AL-MUKALLA: The internationally recognized government of Yemen claims that the latest draft of a peace plan submitted by the UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths is biased toward the Iran-backed Houthis and “undermines” the government’s legitimacy, three government officials told Arab News on Thursday.
“The proposal suggests accepting the current situation and the changes on the ground including Houthis as an armed group,” one Cabinet minister, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Arab News. The minister said the main “bone of contention” is “three references that the UN envoy wants to convince everyone are irrelevant” — namely the GCC Initiative, the outcomes of the National Dialogue Conference, and Security Council Resolution 2216.
Another government official said the latest draft of the peace plan includes a nationwide truce and demands that the government pays public servants. The official said that the government believes those items contradict the “three references” that oblige the Houthis to hand over their weapons, leave Sana’a and other areas under their control, and allow the government to return to the capital.
“The plan gives legitimacy to the coup that Houthis plotted in late 2014. The fait-accompli policy cannot give international legitimacy to the putschists,” the second government official said. The government also believes that the Houthis should share the cost of paying government salaries, claiming the Iran-backed militia has taken large sums of money from seaports, banks and telecom companies.
A third senior government official told Arab News that the Houthis should be required to stop executing their opponents and seizing their properties in Sanaa, to release detainees, and to open Sanaa airport and Hodeida port.
“The problem is that the UN Yemen envoy is sometimes not a mediator. He supports the demand of the Houthis,” the third official said.
Yemen’s Foreign Minister Mohammed Al-Hadrami said on Wednesday that the government rejected the latest draft of the peace plan and would abide by the previous draft, which did not include the controversial points.
Griffiths refutes the government’s accusations, saying the proposed peace plan asks all parties to cease hostilities and immediately engage in talks based on the three references, which he described in an interview with UN News as “the only way to break with the violence of the past and end this conflict comprehensively and sustainably.”
Griffiths recognized that major issues between the two sides remain, but said: “There are always points of convergence that a mediation process can build on. Yemen is no different. We will continue to work with the parties to find a consensual path forward to achieve these mutual goals and pave the way for bringing this conflict to a sustainable end.”
Without specifically naming the Houthis, Griffiths called for rebels to immediately halt offensives in the provinces of Jawf and Marib. “The continued assault on Marib is unacceptable. I am afraid this assault could seriously undermine the prospects of peace in Yemen,” he said.
Several previous rounds of peace talks between the government and Houthis in Geneva, Biel and Kuwait have failed. The government insists that the Houthis must disarm before they can share power, while the Houthis wish to discuss power-sharing and other political arrangements before withdrawing from cities under their control.
Houthi missiles
The provincial office of the Ministry of Human Rights in Marib said in a statement that 244 ballistic missiles and Katyusha rockets fired by the Houthis since early 2015 have killed 251 civilians — including 25 children and 12 women — and wounded 438 others, including 47 children and eight women.
Yemeni government rejects latest UN peace plan draft
https://arab.news/vg72e
Yemeni government rejects latest UN peace plan draft
- The plan gives legitimacy to the coup that Houthis plotted in late 2014, says a government official
Syria’s de facto leader congratulates Trump, looks forward to improving relations
- In early January, Washington issued a sanctions exemption for transactions with governing institutions in Syria for six months in an effort to ease the flow of humanitarian assistance
CAIRO: Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa congratulated US President Donald Trump on his inauguration in a statement on Monday, saying he is looking forward to improving relations between the two countries.
“We are confident that he is the leader to bring peace to the Middle East and restore stability to the region,” he said.
The US, Britain, the European Union and others imposed tough sanctions on Syria after a crackdown by ousted President Bashar Assad on pro-democracy protests in 2011 that spiralled into civil war.
In early January, Washington issued a sanctions exemption for transactions with governing institutions in Syria for six months in an effort to ease the flow of humanitarian assistance.
Syria welcomed the move, but has urged a complete lifting of sanctions to support its recovery.
Over 900 aid trucks enter Gaza on 2nd day of truce: UN
- The ceasefire agreement calls for 600 trucks to cross into Gaza per day
UNITED NATIONS, United States: More than 900 trucks carrying humanitarian aid entered Gaza on Monday, the United Nations said, exceeding the daily target outlined in the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.
“Humanitarian aid continues to move into the Gaza Strip as part of a prepared surge to increase support to survivors,” the UN’s humanitarian office (OCHA) said.
“Today, 915 trucks crossed into Gaza, according to information received through engagement with Israeli authorities and the guarantors for the ceasefire agreement.”
Throughout conflict in Gaza, the UN has denounced obstacles restricting the flow and distribution of aid into the battered Palestinian territory.
On Sunday, the day the ceasefire came into force, 630 trucks entered Gaza.
An initial 42-day truce between Israel and Hamas is meant to enable a surge of sorely needed aid for Gaza after 15 months of war.
The ceasefire agreement calls for 600 trucks to cross into Gaza per day.
Hamas ‘ready for dialogue’ with Trump administration, senior official says
- Mousa Abu Marzouk, 74, currently based in Qatar, is native of Gaza, former resident of Virginia
- It is unclear whether statement reflects broad consensus among militant group in Gaza Strip
LONDON: The Hamas militant group in the Gaza Strip is ready to engage in dialogue with the US and its new administration under Donald Trump, according to one of its senior officials Mousa Abu Marzouk.
