Dies ist die Fortsetzung von Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 816, Teil 1 / This is the sequel of Yemen War Mosaic 816, part 1:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-816-yemen-war-mosaic-816
Schwerpunkte / Key aspects
Kursiv: Siehe Teil 1 / In Italics: Look in part 1
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
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
cp12b Sudan
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade
cp13b Söldner / Mercenaries
cp13c Kulturerbe / Cultural heritage
cp13d Wirtschaft / Economy
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
cp15 Propaganda
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
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
cp7 UNO und Friedensgespräche / UN and peace talks
Siehe / Look at cp1
(A P)
Talks on roads unveiled Houthi deception: [Aden gov.] Yemeni defense minister
Negotiations on reopening the roads have unveiled Houthi deception, the Yemeni defense minister said Monday, accusing the Iranian-backed group of using the humanitarian file to blackmail and mislead the public opinion.
Houthi rejection of UN proposals on reopening the roads exposed the group's reality for the world, Gen. Mohamed al-Maqdashi added
https://debriefer.net/en/news-30242.html
(* B H P)
With Yemen truce set to expire in 2 weeks, int’l community scrambles for extension
The international community is pressuring the parties in Yemen for a six-month extension of the UN-sponsored truce that began in April and is due to expire on August 2.
The Quint group of countries − the US, UK, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Oman – held a virtual meeting on Monday. They expressed support for the extension of the truce and called on the Houthis to be flexible in the negotiations.
Aymeric Faure, World Food Program partnerships officer who has been in Yemen since September, told The Media Line the situation has somewhat improved since the truce began in April this year.
One of the major improvements is in the availability of fuel, the Frenchman explained. “Beforethe truce, people were queuing for hours and days to get fuel,” he said. Additionally, he noted that the country is experiencing a significant decrease in violencebecause of the cease-fire.
Faure also cited the reopening of the Sanaa airport for international flights. Two days ago, he recalled, “I was playing volleyball outside with a group of Yemeni friends when the noise of a plane flying was heard. They all stopped playing and were trying to see the plane in the sky with candid enthusiasm. Their excitement reveals how important this is after years of being locked in.”
Inbal Nissim-Louvton, an expert on Yemen, a lecturer at the Open University of Israel and aresearch associate at the Forum for Regional Thinking, discussed a few more benefits of thetruce.
While political processes are ongoing under the leadership of the UN envoy and with the participation of many international actors, he continued, “Hungry children and families cannot wait without food, treatment for malnutrition, health services, water, etc.” He pointed out that the World Food Program is delivering food assistance to more than 10 million people and providing nutrition treatment to 1.3 million people in Yemen. However, that is far below the number of people in need, Faure said.
Nissim-Louvton said that for the country to be rehabilitated, its political structure needs to be decided by the parties. The war is largely about how the new Yemen will look, she said. It’s about “whether it will be organized as in the ’60s, when it was divided into North and South; or if it is going to be a federal state with six districts that are subject to the center in Sanaa; or if a new model will be used,” she said.
That needs to be decided before we can talk about the rehabilitation of the country and all its institutions, infrastructures, health and education centers, and the need to treat an entire generation of children that was born into the war, Nissim-Louvton said.
https://themedialine.org/by-region/with-yemen-truce-set-to-expire-in-2-weeks-intl-community-scrambles-for-extension/ = https://www.jpost.com/international/article-712675
(A P)
Yemen truce holds, but blocked roads a 'major' worry for UN
A truce has brought respite to Yemen after seven years of devastating war, but the blockage of roads remains a "major" humanitarian concern, a UN official has warned.
"The situation has improved overall," said Diego Zorrilla, UN deputy humanitarian coordinator for Yemen, citing a drop in casualties, more regular fuel supplies and a resumption of flights.
But "roads are still blocked, so the improvement is not up to people's expectations", he told AFP, referring to one of the main parts of the truce yet to be implemented.
"The situation is particularly serious in Taez," a city surrounded by mountains, which is home to between 1.5 million and two million people, said Zorrilla.
"Instead of travelling 20 minutes for dialysis, patients sometimes have to go all the way to Aden", he said, referring to the southern port city that takes up to nine hours to reach on dangerous mountain roads.
The reopening of the roads is "a major humanitarian, economic and development issue", he said, adding that more than two thirds of Yemen's 30 million people need humanitarian aid.
"Instead of travelling 20 minutes for dialysis, patients sometimes have to go all the way to Aden", he said, referring to the southern port city that takes up to nine hours to reach on dangerous mountain roads.
The reopening of the roads is "a major humanitarian, economic and development issue", he said, adding that more than two thirds of Yemen's 30 million people need humanitarian aid.
"People will die" unless the UN receives the necessary funding, said Zorrilla.
"The longer a crisis goes on, the more our attention decreases, but that doesn't mean the situation doesn't get worse."
The truce, which ends on August 2, must be renewed to work towards "the opening of roads and other more ambitious issues", he added.
(A P)
In #UNSC open debate on @childreninwar, H.E. Al-Saadi elaborated on the GoY efforts to prevent violations against children, which led to the delisting of the Yemeni Armed Forces from Annex B of the SG report presented today by SRSG Gamba, for which he thanked her.
H.E. Al-Saadi, also exposed the Houthi violation against children, most of which was not reported in the SG report. He called on the #UN to further report these violations,
https://twitter.com/YemenMissionNY/status/1549582657918484481
(A P)
Abdulsalam: What Has Been Implemented in UN-sponsored Truce, Minimum
The head of [Sanaa gov.] National Delegation, Mohammed Abdulsalam, confirmed that "the truce agreement is clear and announced, and what has been implemented is minimum."
"There is some commitment with regard to large-scale operations, but spy and fighter drones did not stop, and carried out a number of raids," he explained.
He added that "artillery shelling, especially on the borders, is still continuing, and sniping operations by the US-Saudi aggression have resulted in casualties, noting that the bombing of warplanes and reconnaissance is big breach of truce."
"32 civilian flights were supposed to be carried out from Sana'a Int. but only 18 of them were carried out, and they will not exceed 20 during the remaining period of the truce," Abdulsalam said.
He pointed out that only one flight departed from Cairo Airport to Sana'a Int. Airport, stressing that this is also a major violation of the truce, revealing the refusal of the US-Saudi aggression to bring fuel for planes to Sana'a and schedule flights.
He stated that it was agreed that 36 ships would enter the port of Hodeidah, but only 24 ships entered, only three of them were in custody, and some ships were delayed for 21 days.
Mohammed Abdulsalam affirmed Sanaa’s refusal from the first day to name roads intended for opening because this is related to military actions, explaining that the opening of roads must be based on a discussion between parties on the field.
He pointed out that there was an attempt to exploit the issue of opening roads and use it as a propaganda, pointing out that Sana'a had presented initiatives to open three roads in Taiz, but the Saudi-backed party refused.
and also https://en.ypagency.net/266774/
(* A P)
Jemen [Sanaa-Reg.]: Ohne Erweiterung des Waffenstillstands ist seine Verlängerung nutzlos
Der Verkehrsminister der Regierung der Nationalen Rettung des Jemen betonte, dass der Waffenstillstand nur dazu diente, das Öl des Landes zu plündern, und der Umfang dieses Waffenstillstands ausgeweitet werden sollte.
Nach Angaben der offiziellen Nachrichtenagentur des Jemen, SABA, forderte Abdul Wahab Yahya Al-Durra, der Transportminister der Regierung der Nationalen Rettung des Jemen, am Montag, dass die Klauseln des Waffenstillstands mit der saudisch-emiratischen Angreifer-Koalition überarbeitet werden sollten.
Al-Durra erklärte, dass die Aggressoren-Koalition die Umsetzung der Bestimmungen des Waffenstillstands immer noch ignorierten, und stellte fest, dass die Genehmigung kommerzieller Flüge zwischen Kairo und Sanaa, über die die amerikanische und die saudische Führung sprächen, nur dazu da sei, die öffentliche Meinung und die internationale Gemeinschaft zu täuschen.
Dieser jemenitische Verantwortungsträger betonte, dass der Waffenstillstand verlängert werden und die Freilassung von Gefangenen beinhalten sollte. Er fügte hinzu, dass die Flughäfen, Seehäfen und die Grenzübergänge sowie die Hauptrouten, darunter Aden, Marib, Dhale und Taizz und andere Provinzen ohne Bedingungen wiedereröffnet werden sollten.
Mein Kommentar: Die Huthis müssen endlich auch die Hauptstraße nach Taiz öffnen, bevor noch weitere Punkte in den waffenstillstand aufgenommen werden. Stattdessen haben sie sie sogar weiter verbarrikadiert.
(A P)
[Sanaa gov.] Transport Minister: Humanitarian armistice extension is not feasible without expansion of its items
Transport Minister Abdulwahab Yahya Al-Durra, said Monday that extending a new period of humanitarian truce without implementing the previous two periods and expanding its items to include important and vital issues is not feasible for Yemeni people in general, patients and travelers in particular.
The Minister of Transport, speaking during an expanded meeting held today for the Ministry's leaders and staff on the first official days following the Eid al-Adha holiday, called for a review and expansion of the armistice clauses to raise the suffering of the Yemeni people, pay salaries and the release exchange of captives.
"We are nearing the completion of the second period of the United Nations-sponsored humanitarian truce, which has not been fully implemented and has not alleviated the suffering of citizens, but has achieved the Alliance's aspiration to provide a safe situation for the export of oil." He said.
Al-Durra confirmed that the coalition of aggression continues to renounce and procrastinate the implementation of the humanitarian armistice, especially in the conduct of commercial flights to Cairo.
"The announcement of the Cairo-Sana'a flights, which we heard the leaders of America, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt thanking in their statements for conducting civil business flights between Sana' a and Cairo on more than one occasion, is only a shading of public opinion and the international community as only one flight has been going for more than three months."
He reaffirmed the readiness of Sana'a airport and its commitment to the internationally approved security and safety requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
The Minister of Transport called for the need to open airports, ports, roads, and land ports without restriction or condition, as they are a human right guaranteed by all international regulations, charters, and agreements.
He also called for the opening of the main roads from Aden, Marib, Al Dhalea', Taiz, Bayda, Hadhramaut, and Jawf and the reduction of transport costs for goods and wares to alleviate suffering for citizens.
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195189.htm
My comment: The Houthis must open the main road to Taiz before more points are added to the truce. Instead, they even extended blockades.
(A P)
Yemen: Statement by the [EU] Spokesperson on UN-led peace efforts
The EU deeply regrets a rejection by the Houthis of the latest proposal by UN Special Envoy (UNSE) on road reopening notably around Taiz.
The reopening of roads is a crucial humanitarian element of the truce, along with fuel shipments through the port of Hodeidah and commercial flights from/to Sana’a. The EU urges the Houthis to reconsider and accept the UNSE’s proposal.
The EU calls on all parties to accept further six-month extension of the truce beyond 2 August. This is what the Yemeni people wish and deserve after suffering under the conflict for too long.
https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/yemen-statement-spokesperson-un-led-peace-efforts_en
(A P)
Int’l Five-Member Committee on Yemen discusses extending armistice
The International Five-Member Committee on Yemen, which includes the Sultanate of Oman, Saudi Arabia, UAE, UK and USA, held a meeting on Monday with the participation of the UN Special Envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, Oman News Agency said.
According to the agency, the meeting discussed supporting peace efforts and reaching a comprehensive diplomatic solution to the conflict in Yemen.
https://en.ypagency.net/266652/
(* B P)
Jemen vor neuer Kriegsrunde
Sowohl die von Saudi-Arabien gestützte Regierung als auch die von Iran unterstützten Huthi-Rebellen bereiten sich auf das Ende des Waffenstillstands vor.
Bisher verkehren aber nur wenige Flüge, die häufigste Route ist die nach Amman in Jordanien, wo ab Mai die Verhandlungen zwischen Huthis und Regierung stattgefunden hatten.
Die Hauptstraßen zwischen Rebellen- und Regierungsgebiet sind immer noch geschlossen, Taiz von der Außenwelt abgeschnitten. Dabei war die Öffnung der Straßen ein Hauptthema bei den Verhandlungen in Amman gewesen.
In der ersten Verhandlungsrunde schlug die Huthi-Delegation vor, statt der Hauptstraßen – deren Öffnung sie kategorisch ablehnte – nur die Nebenstraßen nach Taiz zu öffnen. Die Regierungsdelegation lehnte das ab.
Abdal-Karim Shaiban, Leiter der Regierungsdelegation in den Verhandlungen, warnt nun vor einer Rückkehr zum Krieg.
Wie Satellitenbilder zeigen, haben die Huthis seit Anfang des Jahres die Anzahl der Erdbarrieren, die die Hauptstraße zwischen der Stadt Taiz und dem Hawban-Bezirk unterbrechen, verdoppelt. Nadir Abdullah, der im Hawban-Gebiet lebt, sagt: „Ein paar Tage nach der Ankündigung des Waffenstillstands haben Leute, die mit den Huthis verbunden sind, Minen auf der Hauptstraße platziert, die nach dem Waffenstillstandsabkommen geöffnet hätte werden sollen.“
Am 26. Juni verkündeten die Huthis das Scheitern der Verhandlungen in Jordanien. Danach bemühte sie sich um die Mobilisierung und die Versorgung ihrer Fronten mit Kämpfern und Waffen.
Am 4. Juli drohte Hussein al-Ezzi, stellvertretender Außenminister der Huthi-Regierung, auf Twitter mit der militärischen Erstürmung des Gouvernements Marib östlich von Sanaa, das von der Regierung gehalten wird.
Viele Jemeniten werten das als Zeichen für die Rückkehr des Krieges und das Ende des Waffenstillstandes.
Mosleh Mohammed, pensionierter Generalmajor der jemenitischen Armee, sieht den Waffenstillstand skeptisch. Er sei nur die Gelegenheit für die Kriegsparteien, ihre Reihen zu ordnen und ihre Pläne für die Wiederaufnahme der militärischen Operationen zu prüfen.
