Houthis Plead with Putin to Stop Liberation of Hodeidah

Russian President Vladimir Putin. Reuters file photo
Russian President Vladimir Putin. Reuters file photo
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Houthis Plead with Putin to Stop Liberation of Hodeidah

Russian President Vladimir Putin. Reuters file photo
Russian President Vladimir Putin. Reuters file photo

Houthi militias have begged Russian President Vladimir Putin for support against Yemeni government forces and the Saudi-led coalition which are tightening the noose on the insurgents and their Iranian-backed plan in Yemen.

In a letter sent to Putin, head of Yemen’s Supreme Political Council Mahdi al-Mashat warned that the coalition has been aiming to take control of all strategic maritime areas to put them under US influence and lay hands on international trade, official sources said on Thursday.

According to the group, this letter aims at strengthening bilateral relations with friendly countries. Observers, however, viewed it as an attempt to legitimize the militia.

Mashat presented himself in the letter as a speaker on behalf of the Yemeni government and people.

He urged the Russian president to intervene to stop the battle of the West Coast, led by the legitimate government and Saudi-led coalition forces to liberate Hodeidah and its port and the Yemeni coast on the Red Sea.

The legitimate forces have been trying to control sea ports from where Houthis receive weapons sent by Iran and military and technical support from the Lebanese “Hezbollah.”

The letter claimed that the war waged by the legitimate government with the support of the Saudi-led coalition to end the coup is unjustified and violates UN charters, international laws and Yemen’s sovereignty, and threatens the world and the region, according to the Houthi version of Saba news agency.

Ironically, the group used terms such as UN charters, international laws, and Yemeni sovereignty while in fact it violates everything mentioned in the letter.

The group also claimed that the liberation of Hodeidah and the West Coast would transform the Red Sea into an American “lake” and would give Washington control of trade routes and power lines in Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Yemeni islands.

Mashat claimed in his letter that the group looks forward for a Russian role that would stop the legitimate government’s and the coalition’s liberation operations, and would support a comprehensive political settlement that would meet the expectations of the Houthis in ruling Yemen and keeping its weapons in service to Iran.



Report: UN Chief Says He Is Cooperating with Trump’s Board of Peace on Gaza

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres looks on after a family picture during the EU Summit at the EU headquarters in Brussels, on March 19, 2026. (AFP)
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres looks on after a family picture during the EU Summit at the EU headquarters in Brussels, on March 19, 2026. (AFP)
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Report: UN Chief Says He Is Cooperating with Trump’s Board of Peace on Gaza

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres looks on after a family picture during the EU Summit at the EU headquarters in Brussels, on March 19, 2026. (AFP)
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres looks on after a family picture during the EU Summit at the EU headquarters in Brussels, on March 19, 2026. (AFP)

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres welcomed the aim of Donald Trump's Board of Peace to fund and deliver the basics of a Gaza reconstruction plan to rebuild Palestinian homes and infrastructure, Politico reported on Saturday.

“There is an objective there that ‌was defined, ‌approved by the Security Council, ‌and ⁠we are cooperating ⁠actively with structures created by the Board of Peace,” Guterres told the news outlet in an interview.

Guterres saw no need for the board beyond Gaza's reconstruction. “This ⁠is not the effective way ‌to address ‌the dramatic problems that we have now,” he said.

“We need to be ‌clear about international law, to be clear about the values of the Charter of the United Nations. That is ‌essential in any peace initiative.”

He also called for an end to ⁠Iran's ⁠closure of the Strait of Hormuz, suggesting the UN could help protect the waterway and be part of a plan to de-escalate attacks.

Guterres said he had not spoken with Trump since the start of the war, although he has spoken to others in the administration.


Israel Says Targeting Hezbollah in Beirut as South Lebanon Struck

Debris cover the site of Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV headquarters after it was hit in an Israeli airstrike on Dahieh, a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP)
Debris cover the site of Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV headquarters after it was hit in an Israeli airstrike on Dahieh, a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP)
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Israel Says Targeting Hezbollah in Beirut as South Lebanon Struck

Debris cover the site of Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV headquarters after it was hit in an Israeli airstrike on Dahieh, a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP)
Debris cover the site of Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV headquarters after it was hit in an Israeli airstrike on Dahieh, a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP)

The Israeli military said it launched a wave of strikes on Beirut claiming to target the Iran-backed group Hezbollah early Saturday, while Lebanese state media reported strikes in the country's south.

Lebanon was pulled into the Middle East war when Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel on March 2 to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei.

Israel has since launched strikes across Lebanon and sent ground troops into the country's south.

In a brief statement on Saturday, the Israeli military said its forces were "currently striking Hezbollah terrorist organization targets in Beirut".

A military spokesman earlier issued a warning to residents of Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, to evacuate ahead of strikes.

