de/story/2000124792224/jemen-krieg-ohne-druck-kein-ende
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Exclusion of women from Yemen peace process ‘hampers long-term solution’
Activists demand women working on front line with humanitarian work be heard
Failure to include women in Yemen’s peace process is reducing the chances of a long-term sustainable solution to the country’s civil war, activists say.
Muna Luqman, executive director of the humanitarian organisation Food4Humanity, said women often carried out urgent response to relief demands.
Often they work on the front lines, call for ceasefires, mediate between armed groups, urge accountability and justice, and operate under challenging conditions that put them under threat.
“Women’s organisations are underfunded, they are not recognised in the peace tracks,” Ms Luqman told an online seminar organised by the European Council on Foreign Relations to look at the role of women seeking peace in Yemen.
“Women are not only speaking about women’s issues, they are reflecting the whole needs of the community and they’re also working to prevent more violence.
“If we are not including women, that means that we’re really not serious about real, core, sustainable peace."
Rasha Jarhum, founder of the Peace Track Initiative, which works towards peace and amplifying the voices of women and children, said that even before Yemen’s civil war it was talked about as the worst country for women.
“Violence against women is embedded in the laws, in discriminative laws and institutions and also in negative social norms that discriminate against women,” Ms Jarhum said.
“The war today has made violations and abuse against women and girls reach a level that we have never witnessed before.
and
(B H P)
Film by Oxfam: Women Peace & Security - Yemen
#Yemen-i women have always suffered exclusion from participation in the peace building processes, to this day they are still excluded from occupying decision-making positions, thus lacking fair representation as per outcomes of the 2014 national dialogue.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=038aE0oTGYc
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Schwere Gefechte im Jemen: USA rufen Huthi-Bewegung zu Verhandlungen auf
Die Lage zwischen Ansarullah und der von den Saudis geführten Koalition im Jemen verschärft sich. Im Zuge der bevorstehenden Einnahme der Stadt Ma'rib durch die Huthis riefen die USA nun zu Verhandlungen auf. Derweil zeigt sich die Türkei besorgt über Angriffe auf Saudi-Arabien (überblick)
https://de.rt.com/der-nahe-osten/114137-schwere-gefechte-im-jemen-usa/
(B H K)
Film: Haben wir Jemen vergessen? | Spektrum Islam
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaWjFLnuG-0
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Jemen - Land ohne Perspektive
Keine Lebensmittel, keine Medizin, keine Friedensgespräche - im Jemen funktioniert nichts mehr. Eine Reportage.
Die Rivalität zwischen den saudischen und iranischen Erzfeinden ist nur eine der Ursachen der zahllosen seit 20 Jahren in unterschiedlichen Formierungen geführten Kriege. Andere sind die Interessensunterschiede der Nord- und Südjemeniten oder Spannungen zwischen den Clans, die – wenn ihre Beziehungen nicht gepflegt werden – schnell eskalieren. Nach dem Sturz des autokratischen Herrschers Ali Abdullah Saleh während des Arabischen Frühlings vor zehn Jahren beschleunigte sich die Auflösung der vom Kolonialismus, dem Kalten Krieg und dem US-Feldzug gegen den „Terror“ zerrütteten Nation noch. Heute gilt „die Wiege Arabiens“ als Paradebeispiel eines gescheiterten Staates. Ohne funktionierende Institutionen, ohne gemeinsame Ziele und mit einem Präsidenten, der im Nachbarland lebt.
An der Front vor Tuhayta geht es derzeit eher entspannt zu, die Kämpfer sind mit Wasserholen, Wäschewaschen oder der Pflege ihrer Pickups mit den aufmontierten schweren Maschinengewehren beschäftigt. Nur ab und zu kommt es zu Zwischenfällen, war tags zuvor im Zelt-Hospital der „Ärzte ohne Grenzen“ (MSF) in der Küstenstadt Mocha zu erfahren. Dort werden Kriegsverletzte, derzeit im Durchschnitt rund 50 pro Woche, wieder zusammengeflickt, egal ob es sich um Zivilist:innen oder Milizionäre handelt. Dieser Tage toben die Kämpfe vor allem um die gut 500 Kilometer weiter nordöstlich gelegene Erdölstadt Marib.
Am Horizont tauchen endlich die Fernmeldemasten von Tuhayta auf. Eine rund 25 000 Einwohner:innen zählende Stadt, die gleich auf drei Seiten von der Front umgeben ist. Die Außenbezirke der Provinzstadt sind menschenleer. Bis dorthin reichen die Präzisionsgewehre der Huthi-Scharfschützen. Dafür geht es im Stadtzentrum umso geschäftiger zu, wohin auch die Bewohnerinnen und Bewohner der umliegenden Siedlungen geflohen sind. Das an einem Wadi, einem ausgetrockneten Flusslauf, gelegene Tuhayta ist von bewässerten Feldern und Palmenplantagen umgeben, die inzwischen allerdings unzugänglich sind. „Vermint“, sagt Malik Abdullah Derwisch, der Apotheker der Stadt. Der 55-Jährige musste kürzlich auch sein Geschäft schließen. Es gab keine Pillen mehr – zumindest keine, die sich die Bewohner:innen von Tuhayta noch leisten könnten.
Alles, was in der Stadt gebraucht und verzehrt wird, muss über die holprige Piste herangeschafft werden. Die Preise sind deshalb in die Höhe geschossen. Ein Kilo Kartoffeln kostet heute das Fünffache vom Vorjahrespreis, Brot ist um das Dreifache teurer geworden. Leitungswasser gibt es nur noch an einem Tag in der Woche, weil für die sechs Dieselpumpen kein Sprit mehr zur Verfügung steht, und die einzige Solarpumpe nur jeweils einen Teil der Stadt versorgen kann. Der Englischlehrer der weiterführenden Schule klagt, dass das Obergeschoss seines Gymnasiums zerstört worden sei und die Lehrkräfte seit Monaten kein Gehalt mehr erhielten. Die Mädchen und Jungs kämen zwar noch täglich zur Schule, allerdings nur für eine halbe Stunde und vor allem, um gezählt zu werden. „Manche meinen, dass das eines unserer kleinsten Probleme sei“, sagt der Lehrer. „Doch es wird uns noch über Jahrzehnte verfolgen.“
Gegenwärtig führt die belgische Sektion der „Ärzte ohne Grenzen“ eine Umfrage zur Ernährungslage der Menschen in Tuhayta durch: Bislang hatten die drei UN-Organisationen FAO, WFP und Unicef diese lediglich geschätzt. Demnach sollen hier 27 Prozent der unter fünfjährigen Kinder „akut unterernährt“ sein – mehr als in allen anderen Teilen des Landes. Als sich herumspricht, dass Vertreter:innen einer ausländischen Hilfsorganisation in der Stadt sind, kommen Mütter mit ihren spindeldürren Kindern in die Klinik geeilt
Die UN-Schätzung, wonach in der Region um Tuhayta fast ein Drittel aller Kinder akut unterernährt sind, ist bereits vier Monate alt – trotzdem hat noch kein einziger Hilfstransport die Stadt erreicht. UN-Mitarbeiter:innen dürften Tuhayta aus Sicherheitsgründen erst gar nicht ansteuern.
https://www.fr.de/panorama/jemen-land-ohne-perspektive-90235090.html = https://www.derstandard.at/story/2000124852261/gefangen-zwischen-krieg-und-armut-im-jemen?ref=rss
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Why are the Houthis Stepping Up Attacks Against Saudi Arabia?
The Iran-backed group sees a real chance of boosting its leverage before negotiations to end the years-long Yemeni war.
Notwithstanding the Biden administration’s more conciliatory tone, Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia have intensified rather than decreased. This is due to the fact that the Yemeni rebels likely see Biden’s actions as predictable and as a sign of weakness.
However, with Biden’s diplomatic approach and removal of military support for the Saudis, the Iran-backed group is attempting to seize this opportunity as fiercely as it can to inflict harm and losses on Saudi Arabia so that it can gain leverage before negotiations are held. In that context, along with the uptick in Houthi attacks on the kingdom is the rebels’ enhanced push to take Marib city, the Yemeni government’s last stronghold in northern Yemen
It is safe to say that as long as the Houthis see a military victory in Marib city as something within reach, they will carry on with ground offensives towards the city and attacks on the kingdom, avoiding the negotiating table as long as they haven’t secured enough leverage
Taking all of this into account, the United States will have to step up its diplomatic efforts, likely through Oman.
