UN Sanctions Committee Team Holds Meetings with Yemeni Officials in Aden

The sanctions committee affiliated with the UN Security Council during a previous visit to Aden, Yemen (Yemeni government media)
The sanctions committee affiliated with the UN Security Council during a previous visit to Aden, Yemen (Yemeni government media)
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UN Sanctions Committee Team Holds Meetings with Yemeni Officials in Aden

The sanctions committee affiliated with the UN Security Council during a previous visit to Aden, Yemen (Yemeni government media)
The sanctions committee affiliated with the UN Security Council during a previous visit to Aden, Yemen (Yemeni government media)

A team from the international sanctions committee concerned with Yemen is holding ongoing meetings in the city of Aden with civilian and military officials, as well as activists, aiming to compile a comprehensive report on the Yemeni situation by the end of 2023.

The team is expected to submit its findings to the UN Security Council.

The report will encompass political, military, security, and economic aspects. This marks the second visit by the team since the beginning of the year.

According to Yemeni government sources, the team, which arrived in Aden a few days ago, has held several meetings with various officials from government, civilian, military, and security entities.

They have also engaged with human rights activists.

These meetings will continue in the coming days to discuss the issues that will be included in the new annual report, covering military and security aspects, human rights, as well as financial, economic, and anti-corruption matters.

Sources informed Asharq Al-Awsat that the UN team directed a series of inquiries to these entities related to its work and demanded clarifications on a wide range of issues.

It did not suffice to merely send these questions; instead, the team held direct meetings with officials from those entities and requested detailed answers to all the raised concerns.

According to the sources, the team is reviewing the extent to which these entities adhere to the implementation of all agreements concluded by the international bodies with Yemen’s government, as well as previous recommendations included in the reports.

Due to the continuous refusal of Houthi militias to receive the UN team since the formation of the sanctions committee until now, the sources reported that the team relies on activists and confidential sources to gather information about the situation in areas under Houthi control.

Additionally, the team sends written messages to the group; however, Houthis persistently decline to respond to these inquiries and refuse to engage with the committee, especially concerning the ongoing recruitment of underage individuals and the lack of adherence to the agreement made with the UN in this regard.



Iran FM Continues Regional Tour with Stops in Baghdad, Cairo

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi looks on as he meets with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon, October 4, 2024. (Reuters)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi looks on as he meets with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon, October 4, 2024. (Reuters)
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Iran FM Continues Regional Tour with Stops in Baghdad, Cairo

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi looks on as he meets with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon, October 4, 2024. (Reuters)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi looks on as he meets with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon, October 4, 2024. (Reuters)

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi is expected to arrive in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on Sunday as part of a regional tour in anticipation of Israel’s retaliation to a missile attack by Tehran against it earlier this month.

A Foreign Ministry spokesman said the Baghdad visit is part of the diplomatic consultations with regional countries.

There, he will meet with his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein and several prominent officials for talks on bilateral relations and regional developments.

The visit will take place amid a debate between the Iraqi government and pro-Iran factions on whether the latter should take part in the “support front” launched by Hezbollah in Lebanon against Israel in support of Hamas in Gaza.

Government officials have said that Baghdad has so far largely managed to rein in the factions.

Meanwhile, the so-called “Islamic Resistance in Iraq” announced on Saturday it had fired a drone at a vital Israeli target in the occupied Golan Heights.

It said the attack “champions our people in Palestine and Lebanon” and is in retaliation to the “massacres committed by” Israel against children, women and the elderly. It vowed to continue and escalate its attacks.

After his Baghdad stop, Araqchi will head to Cairo for talks on regional developments.

He is expected to meet with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, chief of intelligence Abbas Kamel and FM Badr Abdelatty.

Media reports have said Araqchi will deliver a written message from Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on efforts to restore calm in the region.

Sources had recently revealed to Asharq Al-Awsat that Iran delivered through European diplomatic channels the nature of its retaliation to the potential Israeli attack.

The message is primarily directed to Israel and says that it will overlook a limited Israeli strike and refrain from responding to it.

The danger lies in the second part of the message that warned that Iran will have no choice but to drop all red lines should the Israeli strike its oil or nuclear facilities.