Security Briefing 27082017

Duelling speeches

Houthi leader Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi and former president Ali Abdullah Saleh gave duelling speeches ahead of rallies in Sana’a. Al-Houthi criticised his partners in the GPC, and deflected blame for public discontent with the deteriorating situation. Saleh responded by downplaying the rift between the allies, but acknowledged some of the criticism levelled by members of his party towards the Houthis.

Houthi-GPC friction sparks rumours of potential UAE-Saleh deal

The internal strife in the Houthi-GPC alliance was swiftly seize upon by their opponents as a potential opening in the long-stalemated conflict, as well as re-energising rumours of imminent backchannel deals between the various actors. Emirati foreign minister Anwar Gargash took to social media to say that Saleh’s comments were a “representation of conflict with the Houthi alliance”, and that it “represents a chance to break the political deadlock that has been brought by the Houthis”.

Ould Cheikh: ‘No Solution in Yemen but for Institutions to Work under Legitimate Government’

UN Special Envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed revealed Friday that a close meeting between the United Nations and representatives of the Houthi militias will take place in Geneva or in any other regional countries, such as Muscat or Cairo.

He said in an interview with Al Arabiya channel that the upcoming meeting will discuss the details of the initiative of al-Hodeida port and Sana’a airport, adding that the Hodeidah plan allows for the entry of humanitarian aid and food.

Regarding the Houthi and Saleh’s militia, he added, “they are closing the door, but we are still trying with them.”

Ould Cheikh Ahmed pointed out that there is difficulty in reaching an agreement with them during negotiations, expressing concern about the consequences of the clashes between the Houthis and Saleh’s militia.

U.N. report

The United Nations faces “no pressure” from a Saudi-led coalition over a draft U.N. report on child deaths in Yemen, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Sunday, amid rising concern over civilian casualties from the alliance’s air raids.

Speaking to Reuters on a visit to Kuwait, Guterres added that in any case no pressure could sway his eventual decision whether or not to return the Saudi-led coalition to a child rights blacklist annexed to the report.

Take advantage

Members of the Saudi-led coalition sought to take advantage of the public rift in

the Houthi-GPC tactical partnership, feeding rumours of a prospective separate

deal with Saleh as they play on the well-founded suspicions of Houthi supporters.

Such back-channel negotiations are likely ongoing, but any agreement would only

institute a new set of conflict dynamics and the violence would continue.

Dozens of civilians killed in coalition airstrikes on Sana’a(Arhab)

The Saudi-led coalition bombed a hotel in Arhab, to the north-west of Sana’a governorate, on 23 August, killing more than 30 people and injuring another 25. The Istirahat Al-Shahab Hotel was housing more than 65 people, many of whom were reportedly workers from nearby qat farms, when it was struck on Wednesday morning.

According to the UN’s Office of the High Commission for Human Rights (OHCHR), the attack on the hotel came moments after airstrikes hit a checkpoint manned by Houthi-affiliated forces some 10-15 meters away. Coalition spokesman Turki Al-Malki told Reuters that a “legitimate high-value target” was hit in Arhab, and that “the ones who perished were members of an armed renegade group”.

Yemen civilians hit by mistake, says coalition

air raids in the early hours of 25 August, which hit at least three houses in Sana’a city. The bombings targeted residences in the south-western Faj Attan area, reportedly killing as many as 14 people, including women and children, though these initial estimates are expected to rise.

The OHCHR reported that at least 58 civilians were killed in attacks by the Saudi-led coalition and Houthi-affiliated forces in the past week, more than the number killed during the entirety of either of the previous two months. Since March 2015, the UN Human Rights Office has documented 13,829 civilian casualties, including 5,110 killed and 8,719 injured. These numbers are based on the casualties individually verified by its Yemen office and the overall number is probably much higher

Saudi-Yemeni border

Head of U.S. Central Command General Joseph Votel visited the Saudi-Yemeni border in Saudi Arabia’s southwestern Jizan region and met with lieutenant General Fahed Bin Turki, as well as other Saudi commanders and troops on August 23. General Joseph Votel’s objective was to gain a better understanding of Saudi Arabia’s challenges at the border and assess how the Saudi air campaign against al Houthi-Saleh movement has complicated the Saudi-coalition’s fight against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)

Cholera has killed 2,018 people

A total of 2,018 people have been killed by a cholera epidemic in war-torn Yemen since late April, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said Saturday.

In a statement, the WHO said 565,041 suspected cases of cholera have been recorded in the country since April 27.

According to the WHO statement, the recorded suspected cases were in 22 out of 23 provinces.

The UN agency said the highest number of fatalities — 382 cases — was recorded in the northwestern Hajjah province, while in western Yemen’s Hudaida province only around 70,000 suspected cases were recorded.

Impoverished Yemen has remained in a state of civil war since 2014, when Houthi rebels overran much of the country, including the capital Sanaa.

The conflict escalated when Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched a massive air campaign in 2015 aimed at reversing Houthi military gains and shoring up Yemen’s embattled government.

According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), over 3 million people have fled their homes since the onset of the Yemen conflict, and more than 20 million throughout the country are in need of humanitarian assistance.

airstrikes countrywide

Houthi fighters and Saleh supporters clash in Sanaa

Six to nine individuals were reportedly killed and tenths others were injured when heavy armed clashes erupted between an Ansarullah checkpoint’s personnel and an armed gunmen (believed to be affiliated to ex-president Saleh) in Al Misbahi intersection of Hadda St. The clashes was ignited during the movements of a convoy (reportedly belongs to one of ex-president Saleh’s son) by a temporary security checkpoint that belongs to Ansarullah. A prominent military figure was reportedly killed in the incident, Mr. Khaled Al Radhi (addressed by many media sources as a close friend to Saleh’s son, Brigadier/ Ahmed Ali Saleh). Consequently, main streets of Hadda, As Sabeen, and 60-meter-roads were blocked by military forces of both sides. Security tension continued in the area with frequent renewal of the clashes. Moreover, in the time of reporting there is an ongoing mediation to deescalate the tension. Both sides have deployed reinforcements to the area (Armored vehicles carrying troops).

Map of airstrikes on Sana’a (19-25 August)

killing as many as 14 people

Explosive attacks

Three explosive attacks by unidentified persons: a grenade thrown at a house in

the Abdulqawi neighbourhood of Ash Sheikh Othman injured three people on 19 August, likely

due to a personal dispute; an RPG was fired at the Shahinaz power station in Khor Maksar on

the same day, but missed; and a hand grenade was thrown at the security department in Khor

Maksar on 24 August