(* B K P)
How is Iran responding to Biden’s policy shift on Yemen?
The reaction to Biden’s Yemen announcement in Tehran was ambivalent. Saeed Khatibzadeh, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, stated that “stopping support for the Saudi coalition, if not a political maneuver, could be a step towards correcting past mistakes.” Iranian media outlets presented a variety of perspectives on Biden’s cessation of offensive support for the Saudi-led coalition.
The Marib offensive
To capitalize on Biden’s policy shift on Yemen and increase its future diplomatic leverage, Iran is encouraging the Houthis to step up their offensive in northern Yemen’s Marib Governorate.
As Iran’s military intervention in Yemen operates under a guise of plausible deniability, Tehran’s exact role in the Marib offensive remains uncertain. Iranian media outlets have lent moral support to the Houthi campaign, as Mehr News described the Marib offensive as a battle against “Saudi mercenaries and Takfiri terrorism” and claimed that Saudi Arabia has courted Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) support as it is losing ground to the Houthis.
Tehran’s diplomatic engagement
In tandem with the Marib offensive, Iran has expanded its diplomatic involvement in Yemen.
Although Tehran hosted talks between the Houthis and European powers (Britain, France, Germany, and Italy) in August 2019, Iran has until recently viewed engagement with Russia as its path to diplomatic leverage.
While recognition of its indispensability from a great power, such as Russia, boosts Iran’s credibility, Tehran has also expanded its engagement with the United Nations on ending the Yemen war.
Iran has also lobbied the U.N. to recognize Yemen’s Houthi government.
Looking ahead
Despite Biden’s cessation of U.S. support for Saudi Arabia’s military intervention in Yemen and removal of the Houthis from the U.S. terrorism list, U.S.-Iran dialogue over Yemen has not materialized.
https://www.mei.edu/publications/how-iran-responding-bidens-policy-shift-yemen
My comment: By a saudi/UAE-financed think tank. There doesn’t exist anything like “Iran’s military intervention in Yemen”.
(B K P)
A new peak in Yemen
the recent escalation between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis
But no such settlement is in sight. The hype about ending the war is quieting down as Washington prioritises the nuclear deal with Iran, and it remains unclear how large a part Gulf concerns will play in the relevant negotiations. One former American diplomat has suggested there may be discussion of “an Iranian commitment not to interfere in its neighbours’ internal affairs”. Including Iran’s ballistic missile programme in a new deal, which Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies have been calling for, is not yet guaranteed. At a time when the UN and international humanitarian organisations are decrying the lack of funds to alleviate the human disaster in Yemen, what is more, military escalation looks like it will continue.
The latest military escalations have only made things worse.
Yemenis feel more and more abandoned by the world community. The glimpse of hope of ending the war and providing aid to millions crushed by poverty is fading. One anonymous Yemeni citizen seemed to describe the situation accurately when he said, “we are being forgotten and left to die, if not by war then of famine and diseases. Political settlement is not the concern of anybody, and the world is cutting humanitarian aid. We are left to the warring parties, poverty and sickness. All are turning away not to feel the stain of shame on humanity’s forehead”.
(* B K pH)
Unprecedented Return to Sana’a: Officers, Soldiers Give Up Fighting with Saudi-led Coalition
Officers and soldiers gave up the fighting with the Saudi-led coalition and returned to Sana'a, which opened its arms to receive these returnees, providing them with safety, protection and care.
As soon as the returnee arrives in the capital, Sana’a, the National Center for Returnees performs the duty of hospitality, welcome and facilitating his arrival to his family, leaving him with the option to join his brothers from the Army and Popular Committees to defend the homeland or live in peace in his region and his village. This prompted many of the officers and soldiers who were fighting with the coalition to make the decision to return, and head towards Sana'a.
The returnees are from all fronts, but it is noticeable that the pace of return from the Marib Front has increased in the recent period. The most recent of which was the return of a number of residents of Taiz and Adh-Dhalea to their governorates last week. Moreover, the media is circulating news about the return of a senior official close to the Minister of Defense of the pro-aggression government to Sana’a accompanied by a number of officers, to announce their defection from the coalition forces.
Although Sana’a issued a general amnesty decision early in 2017 and opened the way for the deceived to return to the homeland, but with the approaching battles of the city of Marib, operations rooms were formed at the level of governorates and districts to communicate with the deceived and coordinate their return.
The National Center for Returnees revealed in its latest statistics that the center received five hundred returnees during January 2021, while the number of returnees during 2020 reached four thousand returnees as follows:
- 500 returnees through the contact lines
- 2,000 returnees through the main lines
- 1500 who were approved as returnees through guarantees.
Regarding the number of returnees registered in the National Center database, the Center stated that their number since the issuance of the general amnesty decision until December 2020 reached 12,000 returnees.
(B K P)
Understanding the Conflicts Leading to Saudi Attacks [overview]
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-08/understanding-the-conflicts-leading-to-saudi-attacks-quicktake = https://www.bloombergquint.com/quicktakes/understanding-the-conflicts-leading-to-saudi-attacks-quicktake-2
(B K P)
[Sanaa gov.] Yemeni Forces Targeting Saudi Depth: Have Bin Salman's Bets on the War Failed?
Mohammad al-Bukhaiti, member of the political bureau of the Ansarullah, said on Sunday that the retaliatory attacks on the Saudi depth “comes in the context of self-defense."
Al-Bukhaiti asserted that the balance of power "is in favor of Yemen today," while "Mohammed bin Salman failed in his bet on the war."
He warned of the escalation of strikes by the Yemeni Armed Forces in the depths of Saudi Arabia, saying: "We have no choice but the military force to deter aggression. We do not bet on the awakening of Bin Salman's conscience."
"We advise Saudi citizens not to approach the military and oil installations for their safety."
The member of the political bureau of Ansarullah believed that the Saudi leadership "does not act according to the logic of values, morals and reason," while the hand of the Yemenis is "extended for peace."
Al-Bakhiti questioned the seriousness of the US calling for stopping the war in Yemen, as "the mere US desire to stop the war is sufficient for bin Salman to announce its end."
(* B K P)
Political expert: Yemen war; Strategic necessities and emergence of new power
The start of Saudi Arabia’s military aggression against Yemen on March 25, 2015 and the unequal continuation of this war to the present time has led to the emergence of a huge swamp for the Saudi coalition after six years as such that the United States and the pro-Saudi coalition governments are desperately looking for a solution to this crisis. In fact, the main question will be whether the end of the Yemen war is a strategic necessity for the countries involved in this crisis or the political life of this crisis is nearing the end of its life?
This strategic necessity is crucial for the United States in providing a humanitarian face in order to restore its soft power in the region, as well as to help resolve the crisis of the Yemen war for Saudi Arabia as its longtime supporter. In addition, the suspension of the sale of smart bombs that Mohammed bin Salman bought at the end of the Trump presidency can be evaluated and analyzed in the same way. The actions can necessarily be analyzed not by the Biden administration, but by the pressures of the human rights NGOs that stood behind Biden in the US presidential election and formally supported him. In this regard, the support of Mohammed bin Salman for Trump, Biden’s rival, should be considered more for this reason, and the crisis regarding the investigation into the murder of Khashoggi is also rooted in this issue.
In other words, the Yemen war is now facing two very different situations with the two sides involved. On the one hand, lack of full support and instability in the Saudi coalition and loss of its allies, and on the other hand, the internal cohesion of Yemeni political groups and foreign backing of supporting countries or human rights organizations due to humanitarian catastrophes in the six-year military aggression in Yemen could be presented as strong arguments in this regard. The current scene in Yemen shows the global geometry of power. The geometry that is no longer drawn by the big countries, but it is the free, independent and resilient nations that play a role in drawing the field maps. The legacy of the hero martyred commander of Iran, Shahid Qasem Soleimani, has remained a relic among the nations of the region.
My remark: A pro-Houthi view.
