UN Estimates Over 10,000 Families in Yemen Affected by Tej Cyclone

A car drives through a flooded road in the city of al-Ghaydah in Yemen's al-Mahra governorate on October 25, 2023, following a tropical cyclone. (AFP)
A car drives through a flooded road in the city of al-Ghaydah in Yemen's al-Mahra governorate on October 25, 2023, following a tropical cyclone. (AFP)
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UN Estimates Over 10,000 Families in Yemen Affected by Tej Cyclone

A car drives through a flooded road in the city of al-Ghaydah in Yemen's al-Mahra governorate on October 25, 2023, following a tropical cyclone. (AFP)
A car drives through a flooded road in the city of al-Ghaydah in Yemen's al-Mahra governorate on October 25, 2023, following a tropical cyclone. (AFP)

The UN estimated that over 10,000 households in the al-Mahra, Hadramawt, and Socotra governorates had been impacted by the Tej Cyclone.

Local authorities announced the restoration of electricity and communications, and the reopening of roads is allowing teams to assess the impact of the cyclone better.

Director of the Office of the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation in al-Mahra Governorate Ali bin Balhaf called upon international, regional, and non-governmental organizations to support the local authority in confronting the repercussions and disastrous results of the natural disaster.

The official said several homes and private and public properties were destroyed, and hundreds of families displaced.

He warned of a health disaster that threatens the lives of residents, calling on humanitarian partners to respond quickly and provide all forms of urgent support.

Bin Balhaf stressed that the local authority was ready to provide possible facilities and overcome all difficulties to facilitate access to the affected areas.

UN estimates

The UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Yemen reported that over 10,000 households have been affected, including an estimated 7,100 homes in al-Mahra, 2,682 families in Hadramawt, and 669 in Socotra.

The UN office stated that homes have been damaged, destroyed, or flooded, with household items swept away.

Strong winds and rains also damaged sites for displaced people in Hadramawt and the agriculture and fishery sectors in al-Mahra.

The report indicated that partners continue to conduct assessments and scale-up responses to affected households.

Partners on the ground are prioritizing the distribution of food and shelter, said the report, adding that efforts were also underway to transport additional supplies.

The heavy flooding and rains have damaged houses and infrastructure and displaced families, namely in the Ar-Raydah wa Qusaia'r district of Hadramawt, in areas of Hasswin and al-Ghaydah in al-Mahra, and in both districts of Socotra.

The report noted that the storm's impact across these areas was structural damage rather than loss of life. Local authorities took precautionary measures, including the closure of schools and some roads, the early evacuation of households in high-risk areas, and the early warnings.

The UN confirmed that the local authorities in the three governorates are working to reopen the main roads, such as the road linking the Ar-Raydah wa Qusaia'r District with both Mukalla and Qishin in al-Maharah.

Electricity has been restored in most areas of al-Ghaydah and other districts, except Hasswin. Telecommunications, previously down in al-Mahra, are now operating.

Meanwhile, head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad al-Alimi visited al-Mahra to follow up on the developments.

Alimi met the Commander of Saudi Duty Forces, Faisal al-Hujaili, and representatives of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) in the presence of al-Mahra and Hadramawt governors.

According to official sources, the meeting touched on the ongoing efforts to confront the repercussions of the cyclone, including humanitarian and relief interventions and rehabilitating basic infrastructure.



Netanyahu Says Israeli Planes Intercepted Iranian Ones Sent to Rescue Embattled Syrian Leader Assad

FILED - 03 March 2020, Israel, Tel Aviv: Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, delivers an address. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/dpa
FILED - 03 March 2020, Israel, Tel Aviv: Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, delivers an address. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/dpa
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Netanyahu Says Israeli Planes Intercepted Iranian Ones Sent to Rescue Embattled Syrian Leader Assad

FILED - 03 March 2020, Israel, Tel Aviv: Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, delivers an address. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/dpa
FILED - 03 March 2020, Israel, Tel Aviv: Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, delivers an address. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/dpa

Israeli warplanes last year intercepted Iranian aircraft headed toward Syria, preventing them from delivering troops meant to assist the country’s embattled president at the time, Bashar Assad, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday.

The remarks in a speech gave a new glimpse into Israel's thinking in the final days in power for Assad, a longtime enemy who was overthrown by opposition factions last December.

Speaking to a conference hosted by the Jewish News Syndicate, a pro-Israel news agency, Netanyahu claimed that arch-rival Iran wanted to save Assad after watching the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group in neighboring Lebanon suffer heavy losses in fighting with Israel.

“They had to rescue Assad,” Netanyahu said, claiming that Iran wanted to send “one or two airborne divisions” to help the Syrian leader.

“We stopped that. We sent some F-16s to some Iranian planes that were making some routes to Damascus,” he said. “They turned back.”

He gave no further details.

In fighting last fall, Israel detonated hundreds of booby-trapped pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah, days before assassinating the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, The Associated Press said.

Netanyahu told the crowd that he pushed forward the pager attacks after Israel learned that Hezbollah had grown suspicious and sent some of the devices to Iran for testing.

“I said, 'We’ll have to do it right away,” he said.

Israel and a weakened Hezbollah reached a ceasefire in November, ending more than a year of fighting. Israeli forces remain in parts of southern Lebanon.