„Der Waffenstillstand kann nicht zu einer endgültigen Lösung führen, denn Saudi-Arabien wird die Präsenz pro-iranischer Milizen an seinen südlichen Grenzen nicht zulassen“, sagt er.
Gegenseitige Beschuldigungen
Auch die Huthis würden versuchen, die Kämpfe wieder aufzunehmen. Der Waffenstillstand, meint er, sei nur deshalb zustande gekommen, weil die internationalen Akteure mit dem Krieg in der Ukraine beschäftigt seien.
Abdullah al-Mamari, Journalist und Menschenrechtsaktivist in Taiz: „Die Motive der Huthis sind militärisch, nicht humanitär. Diese Straße hat keine direkte Verbindung zur Stadt. Die Straße führt an einem Luftverteidigungslager vorbei, ich denke, dass die Huthis das kontrollieren wollen.“ Dass sie ausgerechnet jetzt ankündigten, diese Straße zu öffnen, sei außerdem ein Versuch, sich der Verantwortung zu entziehen.
Angriffe, neue Befestigungen und Truppenverstärkungen
Vor dem UN-Sicherheitsrat erläuterte Grundberg am vergangenen Montag, man erhalte Berichte von beiden Seiten über Beschuss, Drohnenangriffe, Aufklärungsüberflüge, Truppenverstärkungen und die Errichtung neuer Befestigungen.
„In den letzten Wochen haben wir eine besorgniserregende, eskalierende Rhetorik der Parteien erlebt, die den Nutzen der Waffenruhe infrage stellt“, sagte er und warnte, die Alternative zum Waffenstillstand sei eine Rückkehr zum Krieg „mit allen vorhersehbaren Folgen für die jemenitische Zivilbevölkerung und die regionale Sicherheit“.
https://taz.de/Berichte-ueber-Angriffe-und-Aufruestungen/!5865459/
(A P)
Al-Ezzi: Decision to stop war in Yemen is in hands of Saudi Arabia
The Deputy Foreign Minister of the [Sanaa] National Salvation Government, Hussein Al-Ezzi, on Monday announced the readiness of Sanaa to stop all forms of defense if Saudi Arabia announced the cessation of its aggression against Yemen.
In a series of tweets on his Twitter account, Al-Ezzi said that “the war in Yemen is between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, and that the decision to stop it is in the hands of Saudi Arabia.”
https://en.ypagency.net/266648/ = https://hodhodyemennews.net/en_US/2022/07/19/deputy-foreign-minister-yemen-will-cease-all-defence-operations-if-invasion-stops/
and
(A P)
Al-Ajri reveals Sanaa’s position on extending armistice with its current terms
Member of the Sanaa negotiating delegation, Abdulmalik Al-Ajri, on Monday revealed Sanaa’s position on extending the UN-brokered armistice with its current terms.
Al-Ajri said in a tweet on his account on “Twitter” that “the attempt to limit peace and the entitlement of the humanitarian file in extending the truce in its current form is a miserable attempt that will reflect disappointment and disaster on its owners.”
He pointed out that “if the siege and aggression continued and the war returned, which Sanaa is working to avoid, its repercussions will not be limited to Yemen, and its harm will be more general and comprehensive.”
https://en.ypagency.net/266643/
(A P)
Lifting Taiz siege precedes discussing any other files: [Aden] Yemeni gov't
The Yemeni official government reiterates adherence to the need for the Houthi group to end the siege imposed on Taiz city before engaging in any discussions on other files, Yemen's foreign minister said on Sunday.
Taiz is a pivotal issue to revive the stalled peace process and the city's blocked roads need to be reopened as stated in the UN-mediated truce deal, FM Ahmed Bin Mubarak told the US special envoy for Yemen.
"Taiz cannot be left behind, and the Houthis should end their atrocities against a city populated with millions of people," the Yemeni top diplomat added at meeting with Tim Lenderking in Jeddah.
The Houthi persistent siege on Taiz is a key humanitarian issue that should be solved before getting engaged in any other files, he said, according to the Aden-base Saba news agency.
The Houthi negative dealing with this issue and obdurate rejection to lift siege imposed on millions of civilians mean that the group is not prepared for peace, Bin Mubarak added.
https://debriefer.net/en/news-30218.html
(A P)
Film: For the third day in a row, the mercenaries continue to block the road in Taiz...and societal condemnations for that
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHOYlqdbxAY
and
(A P)
[Sanaa gov.] National Military Committee issues an explanatory statement on opening 50-60 road in Taiz
The Military Committee explained in the statement Saba received a copy that it has opened al-Khamseen-al-Siteen roads leading to Taiz city unilaterally in implementation of the initiative of the Supreme Political Council, which was announced on Wednesday 7 Dhullahjah 1443 AH, July 6, 2022. to alleviate the suffering of citizens in the governorate of Taiz in the light of the continued intransigence of the aggression and mercenaries, and their rejection of all initiatives put forward by the military commission during the past period.
"We make it clear to all citizens in the governorate of Taiz, and to the local and international public opinion that the Commission completed last Thursday 15 Dhullahjah 1443 Hijriyah - the 14th of July 2022, the work of opening the road and removing the dirt waste and its representative held a press conference in the presence of local and external media and member of the Supreme Political Council Sultan al-Samiae, civil and military local authority leaders, representatives of civil society organizations and a crowd of citizens, proclaimed the preparations for the al-Khamseen road and opened it to citizens of the governorate of Taiz ". Said the committee.
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3194955.htm
(A P)
Sanaa: No stability in region without Yemen stability
The Head of the Sanaa negotiating delegation says that peace in Yemen can only be achieved by a comprehensive cessation of aggression, the withdrawal of foreign forces, and a comprehensive lifting of the siege.
https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/sanaa:-no-stability-in-region-without-yemen-stability
(A P)
[Sanaa gov.] Human Rights Office in Taiz calls on UN to pressure other side to deal positively with Sanaa Initiative
In a statement issued today, the Human Rights Office in Taiz valued the initiative of the Supreme Political Council in Sanaa to unilaterally open a safe road as a humanitarian corridor to the city of Taiz, represented by the Sixty-Fifty Road leading to Al-Nour City.
https://en.ypagency.net/266361/
and
(A P)
Taiz: A statement from the governmental negotiation committee on opening roads to besieged Taiz
Despite the rounds of negotiations in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, which were launched on May 25, 2022 AD, and resulted in a proposal for the UN envoy to open five roads, one of which is the main road, the Forty Jahim Sofitel Al-Safa Mosque Zaid Al-Mushki. The Houthis responded on June 20, 2022 AD by rejecting the UN proposal, i.e. more than three months after the implementation of the UN agreement, and everyone followed the briefing of the UN envoy before the Security Council on 7/11/ 2022 AD, in which he announced the Houthis’ rejection of his proposals and the continued closure of roads in Taiz for seven years . The Houthis go to rugged, secondary dirt roads that do not meet the needs of the people or alleviate their suffering, for the simple reason that the militias do not view the roads file and open them as a humanitarian file, but as a punitive political-military file. We are talking about a humanitarian road that shortens the distance to the city by five minutes, and the other is talking about a long road that takes hours and has military dimensions. Yesterday, a unilateral announcement was made to open a road that achieves the Houthis’ military interests towards the military air defense zone and wants to involve civilians to achieve its military goals.
https://adenvoice.com/news11022.html
cp8 Saudi-Arabien / Saudi Arabia
Siehe / Look at cp9 (Biden-Besuch / Biden visit)
(* B E P)
Will Saudi Arabia be the next global gaming hub?
Does Saudi Arabia's string of gaming investments mean that the country is manoeuvring itself into a position of power in the industry?
The latest entertainment-related investment coming out of Saudi Arabia was a major transaction in the gaming industry. The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), the country’s sovereign wealth fund, acquired shares in the Embracer Group – a European video game distribution company – for $1bn. Under the PIF subsidiary of Savvy Gaming Group, PIF now owns 8% of the shares of Embracer.
This follows a number of high-profile Saudi investments into the gaming industry, including the acquisition of a 96% share of game developer SNK – which is responsible for hits including King of Fighters and Samurai Shodown – in April 2022. Savvy Gaming Group also acquired a 5.01% stake in Nintendo in May 2022, making it the fifth-largest shareholder in the company.
Alongside game developing there have also been significant Saudi-based investments in esports. ESL Gaming and FaceIt – two leading esports companies – were sold to Savvy Gaming Group in a $1.5bn deal in January 2022.
It would seem, then, that gaming is an integral part of the new entertainment sector that Saudi Arabia is building in line with its 2030 Vision.
Yet one concern for some in the more traditional gaming countries and regions is that the influence of Saudi Arabian investment may force existing developers to take on less liberal values when designing games.
Through the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi to its strong-armed intervention in Yemen, to its treatment of women and various other criticisms over its human rights record, Saudi Arabia’s image will take some mending. Investing in the gaming industry will not alter any of these things, but this activity is another small step along the country’s path to modernisation
https://www.investmentmonitor.ai/analysis/saudi-arabia-force-global-gaming-hub
(B P)
Saudi Arabia’s ties to the U.S. and China are not mutually exclusive, minister says
“We build bridges with people; we don’t see one as exclusive of the other,” Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir told CNBC.
The conversation took place against a backdrop of Biden’s much publicized — and criticized — visit to the Middle East, his first since taking office.
“We want to be able to deal with everybody and we want to be able to engage with everybody. This is what we have done,” said al-Jubeir, who was recently appointed as envoy for climate affairs.
“China is our largest trading partner. It’s a huge market for energy and a huge market in the future. And China is a big investor in Saudi Arabia — the United States is of course, our number one partner when it comes to security and political coordination, as well as investments and trade between the two countries.”
“With the United States, we share a history and we share contemporary issues ... the challenges in our region, whether it’s Iran, Yemen, Iraq, supporting Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, peace process, Horn of Africa, G5 countries of the Sahel stabilizing Libya, Afghanistan... our relationship with the U.S. in dealing with these issues is critical,” al-Jubeir said.
It’s important “for the mutual benefit of the two countries, and so that relationship is very solid and very strong,” the minister added. “And we believe that the last 80 yearsit has provided tremendous benefits to both countries, and we look forward to building for the next 80 years.”
(B P)
Arrest of Saudi for lying to FBI shows kingdom’s reach in US
It began with a message that appeared on Danah al-Mayouf’s phone from an anonymous Instagram account — a promise to help her “crush” a $5 million lawsuit she faced from a pro-government Saudi fashion model.
But, the mystery texter said, she had to meet him in person.
It was December 2019, a year after the killing and dismemberment of prominent U.S.-based Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, and al-Mayouf feared possibly being kidnapped and taken back to the kingdom like others.
“I can’t meet someone I don’t know,” al-Mayouf ultimately responded. “Especially with all the kidnappings and killings.”
Now, she’s glad she didn’t go. U.S. federal prosecutors have arrested the man behind the messages, 42-year-old Ibrahim Alhussayen, on charges of lying to federal officials about using the fake account to harass and threaten Saudi critics — mostly women — living in the U.S. and Canada.
and a 2019 report: https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/saudi-model-roz-danah-al-mayouf-lawsuit-defamation-freedom-speech
(* A P)
The Daily Show meets Riyadh! How a giant PR firm is pitching the Saudis.
To help Saudi Arabia repair its image, Edelman advised a mix of celebrities, music festivals and Comedy Central.
Saudi Arabia has an image problem.
To solve it, one of the biggest public relations firms in the business proposed an out-of-the-box idea. What if the kingdom hosted an entire week of “The Daily Show” from different locations in the country; or if the Hollywood elite came to the kingdom for a Golden Globes-like show rather than staying put in Beverly Hills; or the Saudis created some sort of partnership with the Coachella musical festival that draws the L.A. influencer crowd every year?
In a previously unreported 109-slide proposal filed, per law, with the Department of Justice this June, Edelman proposed, what it dubbed, a five-year-long “Search Beyond” campaign.
In it, the Saudis would develop partnerships with celebrities and pursue opportunities that could lead to productions filmed throughout the kingdom. The firm pitched partnering with MTV and teaming up with major institutions. It also suggested getting international celebrities like Priyanka Chopra and DJ David Guetta to serve on the board of the campaign.’
The proposal, which was made in Arabic and professionally translated for POLITICO, illustrates the lengths to which the Saudis have been willing to go to cast off the “pariah” status.
"[Mohammed bin Salman] tried to launder his reputation, whitewash it through bringing in celebrities to hold concerts, to sportswash it by buying soccer clubs, and anyway he can sort of try to rehabilitate his reputation and his image,” said Seth Binder, director of advocacy at the Project on Middle East Democracy. “I think to my mind, President Biden’s trip is that sort of final complete rehabilitation.”
A spokesperson for Edelman declined to provide additional details on its deal with Saudi Arabia, for which they are being paid 2,953,125 riyals, or about $787,000, over a year.
(* A P)
Saudi FM: Our US Partnership is Continuous, No Military Cooperation with Israel
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said that the Kingdom’s hand is extended to Iran to reach normal relations, pointing out that the talks with Iran were positive, but did not reach any results.
“We are keen on finding a path to normal relations with neighboring Iran, and this is fundamentally linked to getting understandings that address sources of concern regarding Iranian activities, not only in Saudi Arabia, but with all countries in the region,” said the top Saudi diplomat in a presser at the end of the Jeddah Security and Development Summit.
The Summit was held in the presence of US President Joe Biden, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) leaders, and the leaders of Iraq, Egypt, and Jordan.
Prince Faisal commended the role of Iraq in catalyzing the rapprochement between Tehran and Riyadh, and voiced Saudi Arabia’s hopes for “positive developments” in the future.
Furthermore, the Saudi FM said that no type of military or technical cooperation with Israel was raised or discussed and that there is no such thing as an “Arab NATO,” reiterating that there was no discussion of a “defensive alliance” with Israel.
Prince Faisal noted that Saudi Arabia had, five years ago, presented a proposal for establishing a joint Arab defense system.
Although the proposal wasn’t discussed at the Jeddah Summit, military and defense coordination among Arab countries remains a priority for the Kingdom.