(A K P)
Jemen: Wir sind in der Lage auf jeden Punkt in Saudi-Arabien zu zielen
Der jemenitische Informationsminister [der Sanaa-Regierung] betonte, dass der Angriff der jemenitischen Streitkräfte auf das Erdölunternehmen Saudi-Aramco eine klare Botschaft sei, dass die jemenitischen Streitkräfte überall auf saudischem Territorium Ziele treffen könnten.
In einem Interview mit Al-Alam sagte Fahmi al-Yousefi am Montag, dass der Angriff auf Aramco eine Reaktion auf den saudischen Angriff auf jemenitische Wohngebiete sei und, dieser Angriff sei Jemens legales Recht.
Dieser jemenitische Minister stellte fest, dass das Auftreffen jemenitischer Raketen tief im saudi-arabischen Gebiet zeige, dass alle saudischen Verteidigungssysteme unwirksam seien.
Al-Yousefi erklärte, Saudi-Arabien sei nur der Vollstrecker von US-Entscheidungen und könne sich nicht vor den Launen des Weißen Hauses retten.
(A K P)
SPC member: achieving real peace depends on lifting the siege and stopping the aggression
Supreme Political Council (SPC) Member Mohammed al-Houthi has affirmed the real peace in Yemen depends on lifting the siege, stopping aggression and fighting on all fronts, calling on the US to abandon its racism and move towards peace.
"You [the aggression countries] will not undermine our steadfastness and we [ the Yemeni people] will not back down on an issue that we know is fateful. We will achieve independence and full sovereignty over the Yemeni lands,'' al-Houthi addressed the countries of the aggression.
"I say to Bin Salman that your continued war on Yemen is the end of your kingdom and your rule too," al-Houthi said, stressing the Yemeni people, on the eve of the seventh year of the aggression, will continue its steadfastness against the aggression and its tools until victory is achieved.
The SPC member praised the victories achieved on the military and security sides
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3131719.htm
https://hodhodyemennews.net/2021/03/09/mohammed-al-houthi-this-war-will-be-the-end-of-saudi-arabia/
(A K P)
Ansarullah: [Sanaa gov.] Yemeni Operations Against Saudi Regime Purely Defensive
The Spokesman for Yemen’s Ansarullah Houthi Movement underlined the defensive nature of attacks by Yemeni Armed Forces, saying those who stand in solidarity with the Saudi-led coalition are more likely to get the alliance further bogged down in the Yemen quagmire.
“Those who sympathize with the coalition of aggression are more likely to further drown the latter in the Yemen quagmire and push them to go down the wrong path," Mohammed Abdul-Salam underscored, Middle East News reported.
"They simply pay them lip service. We tell them: You will never be a peacemaker by provoking aggressors to continue their aggression and siege of Yemen,” Mohammed Abdul-Salam added.
The remarks came as Washington expressed alarm at Yemeni retaliatory actions after attacks on the heart of the Saudi oil industry.
(* B K P)
Jemen: Warum der Schlüssel zum Frieden in Teheran liegt
Trotz des Kurswechsels von US-Präsident Joe Biden ist ein Ende des Jemenkrieges nicht in Sicht. Sieben Fragen, sieben Antworten.
Eine Großoffensive der pro-iranischen Huthis könnte eine riesige Flüchtlingswelle im Jemen auslösen und die humanitäre Katastrophe in dem bitterarmen Land weiter verschärfen.
Vor möglichen Friedens – oder Waffenstillstandsverhandlungen wollen die Huthis ihre militärische Position weiter verbessern. Ihr Ziel ist die Eroberung der Provinz Marib im Osten des Landes. Die gleichnamige, offenbar schon umzingelte Hauptstadt der ölreichen Region gilt als die letzte Bastion der schwachen, aber internationalen anerkannten Regierung des Jemens unter Präsident Abed Rabbo Mansur Hadi.
Welche Folgen hätte die Eroberung von Marib durch die Huthis?
Vermutlich das Ende der Hadi-Regierung. Für Saudi-Arabien und seinen de facto-Herrscher Mohammed bin Salman, kurz MBS, wäre der Fall von Marib eine Katastrophe.
Um den Fall von Marib zu verhindern, hat Riad seine Luftangriffe auf Ziele der Huthis massiv verschärft. Diese reagierten am Sonntag mit Drohnen und - Raketenangriffen auf Ölanlangen im Osten von Saudi-Arabien.
Das gegen Saudi-Arabien verhängte Waffenembargo der USA sowie der politische Druck auf den Kronprinzen war zweifellos ein richtiger Schritt. Gegen die Huthis hat Washington allerdings keine Druckmittel, was sich gegenwärtig in der Provinz Marib zeigt. Die Huthis werden sich vermutlich erst dann bewegen, wenn entsprechende Signale aus Teheran kämen. Dort läge der Schlüssel für einen Frieden im Jemen, glaubt nicht nur die für das „Sana-Center for Strategic Studies“ arbeitende jemenitische Islamwissenschaftlerin Maysaa Shuja al-Din.
Welche Gegenleistungen erwartet Teheran?
Letztendlich die Aufhebung der Sanktionen, die im Atomstreit mit Iran verhängt wurden.
(B K P)
Gewalt statt Diplomatie
Die Kämpfe im Jemen werden immer brutaler. Dabei dringt US-Präsident Biden auf eine politische Lösung des Konflikts. Doch das wird immer schwieriger.
Doch zwei Monate nach Bidens Amtsantritt ist von einem Ende des Krieges, der seit sechs Jahren das Land verheert, nichts zu sehen, im Gegenteil. Die Gefechte im Jemen eskalieren, die Huthis greifen zudem Ölanlagen in Saudi-Arabien an. Ohne rasche Lösung steht Biden vor der ersten schweren außenpolitischen Schlappe seiner Amtszeit.
Das liegt daran, dass beide Kriegsparteien militärische Vorteile wittern.
Gesichtswahrende Lösungen gelten als der Schlüssel für ein Ende der Kämpfe. Angebote an die Huthis wie die Aufhebung der saudischen Seeblockade vor der jemenitischen Westküste könnten etwas bewirken, glaubt Hamdani. Saudi-Arabien signalisiert bereits seit Längerem seine Bereitschaft, den Krieg zu beenden.
https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/heftige-kaempfe-im-jemen-gewalt-statt-diplomatie/26985394.html
(B E P)
Analysis: Attacks Highlight Dangers of Yemen War
Sunday's drone and missile attacks on critical Saudi oil infrastructure claimed by Yemen's Houthi rebels underline the threat the conflict in the region's poorest country poses to the security and stability of the world's biggest oil exporter.
Recent months have seen a spike in regional tensions, with oil facilities, primarily in Saudi Arabia, increasingly targeted.
The risk of such a deliberate escalation is that it could provide the spark for a wider regional conflagration or kill off attempts to de-escalate conflict. And the stars have indeed been aligning for extreme instability in the Mideast in 2021.
Although oil prices rose in response to the latest attacks on Saudi Arabia, the reaction was largely muted. However, the industry should not be complacent.
True, Saudi defenses have improved since 2019. And despite the extensive damage those attacks caused, Aramco managed to restore supply in a matter of weeks.
Yet a major conflict could still lead to a disruption of Gulf oil supplies. And even without a major disruption, heightened insecurity in the region could adversely impact Gulf
https://www.energyintel.com/pages/eig_article.aspx?DocID=1099848
(A P)
Al-Dailami: Saudi-led Aggression Committed Thousands of Crimes against Yemeni Women
[Sanaa gov.] Acting Minister of Human Rights, Ali Al-Dailami, confirmed that the aggression coalition committed thousands of crimes and violations against Yemeni women.
He said in a statement to the Almasirah on International Women's Day: "We do not hear any stances by international organizations concerned with the women rights, children and the displaced, despite the repeated attacks of aggression against them."
and
(A P)
Yemen [Hadi gov.] appeals UN over woman suffering in Houthi-held areas
The Yemeni UN-recognized government on Monday made an appeal to the United Nations over the violations and practices committed by the Houthi group against Yemeni women living in areas under its control.
https://debriefer.net/en/news-23658.html
and
(A P)
On the #InternationalWomensDay, Yemen Embassy in The Netherlands, @YemEmbassyNL, launches a special report exploring the Houthi war against #Women in Northwest #Yemen (tewxt)
https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/1368991153543069698
(B P)
Chairman of Friends of South Yemen proposes solutions for Yemen peace
Abdul Galil Shaif said any peace process needs to include the Houthis, but in a way that sees the legitimate government take control of the country.
