AL-MUKALLA: More than 50 Yemenis employed by UN, US and other foreign organizations have been abducted by the Houthis following raids on their homes in Sanaa, the country’s human rights minister said on Friday.
Ahmed Arman said that 18 people working for UN agencies — including the UNDP, OCHA, WFP, High Commissioner for Human Rights and the office of Yemen’s envoy — and at least 32 employed by the US-funded National Democratic Institute, Partners Yemen, the German-funded GIZ, Resonate Yemen and others had been taken.
“The Houthi raids lasted from Thursday morning until approximately 4 a.m. on Friday. They invaded residences of Yemenis working for foreign organizations and even snatched others who used to work with such organizations,” he told Arab News.
The ministry said the arrests were the latest in a series of such moves that began on May 31 when a man and his family, including children, were abducted from their home in Sanaa. Two more homes were raided the following day.
Arman reiterated his call for UN and other foreign organizations to move their headquarters from Houthi-held Sanaa to the Yemeni government’s stronghold in Aden.
“We repeatedly warned the UN that the Houthis treatment of its personnel, mostly Yemenis, would deteriorate, so we requested that they relocate their headquarters to Aden. But the UN dismissed our pleas for reasons we don’t understand,” he said.
The latest abductions came after a Houthi-run court last month condemned a Yemeni businessman working with foreign relief groups and 43 others to death on spying allegations.
Human rights groups, journalists and officials have condemned the raids, with dozens signing an online petition urging the Houthis to release their captives. They also warned the group that their actions could lead to aid agencies leaving the country, which would deprive Yemenis of life-saving humanitarian aid.
“We emphasize that arresting Yemeni personnel working for foreign organizations violates human rights and contributes to the country’s isolation from the rest of the world,” the petition said.
Baligh Al-Mekhlafi, information counselor at the Yemeni Embassy in Cairo, said the Houthis’ campaign against the employees of international organizations was linked to the central bank’s measures against Sanaa-based financial institutions, including sanctioning those that did not relocate their offices to Aden.
“The militia’s craziness is a reaction to the central bank’s painful decision, and the chaos that ensued is obvious proof of the degree of their anguish,” he said on X.
The Ministry of Transportation in Aden on Friday urged travel and tourism agencies in Houthi-held areas to relocate to Aden.
This is the latest in a series of moves by the Yemeni government to relocate major banks, international aid organizations, telecommunications companies and other revenue-generating entities from Sanaa to Aden.
Last week, it asked Yemenia, the country’s national airline, to hold its funds in Aden or overseas rather than in Sanaa banks.
The government has accused the Houthis of stealing millions of dollars of the nation’s money.
Houthis abduct 50 Yemeni employees of UN, US organizations
https://arab.news/wm4s5
Houthis abduct 50 Yemeni employees of UN, US organizations
- UN ‘repeatedly warned’ of threat to workers, human rights minister says
- Abductions linked to central bank’s move to shift funds to Aden, embassy official says
Iraq exhibits ancient artifacts returned by US and other countries
- Iraqi authorities have been trying to retrieve thousands of archaeological relics missing since the invasion
- More ‘rare archaeological collections’ would be returned by Switzerland and Japan this month
BAGHDAD: Iraq on Monday exhibited several ancient artifacts that it said had been returned by the United States and other countries, long after they were looted and smuggled out following the 2003 US invasion.
Iraqi authorities have been trying to retrieve thousands of archaeological relics missing since the invasion, which was followed by widespread looting in the country that some historians regard as the cradle of civilization.
Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein handed the recently recovered relics over to Culture, Tourism and Antiquities Minister Ahmed Al-Badrani at a ceremony in Baghdad.
Most of the artefacts on display at the foreign ministry headquarters were returned by the US after a visit by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani to Washington in April, Badrani said.
He said other relics had been returned by other states, but gave no details.
Hussein said more “rare archaeological collections” would be returned by Switzerland and Japan this month.
