SANAA: A threat by Houthi militias to cut off vital Red Sea shipping routes is a “flagrant” challenge to international law, according to a Yemeni minister.
Abdul-Raqib Fat’h, a minister and chairman of the Yemeni Higher Relief Committee, said in a statement to a Yemeni news agency, and quoted by SPA, that the threat to cut off international navigation in the Red Sea is an “open and flagrant challenge to international and humanitarian laws and the United Nations.”
Saleh Al-Samad, head of the unrecognized coup council in Sana’a, earlier warned that — should a political solution to the conflict in Yemen reach a dead end — they will consider “strategic options” including “cutting off the Red Sea and international navigation,” according to local media reports.
The threat was reportedly made during a meeting with the UN’s special envoy for Yemen, Ma’ain Shuraim, and follows hefty losses suffered by Houthi militias on more than one front in Yemen.
Al-Samad also attacked UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, criticizing the role of the UN, which he described as “disappointing,” questioning its credibility in the treatment of the Yemeni crisis.
Several countries have already identified the Houthi threat to navigation in the Bab Al-Mandab Strait, which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, and where the Iranian-backed militias have targeted ships and boats on several occasions.
Saudi-led coalition forces and their Yemeni allies last year regained control of several strategic ports, waging an assault against the Houthis. The Saudi Navy has also engaged in numerous mine-sweeping missions on Yemeni shores, amid warnings over explosives planted by the militias.
Houthi threat to cut off Red Sea shipping ‘flagrant’ challenge to law
Houthi threat to cut off Red Sea shipping ‘flagrant’ challenge to law
Palestinians have right to live in peace in ‘own land’: pope
- The two-state solution “remains the institutional framework that addresses the legitimate aspirations of both peoples. Instead, we unfortunately see escalating violence in the West Bank against Palestinian civilians, who have the right to live in peace on
VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo XIV has lamented rising violence in the occupied West Bank and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, saying Palestinians had the right to live peacefully in their “own land.”
“Sadly, there has been an increase in violence in the West Bank against the Palestinian civilian population, which has the right to live in peace in its own land,” said the US pope, adding that civilians in Gaza also should be assured “a future of lasting peace and justice in their own land.”
During his annual meeting with diplomats accredited to the Vatican to exchange New Year greetings, the Pope said the “humanitarian suffering of civilians continues despite the ceasefire announced in October, adding to the hardships they have already endured.”
He added: The Holy See closely follows every diplomatic initiative aimed at ensuring a future of lasting peace and justice for Palestinians in Gaza, for all Palestinians, and for all Israelis.”
The two-state solution “remains the institutional framework that addresses the legitimate aspirations of both peoples. Instead, we unfortunately see escalating violence in the West Bank against Palestinian civilians, who have the right to live in peace on their land,” he said.
“War is back in vogue, and a zeal for war is spreading,” Pope Leo said, warning that the “weakness of multilateralism is a particular cause for concern.”
“A diplomacy that promotes dialogue and seeks consensus among all parties is being replaced by a diplomacy based on force, by either individuals or groups of allies,” the pope said.