The chairman of a London-based organisation promoting an independent state in south Yemen has outlined a series of proposals to end the country’s six-year war.
Abdul Galil Shaif, chairman of Friends of South Yemen (FOSY), broke down three potential solutions to the devastating civil conflict during an international zoom conference organised March 6 by the Yemen-based Frontline Human Rights, which monitors the human rights situation in north and south Yemen.
Shaif’s three proposals were:
- A central government with an economic programme which functions effectively and is provided with sufficient resources to function effectively;
2. A transitional solution with two regions one in the south and one in the north. Both regions would have their own government and parliament. The president could remain to play a functional role in external affairs and defense.
3. Two states: one in the north and one in the south.
https://thearabweekly.com/chairman-friends-south-yemen-proposes-solutions-yemen-peace
(B K P)
A blessing in disguise
U.S. provides Saudis with opportunity for face-saving exit from Yemen quagmire
The Biden administration has ramped up diplomatic pressure on the Saudis to convince them into bringing an end to the Yemen war.
The Saudis have grudgingly accepted to go along with the American initiative on Yemen but this initiative could redound to their advantage.
The new U.S. approach to the Yemen war came after the new U.S. administration came to terms with the fact that Saudi Arabia can never win this war and that there is an urgent need to end the war in a face-saving way.
The Saudis, however, don’t seem to have reached that conclusion yet. They still insist on excluding the Ansarallah movement and returning the obsolete, self-proclaimed government of Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, who resigned in 2015 and ultimately fled Yemen in an effort to invite foreign intervention.
In an attempt to justify its aggression on Yemen, Saudi Arabia claimed that Ansarallah is backed by Iran and that the war on Yemen was primarily focused on eliminating foreign influence in the Arab country.
The Yemeni forces claimed responsibility for the attacks on Aramco facilities in Eastern Saudi Arabia. They said the attack, codenamed 6th Operation of Balanced Deterrence, came in response to Saudi continued aggression and siege against Yemen.
The recent attack was the latest sign that Saudi Arabia has not only failed to defeat the Yemeni forces but it also failed to protect itself from Yemen’s retaliatory strikes.
Instead of coming to their senses and ending the war on Yemen, the Saudis continue to level accusations on Iran. Al-Maliki claimed on Monday that the missile and drones used by the Yemeni forces to target Saudi Arabia’s oil port and facilities were supplied by Iran, a claim that Iran has repeatedly rejected.
Saeed Khatibzadeh, spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, said on Monday that finding a political solution is the only way out of the Yemen crisis.
https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/458953/A-blessing-in-disguise
(* B H K P)
World’s Worst Humanitarian Disaster Triggered by Deadly Weapons from US & UK
Saudi Arabia, which had the dubious distinction of being the world’s largest arms importer during 2015–19, increased its imports by 130 percent, compared with the previous five-year period, and accounting for 12 percent of all global arms imports, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
And despite concerns in the U.S. and U.K. about Saudi Arabia’s military intervention in Yemen, both weapons suppliers continued to export arms to Saudi Arabia—with 73 percent of Saudi Arabia’s arms imports originating in the U.S. and 13 percent from the U.K.
Dr. Stephen Zunes, Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of San Francisco, and founding director of the program in Middle Eastern Studies, told IPS Biden’s decision to cut off direct support for Saudi Arabia’s war on Yemen was long-overdue.
The US Congress, he said, had attempted to cut off such assistance last year by passing a ban by a big bipartisan majority. Trump, however, declared a state of emergency overruling the legislative branch.
“Unfortunately, Biden has pledged to (continue) providing arms in order to support what he refers to as Saudi Arabia’s defense needs against alleged Iranian aggression, despite the fact that Saudi Arabia’s military budget is five times that of Iran and is therefore perfectly capable of defending itself,” he pointed out.
Biden also has pledged aid to protect the kingdom from attacks by Houthi rebels, who have occasionally lobbed rockets into Saudi Arabia, but only in retaliation of the massive Saudi attacks on Yemen.
In addition, “Biden has called for continued support for Saudi counter-terrorism operations, which is concerning given the monarchy’s tendency to depict even nonviolent opponents as terrorists”, said Dr Zunes, who is recognized as one of the country’s leading scholars of U.S. Middle East policy and is a senior policy analyst for Foreign Policy in Focus project of the Institute for Policy Studies.
Along with Biden’s refusal to place sanctions on Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman (known as MBS) “despite acknowledging his key role in the murder of a prominent U.S.-backed journalist as well as his conciliatory phone conversation with King Salman last month, raises serious questions as to whether Biden is really interested in standing up to the Saudi regime,” he argued.
http://www.ipsnews.net/2021/03/worlds-worst-humanitarian-disaster-triggered-deadly-weapons-us-uk/
(* B K P)
What is behind the rise in Saudi-Houthi tit-for-tat attacks?
The Yemeni group and Saudi Arabia have been engaged in tit-for-tat attacks amid renewed US efforts to end the conflict.
The Houthis have defended the cross-border attacks, saying they are in response to six years of a devastating military offensive in Yemen by a Saudi-led coalition.
The Houthis stepped up cross-border missile and drone attacks on Saudi targets in February after US President Joe Biden halted support to Saudi offensive operations in Yemen’s war. Washington said, however, that it would continue to help Riyadh defend itself from regional threats.
What are the Houthis’ targeting?
Houthi cross-border missile and drone attacks have mostly targeted southern Saudi cities as well as the kingdom’s oil industry in some cases.
Why did the Houthis step up their attacks?
Speaking from Doha, Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra said there were two things at play.
“The Houthis are saying that they are responding to the latest escalation in the area with intense Saudi-led coalition strikes targeting Houthi positions in Sanaa.
“At the same time, by the end of this month, we will be commemorating the sixth anniversary of the Saudi-led coalition against the Houthis.
“The attack yesterday, deeper into Saudi Arabia, targeting vital refineries … is a message by the Houthis that they are far from being defeated and that they will continue to gain ground and expand their military influence,” he said.
What next?
The developments mark a new escalation in Yemen’s six-year conflict as the Houthis battle the Saudi-led military coalition.
Al Jazeera’s Ahelbarra said the recent attacks “place huge pressure on Saudi Arabia” and might push the kingdom to “step up its military campaign in the coming days to try to retaliate”.
“But that is unlikely to lead anywhere because the indication on the ground is that Houthis are making significant military gains,” he added.
Meanwhile, he said the Houthi’s launch of “an extraordinary attack to take over the Marib province” was another front likely to witness more clashes.
(* B H K)
On the ground in Yemen: ‘The war won’t be ending any time soon’
Our Turkey and Middle East correspondent reflects on a violent, tangled conflict that touches even the youngest lives
One of the reasons Yemen’s conflict has gone under the radar for so long, I think, is because the borders and airspace are sealed.
The Saudi-led coalition blockade is also the biggest obstacle to working in Yemen; it’s very difficult to get in. The coalition refuses journalist visas far more often than it grants them.
Most conflicts that have been going on for more than a few years get extremely complicated, and Yemen’s is no exception.
The fighting and the devastating human toll of the war also overshadow the fact that the country remains a breathtakingly beautiful place.
Some parts of Yemen couldn’t be more different from the regional stereotype of endless sand.
Of course it would be better for Yemen to be celebrated for its wonders rather than pitied for its bloodshed. Unfortunately, however, even with the new diplomatic push from Joe Biden’s administration, the war won’t be ending any time soon.
All of these things make covering Yemen at times a draining and emotional experience. But feeling that my work can help make a difference is a powerful motivation.
(B P)
YEMEN IS NOT STARVING. IT IS BEING STARVED.
Biden’s promise offers hope to those committed to peace, but his administration must do much more than help pick up the pieces. Yemen needs humanitarian aid, an end to the blockade, and good faith diplomacy (subscribers only)
https://sojo.net/magazine/march-2021/yemen-not-starving-it-being-starved
(A P)
Saudi strategy changed during recent battles: Yemeni ex-minister
The Saudi strategy has clearly changed towards Yemen's war, transport ex-minister in the Yemeni official government said Saturday.