New UK PM demands Gaza ceasefire during Netanyahu talks
- Keir Starmer warns Israel against escalating tensions with Hezbollah
- British FM to begin reviewing arms sales to Israel, UNRWA funding this week
LONDON: UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has told his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu that there must be a ceasefire in Gaza, while warning him to act with “caution” over escalating tensions with Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Starmer “said the situation on (the) northern border of Israel (with Lebanon) was very concerning, and it was crucial all parties acted with caution,” a spokesman for 10 Downing Street said.
The Times reported that Starmer reiterated his commitment to “continuing the UK and Israel’s vital co-operation to deter malign threats,” but there is a “clear and urgent need for a ceasefire in Gaza, the return of hostages and an immediate increase in the volume of humanitarian aid reaching civilians.”
The Guardian reported that he had impressed upon Netanyahu “that it was also important to ensure the long-term conditions for a two-state solution were in place, including ensuring the Palestinian Authority had the financial means to operate effectively.”
It comes amid reports that the UK’s new Labour government is set to drop a bid brought by its Conservative predecessor to delay an International Criminal Court decision on whether to bring charges against Netanyahu over alleged war crimes in Gaza.
The Conservatives had claimed that neither the court nor any Palestinian body have jurisdiction over Israeli citizens, despite a 2021 ICC decision that it did have power to prosecute violations of the Rome Statute in Gaza, Jerusalem and the West Bank.
Labour officials, however, briefed The Guardian that the new government would not uphold the challenge.
Starmer also spoke to PA President Mahmoud Abbas as part of a series of introductory conversations after the former’s general election victory on Thursday, in which he stated his support for the “undeniable right” of the Palestinian people to have a state of their own.
He said his government would look to increase financial assistance to the PA and pressure Israel to withdraw fully from Gaza.
The UK government’s spokesman said: “Discussing the importance of reform, and ensuring international legitimacy for Palestine, the prime minister said that his longstanding policy on recognition to contribute to a peace process had not changed, and it was the undeniable right of Palestinians.”
Labour had pledged in its manifesto to take immediate action on UK recognition of a Palestinian state after the party lost support over its stance on Gaza during Britain’s regional elections in May.
Starmer had said Israel had a right to defend itself following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, but has subsequently softened his position.
Despite this shift, Labour still lost five seats in Thursday’s election to pro-Palestine independent candidates.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy, meanwhile, said he will look at restoring funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, as well as reviewing issues including UK arms sales to Israel.
The UK suspended funding for UNRWA after Israel claimed that staff members had participated in the Oct. 7 attack.
Most other countries that took similar action have since restarted their funding, but the previous UK government said it would await the outcome of a UN investigation before taking a decision.
Lammy said: “We did raise issues about the funding … and real concerns that (we) did not want the situation where the UK was contributing to tremendous hardship already in Gaza.”
On arms sales, he added: “I made the solemn undertaking in parliament that I would look at the legal assessments, and I will begin that process, of course, as soon as I’m able to. I expect that to begin next week as I sit down with officials.”
Lammy continued: “I have been crystal clear on the international humanitarian law. There will be no resiling from that, because it’s important that we are all seen to uphold the rules-based order at a time particularly when authoritarian states are discarding it. It’s on that basis that I enter into this role and I take that very, very seriously.”
Stranded aid trucks in Egypt deepen Gaza’s humanitarian crisis
- Aid groups warn there is a high risk of famine across the besieged coastal territory
- Talks involving Egypt, the United States and Israel have failed to reopen Rafah
AL-ARISH, Egypt: Hundreds of trucks loaded with food and water have been stranded on a scorching Egyptian road, some for nearly two months, awaiting permission to deliver the much needed humanitarian supplies to war-torn Gaza.
About 50 kilometers from the Gaza border, trucks carrying flour, water and other aid line a dusty road in both directions. The drivers say they have been waiting for several weeks in the searing Egyptian summer heat.
The standstill is exacerbating Gaza’s dire humanitarian crisis after nine months of war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas. Aid groups warn there is a high risk of famine across the besieged coastal territory.