(A P)
A first-of-its-kind human rights campaign to sue Saudi officials in Europe
The director of The Wina Human Rights Organization, Abdul Hakim Al-Dakhil, announced a human rights campaign, the first of its kind, to sue Saudi officials before European courts.
Al-Dakhil said on his Twitter account, “We are working in The Wina Organization to prepare documented files for lawsuits that will be submitted to the competent European courts against officials in the Saudi regime for violations and crimes against prisoners of conscience opponents in the Kingdom.”
Al-Dakhil called on the victims and their families to break the silence and communicate with us to provide all their information and evidence, including the names of security officials and judges, to add them to the files processed.
(* A E P)
Saudi Arabia agrees to boost oil production after Joe Biden visits kingdom, report says
24Live tweeted that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had agreed to boost production by about 4 million barrels a day to 13 million barrels during a speech at the opening of a summit with Arab leaders.
The announcement came as bin Salman called for a closer strategic relationship between its Western allies and the US.
(* B P)
As Biden visits, a look at those targeted in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s reputation as a brazen leader who has ruthlessly silenced critics and dissent will cast a shadow over his meeting on Friday with U.S. President Joe Biden.
The royal has sidelined top princes who could pose a threat and overseen Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen. The 2018 killing of Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul still looms large — though the prince is credited with pushing through once-unthinkable changes, allowing women to drive and travel freely, permitting concerts, opening movie theaters and de-fanging the once-feared religious police.
“It’s never been a country where you can speak freely, but what we’ve seen in the past five years is a total shutdown of the space for any public criticism or any hint that you might disagree with the authorities,” said Adam Coogle, deputy director for the region at Human Rights Watch.
Here’s a look at some of the people targeted in the prince’s sustained clampdown:
and also https://apnews.com/article/biden-israel-middle-east-saudi-arabia-83c27ca7357e41efedaa2318da59d0ab
(A P)
“Jamal Khashoggi, will you apologize to his family?” I shouted to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the end of the press pool spray. MBS had a slight smirk, before a Saudi aide grabbed my arm tightly
https://twitter.com/PeterAlexander/status/1547986121371439112
Film: https://twitter.com/GhalebM0nz1i7/status/1548077725167915009
cp8a Jamal Khashoggi
Siehe auch cp9
(A P)
Saudi-Arabien warnt USA vor Einmischung im Fall Khashoggi
Biden sprach eigenen Angaben zufolge direkt zu Beginn des Treffens den Mord an Khashoggi an. Der Kronprinz habe jede Verantwortung dafür zurückgewiesen, sagte Biden. «Er sagte im Grunde, dass er nicht persönlich dafür verantwortlich sei. Ich deutete an, dass ich glaube, er ist es.»
Die Regierung Saudi-Arabiens warnt indes die USA vor einer Einmischung. «Ein Aufzwingen von Werten ist kontraproduktiv», zitierte der von Saudi-Arabien finanzierte Nachrichtenkanal Al-Arabija einen Regierungsvertreter.
Biden hob die Wichtigkeit offener Gesellschaften und der Meinungsfreiheit hervor. Widerstandsfähige Gesellschaften und Bürger müssten Anführer ohne Angst vor Repressalien hinterfragen und kritisieren können. «Ich habe im Laufe der Jahre viel Kritik bekommen. Es macht keinen Spaß, aber die Fähigkeit, offen zu sprechen und Ideen frei auszutauschen, ist das, was Innovationen freisetzt», so Biden.
https://www.obermain.de/ueberregional/brennpunkte/politik/ausland/biden-khashoggi-mord-bei-saudischem-kronprinzen-angesprochen;art24925,1004348 = https://www.abendblatt.de/politik/ausland/article235909501/Biden-Khashoggi-Mord-bei-saudischem-Kronprinzen-angesprochen.html
(* A P)
Biden disputes Saudi account of Khashoggi murder discussion
U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday differed with Saudi Arabia in their account of discussions at a bilateral summit about the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a major point of contention between the two countries.
Answering reporters as he arrived at the White House from his first Middle East trip as president, Biden disputed the Saudi foreign minister's account that he did not hear Biden blame Mohammed bin Salman for the killing of the Washington Post columnist, a harsh critic of his native Saudi Arabia.
Asked whether the minister of state for foreign affairs, Adel al-Jubeir, was telling the truth in recounting the exchange between Biden and the crown prince, the president said "No".
Jubeir said the crown prince, known as MbS, had told Biden the kingdom had acted to prevent a repeat of mistakes like Khashoggi's killing and that the United States had also made mistakes.
The minister told Fox News on Saturday that he "didn't hear that particular phrase" from Biden blaming the crown prince.
A Saudi official who was present at the meeting said the exchange was not as President Biden described and discussion over Khashoggi occurred before the official meeting in "an informal way".
and also https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/7/17/biden-disputes-saudi-ministers-account-of-meeting-with-mbs
(* A P)
On Khashoggi killing, Saudi prince says U.S. also made mistakes
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told President Joe Biden that Saudi Arabia had acted to prevent a repeat of mistakes like the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and that the United States had also made mistakes, including in Iraq, a Saudi minister said.
Biden said on Friday he told Prince Mohammed he held him responsible for the 2018 murder of Washington Post journalist Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul
"With respect to the murder of Khashoggi, I raised it at the top of the meeting, making it clear what I thought of it at the time and what I think about it now," Biden told reporters.
"I was straight forward and direct in discussing it. I made my view crystal clear. I said very straightforwardly, for an American president to be silent on an issue of human rights is inconsistent with who we are and who I am."
"He basically said that he was not personally responsible for it," Biden said of the crown prince's response during their meeting. "I indicated that I thought he was."
cp9 USA
Siehe / Look at cp9a
(A P)
Hawkish senators make moves to take over Biden’s Iran policy
Nuclear deal spoilers Bob Menendez and Lindsey Graham are at it again, introducing a bill experts say will undermine negotiations.
Despite the Biden administration going out of its way to cater to the whims of Menendez, including rhetoric calling for a “longer and stronger” nuclear deal that led to costly delays in negotiations during Biden’s first months in office, Menendez has continued to undermine the administration’s efforts to restore the Iran nuclear deal.
His latest legislation with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), another dyed-in-the-wool Iran hawk, mandates that Biden detail a full strategy on Iran and establish a “task force” with a primary function of relaying intelligence on Iran’s nuclear program to Congress and the public every 120 days.
At first glance, the legislation could appear just duplicative and unnecessary.
However, there are plenty of indications that the legislation would not be used to enhance congressional and public knowledge, but to sabotage diplomatic efforts that can avert threats from Iran’s nuclear program. One such indication is that the task force would be required to report on “clandestine nuclear facilities, including nuclear facilities and activities discovered or reported by Israel or other allies or partners of the United States.”
(A P)
Guantanamo: Yemeni detainee cleared for release after 20 years
Khalid Ahmed Qasim has been imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay since 2002, making him one of the longest-held detainees
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/guantanamo-yemeni-detainee-cleared-release-after-20-years
(A P)
Biden administration refuses to re-designate Houthi Rebels as terrorists
The State Department says it will not re-list the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen as a terrorist group, despite lobbying from lawmakers and human rights activists.
Re-designating the rebels is not a priority for the agency, officials said Monday according to The Foreign Desk.
(B P)
It’s Time for Congress to End US Involvement in the Saudi-Led War on Yemen
U.S. critics are still buzzing with outrage about President Biden’s recent chummy fist bump and meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, accusing Biden of betraying his promise to make Saudi Arabia a “pariah” after the brutal murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
But it’s not just Khashoggi’s blood that’s on the Saudi crown prince’s hands.
As a Vietnam War veteran, I saw firsthand that the cost of war is horrendous, and those who suffer the most are those caught in the crossfire. That is why I am urging members of Congress to join Senators Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Patrick Leahy, and more than 100 members of the House in co-sponsoring the Yemen War Powers Resolution to end the U.S.’s support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen.
We can’t wait to act. Although the warring parties negotiated an extension of a recent truce, Saudi Arabia could resume its deadly bombing campaign and blockade of Yemen when the ceasefire expires at the end of July.
By signing onto the Yemen War Powers Resolution, members will add to the momentum gaining now in Congress to end U.S. support for the devastating war and build pressure on the Saudi-led coalition to extend the ceasefire and peace talks.
(* A P)
Biden erleidet schweren „Sturz“ im Nahen Osten
Als US-Präsident Joe Biden am Sonntag von seiner Reise in den Nahen Osten in Washington eintraf, wurde er von den Medien mit Ironie und Zynismus begrüßt. Vor der Reise hatte Biden erklärt, er werde ein „neues Kapitel“ in den Beziehungen zwischen den USA und dem Nahen Osten aufschlagen, doch nun kehrte er mit leeren Händen zurück. Die US-Zeitschrift „The New Yorker“ kommentierte, der viertägige Besuch Bidens habe das völlige Versagen seiner Nahostpolitik verdeutlicht.
Das Thema Energie war ein wichtiger Bestandteil von Bidens Reise. „The New York Times“ schrieb, die Frage, wie man die Saudis dazu bringen könne, ihre Öl- und Gasproduktion zu erhöhen, sei der anerkannte Hauptpunkt von Bidens Besuch im Nahen Osten gewesen.
Ein genauerer Blick auf die gemeinsame Erklärung nach Bidens Gesprächen mit den saudi-arabischen Staatsoberhäuptern zeigt jedoch, dass sich die Saudis nicht eindeutig zu einer Steigerung der Ölproduktion verpflichtet haben.
Gleichzeitig wurde auch das Ziel der USA, das Bündnissystem im Nahen Osten zu konsolidieren, verfehlt.
https://german.cri.cn/2022/07/18/ARTInfPmdqElRvdaVtJlOrF3220718.shtml
(* A P)
Bidens Besuch in Israel, das seit Jahrzehnten palästinensische Gebiete okkupiert, und beim kriegsführenden saudischen Diktator
Der eigentliche Zweck seiner Reise scheint Saudi-Arabien gewesen zu sein, weil die Amerikaner jetzt wieder stärker vom saudischen Öl abhängig sein werden. Geopolitisch ist das im Moment eine sehr wichtige Sache. […]
Biden wollte, dass mehr Öl gefördert wird, um die Preise auf dem Weltmarkt und in den USA zu dämpfen. Aber Saudi-Arabien sagte nur, sie würden nur dann mehr fördern, wenn ein Mangel auf den Weltmärkten herrscht. Also auch hier gab es keinen Erfolg. Und es war ja doch auch eine Art Bittgang von Joe Biden, der nun mit dem Krieg in der Ukraine, wo angeblich die Freiheit und Demokratie und was weiß ich vor den Russen verteidigt wird, ausgerechnet zu einem Diktator geht, der einen Krieg im Jemen mit viel mehr Opfern führt als Russland bislang in der Ukraine.
(A P)
Fuming families rip Biden, say he did nothing to free US citizen ‘hostages’ in Saudi Arabia
The relatives of two American “hostages” in Saudi Arabia tell The Post they’re outraged that President Biden didn’t win their release during his trip last week to patch up relations with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
There are at least four Americans jailed in or unable to leave Saudi Arabia, according to their families. The cases aren’t well-known because the families opted to work quietly with the US government ahead of Biden’s visit.
Now, they’re seeking greater public attention after the leader of the free world left Saudi Arabia without their loved ones.
https://nypost.com/2022/07/18/biden-leaves-us-citizen-hostages-in-saudi-arabia-infuriating-families/
(A P)
'I’m not going to meet with MBS': How Americans react to Biden's lie following meeting MBS in Jeddah
Charles Ortel, a US journalist, said, "Policies built on inconsistency are doomed to fail with widespread damage."
"Biden's campaign promises, not simply regarding MBS, are laughable in retrospect," he told Al Mayadeen English in an interview via email.
"It seems as if the Biden Administration demonstrates that America is not a trustworthy ally, let alone a nation that works by example to attain our founding ideals," Ortel added.
"How can you trust anyone in the Biden Administration? And, the 'fist bump' lets everyone understand that Biden believes he and his family are above the reach of any challenge or criticism," Ortel said.
Ortel pointed out that by visiting the Kingdom, Biden has failed to make it a "pariah" as he promised, making him lose the support of "masses of Americans."
"Biden has managed to lose support from his base and to trigger masses of Americans who previously were uninterested in politics to become active working to clip his wings," Ortel noted.
(A P)
Bernie Sanders rebukes Biden's visit to Saudi Arabia, says the US shouldn't 'be maintaining a warm relationship with a dictatorship
Sen. Bernie Sanders said President Joe Biden should not have visited Saudi Arabia.
"I just don't believe that we should be maintaining a warm relationship with a dictatorship like that," Sanders told ABC News' Martha Raddatz on Sunday.
Sanders said he did not think a country whose leader ordered the killing of a Washington Post journalist should be "rewarded with a visit" from the US president.
Raddatz asked Sanders whether it made a difference that the discussions were about oil. One purpose of Biden's visit was to encourage greater oil production in the hope of reducing prices in the US, a goal that he appeared to meet.
https://sports.yahoo.com/bernie-sanders-rebukes-bidens-visit-143427012.html
(A P)
#USEnvoyYemen met with Yemeni Foreign Minister @BinmubarakAhmed to discuss ways the U.S. can continue supporting Yemenis.
https://twitter.com/StateDept_NEA/status/1548712278572371970
(* A P)
Die bedeutungslosen Staaten von Amerika
US-Präsident Joe Biden kam als Bittsteller in den Nahen Osten und wurde auch so behandelt. Amerikas Schwäche ist offenkundig.
Schon der Grundtenor von Bidens Reise zeigt Washingtons Dilemma schonungslos auf: Der US-Präsident kam als Bittsteller. Das eigentliche Ziel seiner Tour war nicht etwa Israel, sondern das ölreiche Saudi-Arabien.
Doch die die Golfmonarchie ließ den 79-Jährigen abblitzen. Es gab zwar vage Absichtserklärungen, jedoch keine konkreten Zusagen.