Leading an Arab military coalition in Yemen since 2015, Saudi Arabia has now tangible presence in the recent battles in Marib that has been under fierce attacks for weeks by the Iranian-backed Houthis, Saleh al-Jabwani added.
The US presidential elections result pushed the Kingdom to change its vision about the 6-war-old war in Yemen, he said, as Trump's "loss seems to have caused a quake in palaces of regional rulers who betted on his win and continuation of blank check policy he granted to coalition countries in Yemen's war in return for arms deals and push for normalization with Israel."
https://debriefer.net/en/news-23614.html
(* B H K P)
Konflikt im Jemen – Diplomatie kann "fast nichts mehr ausrichten"
US-Präsident Biden möchte den Konflikt im Jemen diplomatisch lösen. Die Vereinten Nationen initiieren eine Geberkonferenz, um Milliarden zur Linderung der weltweit schwersten humanitären Krise zu sammeln. Für die Jemen-Expertin Mareike Transfeld sind das nur Pflaster, die die eigentlichen Probleme des Landes kaschieren, aber nicht lösen.
ZDFheute: Die Huthis haben als Reaktion auf Bidens Worte ihre Offensive auf Marib vorangetrieben.
Transfeld: Durch den US-Politikwechsel sehen sie sich gestärkt. In Marib ist die letzte Hochburg der international anerkannten Regierung.
Würde sie in deren Hände fallen, bestünde die Gefahr, dass die international anerkannte Regierung so sehr geschwächt wird, dass sie diesen Konflikt verliert und nicht mehr existiert. Der Jemen würde in die Hände einer Gruppe fallen, die von Freiheiten und Demokratie überhaupt nichts hält, Frauenrechte beschneidet und auch kein Interesse an Menschenrechten hat. Das ist weder im Interesse der internationalen Gemeinschaft noch im Interesse vieler Jemeniten.
Was die humanitäre Krise angeht: War es zu Beginn so, dass die Lebensmittel nicht ins Land kamen, ist es jetzt so, dass sie da sind, aber die Menschen sie sich nicht kaufen können. Es ist hauptsächlich eine Wirtschaftskrise. Ein nachhaltiger Ansatz wäre besser als ein humanitärer.
ZDFheute: Arbeitsplätze schaffen, statt Essenverteilen?
Transfeld: Ja. Das Essenverteilen schafft eine Abhängigkeit von den UN-Organisationen und daran kann niemand Interesse haben. Würde die UN hingegen darauf hinarbeiten, bestimmte Wirtschaftssektoren wiederaufzubauen, könnten sich die Menschen langfristig wieder Lebensmittel leisten.
Gleichzeitig wären die jungen Leute auch nicht mehr gezwungen, für die bewaffneten Gruppen zu kämpfen, um ein Einkommen zu generieren. Das ist eine treibende Kraft hinter dem Konflikt. Es dreht sich leider nur ums Humanitäre und es wird nie die innenpolitische Lage gesehen.
Eigentlich müsste es andersherum sein, denn die Politik kann die humanitäre Krise lösen. Die humanitäre Hilfe ist nur ein Pflaster für das Symptom, ändert aber nichts am eigentlichen Problem.
https://www.zdf.de/nachrichten/politik/jemen-konflikt-biden-un-100.html
(* B P)
[from 2017] Actuality of Freedom of Media before and after the Arab Spring "Yemen as a Model"
This paper examines the complex and multi-dimensional linkages among the media, democracy, and sustainable development. The study investigates the actuality of freedom of media before and after the Arab Spring, Yemen as a model. It sheds light on the status of media in different periods, before the unity of Yemen, during Saleh regime, after the youth revolution and finally during the militias authority. It shows the tragic situation of media under the authority of Saleh-Houthis militias. The paper looks at the variety of ways in which the various media have been used to restrict the common freedom of people. It also sheds light on the violations which were committed against journalists and social media activists in Yemen during the two years of Houthist militias’ coup. It mainly depends on reports are recorded by civil society organizations. The paper ends with a list of findings that show the real situation of media in Yemen throughout the different periods of the history of Yemen.
cp2a Saudische Blockade / Saudi blockade
(A H P)
Film: Cancer patients in war-torn Yemen in dire need of help
Thousands of cancer patients in Yemen are in dire need of help. Yemen's national center for blood transfusion and research says the blood stocks and components of concentrated red cells, fresh frozen plasma, and platelets cannot be reserved anymore due to the lack of fuel.
https://media.parstoday.com/video/4bxz40cea570a81u241.mp4
(A H P)
Kidney Failure Patients Condemn US-Saudi Siege, Detaining Fuel Tankers
Patients with kidney failure and the medical staff in the dialysis centers in Sana'a organized a mass protest in front of the United Nations office, Sunday, condemning the continued US piracy and detaining the fuel tankers. The Ministry of Health confirmed that the siege of the aggression threatens the dialysis centers to close.
cp3 Humanitäre Lage / Humanitarian situation
Siehe / Look at cp1
(* B H)
Im Jemen droht eine Hungersnot – doch was bedeutet das?
Seit Ende letzten Jahres warnen Experten: Der Jemen steht am Rande einer Hungersnot. Doch was heißt das? Wir schauen auf Begrifflichkeiten und aktuelle Zahlen. Aber auch auf die Schicksale dreier Mädchen, die gegen den Hunger kämpfen.
Die Menschen hungern. Mehr als 24 Millionen Menschen im Land sind auf humanitäre Hilfe angewiesen. Das sind 80 Prozent der Bevölkerung. Die Situation zwingt Eltern jeden Tag, furchtbare Entscheidungen zu treffen: Fliehen oder bleiben wir? Kaufen wir für unsere Kinder heute etwas zu essen oder Trinkwasser? Können wir uns eine medizinische Behandlung für unser krankes Kind leisten?
Aktuellen Zahlen zufolge sind im Jemen 400.000 Kinder lebensbedrohlich mangelernährt. Das bedeutet, dass sie sofort Hilfe brauchen – denn sie kämpfen jeden Tag um ihr Leben. Unsere Experten schätzen, dass 2,3 Millionen Kinder unter fünf Jahren im Verlauf des Jahres 2021 an akuter Mangelernährung leiden werden. Für jedes dieser Kinder gilt: Werden sie nicht behandelt, geraten auch sie schnell in Lebensgefahr.
gehen unsere Experten davon aus, dass in einigen Regionen im Jemen die Lebensumstände der Menschen bereits denen einer Hungersnot gleichen. Das ist das Ergebnis der aktuellen IPC von Dezember 2020.
Die Zahl der Menschen, die unter katastrophalem akuten Hunger leiden, könnte sich zwischen Januar und Juni in diesem Jahr fast verdreifachen. Gleichzeitig besteht die Gefahr, dass die Zahl der Menschen in Phase 4 – der Krisenphase am Rande zur Hungersnot – in der ersten Hälfte des Jahres 2021 von 3,6 Millionen auf 5 Millionen Menschen ansteigen könnte.
Nour
Das neun Monate alte Mädchen Nour litt an Mangelernährung. Hier erzählt Mutter Souad die Geschichte ihrer Tochter:
"Als Nour geboren wurde, war sie schwach und dünn. Mit jedem Tag wurde sie kränker", erzählt Souad. "Wir konnten ihr nicht helfen, denn an vielen Tagen leiden wir selbst Hunger. Dann essen wir zu Mittag entweder Brot oder Joghurt. Abends bringt mein Mann manchmal etwas zu essen mit. Aber drei Mahlzeiten pro Tag gibt es bei uns fast nie."
"Mein Mann ist arbeitslos, aber jeden Morgen geht er los und sucht Arbeit. Unterwegs sammelt er leere Plastikflaschen von der Straße. Die verkauft er, um uns etwas zu essen zu kaufen", sagt Souad. "Ich stille Nour, aber sie wird fast nie satt, denn ich habe nicht genug Milch. Das Stillen strengt mich sehr an, ich fühle mich erschöpft. Das wirkt sich auch negativ auf die Gesundheit meines Babys aus."
