Yemen conflict: Gulf monarchies want negotiated solution
The GCC invites a Houthi delegation to Riyadh to try to reach a lasting ceasefire. "Formal invitations" will be sent shortly. But the rebels seem inclined to decline because of the active role of the Saudis. The humanitarian crisis is worsening: UN agencies sound the alarm: 161,000 people at risk of famine by the end of the year.
Riyadh (AsiaNews) - The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), an organisation based in Riyadh, is acting as a mediator to reach a lasting truce in Yemen by inviting a Houthi delegation to the Saudi capital for consultations with its counterparts. The initiative is part of the United Nations' peace efforts, at a time when the humanitarian emergency in the country is becoming increasingly dramatic and could also be affected by the Russian war in Ukraine and the wheat supply crisis.
Formal invitations" are expected to be issued in the coming days for talks on military, political and economic issues in the conflict between the Iran-backed Houthis and the Saudi-led Arab coalition supporting the internationally recognised Yemeni government. The war has entered its eighth year and has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths, millions of internally displaced persons and damage whose consequences will be felt for decades to come.
An official GCC source, on condition of anonymity, explains that the Houthis will be "guests" of the organisation's secretary general Nayef Falah Mubarak Al-Hajraf at his headquarters in Riyadh. The delegation of the rebel movement will be assured of all guarantees in view of the talks, which should be held between 29th March and 7th April. However, the hopes of success appear very limited due to the leading role played by Saudi Arabia. A senior Houthi official, interviewed by Reuters, stressed that the group would be unlikely to accept travel to the Wahhabi kingdom, which is an active participant in the war and supports the government of Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, considered corrupt and the result of "foreign aggression" by the Shiite rebels. Riyadh," explains Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, head of the supreme committee, "is a party to the war and not a negotiator".
In the meantime, the humanitarian situation in Yemen is becoming increasingly dramatic, as denounced in a report published in recent days by more than a dozen international organisations linked to the UN and present in the area. According to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), 161,000 people in the Arab country will face famine in the second half of 2022, a figure five times higher than the current one, and catastrophic levels of hunger.
"These harrowing figures confirm that we are on a countdown to catastrophe in Yemen and we are almost out of time to avoid it," said David Beasley, head of the World Food Program, appealing for immediate funding to "avert imminent disaster and save millions." The Ipc report states that 19 million Yemenis - out of a population of more than 30 million - are likely to be unable to meet minimum food needs between June and December, up from 17.4 million at present. In addition, 2.2 million children, including 538,000 already severely malnourished and some 1.3 million women, will be at risk of severe hunger by the end of the year. "More and more children are going to bed hungry in Yemen," said Catherine Russell, UNICEF's executive director. "This puts them at increased risk of physical and cognitive impairment, and even death."
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11/08/2017 20:05
04/09/2008