Der russische Angriffskrieg gegen die Ukraine machte aus dem Wüstenstaat im Handumdrehen wieder einen gefragten Partner. Einer, der sich seiner Bedeutung sehr bewusst ist. So ließ der Kronprinz den Gast aus Washington beim Thema Menschenrechte kühl wissen, „ein Aufzwingen von Werten“ sei kontraproduktiv.
(A P)
Joe Bidens Pleite in Saudi-Arabien und neue Skandale um Hunter Biden
Die Medien geben sich alle Mühe, es anders darzustellen, aber Joe Bidens Reise nach Saudi-Arabien war ein Reinfall. Außerdem wurden neue Details über Hunter Bidens Skandal bekannt.
Das russische Fernsehen berichtet über die Ereignisse in und um die USA immer vollkommen anders, als das deutsche Fernsehen. So auch an diesem Wochenende wieder.
Beginn der Übersetzung:
US-Präsident Joe Biden ist am Mittwoch in den Nahen Osten gereist. Das wichtigste Ziel war Saudi-Arabien. Das Ziel war es, die Saudis zu zwingen, die Ölproduktion zu erhöhen, um Russland durch eine Senkung des Weltmarktpreises zu ärgern. Bis vor kurzem drohte Biden damit, Saudi-Arabien als „Paria-Staat“ zu behandeln. Jetzt ist er ein Bittsteller. Später prahlte Biden auf einer Pressekonferenz damit, dass er mit dem Prinzen über Menschenrechtsfragen gesprochen habe, und dem Gastgeber des Treffens gesagt habe, dass der die Schuld an der Ermordung des Journalisten Khashoggi trage. Wie auch immer, Biden hat Riad mit leeren Händen verlassen.
Wie sich zeigte, war es möglich, und Covid hat Biden nicht davon abgehalten, einem Mitglied der königlichen Familie zum Abschied die Hand zu geben. In Saudi-Arabien, das er vor kurzem noch als Paria-Staat bezeichnet hat, verbrachte der US-Präsident weniger als einen Tag. Zu Hause hat man schon viele Tage zuvor von diesem Besuch gesprochen.
„Er fährt nach Saudi-Arabien, um dem Kronprinz den Arsch zu küssen. Er bringt Israel und Saudi-Arabien dazu, mit dem Iran zu reden, das ist das Dümmste, was man machen kann“, heißt es im Fernsehen.
In den USA vergleicht man, wie wenig gastfreundlich die Saudis Biden im Gegensatz zu anderen Staatschefs empfangen haben. Vor ein paar Jahren gab es einen Säbeltanz für Trump. Wladimir Putin wurde von Reitern auf schneeweißen Pferden durch die Straßen von Jeddah eskortiert. Der russische Präsident wurde von der königlichen Familie in einem ihrer Paläste untergebracht. Der amerikanische Präsident musste in einem Hotel übernachten.
(A P)
Film: Gipfel in Saudi-Arabien: Kein Durchbruch für Bidens Sicherheitsbestrebungen
Der US-Präsident bekam am Wochenende keine Unterstützung seitens der Gastgeber. Ziel seines Besuchs war es, die arabischen Staaten von einer regionalen Sicherheitsachse unter Einbezug von Israel, zu überzeugen. Diese sollte sich gegen den Iran richten.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dh6UfogeOCM
(A P)
Tell your Senator to vote yes on the Yemen War Powers Resolution!
We can pressure our Senators to stand together and pass a War Powers Resolution to end US involvement in the war in Yemen.
If you’re with us on this, please send your Senator a message today demanding that Congress ends unauthorized involvement in Yemen immediately. Taxpaying Americans cannot afford to send anymore funds to the Saudi-UAE coalition’s murderous war on Yemen.
https://actionnetwork.org/letters/pass-a-war-powers-resolution-to-help-end-the-war-in-yemen
(* B P)
Biden Caters to Autocrats and Draws Battle Lines in the Middle East
The President rallied Israel and key Arab nations as diplomacy on Iran’s nuclear program falters.
Yet fifteen months of indirect talks with Iran to revive the nuclear deal that was brokered, in 2015, by the world’s six major powers have deadlocked.
And new flash points have recently emerged.
On Israeli television, Biden rejected Tehran’s demand for the U.S. to remove the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps from its list of terrorist groups, one of the main outstanding issues in the nuclear talks. Trump had put the Revolutionary Guard on the list, an act the U.S. has never taken toward another country’s armed forces.
Biden’s trip has taken U.S. policy and the Middle East in a “much more dangerous direction,” Riedel told me later. Both are now on a “slippery slope.” A war with Iran would be “three or four times bigger and more deadly than a war with Iraq,” he warned. “It will make everything else that we’ve done in the Middle East look like a kindergarten party.”
The four-day trip has highlighted Biden’s policy failures in the Middle East.
Biden’s motivation for the trip was partly to lobby oil-rich countries to alleviate the global energy crisis and bring down prices. In Jeddah, the President met with leaders of the six Gulf sheikhdoms and Iraq, which together pump millions of barrels of oil every day, plus Jordan and Egypt. In reality, even these mega-producers may not be able to do much. “No gusher is likely to follow, because there does not appear to be a large amount of extra oil in Saudi Arabia (or in the United Arab Emirates) that can be produced on short notice,” Daniel Yergin, an energy specialist and author of “The New Map: Energy, Climate, and the Clash of Nations,” wrote this week.
Biden’s trip has solidified the shifting sands in the Middle East. For more than a half century, the region was singularly defined by the Arab-Israeli dispute. The goals, the alliances, the flash points, and the battle lines have all changed. Foreign policy inevitably evolves. Diplomacy is often overtaken by events on the ground. But Biden’s actions in the region may also have unwanted consequences. “Shaking the hand of a murderer is bad,” Riedel told me, “but going to war with Iran is insanity.”
(A P)
President of United States of America leaves Jeddah
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370372
(A P)
US President #Biden refused to meet with the Chairman of the Leadership Council in Aden, "Rashad Al-Alimi", on the grounds that the meeting was not on his visit schedule, and Al-Alimi only met with US Secretary of State "Anthony Blinken"
https://twitter.com/GhalebM0nz1i7/status/1548371555977011202
and
(A P)
US State Dep.: Secretary Blinken’s Meeting with Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council President Al-Alimi
Secretary Blinken and President al-Alimi discussed the importance of extending the UN-led truce to ease the suffering of Yemenis and of pursuing meaningful action by the Houthis to improve access to Taiz. The Secretary welcomed the Republic of Yemen Government’s bold leadership on the truce, which has had a tangible impact on the lives of Yemenis across the country. Secretary Blinken highlighted the opportunity for the truce to result in a nationwide, permanent ceasefire and the launch of an inclusive, comprehensive political process under UN auspices. He noted that only a political agreement between the Yemeni parties, which also meets Yemenis’ calls for justice and accountability, can bring true peace and durable prosperity to the country. The Secretary reiterated the United States’ full support for the Presidential Leadership Council and its initiatives to improve services and daily life for Yemenis.
My comment: The “normal” bla bla.
(* A P)
At Regional Summit, Biden Says US Won't Leave Middle East
US President Joe Biden has said America would not leave the Middle East region, saying any vacuum left would be filled by Washington's rivals.
Speaking in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, Biden also accused Iran of destabilizing activities in West Asia.
Biden warned the Arab states participating in the [P]GCC+3 summit in the Saudi port city of Jeddah of efforts by certain countries to undermine "the rules-based order."
"Around the world, we’re seeing efforts to undermine the rules-based order: with China’s increasingly coercive actions in the Indo-Pacific and beyond; with Russia’s brutal and unprovoked war against its neighboring Ukraine; and with Iran’s destabilizing activities," Biden claimed.
He said "American leadership" will run the "new 'rules-based' world order."
The US president said Washington will not leave any space to be filled by Washington's rivals.
“We will not walk away and leave a vacuum to be filled by China, Russia, or Iran,” Biden insisted.
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/07/16/685726/US-Biden-Iran-West-Asia
My comment: This means: 1) The US claims to rule the world, everywhere on this planet, not to ceed any place to “Washington’s rivals”. 2) The US does not care for international law at all, instead of this it introduced the new expression of “rules based order”, which actually means: The US rules by its own orders, and the rest of the world has to obey.
and
(A P)
Journalist: US Empire Tells Middle East, 'We Ain't Leaving'
New York-based journalist Don DeBar said, "The US is basically telling those who seek to regain their nation's sovereignty - those in Iraq, Yemen, Bahrain, Pakistan and, above all, Palestine - that this will not be allowed.”
"And likewise to those who seek to defend their sovereignty against US hegemony, such as Iran, Syria, Afghanistan, et al,” he said.
He added that "this is also targeted against those in places like Saudi Arabia and the so-called Emirates who seek liberation from the medieval yoke imposed upon them by the US as colonial viceroys, with the message, again, that this will not be permitted."
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/07/16/685727/The-American-Empire-isn-t-leaving-Middle-East-region
and
(A P)
#China responds to Biden: The Middle East is not a backyard for anyone, and the peoples of the region are their masters. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said that the people of the Middle East are the masters of the region, and the region does not need anyone's background, nor can it be considered a so-called "vacuum."
https://twitter.com/GhalebM0nz1i7/status/1548372271156174850
(* A P)
Biden fist bumps MBS, but still fails to coax Saudis into signing oil deal
The US president’s visit to Saudi Arabia is unlikely to result in a deal to increase oil supply, even with Washington “decalibrating” its relations with Riyadh to go along with a meeting between Joe Biden and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to coax the Saudis into pumping more crude.
Biden told reporters on Friday that little progress had been made to ink an oil deal, despite his determined efforts to get the oil-rich kingdom to increase production amid record high gas prices.
“I’m doing all I can to increase the supply for the United States of America, which I expect to happen,” Biden said after his meeting with Saudi King Salman and his son Mohammed bin Salman, who is the kingdom’s de facto ruler.
“The Saudis share that urgency and based on our discussions today, I expect we’ll see further steps in the coming weeks,” the US president added.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan also confirmed on Friday that Washington does not expect Riyadh to boost oil output at once and awaits the outcome of an OPEC+ meeting on August 3.
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2022/07/16/685719/Biden-fails-coax-Saudis-into-signing-oil-deal
(A P)
Saudi Arabia's MBS turns the tables on Biden, U.S.: "Remember Abu Ghraib?"
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reportedly told President Joe Biden during their meeting in Jeddah Friday that while the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi is "regrettable," U.S. hands are not clean and other journalists are killed with impunity.
"Bin Salman's smarmy reply underlines the way in which the U.S. government's lawlessness... and its weird commitment to Israeli apartheid... undermine its moral standing."
Bin Salman specifically mentioned the torture scandal at the U.S. military prison at Abu Ghraib, Iraq and the killing of Palestinian-American Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh by Israeli forces in May, according to Al Aribiya, which is owned by the Saudi government.
(A P)
UAE, US Presidents discuss bilateral relations on sidelines of Jeddah summit
President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan today discussed with US President Joe Biden the strategic relations between their countries and the prospects for enhancing cooperation and joint work to achieve their future aspirations.
The two leaders discussed several regional and international opportunities and challenges, which necessitate close coordination between the UAE and the UAE, given their status as strategic partners.
Moreover, the meeting explored various aspects of cooperation between the two countries
(A P)
Biden meets Jordan’s king, new US aid announced
President Joe Biden says he’s clear-eyed about challenges in the Middle East and the United States intends to stay engaged in the region.
Speaking Saturday in Saudi Arabia at a summit of Gulf leaders, as well as leaders from Iraq, Egypt and Jordan, Biden said: “We will not walk away and leave a vacuum to be filled by China, Russia or Iran.” He added that “the United States is going to remain an active engaged partner in the Middle East.”
Biden is outlining the principles of his strategy for the region, focusing on regional cooperation to stand up to threats.
Much like Saudi Arabia, though, relations between the Biden administration and Abu Dhabi have been strained. The UAE has called on Biden to reverse a decision he made early in his presidency to de-list Yemen’s Houthi rebels as a terror group. The UAE has been a party to the war in Yemen, which has killed thousands of civilians and spawned a humanitarian disaster.
(A P)
From 'Bone Saw' to 'Pariah' to 'Fist Bump': Outrage as Biden Greets Murderous Saudi Prince
Already furious over the president's decision to meet with the crown prince despite his role in the brutal 2018 murder of Khashoggi and subsequent cover-up attempt, human rights defenders responded with outrage to the greeting, which the Saudi regime swiftly blasted out on social media.
"The bloody fist bump seen around the world," said Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN). "You have humiliated our entire country."
(A P)
Biden’s Mideast trip aimed at reassuring wary leaders
Before stepping foot in Saudi Arabia, President Joe Biden knew there would be trouble.
Biden was risking criticism by visiting a country he had vowed to make a “pariah” for human rights abuses, and there was no guarantee the visit would immediately yield higher oil production to offset rising gas prices.
He decided to face the blowback anyway, hoping to use the visit to repair strained ties and make clear to wary Arab leaders that the United States remains committed to their security and the region’s stability.
His visit to Saudi Arabia was occasionally uncomfortable but, in Biden’s view, ultimately necessary. Although he’s been focused on confronting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and limiting China’s expanding influence in Asia, those goals become far more difficult without the partnerships that he was tending to here.
“It is only becoming clearer to me how closely interwoven America’s interests are with the successes of the Middle East,” the president said Saturday at a summit in the Red Sea city of Jeddah.
https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-biden-africa-israel-iran-ba943ceaceb78d17cf50c64511ba6db4
(A P)
Adel Al-Jubeir on why Biden’s Saudi visit is a success, and US commitment to Kingdom’s security
Hours after US President Joe Biden arrived in Jeddah for talks with the Saudi leadership, Adel Al-Jubeir, the Kingdom’s minister of state for foreign affairs, deemed the visit a great success.
In a wide-ranging interview with Arab News on Friday evening, after a packed day of meetings between the US president’s delegation and Saudi officials, Al-Jubeir highlighted the importance of the historic relationship.
