ABU DHABI: The UAE on Tuesday accused Gulf rival Qatar of being behind a call for the International Criminal Court to investigate allegations of war crimes by the UAE in Yemen.
A group calling itself the Arab Organization for Human Rights in the UK said on Monday it was taking the UAE to the ICC over “indiscriminate attacks on civilians” in Yemen.
The UAE is part of a Saudi-led coalition battling Shiite Houthi militias in Yemen.
UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash accused Qatar of being responsible.
“The Arab Organization for Human Rights with its address in Qatar has filed a media complaint against the UAE to the International Criminal Court,” Gargash wrote on his Twitter account.
“People with knowledge are aware that this move aims to create noise, which is Qatar’s favorite game,” he said.
The group, which says it is based in London, said the complaint was filed on Monday.
Officials at the Hague-based ICC could not be reached to confirm whether the complaint had been filed. Such complaints are common, with some 10,000 received since the court opened in 2002.
Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt in June severed diplomatic ties with Qatar and imposed economic sanctions on the gas-rich country.
UAE: Qatar behind ‘war crimes’ complaint
UAE: Qatar behind ‘war crimes’ complaint
US makes plans to reopen embassy in Syria after 14 years
- The administration has been considering re-opening the embassy since last year
- Trump told reporters on Friday that Al-Sharaa was “doing a phenomenal job” as president
WASHINGTON: The Trump administration has informed Congress that it intends to proceed with planning for a potential re-opening of the US Embassy in Damascus, Syria, which was shuttered in 2012 during the country’s civil war.
A notice to congressional committees earlier this month, which was obtained by The Associated Press, informed lawmakers of the State Department’s “intent to implement a phased approach to potentially resume embassy operations in Syria.”
The Feb. 10 notification said that spending on the plans would begin in 15 days, or next week, although there was no timeline offered for when they would be complete or when US personnel might return to Damascus on a full-time basis.
The administration has been considering re-opening the embassy since last year, shortly after longtime strongman Bashar Assad was ousted in December 2024, and it has been a priority for President Donald Trump’s ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria, Tom Barrack.
Barrack has pushed for a deep rapprochement with Syria and its new leadership under former rebel Ahmad Al-Sharaa and has successfully advocated for the lifting of US sanctions and a reintegration of Syria into the regional and international communities.
Trump told reporters on Friday that Al-Sharaa was “doing a phenomenal job” as president. “He’s a rough guy. He’s not a choir boy. A choir boy couldn’t do it,” Trump said. “But Syria’s coming together.”
Last May, Barrack visited Damascus and raised the US flag at the embassy compound, although the embassy was not yet re-opened.
The same day the congressional notification was sent, Barrack lauded Syria’s decision to participate in the coalition that is combating the Daesh militant group, even as the US military has withdrawn from a small, but important, base in the southeast and there remain significant issues between the government and the Kurdish minority.
“Regional solutions, shared responsibility. Syria’s participation in the D-Daesh Coalition meeting in Riyadh marks a new chapter in collective security,” Barrack said.
The embassy re-opening plans are classified and the State Department declined to comment on details beyond confirming that the congressional notification was sent.
However, the department has taken a similar “phased” approach in its plans to re-open the US Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela, following the US military operation that ousted former President Nicolás Maduro in January, with the deployment of temporary staffers who would live in and work out of interim facilities.
