JEDDAH: Saudi-led Arab Coalition Spokesperson Col. Turki Al-Maliki announced on Monday that the Kingdom has pledged to provide $60 million per month to support power plants in Yemen.
Speaking in Marib, Al-Maliki said he was honored to visit the rehabilitation center for child soldiers and reiterated the coalition’s commitment to stop the recruitment of children by Houthi rebels for battle and its efforts to address the cholera epidemic in Yemen.
“We welcome you from Marib, a city filled with pride, honor, dignity and history,” he said.
Al-Maliki added the coalition is making every effort to ensure safety and freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and Bab Al-Mandeb, as the Yemeni government warned fishermen from bypassing Yemeni territorial waters.
In the latest development, Al-Maliki said the Houthi militia targeted the Al-Thawra hospital, one of the main health care facilities in the city of Taiz, and the fish market in Hodeidah with mortars.
The spokesperson said the Iran-backed Houthis continue their terrorist operations by firing rockets at civilians in the Kingdom. Earlier on Monday, Saudi air defense forces intercepted a ballistic missile launched by Houthi rebels in Saada toward the southwestern city of Najran.
Al-Maliki also stressed that UN and non-governmental organizations must scrutinize all the information and evidence they receive and they must employ impartial staff.
He also said he believes some UN organizations are under house arrest in a hotel in the rebel-held capital Sanaa
Al-Maliki added that the Yemeni army, with the support of the Saudi-led Arab coalition, continues its fight to liberate the besieged port city of Hodeidah, which is of strategic importance.
“If the next coalition conference is held in Yemen, it will be held within the ‘victory triangle’ in one of Saada, Hodeidah or Sanaa.”
Saudi Arabia to provide $60m per month to support Yemen’s power plants
Saudi Arabia to provide $60m per month to support Yemen’s power plants
Saudi wildlife center records rare sighting of critically endangered leatherback turtle in Red Sea
- NCW says the leatherback traveled thousands of kilometers to reach the Red Sea
- The closest known nesting grounds are located in India’s Andaman Islands, some 6,500 km distant
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia's National Center for Wildlife (NCW) has documented a rare sighting of a leatherback sea turtle in the Red Sea, marking a significant biological record for one of the planet's most critically endangered marine species.
The sighting occurred approximately 30 kilometers off the coast of Al-Qunfudhah within the Blue Holes Protected Area, a newly established marine reserve, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
The NCW confirmed that the presence of a leatherback in these waters is an exceptional event. Recognized as the largest turtle species on Earth, the leatherback can weigh up to 900 kilograms. It is easily identified by its unique leathery, black carapace—distinguished by five longitudinal ridges rather than a hard bony shell—and its ability to dive to depths exceeding 1,000 meters.
Noting the species' migratory nature, the center explained that leatherbacks travel thousands of kilometers foraging for jellyfish. The specimen likely navigated through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in search of food.
This is considered a remarkable journey, the NCW said, noting that the nearest known populations reside in the Indian Ocean, spanning waters from South Africa to Sri Lanka (roughly 7,000 to 8,000 kilometers away). The closest known nesting grounds are located in India’s Andaman Islands, approximately 6,500 kilometers distant. No nesting activity has been recorded in the Red Sea.
According to the IUCN Red List, the leatherback is Critically Endangered in the Indian Ocean. While data for the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf is scarce, recent isolated sightings include a juvenile recorded in Jordan in December 2025 and another off Djibouti in 2019.
The NCW emphasized that these rare appearances highlight the ecological importance of the Kingdom's marine conservation efforts in the Red Sea. The center pointed to the Farasan Islands Marine Protected Area, along with the new Blue Holes and Ras Hatiba reserves, as critical sanctuaries that could support the potential expansion of such endangered species' ranges.