“Every visit by an American president to Saudi Arabia is a success, and every visit by a Saudi king or a Saudi crown prince to the US is a success,” Al-Jubeir told Arab News.
“The two countries are allies and partners and have been for eight decades. They have tremendous interests at stake, and they have tremendous challenges that they both are working together to confront.”
Biden’s visit “symbolizes in very clear terms the importance of the relationship, the importance of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the US, and to global peace and security,” he added.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2123271/saudi-arabia
(* A P)
USA wollen Saudi-Arabien bei Verteidigung gegen Iran helfen
US-Präsident Joe Biden setzt seinen Besuch in Saudi-Arabien fort. Auf diese gemeinsamen Vorhaben haben sich die Staaten bereits geeinigt.
Die USA wollen Saudi-Arabien angesichts einer wachsenden Bedrohung durch den Iran weiterhin bei der Selbstverteidigung unterstützen. Das Königreich solle befähigt werden, "sein Volk und Hoheitsgebiet gegen externe Bedrohungen" zu schützen, heißt es in einer gemeinsamen Abschlusserklärung. Diese veröffentlichten das Weiße Haus und das saudische Außenministerium nach dem Treffen von US-Präsident Joe Biden mit dem saudischen König Salman und Kronprinz Mohammed bin Salman am Freitagabend.
Teherans "Eingriff in interne Angelegenheiten anderer Länder" und die "Unterstützung von Terrorismus durch bewaffnete Stellvertreter" müsse aufgehalten werden. Zudem dürfe der Iran nicht an Atomwaffen kommen.
Die USA streben wegen der Bedrohung durch den Iran weiterhin eine stärkere Vernetzung von Luftabwehrsystemen ihrer Partnerländer im Nahen Osten an.
https://www.t-online.de/nachrichten/ausland/internationale-politik/id_92361174/usa-wollen-saudi-arabien-bei-verteidigung-gegen-iran-unterstuetzen.html = https://www.gmx.net/magazine/politik/us-politik/waffenruhe-jemen-verteidigung-iran-usa-unterstuetzt-saudi-arabiens-plaene-37112428
(A P)
USA und Saudi-Arabien stützen Verlängerung der Waffenruhe im Jemen
Die USA und Saudi-Arabien haben ihre nachdrückliche Unterstützung für die von den Vereinten Nationen vermittelte Waffenruhe im Jemen bekräftigt. Das ging aus einer gemeinsamen Erklärung nach dem Treffen von US-Präsident Joe Biden und dem saudischen König Salman mit Kronprinz Mohammed bin Salman am Freitagabend hervor. Beide Seiten betonten, "wie wichtig es ist, die Waffenruhe zu verlängern und Fortschritte zu erzielen, um die Waffenruhe in ein dauerhaftes Friedensabkommen umzuwandeln".
USA und Saudi-Arabien riefen die internationale Gemeinschaft auf, eine einheitliche Position einzunehmen und die Huthi-Rebellen zur Rückkehr zu Friedensgesprächen unter der Schirmherrschaft der Vereinten Nationen aufzufordern.
Ein hochrangiger US-Regierungsvertreter sagte am Samstag am Rande von Bidens Besuch in Dschidda, man habe es als "sehr positives Zeichen" aufgefasst, dass die saudische Regierung die Waffenruhe verlängern wolle.
https://www.swissinfo.ch/ger/alle-news-in-kuerze/usa-und-saudi-arabien-stuetzen-verlaengerung-der-waffenruhe-im-jemen/47757916 = https://www.gmx.net/magazine/politik/us-politik/waffenruhe-jemen-verteidigung-iran-usa-unterstuetzt-saudi-arabiens-plaene-37112428
(* A P)
Biden in Saudi-Arabien: Khashoggi-Mord auch Thema
US-Geheimdienste sehen den saudischen Kronprinzen hinter dem Mord am Journalisten Khashoggi. Biden hat sich nun mit diesem getroffen - ungeachtet aller Kritik.
Der faktische Herrscher des Königreichs empfing Biden am Freitagabend im königlichen Palast Al-Salam in der Küstenstadt Dschidda, wo Biden auch mit König Salman zusammenkam. Auf Bildern der staatlichen saudischen Agentur SPA wirkte die Stimmung gelöst. Es ist die erste Begegnung eines US-Präsidenten mit dem Thronfolger außerhalb internationaler Gipfel seit dem Mord an dem Journalisten Jamal Khashoggi vor bald vier Jahren.
Biden sprach eigenen Angaben zufolge direkt zu Beginn des Treffens den Mord an Khashoggi an. Der Kronprinz habe jede Verantwortung dafür zurückgewiesen, sagte Biden. "Er sagte im Grunde, dass er nicht persönlich dafür verantwortlich sei. Ich deutete an, dass ich glaube, er ist es."
An die Adresse des US-Präsidenten verbreitete Khashoggis Verlobte Hatice Cengiz am Freitagabend auf Twitter ein Bild von der Begrüßung Bidens durch den Kronprinzen mit dem Text: "Das Blut von MBS' nächsten Opfern klebt an Ihren Händen." Dazu sagte Biden: "Es tut mir leid, dass sie das so empfindet." Mit Blick auf sein Wahlkampfversprechen, die saudische Führung zum "Außenseiter" zu machen, sagte er: "Ich bereue nichts, was ich gesagt habe. Was mit Khashoggi passiert ist, war empörend."
Nach dem Empfang kamen beide Delegationen zu einem Arbeitstreffen zusammen. An einem langen Konferenztisch im Palast saßen sich Biden und der Kronprinz gegenüber, umgeben von Ministern und weiteren Regierungsvertretern. Biden muss seine Reise und das Treffen mit dem Kronprinzen seit Wochen gegen Kritik verteidigen.
Bei seiner Ankunft in Dschidda bekam der Demokrat Biden im Vergleich zu seinem republikanischen Vorgänger Donald Trump einen äußerst kühlen Empfang. Am Flughafen begrüßte ihn der Gouverneur von Mekka, Chalid al-Faisal, sowie die Botschafterin in den USA, Rima bint Bandar. Am Palast erwartete ihn der Kronprinz.
Bidens Treffen mit dem Kronprinzen sei ein "Verrat an Unterstützern der Menschenrechte und saudischen Dissidenten, die so viel mehr vom Präsidenten erwarten", schrieb Abdullah Alaudh von der Demokratie-Organisation DAWN mit einem weiteren Autor. Khashoggi hatte die Organisation vor seinem Tod in die Wege geleitet.
Biden bekräftigte nach Angaben des Weißen Hauses das Versprechen der USA, Saudi-Arabien gegen Angriffe von außen zu verteidigen, insbesondere gegen solche der Huthi-Rebellen aus dem benachbarten Bürgerkriegsland Jemen
Biden begrüßte dem Weißen Haus zufolge Saudi-Arabiens "starkes Engagement" für eine Waffenruhe im Jemen.
https://www.freiepresse.de/nachrichten/welt/biden-in-saudi-arabien-khashoggi-mord-auch-thema-artikel12304281 = https://www.berliner-zeitung.de/news/trotz-khashoggi-mord-biden-trifft-saudischen-kronprinzen-li.247159
und auch https://orf.at/stories/3276329/
(* A P)
HRH Crown Prince, U.S. President Hold Official Session of Talks and Chair Expanded Meeting At Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah
His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Deputy Prime Minister, and President Joe Biden of the United States of America held an official talks session at Al-Salam palace in Jeddah today.
HRH Crown Prince and the American President also chaired an expanded meeting for the two sides.
The historical friendship relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States of America were reviewed, in addition to discussing the aspects of cooperation between the two countries in a number of fields. Ways to confront challenges in the region and the world were also discussed.
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370201
Photos, Biden arrives at Jeddah; received by king and crown prince:
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370156
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370179
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370162
Film: https://twitter.com/alekhbariyatv/status/1547968621640499202
(* A P)
A Joint Statement (Jeddah Communique) Between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States of America Issued
At the end of this meeting, the two sides issued this communique outlining the strategic partnership between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States over the coming decades with the aim of advancing their mutual interests and advancing a common vision for a more peaceful, secure, prosperous, and stable Middle East.
Strategic Partnership
The two sides reviewed the historical relations and partnership between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States of America that was established nearly eight decades ago with the meeting between King Abdulaziz Al-Saud and President Franklin D. Roosevelt on board the USS Quincy. They underscored the importance of continuing to strengthen their strategic partnership to serve the interests of the governments and peoples of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States. The two sides also emphasized the pivotal role this historic partnership has played in promoting regional stability and prosperity. They stressed that the U.S.-Saudi partnership has been a cornerstone of regional security over decades, and affirmed that the two countries share a vision of a more secure, stable, and prosperous region, interconnected with the world.
The two sides affirmed the importance of resolving international disputes through peaceful and diplomatic means, and alleviating humanitarian crises through economic and financial support to the region’s countries most in need.
Yemen
Both sides affirmed their strong support for the UN-brokered truce in Yemen and stressed the importance of extending the truce and making progress to transform the truce into a lasting peace agreement. President Biden expressed his appreciation for the role The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud and His Royal Highness Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al-Saud, Deputy Prime Minister, have played in achieving and renewing the truce. The two sides stressed their long-stated goal to end the war in Yemen, and called on the international community to take a unified position calling on the Houthis to return to peace talks under the auspices of the United Nations based on the three references, including UN Security Council Resolution 2216 (2015). Only a political agreement between the Yemeni parties can durably resolve the conflict and reverse the dire humanitarian crisis.
The two sides also affirmed their support for Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council and thanked the Council for its commitment to the truce and steps that have improved the lives of Yemenis across the country, including facilitating fuel imports and restarting flights from Sana’a.
They also stressed the need to remove all impediments to the flow of essential goods and delivery of aid inside Yemen, and the importance of the Houthis opening the main roads to Taiz – Yemen’s third largest city which has been under siege conditions since 2015.
Saudi Arabia and the United States encouraged all regional actors to fully support the truce, which has resulted in the longest period of peace in Yemen in six years. Saudi Arabia welcomed the United States’ support of the truce and its contribution to the efforts to advance the political process in Yemen.
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370228
and more summit statements: https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370415
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370418
My comment: A lot of bla bla. Khashoggi is not mentioned once.
(A P)
18 Saudi-US Agreements Covering Space, Investment, Energy, Communications and Health Concluded
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370223
(* A P)
Biden says he raised Khashoggi murder with crown prince
President Joe Biden said he brought up the murder of Jamal Khashoggi in his meeting Friday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, rejecting the idea that he was ignoring the kingdom’s human rights abuses as he tries to reset a critical diplomatic relationship.
“I said, very straightforwardly, for an American president to be silent on an issue of human rights is inconsistent with who we are and who I am,” Biden said. “I’ll always stand up for our values.”
U.S. intelligence believes that the crown prince likely approved the killing of Khashoggi, a U.S.-based writer, four years ago.
Biden said Prince Mohammed claimed that he was “not personally responsible” for the death. “I indicated I thought he was,” the president said he replied.
It was the first encounter between the two leaders, beginning with a fist bump outside the royal palace in Jeddah, in a relationship that could reshape security partnerships in the Middle East and the flow of oil worldwide.
For now, it appeared that they were taking incremental steps forward together.
Biden seemed to approach it as a necessary if somewhat distasteful step to improve relations with the the world’s top oil exporter at a time of rising gas prices and concern about Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
The meeting drew outrage from critics who believed Biden was abandoning his pledges on human rights, particularly when it came to the murder of Khashoggi, a U.S.-based journalist who wrote for The Washington Post.
“The fist bump between President Biden and Mohammed bin Salman was worse than a handshake — it was shameful,” said a statement from Fred Ryan, the Post’s publisher. “It projected a level of intimacy and comfort that delivers to MBS the unwarranted redemption he has been desperately seeking.”
The United States played down expectations for any immediate increases in Saudi oil production
https://apnews.com/article/biden-israel-middle-east-saudi-arabia-83c27ca7357e41efedaa2318da59d0ab
(A P)
The White House: Remarks by PresidentBiden on His Meetings in SaudiArabia
(* B P)
Biden hands blank check to Saudi Arabia in Middle East visit
Biden’s purpose is to reassert Washington’s standing with some of the most tyrannical rulers on the planet and line them up behind Washington’s proxy war against Russia in Ukraine—justified with the cynical call “to stop mass death and a humanitarian catastrophe.” The war has met a decidedly cool response from Israeli and Arab leaders alike.
Biden is also seeking to cement an anti-Iran alliance as part of US imperialism’s broader efforts to limit China’s expanding economic and political influence in the energy-rich Middle East.
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2022/07/16/zhkw-j16.html
(* A P)
Biden’s Saudi visit aims to balance rights, oil, security
Biden’s nearly three hours at the royal palace were widely seen as a diplomatic victory for Prince Mohammed, who has tried to rehabilitate his image, draw investments to the kingdom for his reform plans and bolster the kingdom’s security relationship with the U.S.
The Saudis carefully controlled the visit, even trying to bar Post reporters from a briefing with government officials before relenting.
They also released a steady stream of photos and videos from private meetings that journalists were barred from attending. Biden was shown shaking hands with King Salman, the 86-year-old monarch who suffers from poor health, including two hospitalizations this year, while the crown prince looked on.
Afterward, reporters were only briefly allowed into a meeting that Biden and the crown prince held with their advisers. The two men sat across from each other, an arrangement that burnished the perception that they are counterparts. It’s an image that the crown prince has been eager to foster as he solidifies his path to the throne after sidelining, detaining and seizing the assets of royal rivals and critics.
https://apnews.com/article/biden-israel-middle-east-saudi-arabia-83c27ca7357e41efedaa2318da59d0ab
Films: https://twitter.com/mfu46/status/1548036051989516294
https://twitter.com/mfu46/status/1548040688222105600
(* B P)
Can Biden's Saudi Visit Help End Yemen's War?
Of course, reducing U.S. support to the Saudi-led coalition cannot put out the flames of war in Yemen alone. However, it could push Saudi Arabia and the UAE, the leading members of the coalition fighting the Houthis in Yemen (despite Emirati claims of a withdrawal), to rethink their approach and seek other political solutions.
