Arab League chief voices Gaza fears in talks with UN official

Maj. Gen. Patrick Gauchat meets with Ahmed Aboul Gheit in Cairo. (X/@arableague_gs)
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Updated 18 April 2024
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Arab League chief voices Gaza fears in talks with UN official

  • Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit met with the UN’s Maj. Gen. Patrick Gauchat
  • UNTSO chief briefed the secretary-general on conflicts in several areas monitored by the UN

CAIRO: Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit has told a senior UN official that he fears the conflict in Gaza could spiral out control and threaten regional security.

In a meeting in Cairo with Maj. Gen. Patrick Gauchat, head of mission and chief of staff of the UN Truce Supervision Organization, Aboul Gheit highlighted the need to implement the UN Security Council’s ceasefire resolution, and provide urgent humanitarian aid to the famine-stricken population in Gaza.

Gamal Roshdy, a spokesperson for the Arab League chief, said that the meeting discussed the regional situation, with Aboul Gheit saying that Israel’s war on Gaza violated international law and humanitarian principles.

The UNTSO chief briefed the secretary-general on conflicts in several areas monitored by the UN, including the Blue Line, which delineates the truce between Lebanon and Israel.

Aboul Gheit said that political resolutions remain the most effective means to ensure security for all parties.

However, achieving such resolutions remains challenging while Israel pursue its objectives through military force and by targeting civilians, he said.

According to the UNTSO website, the Security Council, in Resolution 50 (1948), called for a cessation of hostilities in Palestine on May 29, 1948, and decided that the UN Mediator should supervise the truce with the assistance of a group of military observers.

The first group of military observers, established in 1949 to supervise the implementation of the Israel-Arab Armistice Agreements, became known as the UN Truce Supervision Organization.

UNTSO observers in the Middle East to monitor ceasefires, supervise armistice agreements, prevent isolated incidents from escalating, and assist other UN peacekeeping operations in the region.


Latest US sanctions target Houthi funding networks, Treasury says

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Latest US sanctions target Houthi funding networks, Treasury says

  • Since 2023, ⁠the Houthis have launched numerous assaults on vessels in the Red Sea that they deem to be linked with Israel

WASHINGTON: The Trump administration issued fresh sanctions on Friday further targeting the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen ​and the transfer of oil products, weapons and other so-called dual-use equipment that it said helped fund the group.

The action targets 21 individuals and entities as well as one vessel, including some ‌alleged front ‌companies in Yemen, ‌Oman and ⁠the ​UAE, the US Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said in a statement.

“The Houthis threaten the United States by committing acts of terror and attacking commercial ⁠vessels transiting the Red Sea,” US Treasury ‌Secretary Scott Bessent said ‍in the statement.

The move ‍builds on previous Treasury action ‍to pressure the Houthis “vast revenue generation and smuggling networks, which enable the group to sustain its capability to conduct destabilizing ​regional activities,” including the Red Sea attacks, the department added.

Since 2023, ⁠the Houthis have launched numerous assaults on vessels in the Red Sea that they deem to be linked with Israel in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians over Israel’s war on Gaza.

Tehran’s regional sway has been weakened by Israel’s attacks on its proxies, including on ‌the Houthis in Yemen. (Reporting by Susan Heavey and Daphen Psaledakis; Editing ‌by Chizu Nomiyama )