RIYADH: Germany has expressed grave concerns on Iran’s foreign policy in the Arab world, and has vehemently opposed the continuous development of its missile capabilities.
“Like Saudi Arabia, Germany is most concerned about Iran’s foreign policy role in the region,” said German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel in an exclusive interview with Arab News on Saturday.
Gabriel made his views about Iran’s belligerent policy clear, saying: “Together with the US, we want to work to counteract the problematic role played by Iran in the region ... It was with this in mind that we also clearly condemned the Iranian missile tests as they are not in line with the UN Security Council Resolution 2231.”
The foreign minister gave an overview of the growing Saudi-German relations with special reference to issues such as Yemen and Syria. He also spoke about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and human trafficking in Libya, where there is a need to improve the situation of refugees and migrants. The Europeans and Africans agreed on the fringes of the EU-AU summit in Abidjan to hold constructive talks on Libya.
Referring to the need to persuade Iran not to meddle in the affairs of Arab nations, Gabriel said: “German-Saudi relations are not only of great importance to us bilaterally, but also to the whole region... We are moving in the same direction on important foreign policy issues, for example in the fight against so-called Islamic State… our relations are so important and strong that we will surely be able to cope with having different views on individual issues from time to time.”
However, he said: “We must not allow ourselves to be divided.” Berlin and Riyadh certainly have similar views in their analysis of policy, he noted. “As far as Lebanon is concerned, we share Saudi Arabia’s concern about the role of Hezbollah as a militia and about its role in the region.”
Asked about his assessment of the Syrian crisis, the German foreign minister said that the Syrian crisis is far from over, contrary to what some people say. “People are being bombarded, displaced and starved every day. Take eastern Ghouta, for example... hundreds of thousands are trapped, many of them women and children. The regime is preventing the UN from being able to distribute food and medication there.”
He said that Germany has already done much to reduce the suffering of people in Syria. “We have contributed over 700 million euros for humanitarian aid measures in this year alone,” said Gabriel, adding that this support is not enough as long as the conflict continues. “This is why we need a political solution at long last – under the auspices of the UN and on the basis of the relevant resolutions. I am referring to UN Resolution 2254 here in particular, which sets out a clear framework.”
Asked about his perception of the crisis in Yemen and the killing of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, Gabriel said: “Our objective in Yemen — and we are on the same page here with Saudi Arabia — is the restoration of peace and stability and the return of the legitimate government to Sanaa, as well as the protection of the Yemeni people.” The conflict can only be resolved in the long term by political means — through inclusive negotiations under the auspices of the UN special envoy, he noted.
To this end, he said: “Germany condemned the Houthis’ missile attacks on Riyadh in the strongest possible terms and is also deeply concerned by the killing of Saleh, as well as by recent developments in Sanaa.” He expressed appreciation for Riyadh and said: “Saudi Arabia is the biggest humanitarian donor in Yemen, which is a fact that is unfortunately sometimes forgotten.” At the same time, Germany is also one of the largest donors of humanitarian aid in Yemen – which is also perhaps not sufficiently well known in the region, Gabriel said.
“We stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of Yemen and recently increased our humanitarian aid to a total of 165 million euros for 2017,” he noted. On the US declaration of Jerusalem as capital of Israel, he said: “Our position, like the position of the EU, remains unchanged.” A solution to the status of Jerusalem must be found through negotiations, said the German foreign minister, while also referring to the Arab Peace Initiative launched by the Kingdom back in 2002.
German foreign minister voices grave concern over Iran’s foreign policy
German foreign minister voices grave concern over Iran’s foreign policy
Tunisia’s famed blue-and-white village threatened after record rains
- The one-time home of French philosopher Michel Foucault and writer Andre Gide, the village is protected under Tunisian preservation law, pending a UNESCO decision on its bid for World Heritage status
SIDI BOU SAID, Tunisia: Perched on a hill overlooking Carthage, Tunisia’s famed blue-and-white village of Sidi Bou Said now faces the threat of landslides, after record rainfall tore through parts of its slopes.
Last week, Tunisia saw its heaviest downpour in more than 70 years. The storm killed at least five people, with others still missing.
Narrow streets of this village north of Tunis — famed for its pink bougainvillea and studded wooden doors — were cut off by fallen trees, rocks and thick clay. Even more worryingly for residents, parts of the hillside have broken loose.
“The situation is delicate” and “requires urgent intervention,” Mounir Riabi, the regional director of civil defense in Tunis, recently told AFP.
“Some homes are threatened by imminent danger,” he said.
Authorities have banned heavy vehicles from driving into the village and ordered some businesses and institutions to close, such as the Ennejma Ezzahra museum.
- Scared -
Fifty-year-old Maya, who did not give her full name, said she was forced to leave her century-old family villa after the storm.
“Everything happened very fast,” she recalled. “I was with my mother and, suddenly, extremely violent torrents poured down.”
“I saw a mass of mud rushing toward the house, then the electricity cut off. I was really scared.”
Her Moorish-style villa sustained significant damage.
One worker on site, Said Ben Farhat, said waterlogged earth sliding from the hillside destroyed part of a kitchen wall.
“Another rainstorm and it will be a catastrophe,” he said.
Shop owners said the ban on heavy vehicles was another blow to their businesses, as they usually rely on tourist buses to bring in traffic.
When President Kais Saied visited the village on Wednesday, vendors were heard shouting: “We want to work.”
One trader, Mohamed Fedi, told AFP afterwards there were “no more customers.”
“We have closed shop,” he said, adding that the shops provide a livelihood to some 200 families.
- Highly unstable -
Beyond its famous architecture, the village also bears historical and spiritual significance.
The village was named after a 12th-century Sufi saint, Abu Said Al-Baji, who had established a religious center there. His shrine still sits atop the hill.
The one-time home of French philosopher Michel Foucault and writer Andre Gide, the village is protected under Tunisian preservation law, pending a UNESCO decision on its bid for World Heritage status.
Experts say solutions to help preserve Sidi Bou Said could include restricting new development, building more retaining walls and improving drainage to prevent runoff from accumulating.
Chokri Yaich, a geologist speaking to Tunisian radio Mosaique FM, said climate change has made protecting the hill increasingly urgent, warning of more storms like last week’s.
The hill’s clay-rich soil loses up to two thirds of its cohesion when saturated with water, making it highly unstable, Yaich explained.
He also pointed to marine erosion and the growing weight of urbanization, saying that construction had increased by about 40 percent over the past three decades.
For now, authorities have yet to announce a protection plan, leaving home and shop owners anxious, as the weather remains unpredictable.