Biden's criticisms of Saudi military involvement in Yemen, though since toned down, have still put pressure on the kingdom and increased its desire to extract itself from its disastrous war of choice, as administration officials have touted U.S. engagement with Saudi Arabia to get its diplomatic "buy-in."
After seven years of diplomatic failures and rising atrocities that dwarfed any chance for a peaceful solution, there is finally some hope for ending Yemen's war, with the truce holding thanks in part to active American diplomacy. Yet multiple attempts at peace have failed before in Yemen, given the diversity of local armed groups, the fragility of the state and the role of outside powers, particularly Saudi Arabia and Iran. Biden can point to diplomatic progress in Yemen so far, but it remains to be seen if he can still use the full political, economic and military clout of the United States to finally stop this ruinous war and man-made calamity.
https://dawnmena.org/can-bidens-saudi-visit-help-end-yemens-war/
(B P)
President Biden: End the War in Yemen
Biden once said the U.S. should never "check its principles at the door just to buy oil or sell weapons." He should take his own advice.
Despite the absence of congressional approval, the U.S. has continuously backed the coalition against the Houthis since 2015 by providing nearly $60 billion of military support and weapons to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. President Biden's previous pledge to withdraw U.S. support from "offensive operations" in Yemen has so far proven empty.
Alongside this urgent need to protect Yemeni civilians, it is also long past time for Congress to reclaim its authority to declare war under Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution.
Ultimately, it is within the power of the U.S. to end this war in Yemen through diplomacy and by cutting off U.S. arms and military support. Doing so would help bring all sides to the negotiating table and end the prolonged agony of Yemenis.
But after years of war, prioritizing peace in Yemen must not take a back seat to the fossil fuel and arms industries. As Biden himself acknowledged in 2019, whether in Yemen or elsewhere, the U.S. should never "check its principles at the door just to buy oil or sell weapons."
https://www.commondreams.org/views/2022/07/15/president-biden-end-war-yemen
(A P)
Opinion: What President Biden can do to free Americans imprisoned overseas
President Biden can demonstrate that his administration takes their cases seriously when he travels to Saudi Arabia on July 13. He should go beyond simply mouthing well-worn platitudes about human rights in his meetings with Saudi leaders and personally meet with American detainees in the kingdom.
Bader al-Ibrahim, Walid Fitaihi and Salah al-Haidar are being held in Saudi Arabia. Al-Haidar, the son of a women's rights activist, and al-Ibrahim, a writer and doctor, were detained in April 2019 and subsequently charged with terrorism-related crimes.
In addition to these publicized cases, Saudi Arabia's prisons hold numerous other American citizens whose names are not as well known.
The bureaucratic lethargy of Washington is legendary, and unfortunately it sometimes takes high-profile interventions to shake things loose.
(* B P)
If Biden cared about 'bullies,' he wouldn't be warming up to Saudi Arabia
Biden's bid to get Saudi Arabia to pump more oil shows that strategic interests really guide foreign policy.
President Joe Biden has justified the U.S.’s massive aid packages to Ukraine and its isolation campaign against Russia on the grounds that the U.S. “stands up to bullies.” But his trip attempting to reset relations with Saudi Arabia this week underscores how the U.S. is, in fact, perfectly happy to work with bullies — when it serves American strategic interests.
Not only was Biden’s op-ed unconvincing — his promise to make Saudi Arabia a “pariah” sounded a lot more rupture than reorient — but it also downplayed a major reason for the trip that the administration has mostly avoided talking about: oil. It’s not the only reason Biden is resetting its relationship with Saudi Arabia, but it’s a big one, and it’s certainly contributing to the timing of the trip.
Biden’s reversal helps clarify what actually drives his foreign policy: American geopolitical interests. While he has deployed rhetoric of standing up to tyrants in his approach to Russia-Ukraine and his decision to bar Cuba and Venezuela from the Summit of the Americas, that bravado becomes a whimper when it comes to Saudi Arabia, a country that’s ruthlessly authoritarian and a regional bully.
Biden is able to find this tolerable because the narrative that U.S. foreign policy is based on a consistent application of moral principles is a lie. Resetting ties with Saudi Arabia makes sense for the Biden administration because the country is a vital security and energy partner for the U.S. It's really that simple. And it's a reminder that the main reason the U.S. is aiding Ukraine with such great intensity isn’t due to an unwavering commitment to fighting bullies, but because Russia is an adversary whose resource depletion and geopolitical decline serves U.S. interests.
The Biden administration can defend itself by arguing that all countries must be practical in their pursuit of their interests, and that sometimes that means doing business with unsavory nations. Fair enough. But then it should drop the act of disguising its self-interest in the language of high principle when it comes to its diplomacy elsewhere in the world
My comment: Very good. But, to add: The US itself is the main “bully” on this planet.
cp9a USA-Iran Krise: Spannungen am Golf / US-Iran crisis: Tensions at the Gulf
(A P)
US Defense Officials 'Advise' Iran Not To Provide Drones To Russia
US defense officials said in a briefing on Wednesday that it is not a good idea for Iran to provide military drones to Russia, without elaborating further.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Mike Milley speaking extensively on the war in Ukraine responded to questions about US accusations that Russia is planning to obtain Iranian drones to strengthen its weakening position in battles.
Austin responding to a question said, “on the issue of Iranian support to Russia, we would -- we would advise Iran to not -- to not do that. We think it's a really, really bad idea. And I'll leave that at that.” Gen Milley refused to expand on Austin's remarks "at the microphone."
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202207213552
My comment: This sounds funny by world’s greatest arms exporter, fueling wars all over the world with its arms.
(A P)
Nuclear deal can survive if US opts for own interests rather than Israel’s: Foreign Ministry spokesman
Tehran says multilateral negotiations to revive the 2015 Iran deal will be fruitful if the United States looks at the issue through the lens of its own national interests rather than those of the Israeli regime.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani told a press conference on Wednesday that the US seems to be weak when it comes to making “an independent political decision” about whether it is willing to return to the deal, four years after it unilaterally walked away.
(A P)
Iraq’s PM to push for regional dialogue at Mideast summit
Iraq’s caretaker prime minister, whose country is mired in political crisis, says it is in Iraq’s interest to keep pushing for a rapprochement between Iran and Saudi Arabia to ease regional tensions.
Speaking to The Associated Press Friday evening, Mustafa al-Kadhimi said Iraq intended to keep up its role hosting talks between the two Mideast neighbors whose rivalry has often played out in Iraq, leading to perpetual paralysis.
“Iraq contributed to the Saudi-Iranian rapprochement, and several sessions held were successful and fruitful, and a great rapprochement took place,”
https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-iran-saudi-arabia-iraq-c06361f25c45317a4a71658729db4d25
(A P)
Iran rejects US claim on sending combat drones to Russia, says it opposes war everywhere
cp12 Andere Länder / Other countries
Siehe / Look at cp1 (Emirates)
(A H P)
Ede did not want refugees from Somalia and Yemen
Ede banned refugees from Somalia and Yemen. Mayor René Verhulst: 'someone else may also do something'
(A P)
UN exposes reality of UAE in violating human rights
The United Nations has exposed the reality of repression in the UAE and the violation of laws through the continuous detention of prisoners of conscience and human rights defenders without legal basis.
The UN expert, Marie Lawlor, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, highlighted, in a tweet on Twitter, that the prisoner of conscience in the UAE, Mohammed Al-Roken, had completed his sentence without being released.
Lawlor called on the UAE authorities to release the defender of Al-Roken immediately and allow him to travel outside the country if he so desires.
https://en.ypagency.net/266830/
referring to https://twitter.com/MaryLawlorhrds/status/1548591231281770496
(A P)
UAE sentences former Khashoggi lawyer to 3 years in prison
The United Arab Emirates has sentenced an American citizen and the former lawyer of Jamal Khashoggi — the dissident Saudi journalist who was killed at Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul in 2018 — to three years in prison on charges of money laundering and tax evasion.
The lawyer, U.S. citizen Asim Ghafoor, was also ordered to pay a fine of $816,748 stemming from his in absentia conviction, the UAE’s state-run WAM news agency reported late Saturday, adding that he would be deported after completing his sentence.
Ghafoor’s lawyer dismissed the charges as “absolutely not accurate at all.”
https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-crime-arrests-acbfb23cb5f6068344abd33e058187e2
and
(A P)
US disputes UAE’s explanation of Khashoggi lawyer arrest
The United States on Monday said it had not sought the arrest of the former lawyer of slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, contradicting the United Arab Emirates’ official explanation for the American citizen’s detention.
(A P)
UAE leader in France to discuss Russian energy alternatives
French President Emmanuel Macron is hosting the leader of the United Arab Emirates on Monday to ensure energy supplies from the oil-rich Gulf country as Europe prepares for the possibility of a total cutoff of Russian natural gas in retaliation for sanctions over the war in Ukraine.
https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-biden-france-7532af3426ee8067375a54253829c75d
(* B P)
The US and changing geopolitics of the Red Sea
A great power scramble for the Red Sea region is witnessed as recent geopolitical events have boosted the strategic relevance of the region.
Two recent developments underscore the resurgent geopolitics of the Red Sea which is caught between great power politics and regional rivalries. The United States (US) decision to establish a new multinational task force to focus on preventing the smuggling of arms and narcotics in and around the waters of Yemen; and the Iranian decision to bolster its presence in the Red Sea region point to opposite trends that may intensify the geopolitics of the Red Sea.
Expanding global military footprint in the Red Sea
In the last few years, global and regional players have established their military bases in the littoral states of the Red Sea.
Russia has announced plans to establish a naval base in Sudan whereas China holds a military base in Djibouti. The imperative to expand influence and establish a military presence in one of the key water bodies drives their efforts.
In the context of the war in Yemen, since 2015, the UAE and Saudi Arabia sought to limit the power of Iran-supported Houthis and also curb Iranian influence in the southern Red Sea region. They expanded their influence as well as military presence by building partnerships with Sudan, Djibouti, and Eritrea. Türkiye wants to rebuild the port of Suakin in Sudan which will complement its presence in Somalia. The Middle Eastern powers are deeply involved in the domestic politics of African states located in the broader Red Sea region. Regional rivalries between the Middle Eastern players add an important dimension to the geopolitics of the Red Sea.
In some ways, the intensified rivalries in the Red Sea region are reminiscent of the colonial past. Intense colonial competition between Britain, Italy, and France for the control of the Red Sea region resulted in the establishment of their colonies along the littorals.
Despite the growing global military presence in the region, maritime traffic through the Red Sea has moved seamlessly. The greater global and regional interest in the Red Sea has been leveraged by the regional states to draw maximum benefits. Djibouti survives on the rents paid by those who operate foreign military bases. Eritrea and Sudan have sought to end their isolation by engaging with regional players.
The step by the US to spruce up its strategic presence in the region has a twin objective: To change the perception that the US influence in the region may be waning and to assure friends like Saudi Arabia and the UAE that the US is not working at cross-purposes with them. Besides, the US also seeks their cooperation in increasing the oil output.
https://www.eurasiareview.com/17072022-the-us-and-changing-geopolitics-of-the-red-sea-analysis/ = https://www.orfonline.org/expert-speak/the-us-and-changing-geopolitics-of-the-red-sea/
cp12b Sudan
(* A P)
Sudan official: Death toll from days of tribal clashes at 79
Days of tribal clashes in a southern province in Sudan have killed at least 79 people, a senior Sudanese official said Tuesday as violent protests erupted in two nearby provinces in the East African nation.
The clashes between the Hausa and Birta ethnic groups in the Blue Nile province grew out of a killing of a farmer last week. The violence has also injured around 200 people, according to Gamal Nasser al-Sayed, the province’s health minister.
https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-africa-sudan-united-nations-945aa1585662547824a71fdfb9616355
(* A P)
Sudan official says death toll from tribal clashes at 65
The death toll from days of tribal clashes in a southern Sudanese province climbed to at least 65 people, a senior health official said Sunday.
The fighting between the Hausa and Birta ethnic groups in the Blue Nile province also injured around 150 others, said Gamal Nasser al-Sayed, the province’s health minister.
He told The Associated Press that most of the dead were young men who were shot or stabbed.
https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-africa-sudan-86f5d2823674aee711f2018e3a97dbb5
(* A P)
Sudan says 31 killed in tribal clashes in Blue Nile province
At least 31 people were killed in tribal clashes that fired up again on Saturday in a Sudanese southern province, authorities said, the latest bloodshed in a country in turmoil since an October military coup.
The fighting between the Hausa and Birta ethnic groups in the Blue Nile province grew out of the killing of a farmer earlier this week, according to a statement from the local government late Friday.
https://apnews.com/article/middle-east-africa-sudan-omar-al-bashir-b1aa571392bc03b539ca7b10f4d20f60
cp13a Waffenhandel / Arms trade
(B K P)
Here's a new analysis of the Iranian KL-7.62 market in Aden, #Yemen. It covers the appearance of Iranian KLTs & KLFs in an online gun forum in 2021 & 2022. These arms were likely captured at Houthi sites and/or acquired from arms vendors in other parts of Yemen.
https://twitter.com/JoshuaKoontz__/status/1549749786320031745
The Iranian Arms Dashboard has been updated. It includes new K-7.62 appearances in Aden. The KL-7.62 & Sageg have now most frequently appeared in 2021 (7 governorates, respectively). The KL-7.62 has now most frequently appeared in 2022 (6 governorates).
https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/joshua.koontz5272/viz/IranianArmsDashboard/IranianArmsMap
cp13b Mercenaries / Söldner
(* A K P)
SDF reveals a new Turkish plan to send mercenaries to Yemen and Southern Kurdistan
Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) revealed the so-called "mission (3)" of the Turkish occupation in recruiting more Syrian mercenaries and sending them to Yemen and southern Kurdistan to fight guerrilla.