The truck drivers, parked on the outskirts of the Egyptian city of Al-Arish in the Sinai Peninsula, say they have been unable to deliver humanitarian supplies ever since Israel expanded its offensive on the Gaza-Egypt border in May.
Some food has had to be discarded, they said.
“I swear to God, before this load, we came here and stood for more than 50 days and eventually the load was returned because it had expired,” said truck driver Elsayed El-Nabawi.
“We had to turn around and return it. We loaded another batch, and here we are standing again and only God knows if this load will make it before it expires or what will happen to it.”
The Israeli military started its assault on the southern Gazan city of Rafah in May. The Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, a lifeline to the outside world for Gazans, allowing the delivery of aid and the evacuation of patients, has been shut since then.
Talks involving Egypt, the United States and Israel have failed to reopen Rafah, where Egypt wants a Palestinian presence restored on the Gazan side of the border. Israeli flags now fly over Gazan buildings destroyed along the border with Egypt.
“We’ve been stranded here for over a month waiting to deliver this load. We’ve waiting for our turn but nothing yet” said Ahmed Kamel, another of the truck drivers, who sit by their vehicles drinking tea and smoking cigarettes.
“We don’t know our fate — when we will be able to enter? Today? Tomorrow? The day after tomorrow? Only God knows. Will the stuff we’re carrying hold up or most of it will go bad?”
Aid and commercial supplies have still entered Gaza through other land border crossings, through air drops and by sea, but aid groups and Western diplomats say the supplies are far below needs. The drivers say they are waiting for Israeli permission.
‘DIFFICULTIES’
Distribution of aid in Gaza was difficult even before Israel’s assault on Rafah. Israel has enforced restrictions on goods entering the enclave, saying it wants to prevent them reaching Hamas. Some aid convoys have also been hit in Israeli military strikes, resulting in deaths of aid workers.
Palestinian gangs inside Gaza have also reportedly sought to steal aid and commercial supplies entering the territory of some 2.3 million Palestinians. Desperate Palestinians have also overwhelmed trucks, taking much needed humanitarian supplies.
A senior official at the Israeli foreign ministry said the backlog of aid in Egypt was due to humanitarian aid that has piled up on the Gazan side of the Kerem Shalom crossing point, creating a backlog of around 1,200 truckloads worth of aid.
The official said that while Israel continued to facilitate the entry of supplies into Gaza, the distribution network inside Gaza run by international groups had been “disrupted” in recent months, blaming local Palestinian criminal gangs and Hamas.
The Israeli military, which oversees coordination of aid in Gaza, has said that it is letting in enough food in from Israel and Egypt for the entire population. It has also acknowledged that aid agencies face “difficulties” in transporting food once it has entered through crossing points, including from Israel.
OIC condemns in ‘strongest terms’ Israeli attack on UNRWA school
- Egypt and Jordan have similarly issued statements condemning the attack
- School was housing thousands of displaced Palestinians seeking shelter from Israel’s war
LONDON/JEDDAH: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation strongly condemned what it described as the ‘continuation of crimes of genocide being committed by the Israeli occupation in the Gaza Strip’ with the attack on a UN school in the Nuseirat refugee camp.
The attack killed 16 people and injured scores more.
Located in the Nuseirat refugee camp, the school was housing thousands of displaced Palestinians seeking shelter from Israel’s assault on the enclave. The majority of those killed were women and children.
“These crimes constitute a flagrant violation of the provisions of international humanitarian law, the Geneva Conventions, and resolutions issued by the International Court of Justice,” the OIC said in a statement reported by news agency SPA.
OIC also call for an investigation of the ‘crime and all war crimes committed by the Israeli occupation in the Gaza Strip, including targeting UNRWA employees and facilities, displaced persons in its headquarters, and health and humanitarian workers, and holding perpetrators accountable and prosecuting them.’
Egypt and Jordan have similarly issued statements condemning the Israeli attack on the school affiliated with the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in Gaza.
