UN Envoy Says STC Decision in Yemen ‘Disappointing’

United Nations envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths. (Reuters)
United Nations envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths. (Reuters)
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UN Envoy Says STC Decision in Yemen ‘Disappointing’

United Nations envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths. (Reuters)
United Nations envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths. (Reuters)

United Nations envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths expressed on Monday his “disappointment” with the Southern Transitional Council’s (STC) declaration of self-rule in southern Yemen, calling for the immediate implementation of the Riyadh Agreement.

“The latest turn of events is disappointing, especially as the city of Aden and other areas in the south have yet to recover from flooding and are facing the risk of COVID-19,” he said in a statement.

He further called for expediting the implementation of the Riyadh Agreement, with the support of the Coalition led by Saudi Arabia.

The success of this agreement should deliver benefits to the people in the south, particularly in terms of improved public services and security, stressed Griffiths.

“Now, more than ever, all political actors must cooperate in good faith, refrain from taking escalatory actions, and put the interests of Yemenis first”, he stated.

“The Riyadh Agreement provides for the participation of the STC in consultations on the final political solution to end the conflict in Yemen and serving the interests of Yemenis nation-wide,” he added.

The European Union expressed its rejection of the STC announcement.

Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Peter Stano in a statement to reporters in Brussels considered the move as an impediment to UN efforts to reach stability and peace in Yemen.

"There is an agreement reached in November in Saudi Arabia that helps to reduce the escalation in Yemen. We call on the Yemeni government and all parties to implement all terms of the peace agreement."

Stano stressed that the STC’s move "will bring problems and obstacles to the United Nations efforts to reach peace and stability in Yemen."



UN Agency Says Israel Shuts 4 Schools in East Jerusalem

A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
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UN Agency Says Israel Shuts 4 Schools in East Jerusalem

A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
A boy stands outside the gate of the Kalandia vocational training center (KTC), run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which was raided by Israeli forces earlier at the Qalandiya camp for Palestinian refugees in the occupied West Bank on February 18, 2025. (AFP)

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees says Israeli forces raided four of its schools in east Jerusalem, ordering their closure.

Israel has severed all ties with the agency, known as UNRWA, and bars it from operating in its territory. It says the agency allowed itself to be infiltrated by Hamas in the Gaza Strip, allegations denied by UN officials.

UNRWA said police entered a training center by force on Tuesday, firing tear gas and sound grenades and ordering its evacuation. It said 350 students and 30 staff were present during the raid on the Qalandiya Training Center.

It said police and city officials ordered the closure of three other schools in east Jerusalem, two of which proceeded with the school day.

Israeli police spokesman Dean Elsdunne said police did not enter the UN buildings and that Jerusalem municipal authorities carried out the closures. He said police were deployed to protect the city workers, using “riot dispersal” means in one case where a crowd threw stones at them outside a UN facility.

Roland Friedrich, UNRWA director for the occupied West Bank, including east Jerusalem, said the raids were an “unacceptable violation of United Nations privileges and immunities,” and a “denial of the right to education for children and trainees.”