Lebanon's official National News Agency (NNA) reported strikes on two neighborhoods in the area, without immediately saying what had been hit or whether there were any casualties.

In southern Lebanon, close to the border, the NNA said an Israeli airstrike hit a house in the town of Ghandouriyeh, killing at least one person and wounding two others.

The agency reported more strikes overnight and in the early morning on several areas of southern Lebanon, as well as an "extensive combing operation" carried out by Israeli troops in the area of Khiam town.

Hezbollah also said its fighters had targeted Israeli troops in six villages in southern Lebanon.

The group said it had also launched rockets across the border, where air raid sirens were activated, according to the Israeli military's Home Front Command.

The US ambassador to Lebanon, Michel Issa, gave his backing on Friday to a truce initiative proposed by Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, telling reporters that "matters are not resolved without talking".

He said, however, he believed Israel "has decided not to stop" striking Lebanon yet.

"That means Lebanon has to decide whether it can meet the Israelis in this case," the ambassador added.

Lebanon's health ministry says the war has killed more than 1,000 people in Lebanon and displaced more than one million more.

Two Israeli soldiers have been killed in southern Lebanon, according to the military.


After Pressure, Iraqi Factions Stop Attacks on US Embassy

The US Embassy headquarters in Baghdad's fortified "Green Zone" is pictured on March 18, 2026. (AFP)
The US Embassy headquarters in Baghdad's fortified "Green Zone" is pictured on March 18, 2026. (AFP)
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After Pressure, Iraqi Factions Stop Attacks on US Embassy

The US Embassy headquarters in Baghdad's fortified "Green Zone" is pictured on March 18, 2026. (AFP)
The US Embassy headquarters in Baghdad's fortified "Green Zone" is pictured on March 18, 2026. (AFP)

Political parties in Iraq have carried out intense efforts over the past two days to contain the escalation in the country in wake of increased attacks on the US embassy in Baghdad by pro-Iran factions, sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.

The efforts aim to also prevent Iraq from sliding into a broader conflict that may threaten its internal stability amid the US-Israeli conflict on Iran.

Government and political leaderships have exerted direct and indirect pressure on the leaders of the armed factions to cease the rocket and drone attacks against the embassy, saying they may have consequences on national security.

The judiciary has also warned that it will hold perpetrators accountable.

Washington, for its part, has delivered "firm" messages through official channels that it would take escalatory measures should its diplomatic missions and interests in Iraq continue to be attacked.

NATO quits Iraq

Meanwhile, NATO withdrew all of its troops from an advisory mission in Iraq, the military alliance said on Friday, as the repercussions of the Iran war spread across the Middle East.

"I would like to thank the Republic of Iraq and all the Allies ‌who assisted ‌in the safe relocation ‌of ⁠NATO personnel from Iraq," ⁠US Air Force Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe, said in a statement.

The statement said the mission had relocated "all its personnel" from the Middle East to Europe. A ⁠NATO official, speaking on condition ‌of anonymity, said ‌that amounted to "several hundred" troops.

In recent ‌days, several countries including Poland, Spain and ‌Croatia have announced they have withdrawn troops from the Middle East, citing the conflict in Iran and the wider Gulf region.

NATO ‌said its mission would continue from a military headquarters in ⁠Naples, ⁠Italy. The mission does not have a combat role. It focuses on advising Iraqi security forces and helping them build up their capacities, according to NATO.

"I would also like to thank the dedicated men and women of NATO Mission Iraq, who continued their mission throughout this period. They are true professionals," Grynkewich said.

Undisclosed agreements

Signals on the ground point to undisclosed agreements being reached between Iraqi parties aimed at easing the escalation and ending attacks on the US embassy and the logistic support base at Baghdad airport.

Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that separate meetings have been held in Baghdad’s Green Zone between Iraqi officials and representatives of the armed forces, and Iraqi officials with the US charge d’affaires, to discuss means to de-escalate the situation.

The Kataib Hezbollah announced a five-day truce on condition that attacks on its positions cease. It also called on Israel to stop its attacks on Beirut’s southern suburbs, that Washington commits to not attack residential areas in Iraq and that it reduces the number of its intelligence agents outside the embassy.

The sources said the US has not replied to the proposal.

On the ground, no drone buzzing or rocket fire was heard over Baghdad, a departure from previous days, meaning political efforts have somewhat succeeded in restoring calm. However, the US and Israel have continued to strike positions inside Iraq that are affiliated with the armed factions.

Western sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Washington will continue to strike the Iran-backed factions in retaliation to their attacks in Iraq and to neutralize their threat.

Over 160 members of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) were killed and injured in US-Israeli strikes, revealed Hadi al-Ameri, Secretary-General of the Badr Organization.