Sufian Qudah, spokesperson for the Jordanian Foreign Ministry, reiterated Amman’s strong condemnation of what it defined as Israel’s “ongoing war crimes and genocide” against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
He described the attack as a blatant violation of international humanitarian law and a defiance of global calls for an end to the violence.
Qudah criticized Israel’s repeated assaults on shelters and humanitarian facilities, adding that such actions violate international law and display a clear intention to perpetuate violence, reject peace and terrorize civilians.
He urged the international community, particularly the UN Security Council, to take immediate and decisive action to halt these crimes and provide protection for Palestinian civilians.
Meanwhile, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry called for an immediate ceasefire, highlighting the need to uphold human rights in Gaza and end violations against Palestinian women, children and civilians.
The ministry demanded that Israel cooperate with international efforts by allowing the unhindered entry of humanitarian relief and aid into Gaza.
Israel’s war on Gaza has so far killed 38,193 people, mostly women and children since it launched its offensive in October, the Gaza Health Ministry said on Monday.
Israeli tanks storm Gaza City districts, residents report heavy fire
- Ongoing offensives in Daraj and Tuffah in the east and Tel Al-Hawa, Sabra, and Rimal further west
- Heavy armor push comes as Egypt, Qatar and the US step up efforts to mediate a ceasefire pact
CAIRO: Israeli forces pounded Gaza City early on Monday and columns of tanks advanced into the heart of the city from different directions in what residents said was one of the heaviest attacks since Oct 7.
The Gaza Civil Emergency Service said it believed dozens of people were killed but emergency teams were unable to reach them because of ongoing offensives in Daraj and Tuffah in the east and Tel Al-Hawa, Sabra, and Rimal further west.
Israeli tanks had so far been stationed in some areas of Tel Al-Hawa and Sabra but hadn’t advanced deep into the three other districts, which residents said had been bombed throughout the night into the early morning hours. Several multi-floor buildings have been destroyed, they added.
One of the Israeli tank thrusts, residents said, was from an eastern direction, pushing people toward the western road near the Mediterranean.
“The enemy is behind us and the sea is in front of us, where we will we go?” said Abdel-Ghani, one Gaza City resident, who did not give his full name.
“Tank shells and missiles from the planes are falling on the roads and houses like hell from a volcano. People are running in all directions and no one knows where to go,” Abdel-Ghani told Reuters via a chat app.
The Israeli military said in a statement it had been mounting an operation against militant infrastructure in the Gaza Strip, and that it had taken out of action more than 30 fighters who posed a threat to Israeli troops.
The new Israeli offensive comes as Egypt, Qatar and the United States stepped up efforts to mediate a ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas as the Gaza war entered its tenth month.
Gaza residents said tanks advanced from at least three directions and reached the heart of Gaza City, backed by heavy Israeli fire from the air and ground. That forced thousands of people out of their homes to look for safer shelter, which for many was impossible to find, and some slept on the roadside.
Medics at the Al-Ahli Arab Baptist Hospital in Gaza City had to evacuate patients to the already crowded and under-equipped Indonesian Hospital in the northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian health officials said.
The war was triggered on Oct. 7 when fighters led by Hamas, which controlled Gaza, attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures.
More than 38,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s military offensive, according to Gaza health officials.
Hopes among Gaza residents of a pause in the fighting had revived after Hamas accepted a key part of a US ceasefire proposal, prompting an official in the Israeli negotiating team to say there was a real chance of a deal.
Hamas has dropped a demand that Israel first commit to a permanent ceasefire before it would sign an agreement. Instead, the militant group said it would allow negotiations to achieve that throughout the six-week first phase, a Hamas source told Reuters on Saturday.
But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted the deal must not prevent Israel from resuming fighting until its war objectives are met. Those goals were defined at the start of the war as dismantling Hamas’ military and governing capabilities, as well as returning Israeli hostages.
US Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns is to meet with the Qatari prime minister and the Israeli and Egyptian intelligence chiefs on Wednesday in Doha, said a source familiar with the issue who asked not to be further identified.