At the beginning of its statement, SDF said: "Turkish intelligence informed factions of the so-called (Syrian National Army) to open the door for recruitment the mercenaries to carry another military mission outside Syrian territory."
According to the statement, the Turkish occupation “named the mission (Mission No. 3), in reference to the sequence of foreign missions that the mercenaries joined based on the directives of Turkish intelligence, where (Mission No. 1) was fighting in Libya, and (Mission No. 2) Fighting alongside Turkish intelligence in Azerbaijan.
According to pictures of written contracts obtained by Media Center of the Syrian Democratic Forces, each Syrian mercenary from the (Syrian National Army) who joins foreign mission No. 3 will receive a monthly salary of $2,500.
Syrian Democratic Forces confirmed that "these mercenaries are scheduled to undergo focused military training in camps of Kilis, where a batch of mercenaries (Ahrar al-Sharqiya, Sultan Murad and Suleiman Shah) have already arrived, while the leaders of the mercenaries (Alshamiya Front) refrained from sending mercenaries.
cp13c Kulturerbe / Cultural heritage
(* B C P)
Emergency Red List of Cultural Objects at Risk – Yemen
https://icom.museum/en/ressource/emergency-red-list-of-cultural-objects-at-risk-yemen/
(C)
Yemen, the “Fruitful Arabia”
"My country needs acknowledgement and resources in order for the creators to thrive," says FTA finalist Kazna Asker.
https://fashiontrustarabia.com/yemen-the-fruitful-arabia/
(C)
Photo: Did you see how high the clouds are?? This is the Yemeni above the clouds.
https://twitter.com/GhalebM0nz1i7/status/1549909351569178625
(A E P)
A think tank advises Yemen on a new approach to achieving development
A new economic study said that investing in development engines will pave the way for bottom-up, sustainable and equitable social and economic development in Yemen.
The study "Democratizing Development Drivers: Towards a New Approach for Yemen" confirmed that democratizing development drivers will improve relations and social cohesion in societies.
The study, issued by the Arabia Brain Trust, indicated that democratizing development engines will strengthen citizens' voices demanding transparency and accountability from government, legislative,
https://www.newsyemen.net/new/85973
(* A C P)
Anger in Yemen after Saudi-backed militias demolish 700-year-old mosque in Al-Hudaydah
The militias are not the only ones that demolish mosques; the Saudi-led coalition also launched airstrikes against a number of mosques completely demolishing them.
Saudi-backed militias demolished on July 8, 2022, Al-Noor Mosque in Al-Qataba area of Al-Khokha District in Al-Hudaydah Governorate, causing anger among government institutions and non-governmental organizations.
The Mosque's construction dates back to the history of the Rasulid state that ruled Yemen from the 1200s to the 1400s. The Mosque was an ordinary building topped with domes.
The militias of Al-Maharami are Saudi-backed Salafis who come from the southern governorates of Lahj and Abyan that had demolished mosques and shrines west of Taiz and southern Al-Hudaydah, as part of their campaign, "mission to fight polytheism."
He noted that he has spoken with residents of Al-Qataba's area where the Mosque is built and found them "angry at the tampering of their ancient mosque."
"The mosque's domes, minarets, and large parts of the roof were destroyed. There was nothing left in it except the ablution places [bathrooms] that are separate from the mosque and built recently," Maodhah told Al Mayadeen English.
No UN organization has condemned the demolition of Al-Houthi's shrine and other historical Mosques by the Saudi airstrikes although they were similar to the shocking destruction of shrines in Syria and Iraq by ISIS.
Maodhah, Al-Hudaydah-based journalist said the Saudi-backed "militias were founded on the rejection of the other when the other does not follow the directives of the uninvited Wahhabi culture to the Yemeni people coming from Najd and Al-Hijaz [Saudi Arabia] as a religious terrorist trend that constitutes a lever for the rule of the Al Saud family."
"These militias view mosques and shrines as being outside the religion [polytheists] according to their concept of religion," Maodhah told Al Mayadeen English.
He stressed that the Wahabi ideology is summed up in "murder and self-destruction that God has forbidden, demolishing mosques and blessed shrines, and carrying out any abhorrent act that has nothing to do with our true Islamic religion."
(C)
Photo: Germa village Bani Al-Hass, eastern #Haraz Manakhah District, #Sanaa، #Yemen Governorate
https://twitter.com/GhalebM0nz1i7/status/1549055344977973248
(C)
The story of a unique engineering miracle and the Yemeni pyramids in which the Yemenis have been created since ancient times and subdued the high mountains, and painted verses of magic and beauty (photo)
https://twitter.com/GhalebM0nz1i7/status/1549091893241413632
cp13d Wirtschaft / Economy
Siehe / Look at cp1
(A E)
July 20: today in Aden, the Yemeni rial (YER) stood at 1,132 YER/USD, marking a 22% depreciation since April, when it recovered to 880 YER/USD in wake of a truce, new executive, and Saudi/UAE aid pledges. Market confidence is waning as Yemen’s economy remains in dire straits.
https://twitter.com/NavantiGroup/status/1549756446681751553
(A E P)
$9.5 Billion in Revenues from Yemen's Oil Looted by US-Saudi Aggression Since 2018
[Sanaa gov.] Minister of Oil and Minerals in the Sana’a, Ahmed Daras, revealed that the US-Saudi aggression has looted $9.5 billion in Oil revenues since 2018.
Minister Daris indicated that they are selling sectors and some sectors are captured by the US-Saudi aggression.
cp14 Terrorismus / Terrorism
(A T)
Sanaa forces storm al-Qaeda stronghold in “Khubza” mountains in Bayda
https://en.ypagency.net/266835/
and also https://twitter.com/GhalebM0nz1i7/status/1549768516454195200
(A T)
Two Daesh leaders arrested in east Yemen
https://debriefer.net/en/news-30221.html
(A T)
New statement from #alQaeda #Yemen offers condolences for #Somali cleric Nur Mu'allim 'Abd al-Rahman. Mostly mundane BUT Stresses need to educate new generation of pro-#jihad scholars Shows enduring affection between #AQAP & #alShabab (who btw named training camp after Raymi) (images)
https://twitter.com/Dr_E_Kendall/status/1548266018958495745
cp15 Propaganda
(A P)
Huthi-Führer: Schon Mohammed verurteilte »schmutzige« Juden
Die jemenitischen Huthi-Milizen sind für ihren extremen Judenhass bekannt und führen ihn bis auf den Propheten Mohammed zurück.
Der Anführer der mit dem Iran verbündeten Huthi-Milizen, Abdul-Malik Badreddin Al-Houthi, erklärte am 22. Juni auf dem jemenitischen Sender Al-Masirah TV, die Juden wären das schmutzigste Volk auf Erden.
https://www.mena-watch.com/huthi-fuehrer-schon-mohammed-verurteilte-schmutzige-juden/
(A P)
Houthi Leader: The Jewish neighborhoods were the dirtiest in Medina, thus the prophet Muhammad said: don’t be like the Jews, who were an example of filth
Houthi leader Abdul-Malik Badreddin Al-Houthi said in an address that aired on Al-Masirah TV (Houthis-Yemen) that the Jews during the Prophet Muhammad’s time had been used as an example of filth. He claimed that Muhammad had told his followers to “not be like the Jews” because their neighborhoods had been the filthiest in Medina.
(A P)
A message to Yemenis: Look at what you demand and what the west wants
Over more than eight years, you have known sectarian Shia Houthis as the bloodiest terror organization on planet Earth.
And while you are now exhausted of demanding the world to designate the Houthis as a terrorists and deal with them as terrorists, the western commentary to this day still advices governments to recognize these Shia sectarian murderers as your legitimate formal government!
The 'Time' has lately given a platform to a Houthi terrorist by the name Rayman Al-Hamdani to convey this blatant call.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-57876
(A P)
Cartoon: #Houthis and the so-called Wilayah (Guardianship) day
https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/1548737306558959616
(A P)
Yemen Yelling but to No Avail: Biden Backpedals on Houthis
So far, the President has failed to reinstate on the Foreign Terrorist Organization list the group that is primarily responsible for the bloodshed — the Houthis.
But Irina Tsukerman, a human rights and national security attorney, told Newsmax that any truce is not going to last, and that Iran is the dominant figure in the bloodshed in Yemen.
“Iran is the one really calling the shots,” said Tsukerman, “but they [the Houthis] have become proxies and not just partners.”
Iran’s intentions were also questioned by Manel Msalmi, founder and president of The European Association for the Defense of Minorities. She told us that the Iranians are relentlessly going after vulnerable targets in Europe, and include the Israelis on their “hit list.”
As Iran’s proxy and with its full support, the Houthis continue to wage vicious attacks in Yemen.
https://www.newsmax.com/world/globaltalk/yemen-biden-houthi/2022/07/16/id/1079065/
(A P)
Houthi co-operation with al-Qaeda behind Yemen terror attacks: experts
A spike in terror attacks in government-controlled areas may be a reaction to the formation of a new committee to unify security forces.
There has been an uptick in terror attacks in government-controlled areas of Yemen in recent weeks, which some officials and experts blame on the covert co-operation between al-Qaeda and the Iran-backed Houthis.
The formation in May of a military committee to unify the work of security forces and the army concerned the Houthis and terror groups, they said, suggesting these groups have stepped up their attacks in response.
On May 30, the Presidential Command Council announced it has formed a high-ranking military committee to restructure the army and security forces in a step aimed at maintaining peace and security in Yemen.
The Houthis' co-operation with al-Qaeda "is sponsored by Iran and serves its interest in destabilising the security of the cities under legitimate government control", said Abaad Centre for Strategic Studies head Abdul Salam Mohammed.
Iran has become "a global hub for directing terrorist groups to carry out terror attacks, especially after the exposure of its role in supporting al-Qaeda", he said.
https://almashareq.com/en_GB/articles/cnmi_am/features/2022/07/15/feature-02
(A P)
The myth of the Houthi isolation, some western analysts and sometimes Yemenis came to us with this hilarious idea.The Houthis have been isolated, which poses the question, who did isolate them? In fact,the Houthis isolated themselves not were isolated by others
First, the Houthi were involved in the National dialogue conference (2013-2014). But they took their weapons and militarily end the political process. Second, after they seized Sana’a, other political parties signed with Houthi the peace and partnership agreement.
Houthis insisted that the government must formed first,then they will withdraw their forces from Sana’a.The government was formed according to their conditions in the signed agreement but the Houthi forces didn’t withdraw.Same scenario repeated in every agreement
https://twitter.com/maysaashujaa/status/1548053457738665985
(A P)
More Saudi coalition „We are benefactors“ propaganda
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2371235
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2371179
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2371174
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370976
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370941
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370195
cp16 Saudische Luftangriffe / Saudi air raids
Fast keine Luftangriffe seit Beginn des Waffenstillstands.
Almost no air raids since the beginning of the truce.
(A K pH)
Saba News Agency: #UAS, #Saudi. & #UAE coalition targeted Maqbna district in #Taiz governorate by an airstrike
https://twitter.com/Mohammedalbokh5/status/1549887024273973248
(A K pH)
Saudi-led coalition resumes airstrikes on Yemen
The Saudi-led coalition aircraft on Wednesday resumed its airstrikes on Yemen, amid international movement to extend the UN-brokered truce, which reflects efforts to undermine it.
Official military source in Sanaa stated that the coalition warplanes launched, during the past hours, three air raids on Dhalea province, southern Yemen.
https://en.ypagency.net/266808/ = https://hodhodyemennews.net/en_US/2022/07/20/saudi-led-coalition-launches-three-airstrikes-on-dhalea-province/
and
(A K pS)
Arab Coalition denies Houthi allegations of striking Yemen’s Dhale
The Arab Coalition denied allegations by the Iran-backed Houthis that it carried out airstrikes in Yemen’s governorate of Dhale.
“The Coalition’s airstrikes have been halted since the truce went into effect,” the Coalition said in a statement on Wednesday, referring to the ceasefire announced on April 1 and extended for a further two months in June.
(B K)
Wikipedia: Bombing of Mokha
The Bombing of Mokha took place on Friday night, 24 July 2015 between 9:30 and 10:00 p.m at Mokha city of Yemen. The airstrikes targeted two residential complexes belonging to engineers and technicians of al-Mukha power plant of Taiz province.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Mokha
cp17 Kriegsereignisse / Theater of War
Siehe / Look at cp16, cp18
Der Waffenstillstand hält überwiegend; beide Seiten werfen sich Verstöße vor.
The truce mostly holds; both sides accuse each other of violations.
(A K pH)
Aggression forces commit 157 violations of armistice in past 24 hours
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195495.htm
(A K pS)
The Houthi militia commit 97 truce violations in 24 hours/Multiple websites.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-57912
(A K pS)
Five soldiers were injured in Houthi attacks and violations of the UN truce yesterday/Yeni Yemen
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-57912
(A K pS)
Indeed, only yesterday, the Houthis attacked the west of the city of Taiz with all kinds of weapons. The attack was from the 50th Street, which the Houthis built during the armistice period, and they said it was for humanitarian reasons.
https://twitter.com/maheralabssi/status/1549785628975448068
and
(A K pS)
the Shia terrorists intensified their war on another city in the country's center, Taiz, and several fighters have been killed since last night in Ghurab area, a western entrance to the besieged city of Taiz.
The terrorists deployed 28 military vehicles and hundreds of fighters from an off-road they have recently constructed for military purposes in the name of opening an access to the city and easing the siege.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-57896
(A K pH)
The mercenaries' artillery shelling targeted army and popular committee positions in the Bekaa Valley in Najran and in Al-Muta'an and Al-Brukiah in Jizan.
https://twitter.com/AlegnaCesho/status/1549849110869553153
(A K pH)
Man killed by Saudi border guards fire in Sa'ada
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195514.htm
(A K pH)
2 Children injured by cluster bomb explosion in Sa'ada: NMAC
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195506.htm
(A K pH)
Aggression forces commit 172 violations of armistice within 24 hours
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195347.htm
(A K pS)
Special press Summary on landmine-related news
Houthi-laid landmines leave 19 casualties within days/Nashwan News
A 24 year old man by the name Yusuf Almaqtari was wounded by a Houthi-laid landmine in Kelaba neighborhood west of the besieged city of Taiz/Taiz Time
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-57897
(A K pS)
45-year-old Nageeba Qaed Ali is reported to have been shot in her right leg by a #Houthi sniper while she was grazing sheep with other women in Saber Al Mawadem, north of the besieged city of #Taiz. (photo)
https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/1549431373424824321
(A K pH)
Bombs explosions injure 2 children in Sa'ada
2 children were injured by 2 bomb explosions left behind by the US-Saudi aggression forces in Al-Dhaher and Haidan districts in Sa'ada province.