Als Nour ins Gesundheitszentrum kam, wog sie knapp fünf Kilo. Viel zu wenig für ein neun Monate altes Baby. Die Helfer gaben ihr Spezialnahrung und Mikronährstoffe, die von UNICEF geliefert wurden.
https://www.unicef.de/informieren/aktuelles/blog/jemen-hungersnot-droht/237394
(* B H)
Film: WFP-Berlin Chefsprecherin Bettina Luescher über den Jemen
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=294846147821518
(B H)
GIEWS Country Brief: Yemen 09-March-2021
Conflict continues to threaten agricultural livelihoods
Unabating conflict continues to compromise all economic activities, including agriculture. Although prices of some agricultural inputs seasonally declined in January 2021, inputs remain expensive and often in short supply. High fuel prices are constraining agricultural activities, particularly irrigation. To cope with the elevated production costs, reports indicate that farmers shifted from irrigated to rainfed crops, which yield lower output and rely more on family labour instead of employing hired workers.
Regarding the desert locust outbreak, at the end of February, low numbers of solitarious adults were reported only along the Red Sea coastal plains as conditions have been drying out in the rest of the country. No breeding in expected until the rains resume from March.
Well below-average 2020 cereal harvest estimated, stable cereal import requirements
Over 16 million food insecure people in January-June 2021 period
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/giews-country-brief-yemen-09-march-2021
(B H)
Yemen Humanitarian Update - Issue 2 / February 2021
Yemen remains world’s worst humanitarian crisis P 03
Blockade and conflict take a heavy toll on Yemen’s economy P 05
Escalating hostilities in Ma’rib force thousands of displaced people to flee again
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-humanitarian-update-issue-2-february-2021
(B H)
UNVIM Situation Analysis – February 2021
Food and Fuel Discharged in February 2021
A 13% (267,973 t) decrease in food discharged compared to the 2020 average (308,746 t)
An 11% (301,835 t) decrease from the monthly average since May 2016.
80% (214,944 t) of food discharged in Hodeidah and 53,024 t or 20% discharged in Saleef.
No fuel discharged in Hodeidah during February 2021.
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/unvim-situation-analysis-february-2021
UNVIM Operational Snapshot – February 2021
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/unvim-operational-snapshot-february-2021
(* B H P)
Yemen’s Death Sentence
“Disappointing” was how UN Secretary-General António Guterres described last week’s donor conference for Yemen. The fifth UN Virtual High-Level Pledging Event for the Humanitarian Situation in Yemen resulted in pledges of only $1.7 billion. That’s just half of the $3.85 billion called for by the secretary-general. Nor is there any guarantee that donors will make good on their commitments.
Bombing and blockade have combined to push Yemen to the brink of famine. CNN senior international correspondent Nima Elbagir told Democracy Now!’s Amy Goodman that food in Yemen has become unaffordable.
It is a cruel irony that the US, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, which are destroying Yemen, are the same countries that Yemen most relies on for humanitarian aid. Over the past two years, the Saudis, UAE, and US have all slashed aid to Yemen.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said afterwards that “cutting aid is a death sentence.”
The reason the US, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and other donors give for slashing aid is Houthi obstruction of aid deliveries. However, it’s hard not to think that Iran’s support for the Houthis is also a factor.
President Joe Biden lifted the FTO designation, but has not restored the Trump cuts to humanitarian aid for Yemen’s north
https://www.counterpunch.org/2021/03/09/yemens-death-sentence/
(* B H)
Mapping Available Assistance to Children with Disabilities in Yemen
This report serves as key evidence to guide a fit-for-purpose response to the needs of children with disabilities.
During a conflict, especially protracted ones such as in Yemen, the number of children with disabilities increases due to conflict related injuries and poor nutrition among others. Infrastructure and basic services on which they depend are destroyed or compromised and their full participation in society is weakened.
UNICEF upholds the rights of children with disabilities at the core of its mandate. This reflects the organizational commitments linked to the Convention of the Rights of the Child and the UN Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. In Yemen, UNICEF is committed to include and mainstream children with disabilities into all its programming, for inclusive humanitarian and development action.
One of the challenges faced when it comes to programming for children with disabilities in Yemen, is the lack of accurate and up-to-date data. As part of its strategic focus on evidence generation, UNICEF has conducted a mapping exercise to identify what type of support/assistance is available for children with disabilities and the gaps that exist.
Persons with disabilities, mainly children are among the most vulnerable and marginalized in crisis-affected countries.1 During the armed conflict, children with disabilities (CWDs) are caught in a vicious cycle of violence, social polarization, deteriorating services, and deepening poverty.2 Children with disabilities also experience stigma, discrimination, and exclusion from key life domains such as health, education, and participation in their communities.3 in Yemen a large number of CWDs remain unidentified and are not receiving basic social services such as educational, medical, and material support. The main objective of the assessment was to mapping what type of support/assistance already available for CWDs, their needs, and what gaps exist, as well as to identify the potential emergency support that UNICEF can immediately provide to CWDs.
https://www.unicef.org/yemen/documents/mapping-available-assistance-children-disabilities-yemen
Full report: https://www.unicef.org/yemen/media/5256/file/UNICEF_CWDs%20Assessment%20Report.pdf
(* B H)
Film: How to stop the pending famine in Yemen? | Inside Story
Yemen is heading towards large-scale starvation and could face the world's worst famine in decades. The UN's warning comes as malnutrition rates hit record highs after years of conflict. The world body estimates more than 16 million Yemenis could go hungry this year. Children are particularly affected with 400,000 at risk of severe malnutrition. The UN has appealed for $3.8 billion to avert a catastrophe. But it says it only got half of what's needed last year and millions of people have not received food. So, who will step in to help the people of Yemen?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PjjUnlxzo0 = https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7zs688
Snippet, E. Kendall: When is a #famine not a famine? When it's too hard to access the data to prove it, https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/1369052234932248584
(B H)
UNICEF Yemen Humanitarian Situation Report - reporting period 1 - 31 January
Nearly 2.3 million children under the age of five in Yemen are projected to suffer from acute malnutrition in 2021, according to the recently released analysis findings of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Acute Malnutrition report. Of these, 400,000 are expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition and could die if they do not receive urgent treatment.
As of 31 January 2021, UNICEF HAC shows a funding gap of $469 million, or 81 per cent of the total appeal. Funding is urgently needed to continue UNICEF’s lifesaving programmatic work.
(B H)
USAID: Yemen - Complex Emergency Fact Sheet #2, Fiscal Year (FY) 2021
The USG announced nearly $191 million in additional humanitarian assistance at a High-Level Pledging Event for the Humanitarian Crisis in Yemen on March 1.
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-complex-emergency-fact-sheet-2-fiscal-year-fy-2021
Yemen ‑ USG Response to the Complex Emergency (Last Updated 03/08/21)
https://reliefweb.int/map/yemen/yemen-usg-response-complex-emergency-last-updated-030821
(B H)
Yemen: Health Cluster Bulletin, January 2021
- A total of 1,206 Health Facilities (16 Governorate Hospitals, 131 District Hospitals, 62 General Hospitals, 19 Specialized Hospitals, 382 Health Centers and 596 Health Units) are being supported by Health Cluster Partners.
- As of the 31st of January 2021, 2125 positive COVID19 cases and 616 deaths have been confirmed by MOH Aden (COVID-19 reports are only from the southern governorates).
- The cumulative total number of suspected Cholera cases from the 1st of January to the 31st of January 2021 is (5135) with (2) associated deaths (CFR 0.04%). Children under five represent (26.64%) whilst the elderly above 60 years of age accounted for (6%) of total suspected cases. The outbreak has so far affected in 2021: (13) of 23 governorates and (152) of 333 districts in Yemen.
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/yemen-health-cluster-bulletin-january-2021
(* B H)
NGO strives to help Yemenis outside the reach of foreign aid
"Children that are hungry should be helped everywhere," Steve Gumaer, founder and president of Partners Relief & Development, tells The Arab Weekly in wide-ranging interview.
Among its areas of focus is Yemen, which is wracked by years of war, famine and disease that have left some 80% of the population in poverty.
In July 2020, Partners worked to provide 500 families in the Yemeni capital of Sana’a with food parcels in collaboration with its regional partner, Mona Relief. Each parcel contained enough non-perishable food goods to feed a family of 5-6 members for at least a month.
Gumaer spoke with The Arab Weekly about Partners’ humanitarian work in Yemen, including the challenges it encounters operating in the war-torn state.