Abu Marzouk, who is a member of Hamas’ political office, told The New York Times on Sunday that the group was “prepared for a dialogue with America and to achieve understanding on everything.”
Abu Marzouk, 74, who is currently based in Qatar, is a native of Gaza and a former resident of Virginia.
His statement came hours after a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect in the Gaza Strip, coinciding with the inauguration of a new administration in the White House.
It is unclear whether Abu Marzouk’s words reflect a broad consensus among the militant group in Gaza, which launched a cross-border attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
The US has classified Hamas as a terrorist organization since 1997.
Abu Marzouk told The New York Times that Hamas was prepared to welcome an envoy from the Trump administration to the Gaza Strip.
He said: “He can come and see the people and try to understand their feelings and wishes, so that the American position can be based on the interests of all the parties and not only one party.”
Abu Marzouk praised Trump for helping to secure the ceasefire agreement in Gaza between Hamas and Israel, adding that “without President Trump’s insistence on ending the war and his dispatching of a decisive representative, this deal wouldn’t have happened.”
Israelis want Trump to ‘make Israel normal again’
- During his first term, Trump broke with much of the international community and moved the US embassy to Jerusalem
TEL AVIV: For many Israelis yearning for a future free from war and for the release of hostages still held in Gaza, US President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House on Monday is a source of hope.
On the eve of his inauguration, three women hostages were released after 15 months in captivity by Hamas militants, after mediators Qatar, the United States and Egypt clinched a Gaza ceasefire agreement.
Trump, whose envoy took part in negotiations even ahead of his return to the presidency, claimed credit for the deal following months of fruitless negotiations.
But many Israelis have been looking forward to his return for a while, even ahead of the ceasefire.
In Tel Aviv’s Sarona commercial district, a massive banner bearing the president-elect’s image was erected weeks ago.
It shows Trump, his fist raised in defiance. The caption, a reference to the hostages, reads: “ALL OF THEM UNTIL THE 20.1 — OR THE FIRE OF HELL WILL OPEN.”
In early December, Trump warned of “hell” if, by his inauguration, Hamas did not release the dozens of Israeli hostages held since its October 7, 2023 attack that triggered the Gaza war.
With the first three releases on Sunday, 91 hostages remain in Gaza.
The Tel Aviv banner was the initiative of Tikva Forum, a campaign group of hostage relatives opposed to a deal with Hamas.
“Hamas has to realize that the rules are about to change in the Middle East and that it’s time to bring back the hostages immediately,” the group said in a statement.
Its members have been anticipating the US billionaire’s return to the helm in Washington, Israel’s closest ally and top military backer.
But it is not just Israelis opposed to a deal that are hopeful.
In the lead-up to the inauguration, his image has become a fixture at weekly rallies calling for the release of hostages.
Red caps handed out at protests alluded to the ones proudly worn by Trump supporters.
But instead of “Make America Great Again,” the ones worn in Israel read: “End this fuc*!ng war.”
Demonstrators carried posters that read: “Trump, thank you for handling this,” “President Trump, bring them home,” and “Make Israel normal again.”
“I know that when he’s going to be back, things will change, but I’m not sure to which extent,” said Gaya Omri, a protester at a recent rally in Jerusalem.
“My only hope is that he can finish this war. This is what we want,” she said.
During his first term, Trump broke with much of the international community and moved the US embassy to Jerusalem.
Israelis claim the city as their undivided capital, while Palestinians claim its eastern sector as theirs.
Trump oversaw landmark normalization deals between Israel and three Arab countries — Bahrain, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates.
He also recognized Israeli sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights, again going against much of the world and numerous UN resolutions.
As a show of gratitude, an Israeli settlement in the territory, which Israel has occupied since 1967, was renamed Trump Heights.
“President Trump put us on the map,” said Yaakov Selavan of the Golan Heights Regional Council.
“He gave us the best PR campaign we’ve ever had, and we hope the new US administration will continue this,” he said.
This time round, some of Trump’s cabinet picks again suggest a favorable line for Israel.
The incoming president’s pick for US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, is a staunch supporter of Israeli annexation of the occupied West Bank.
Arab Gulf leaders, Jordan’s king, Palestine’s president congratulate Trump on his inauguration
- Trump says he wants to be ‘peacemaker, unifier’
- Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq expresses wish for Trump’s success in second term as US president
LONDON: Arab Gulf leaders, the king of Jordan, and Palestine’s president have congratulated Donald Trump on his inauguration as the 47th president of the US.
The leadership of the UAE, including President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan; Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, the prime minister and ruler of Dubai; and Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the UAE’s deputy prime minister and chairman of the Presidential Court, each sent a congratulatory message to Trump on Monday.
Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq expressed his wish for Trump’s success in his second term as US president.
Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa expressed his wishes for Trump’s good health, happiness, and success in his role, highlighting his pride in the relations and close partnership between the US and Bahrain.
Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the emir of Kuwait, affirmed in his message to Trump the aspiration to strengthen the well-established relations between the two countries.
Jordan’s King Abdullah II said on X that Jordan highly valued its partnership with the US and was committed to working with Trump toward a peaceful world.
In his speech at the Capitol Rotunda, Trump said he wanted to be a “peacemaker and unifier,” while mentioning the recently released hostages in a deal between Hamas and Israel which brought a ceasefire to the Gaza Strip this week.
Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, said in a message that the PA was ready to work with Trump to achieve peace during his administration, based on the two-state solution.