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195334.htm
and also https://en.ypagency.net/266742/ and https://en.ypagency.net/266636/
(A K pH)
Aggression forces commit 177 violations of armistice in past 24 hours
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195214.htm
and also, claiming 117: https://en.ypagency.net/266633/
(A K)
Photo: After rains, mines were washed away in the #Raghwan district in #Marib governorate in areas where civilians were present.
https://twitter.com/hosawlan/status/1548979310253510657
(A K pS)
Houthi mine kills one Yemeni, injures 4 others
One Yemeni civilian was killed and four others (most of them children) were injured on Tuesday in a landmine blast in the Houthi-held northern governorate of Sana'a, said MinesinYemen, a center concerned with documenting bomb victims in Yemen.
The Houthi landmine exploded in Nihm district, east Sana'a City, leaving one civilian killed and four others (three children and their father) injured, the watchdog said in a statement.
https://debriefer.net/en/news-30243.html
and also https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-57897
and how the Houthi side tells it:
(A K pH)
Man killed, 4 wounded by mine explosions
A man was killed in Hodeida province, while a citizen and 3 of his children were injured in Nihm district og Sana'a province by explosions of mines and cluster bombs from the aggression's remnants.
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195201.htm
https://hodhodyemennews.net/en_US/2022/07/19/civilian-killed-four-injured-by-mine-and-cluster-munition-explosions/ (with photos)
(A K pH)
Aggression forces commit 269 violations of armistice within 24 hours
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195049.htm
(A B K pS)
Landmines: The Shia's holocausts that even Yemenis as victims might not be aware of
Five children were wounded at once in a landmine blast in western Yemen in the same day, local sources have just said.
The children were reportedly playing in al-Rabsaa neighborhood in al-Kahwk district south of the Red Sea province of Hodeidah when a Houthi-laid landmine exploded causing them to sustain wounds in varying degrees yesterday evening.
Since 2015, Yemeni Arabic media outlets report landmine incidents on a continuous basis, more daily and an hourly than on a weekly basis.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-57867
(A K)
Film: A landmine exploded during the crossing of a car carrying civilians on #Marib - Al-Jawf road across the desert
https://twitter.com/hosawlan/status/1548607681111392256
(A K pS)
The Iran-backed #Houthis have broken the UN-sponsored truce 118 times in the past 24 hours, the Yemeni army said in a statement, adding that 9 soldiers were killed or wounded in attacks launched by the Houthi rebels on different fronts.
https://twitter.com/RepYemenEnglish/status/1548728471853088768
(A K pS)
Southern-thunderbolt-forces-repel-houthi-attack-north-of-al-dhalea
(A K pS)
KSrelief's Masam Project Dismantles 700 Mines in Yemen during One Week
King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) Project (Masam) for clearing mines in Yemen, dismantled, during the second week of July 2022, a total of 700 mines planted by the Houthi militia across Yemen, including 320 anti-tank mines and 380 unexploded ordnance.
Since the beginning of the project, as many as 350,421 mines have been dismantled.
https://www.spa.gov.sa/viewfullstory.php?lang=en&newsid=2370528
(A K pH)
Civilian killed, 2 injured in Saudi bombing on Saada
At least a civilian was killed and two others injured by Saudi artillery shelling on the border areas of Saada province on Sunday.
https://en.ypagency.net/266471/
(A K pH)
10 citizens injured by Saudi border guard's fire in Sa'ada
A security official told the Yemeni News Agency (Saba) that 10 citizens were injured by the Saudi border guards' fire, most of them seriously and they were rushed to Razih Hospital.
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195021.htm
and also https://en.ypagency.net/266475/
(A K pH)
Aggression forces commit 186 violations of armistice within 24 hours
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3194935.htm
and also https://en.ypagency.net/266482/
(A K)
Yemeni Houthis kill 9 gov't soldiers during ceasefire: military official
Nine Yemeni soldiers were killed by the Houthi militia during the past 48 hours in the country, a military official told Xinhua, accusing the militia of breaching the ceasefire.
"The Houthi militia breached the ceasefire brokered by the United Nations and launched a number of attacks against the government-controlled sites in Yemen," the local military source said on condition of anonymity.
The attacks involved scores of attacks using explosive-laden drones and artillery shells in various regions, he added.
The source confirmed that the Houthi ceasefire breaches left nine members of the government forces killed and several others injured.
https://english.news.cn/20220717/df4472ce52004fde8e7e29b16b0d027d/c.html
and
(A K pS)
Houthi truce violations: 17 soldiers killed and injured in two days
The sources said the Houthi militia committed 188 truce violations on Thursday through Friday in Hodeidah, Taiz, Dhale'a, Hajjah, Saada, Aljawf and Marib.
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-57855
(A K pH)
174 Recorded Violations of UN-sponsored Truce by US-Saudi Aggression
(* B K pH)
3,941 Citizens Killed, Wounded by Cluster Bombs in Sa’adah Governorate: Executive Center for Mine Action
The director of the center Colonel Ahmed Abu Khalba said in a statement to Almasirah, that 1037 citizens were killed, including 119 women and children.
He pointed out that the US-Saudi warplanes dropped 16 types of cluster bombs on Sa’adah governorate.
Colonel Abu Khalba said: "We do not have the detection devices for cluster bombs, and we face difficulties due to the lack of information from the manufacturing countries on how to get rid of them."
For his part, an awareness trainer for the center in Saada, Waddah Al-Sayedi, pointed out that Sa’adah Governorate is one of the most affected governorates by cluster bombs.
(A K pS)
The Houthi militia committed 77 ceasefire violations in 24 hours (Wednesday), the army has said/Alsahwa
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-57838
cp18 Kampf um Hodeidah / Hodeidah battle
Seit dem Abkommen von Stockholm vom 13. Dezember 2018 gibt es einen Waffenstillstand für Hodeidah. Zwar bleiben größere Offensiven aus, kleinere Gefechte gibt es aber laufend, und beide Seiten werfen sich ständig Verstöße gegen den Waffenstillstand vor.
Since the Stockholm Agreement of December 13, 2018, a ceasefire has been in place for Hodeidah. There are no major offensives, but smaller battles are ongoing and both sides constantly are accusing each other of violating the ceasefire.
(A K pH)
Aggression forces commit 77 violations of Hodeida ceasefire
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195484.htm
(A K pS)
Man killed by Houthi landmine in Hodeidah
A man named Adel Qatab was killed today (Wednesday) by a Houthi-laid landmine in Al-Tohayta district south of Hodeidah
https://www.alsahwa-yemen.net/en/p-57912
(A K pH)
60 Recorded Violations by US-Saudi Aggression in Hodeidah
and also https://en.ypagency.net/266700/
(A K pS)
Joint forces down Houthi drone in Hodeidah
http://en.adenpress.news/news/35351
(A K pH)
Aggression violates Hodeida ceasefire 49 times
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195188.htm
(A K P)
UNMHA expresses sadness over landmine incidents in Hodeidah
UN Mission to support the Hodeidah Agreement (UNMHA) expressed today its sadness over a further 5 landmine incidents in Hodeidah during the past four days, two of which reportedly resulted in the injury of at least 7 children in Al-Hawak and Al-Duraihimi districts.
http://en.adenpress.news/news/35346
(A K pH)
Child Killed in Mine Explosion of US-Saudi Aggression's Remnants in Hodeidah
and also https://en.ypagency.net/266511/
(A K pH)
Two children injured due to explosion of cluster bomb in Hodeidah
https://en.ypagency.net/266554/ = https://hodhodyemennews.net/en_US/2022/07/18/two-children-injured-by-cluster-munition-explosion-in-hodeidah/
(A K pH)
Aggression violates Hodeida ceasefire 181 times
https://www.saba.ye/en/news3195047.htm
(A K pH)
Three Civilians Injured by Explosion of US-Saudi Remnant in Hodeidah
Three citizens were injured as a result of a projectile explosion from the remnants of the US-Saudi aggression in Hodeidah Governorate.
Almasirah Net correspondent reported that the explosion occurred as a result of tampering with the shell by a child in Al-Rabsa neighborhood in Al-Hawk district.
(A K pH)
15 Citizens Killed, Injured on Explosion of Cluster Bombs Left Over from US-Saudi Aggression
The Executive Center for Mine Action stated that today, two children were injured as a result of the explosion of a cluster bomb left over from US-Saudi aggression in Al-Durayhimi district, Al-Hodeidah governorate.
(A K pS)
Houthis Commit 74 Ceasefire Violations on West Coast
The Iran-backed Houthi militias have committed 74 violations of the U.N.-mediated truce over the past 48 hours on the West Coast, the joint forces reported on Saturday.
http://en.adenpress.news/news/35338
(A K pH)
55 Recorded Violations by US-Saudi Aggression in Hodeidah
and also https://en.ypagency.net/266372/
cp19 Sonstiges / Other
(A H)
Film: Civilians enjoy Yemen’s ceasefire at the coast
After six years of fighting, Yemeni civilians are taking advantage of a fragile ceasefire and the last weekend of the Eid Al Adha holiday by flocking to the beach in Aden. The coast of the war-torn country's fourth largest city attracts visitors from all parts of south Yemen, where citizens complain of a lack of parks and other public facilities. Resident Muhammad Al-Babouri told A24 News Agency that Aden's coast is the only safe outlet for people to enjoy the outdoors after the war destroyed most of the country's parks. While enjoying the return to normalcy, beachgoers say authorities need to allocate more outdoor recreation areas and provide access at fair prices that everyone can afford.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXtn6ttB5UI
(A E H)
Film: As ceasefire takes hold- LA-style food trucks roll though Aden
As civilians begin to enjoy Yemen's fragile ceasefire- a new phenomenon has arrived in the southern port city of Aden. Roving trucks ply the streets selling shawarma and burgers and have become an instant success as the town returns to normalcy. Truck owners say they are a part of a trend of young people who are starting small businesses determined to make a living despite an economic crisis exacerbated by soaring fuel prices and an unemployment rate topping thirteen percent.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umRhV5ab9IU
(A H)
Dozens of camels swept away by flood in Jawf
https://en.ypagency.net/266453/
(A)
Jackie Chan dreht Film in ehemaliger IS-Hochburg
Es geht um die Rettung chinesischer Staatsbürger aus dem Jemen während des Bürgerkrieges im Jahr 2015. Peking bezeichnete die Operation gerne als „Meilenstein“, die Befreiung der Chinesen wurde gebührend in den staatsnahen Medien gefeiert.
Dreh wäre im Jemen zu gefährlich gewesen
Ironischerweise wäre der Dreh im Jemen aufgrund der andauernden Kampfhandlungen zu gefährlich gewesen, also hat man sich kurzerhand für eine syrische Geisterstadt entschieden, die einst Hochburg der Terrormiliz Islamischer Staat war.
(A)
Jackie Chan is producing Chinese action movie shot in Syria, set in Yemen
Martial arts movie legend Jackie Chan is to co-produce a Chinese movie partially filmed in Syria inspired by events surrounding Beijing's 2015 naval evacuation of Chinese and other foreign citizens from Yemen as the joint Saudi and UAE-led coalition launched its on-going war against the country.
and also https://news.yahoo.com/ex-bastion-syria-hosts-jackie-052954518.html
and
(A P)
The Emirati-backed Jackie Chan movie is a terrible moral downfall
The art scene has not witnessed a moral and legal downfall like the fall of the international actor, Jackie Chan, who started shooting a movie in Al-Hajar Al-Aswad area, south of Damascus, which was destroyed and deserted at the hands of the Syrian regime. Chan is using the suffering of thousands of Syrians and their destroyed homes to tell the story that occurred in another devasted area, i.e., Yemen.
The movie, called "Home Operation", is sponsored by China and the UAE, the most hostile regimes against rights and freedoms, and facilitated by the Syrian regime, which prepared the film set with its bloody genius years ago, as if it had been preparing it specifically for Chan's movie.
Both the UAE and China are drowning in countless international crimes, so it is not surprising that they used the scene of the Syrian regime's crimes to produce a film that tells a story that took place in Yemen
My remark: On this place, read: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Hajar_al-Aswad. Really just “destroyed and deserted at the hands of the Syrian regime”? This would be too simple at all.
and
(A P)
Here is why people in Syria are angry with Jackie Chan over his upcoming Yemen movie ‘Home Operation’
(A P)
‘The Ambush’ director Pierre Morel says he met Yemen War vets for his film
Director Pierre Morel delves into details to discuss his film 'The Ambush', why he chose the subject and meeting people who were actually part of the Yemen war.
Talking about what attracted him to the story, director Pierre said: "I have always wanted to work on a war story. I have previously done thriller stories but none that were about war and based on a true story. Even though the movie is specifically based on UAE and Yemen, it is a universal story; it is all about brotherhood and sacrifice."
"This is what attracted me to the story right away - how it is beyond just action and war; the story has the ability to evoke strong emotions."
Based on the Yemen War, 'The Ambush' is about how three of Emirati soldiers are attacked in enemy territory, and their captain organises a daring rescue mission.
My remark: This was a pro-UAE propaganda B-movie.
Vorige / Previous:
https://www.freitag.de/autoren/dklose/jemenkrieg-mosaik-815-yemen-war-mosaic-815
Jemenkrieg-Mosaik 1-815 / Yemen War Mosaic 1-815:
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:
Was ist Ihre Meinung?
Kommentare einblendenDiskutieren Sie mit.