U.S. Senate Set to Vote on Withdrawing Support for Saudi-led Coalition in Yemen
The U.S. Senate will vote this week on a resolution to withdraw support for the Saudi-led coalition and could also vote on a bill that would stop weapons sales to Saudi Arabia (Wall Street Journal)
Separately, the warring parties of the conflict in Yemen are participating in peace talks in which a breakthrough concerning a prisoner swap appears to be imminent, although there is a stalemate regarding the Sanaa international airport and the Hodeidah port (Al Jazeera)
Sweden Talks a ‘First Step’ for Yemen’s Warring Parties
Yemen’s internationally recognized government and Houthi leaders are meeting in the Swedish city of Rimbo for the first direct peace talks between the warring parties in two years (Al Jazeera)
In a New York Times op-ed, UN special envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths called the talks a “first step” to reaching peace in the embattled country, where four years of conflict has left thousands of people dead (New York Times)
Yemen Peace Talks to Begin in Sweden
Houthi leaders are expected to travel to Sweden for peace talks. UN special envoy Martin Griffiths reportedly arrived in in the Houthi-held capital city Sanaa to escort the Houthi delegation (Reuters)
Houthis to Attend Yemen Peace Talks
A Houthi rebel leader said delegates from the group will be present at UN-sponsored peace talks in Sweden next week as long as they have guarantees they can return to Yemen afterward (Middle East Eye)
U.S. Senate Moves to Block Support for Saudis in Yemen
The U.S. Senate voted 63–37 to advance a measure to limit presidential war powers in Yemen, a rebuke of the Trump administration’s military support of the Saudi-led coalition fighting Houthi forces in the country. Though the measure must still clear a final vote in the Senate, as well as a vote in the House of Representatives, to pass, the vote signaled growing congressional opposition to U.S. support of the coalition (Washington Post)
Fighting Flares in Yemen’s Hodeidah
Fighting between Houthi forces and the Saudi-led coalition escalated yesterday in the port city of Hodeidah despite recent attempts to broker a cease-fire. The UN special envoy for Yemen announced late last week that both sides would “soon” attend peace talks in Sweden (Associated Press)
Saudi Arabia to Evacuate Houthi Fighters From Yemen
Saudi Arabia has agreed to evacuate fifty wounded Houthi fighters in Yemen, a gesture that UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said could signal increased willingness for peace talks (Al Jazeera)
Separately, the Trump administration is reportedly considering designating Houthi rebels a terrorist organization (Washington Post)
Fighting in Yemen Intensifies
Fighting between Houthi rebels and Saudi-led forces in the port city of Hodeidah continued to intensify, with nearly two hundred fighters from both sides being killed in the past week (Al Jazeera)
Saudi-Led Coalition Redoubles Yemen Attacks
The Saudi-led coalition fighting Houthi forces has ramped up its offensive across Yemen, launching air raids in the capital of Sanaa and in the country’s north (New York Times)
More than a hundred air strikes were reported in civilian neighborhoods in recent days just in the port city of Hodeidah (Guardian)
U.S. Officials Push for Ceasefire in Yemen
U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis called for all parties involved in the Yemeni conflict to participate in UN-led peace talks in the next thirty days. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo asked for the Saudi-led coaltion to end its air strikes on populated areas and for the Houthis to end missile and drone strikes on Saudi Arabia and the UAE (BBC)
Pakistan Mediates Saudi-Iranian Talks Over Yemen
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said yesterday that, since he took office, his country has been “acting as a conciliator” between Saudi Arabia and Iran to seek an end to the war in Yemen (Voice of America)
UN Experts Assail Saudi Arabia Over Child Deaths in Yemen
The UN committee on children’s rights said the Saudi-led campaign in Yemen was to blame for 1,300 child deaths, an equal number of injuries, and widespread hunger and malnutrition in the country. The committee’s vice chair said Saudi Arabia acknowledged accidental child casualties in the conflict (Voice of America)
Saudi Arabia Prevents Houthi Attack on Jizan Port
Two remote-controlled explosive boats headed toward Jizan, reportedly deployed by Houthi rebels, were destroyed by the Saudi-led coalition yesterday (Reuters)
Yemen to Halt Cooperation With UN Mission
Yemen’s government said that it will no longer cooperate with a UN expert panel probing alleged war crimes in the country, accusing it of politicizing its work and of demonstrating bias in favor of Houthi forces (Al Arabiya)
Eighteen Fishermen Killed Off Yemen’s Coast
The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthi insurgency denied responsibility for attacking a fishing boat off the coast of al-Khoukha which killed eighteen fishermen (Reuters)
Air Strike Kills Four in Yemen’s Hodeidah
An air strike by the Saudi-led coalition on a radio station in Yemen’s Houthi-held city of Hodeidah killed four people yesterday (Reuters)
U.S. Endorses Saudi-Led Coalition Efforts to Reduce Civilian Casualties in Yemen
In a report to Congress today, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are taking “demonstrable actions” to reduce civilian casualties in Yemen. Under a new law, the certification is required for the United States to continue providing military aid and support to the coalition intervening in Yemen (Washington Post)
Yemen Peace Talks Postponed After Rebels Don’t Show
UN-sponsored talks in Geneva that would have been the first formal meeting between Yemen’s warring parties in two years were postponed until tomorrow after envoys for Houthi rebels failed to appear (Voice of America)
Houthi Rebels in Yemen Fire Missile at Saudi Arabia
Houthi rebels in Yemen fired a ballistic missile at Saudi Arabia’s Najran region, according to Houthi media (Reuters)
Separately, U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis said continued military support to nations engaged in war in Yemen depends on their efforts to avoid civilian casualties (Washington Post)
Evidence ‘Strongly Suggests’ Yemen War Crimes, Says UN
A UN panel investigating human rights abuses in Yemen said parties to the conflict have likely carried out crimes under international law and that there is “little evidence” that any of them seeks to minimize harm to civilians. The experts also said that strikes by the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen are responsible for most civilian casualties (UN)
Yemen’s Houthi Rebels Launch Two Missiles at Saudi Arabia
Houthi rebels in Yemen said they launched two missiles at Saudi Arabian provinces along the border. Saudi armed forces did not confirm the attacks (Reuters)
Yemeni Rebels: Saudi Strikes Targeted Camp for Displaced
Houthi rebels claimed that air strikes by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen killed at least thirty-one people in a camp for internally displaced people outside the port city of Hodeidah (Al Jazeera)
State media of the United Arab Emirates, a coalition member, said the rebels carried out the attack (Associated Press)
Al-Qaeda Bomb Maker Killed in Yemen
U.S. officials said yesterday they are confident that Ibrahim al-Asiri, al-Qaeda’s chief bomb maker, was killed in a drone strike last year in Yemen (CBS News)
U.S. Supplied Bomb That Killed Forty Children in Yemen
The bomb that a Saudi-led coalition warplane dropped on a school bus in Yemen, killing forty boys and eleven adults, was supplied by the United States (Guardian)
UN Condemns Attack That Hit Bus of Yemeni Children
The United Nations condemned an air strike by the Saudi-led coalition fighting Houthi rebels that hit a bus carrying children in Yemen’s northern Saada Province (UN)