Steve Gumaer (SG): The work we accomplished in July. Partners distributed 500 family food parcels in July 2020 in to two locations in Sana’a governorate to 2,500 – 3,000 people with a month of food supply. Partners Relief & Development worked in partnership with Mona Relief for the distribution.
Last year, we did similar distributions, helping 4,000 families.
We work where politics or violence prevents children from having the basic things they need, and the first thing they need is food. Yemen came onto our horizon in 2016. It did so because of the man-made famine that was happening there and the massive numbers of children who were food insecure and malnourished, and some number of those already in a state of starvation and wasting. So because of that, we started enquiring around with our colleagues to find access to get involved. We’d already developed programmes in Iraq and Syria, restoring schools and feeding programmes and healthcare for children who suffered under the violence of ISIS or other proxies. So we thought, let’s extend that into Yemen. We found a guy who runs an organisation called Mona Relief, Fatik Abudullah Al-Rodaini and we are open with our partnership. It is because of Fatik that we have the access that we do.
With what is happening now, and food insecurity multiplying because of infrastructure collapse, and multiple complications because of COVID-19 and cholera and all of the things these people are having to deal with, in addition to the war that surrounds them. We’ve upped our efforts to find means to get more support in and do larger scale distributions.We intend to massively increase our programme work. The numbers are pretty overwhelming, 17 million people are affected by the famine and the number of children that are out of school shot up from 2 million in March to 7.8 million as of May, as shown in the UNICEF’s country reports. The escalation of human misery is outrageous, affecting millions of people.
85% of our income comes from wealthy individuals and family foundations in the United States, with a small revenue stream in the UK…. Part of that is because of how donations work.
The hardest thing by far is deciding where to apply our resources and where not to. Yemen has been a case of limited access, and because of that we haven’t done as much as we would like to do for the children of Yemen. By far the hardest thing is leaving things undone that really need to be done, Children that are hungry should be helped everywhere, but with limited resources, we must be strategic in where we throw our weight. For me that’s frustrating and by far the hardest part of our process.
https://thearabweekly.com/ngo-strives-help-yemenis-outside-reach-foreign-aid
cp4 Flüchtlinge / Refugees
Siehe / Look at cp1
(* A H)
Bei Brand in Migrantenlager: „Dutzende Tote“ und viele Verletzte im Jemen
Bei einem Brand in einem Migrantenlager in der Hauptstadt des Bürgerkriegslands Jemen sind mindestens acht Menschen ums Leben gekommen. Weitere 170 Menschen wurden verletzt, mehr als 90 von ihnen schwer.
"Die Gesamtzahl an Todesopfern ist Berichten zufolge viel höher", teilte die Internationale Organisation für Migration (IOM) via Twitter mit.
Ein Mitarbeiter der Einwanderungs- und Passbehörde in Sanaa sprach am Montag von "Dutzenden Toten", nannte aber keine weiteren Details.
Die Ursache des Brands am Sonntag in der Einrichtung, in der Migranten festgehalten wurden, blieb zunächst unklar.
Im Internet kursierte ein Video, das Szenen nach dem Brand zeigen soll. In einem ausgebrannten Raum liegen mehrere verkohlte Leichen teils übereinander am Boden.
"Dies ist nur eine der vielen Gefahren, denen Migranten in den vergangenen sechs Jahren des Jemenkonflikts ausgesetzt gewesen sind", erklärte Carmela Godeau, IOM-Direktorin für den Nahen Osten und Nordafrika. Die Betroffenen würden mit Lebensmitteln versorgt.
https://www.focus.de/politik/ausland/ursache-unklar-bei-brand-in-migrantenlager-dutzende-tote-und-viele-verletzte-im-jemen_id_13059155.html = https://www.t-online.de/nachrichten/ausland/krisen/id_89612118/jemen-viele-tote-und-verletzte-bei-brand-in-gefluechtetenlager.html
https://snanews.de/20210308/tote-und-verletzte-bei-brand-in-migrantencamp-in-jemen-1190393.html
und
(* A H)
IOM fordert nach „schrecklichem“ Brand dringend humanitären Zugang in den Jemen
Die UN-Migrationsagentur (IOM) forderte am Montag dringend den humanitären Zugang zu einem überfüllten Lager für Migranten in Jemens Hauptstadt Sanaa, wo ein tödliches Feuer Berichten zufolge am Wochenende zu mehreren Todesfällen führte.
Berichten zufolge wurden Dutzende verletzt, und IOM twitterte, dass mehr als 170 Menschen wegen Verletzungen behandelt wurden, „wobei sich viele in einem kritischen Zustand befinden“. Die endgültige Zahl der Todesopfer oder das volle Ausmaß der Verletzungen muss noch ermittelt werden.
Neben dem Gesundheitsministerium wurden Teams vom IOM-Gesundheitspersonal und Krankenwagen sowie 23.000 medizinische Artikel sofort in die Einrichtung und in Krankenhäuser geschickt, um lebensrettende Hilfe zu leisten.
https://unric.org/de/090321-jemen/
(* A H)
UN says fire in Yemeni migrant detention center kills 8
A fire broke out Sunday in a detention center for migrants in Yemen’s capital, killing at least eight people and injuring more than 170 others, the U.N. migration agency said.
The International Organization for Migration said the cause of the fire at the detention center, south of the city of Sanaa, was not immediately clear. Over 90 wounded migrants were in serious condition, it said. The death toll could be much higher, it said.
The detention center is run by the Houthi rebels, who have controlled the capital since the outbreak of Yemen’s conflict more than six years ago. The rebels said civil defense teams managed to extinguish the fire and that investigations were ongoing to determine its cause.
A U.N. official said the fire broke out in a hangar close to the main building of the detention center, which was housing more than 700 migrants.
Most of the migrants were arrested in the northern province of Saada, while trying to cross into Saudi Arabia, said the official who spoke on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to brief the media.
“But this is just one of the many dangers that migrants have faced during the past six years of the crisis in Yemen,” said Carmela Godeau, IOM’s regional director for MENA region, in a tweet.
https://apnews.com/article/fires-yemen-sanaa-united-nations-c2c11adefc4aff24ccbc90bf2b829e27
and also https://www.dw.com/en/yemen-several-killed-in-migrant-detention-center-fire/a-56801037
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/yemen-migrant-camp-fire-un-b1814245.html
Godeau tweets: https://twitter.com/CarmelaGodeau/status/1368633894287867905
and
(* A H)
Yemen: Urgent Humanitarian Access Needed to Migrant Survivors of Deadly Holding Facility Fire
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) is calling for urgent humanitarian access to migrants injured in Sunday’s deadly fire at an immigration holding facility in Sana’a, Yemen, the release of all migrants from detention in the country and a renewed commitment to providing safe, predictable movement options for migrants.
The total number of migrants who died in the fire at the Immigration, Passports and Naturalization Authority (IPNA) Immigration Holding Facility remains unconfirmed, as official records have yet to be released. Over 170 people have been treated for injuries, with many remaining in critical condition.
IOM personnel were present at the site when the fire broke out in a hangar next to the main building. Nearly 900 migrants, predominantly Ethiopian, were in the overcrowded holding facility at the time of the fire. More than 350 were in the hangar area.
Teams of IOM health workers and ambulances, and over 23,000 medical items including intravenous fluid, trauma kits and other essentials, were immediately dispatched to the facility and to major hospitals to provide urgent life-saving assistance alongside the Ministry of Public Health and Population.
“While the cause of the fire is still unconfirmed, its impact is clearly horrific,” said Carmela Godeau, IOM’s Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa.
“Our thoughts are with the families of those affected and the community as a whole. Now, the migrant community in Sana’a needs to be given the space to respectfully mourn and bury their dead in a dignified manner. IOM and partners are standing ready to provide additional medical assistance and to support family tracing efforts for the dead and injured.”
“As many migrants are in a critical condition, meeting their health needs must be an urgent priority. We are facing challenges accessing the injured due to an increased security presence in the hospitals. Humanitarians and health workers must be given access to support the treatment of those affected by the fire and others who have been receiving long-term care from IOM and partners,” added Godeau.
and
(A P)
[Hadi gov.] Info. Minister condemns burning migrants to death in Houthi-held Sana’a
and also https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-45587
and
(A P)
Yemen urges probe into fatal Sanaa migrant detention fire
Yemen’s [Hadi] government and human rights activists have called for the formation of an international inquiry to examine the death of dozens of African migrants inside a detention camp in Houthi-controlled Sanaa on Sunday.
The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of recruiting detained migrants to fight in the civil war. The migrants were said to have burned to death in a fire after protesting against mistreatment and poor conditions inside a detention facility.
“We call for a transparent and independent international investigation to reveal details of the crime and hold the perpetrators to account, pressure Houthis to stop recruiting and exploiting refugees in combat, release all detainees in respect of Yemen's obligations and ensure freedom of movement or voluntary return.”
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1822776/middle-east
(B H)
IOM Yemen | Rapid Displacement Tracking (RDT) - Reporting Period: 28 February - 06 March 2021
From 01 January 2021 to 6 March 2021, IOM Yemen DTM estimates that 3,046 households (HH) (18,276 Individuals) have experienced displacement at least once.
Since the beginning of 2021, DTM also identified other 65 previously displaced households who left the displaced location and moved to either their place of origin or some other displaced location.
Between 01 February 2021 and 06 March 2021, IOM Yemen DTM tracked 182 households (1,092 individuals) displaced at least once. The highest number of displacements were seen in:
(B H)
Yemen Cash and Voucher Assistance Snapshot (CVA) (January - September 2020)
This dashboard provides an overall picture of the Cash and Voucher Assistance ( CVA) in Yemen. It also gives a breakdown of sector specific and Multipurpose Cash Assistance programmes implemented by partners in response to humanitarian needs in Yemen. In mid-2019, the Cash and Market Working Group, with the Information Management Working Group's support, reached out to cluster coordinators and respective IMs to identify and explore options for improving the CVA information management. Collective efforts have been made to enhance CVA information collection, analysis, and visualization tools to strengthen and inform humanitarian response planning, coordination, and harmonization of Yemen's CVA programmes.
cp5 Nordjemen und Huthis / Northern Yemen and Houthis
Siehe / Look at cp1, cp4
(A K P)
Yemeni Armed Forces to organise exhibition in honour of martyrs
The Spokesman of the Yemeni Armed Forces, Brigadier General Yahya Sare’e, announced on Tuesday that the Armed Forces will commence, within the next two days, an exhibition called the “Martyr Commander Exhibition.”
Brigadier General Yahya Sare’e confirmed that the exhibition will include all military industries, including strategic deterrence weapons.
(* B P)
Women Survivors of Houthi Prisons Speak Out Against Their Abusers
Geneva-based human rights organization SAM Monitors have accused the Houthi militias of “perpetrating systematic violations against women, including arbitrary detention and torture against approximately 200 women detained in Houthi detention facilities.”
Female human rights activists, journalists, teachers, charity workers, and artists have been especially targeted, including prominent Yemeni poet Bardis al-Sayighi, who was arrested for writing poems about Houthi repression. Most are forced into signing false confessions regarding espionage, aiding the enemy, drug trafficking, and prostitution.
Three of these survivors of Houthi prisons and detention facilities have now come forward to tell Inside Arabia their harrowing stories — through Yemen’s “RASD Coalition” for Monitoring Human Rights Violations (YCMHRV). These are the details of their abduction and abuse at the hands of their Houthi captors in the women’s own words.
Ghada Mohammed Abdulrahman al-Asi
I was taken from my home in Saana at 7pm on October 21, 2018. I was immediately subjected to physical and psychological torture. The female supervisors were cruel and showed no mercy, just like monsters. There were a lot of detainees who were kidnapped from the markets, parks, and public places. They tortured us with electricity, beating, and slavery. Some were tortured to death.
They put me on trial, and I was sentenced to two years in jail. Several men took turns torturing us and their names are Abu Hussam, Hassan Batran, and Sultan Zaben [who’s on the US government’s sanctions list]. The names of the female guards are Ftin, Taqia, and Fardous, along with others.
They tortured us with electricity, beat us with wires, and prevented us from going to the bathroom. We were also denied clothes and blankets in the dead of winter. We were held in solitary confinements too. I was beaten in various parts of my body by a huge number of men in the investigation room.
There were no basic necessities of life in prison. Even the food was so bad. We lived on one meal a day for months. We were allowed to go to the bathroom only once a day. Sometimes, we were not allowed to use the bathroom in addition to being denied medical treatment and medical review.
https://insidearabia.com/women-survivors-of-houthi-prisons-speak-out-against-their-abusers/
(A P)
Houthi extremists kill man in front of his family in north Yemen
Local sources said the Houthi militants stormed the house of Abdulaziz Mohammed Aldali and opened fire on him leaving him to to bleed to death in front of his shocked wife and kids.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-45588
(B P)
Security Services Arrest 241 of US-Saudi Aggression Individuals on February
The spokesman of the Interior Ministry, Brigadier General Abdulkhaleq Al-Ajri, explained that the General Directorate of Criminal Investigation has achieved tangible success in the framework of controlling and limiting crime.
(A P)
Hassan Erlo, the representative of the Iranian regime to the Houthi terrorist group, meets with representatives of international humanitarian organizations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Sana'a (photo)
https://twitter.com/MarwanAliNoman/status/1368650226043662337
and
(A P)
An official source at the [Hadi gov.] Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriate Affairs said, "The ministry sent a strongly-worded protest note to the International Committee of the Red Cross about the meeting of the committee's chief of mission to Yemen, Katrina Ritz, with Hassan Ierloa, commander of the Revolutionary Guards in the areas under Houthi control and who is on the blacklist of the Republic of Yemen.
https://www.sabanew.net/story/ar/73234
and more https://www.arabnews.com/node/1822096/middle-east
and
(A P)
Iran envoy's humanitarian efforts in Yemen angers Saudi ally
Iranian Ambassador's humanitarian efforts in Yemen has angered the Saudi-backed deposed president of Yemen Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi.
Deposed president of Yemen Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi decried a meeting of Representative of International Committee of the Red Cross Katrina Raines with Iran's Ambassador in Sana’a Hassan Irlou.
In the meeting held on Sunday, Irlou urged Raines to push the international community to lift the Saudi-imposed blockade on Yemen with adverse impacts on all aspects of life of Yemeni people.
He asked the Red Cross to push for removing the blockade to mitigate the consequent greatest humanitarian crisis in the world.
Rainse stressed that she would do her best to continue efforts to alleviate sufferings of the Yemeni people exposed to humanitarian crisis.
https://en.irna.ir/news/84256766/Iran-envoy-s-humanitarian-efforts-in-Yemen-angers-Saudi-ally
and also https://www.farsnews.ir/en/news/13991218000494/Iran-Urges-In%E2%80%99l-Red-Crss-Help-Lif-Yemen-Siege
(A P)
Yemen appreciates Iran’s support amid crisis
Yemen's Foreign Minister Hisham Sharaf Abdullah has expressed gratitude to the Iranian Government for standing by the impoverished nation, which has long been suffering from a Western-sponsored war.
https://en.irna.ir/news/84256083/Yemen-appreciates-Iran-s-support-amid-crisis
and
(A P)
Peace in Yemen will not be achieved with bargaining, Houthi minister says
Peace in Yemen will not be achieved with bargaining or prevarication of promises but with meeting the demand of the people to preserve the national sovereignty and the independence of the national decision, the Houthi government said on Sunday.
The statement was made by Foreign Minister Hisham Sharaf at a meeting with the Iranian envoy to the Houthi group Hassan Irlo in Sanaa, according to the Sanaa-based Saba news agency
https://debriefer.net/en/news-23631.html
and also https://www.saba.ye/en/news3131561.htm
Fortsetzung / Sequel: cp6 – cp19
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-725b-yemen-war-mosaic-725b
Vorige / Previous:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-724-yemen-war-mosaic-724
Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-724 / Yemen War Mosaic 1-724:
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/
Liste aller Luftangriffe / and list of all air raids:
http://yemendataproject.org/data/
Untersuchung ausgewählter Luftangriffe durch Bellingcat / Bellingcat investigations of selected air raids:
Untersuchungen von Angriffen, hunderte von Filmen / Investigations of attacks, hundreds of films:
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