PLC Head Overhauls Yemeni Security, Intelligence Apparatus

Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) convened in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (Saba News Agency)
Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) convened in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (Saba News Agency)
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PLC Head Overhauls Yemeni Security, Intelligence Apparatus

Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) convened in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (Saba News Agency)
Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) convened in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (Saba News Agency)

The head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) Rashad Al-Alimi issued republican decisions on Friday to establish a State Security Council and reorganize the security and intelligence apparatus.

The new State Security Council’s headquarters will be located in the interim capital, Aden, with the possibility of establishing branches across Yemen’s provinces.

The decrees, issued following a meeting in Riyadh with PLC members, entail the merging of the National Security and Political Security agencies into a single entity.

Additionally, the decrees involve the establishment of an independent counter-terrorism agency, with the appointment of its leader.

Reporting directly to the head of the PLC, the State Security Council is tasked with executing all duties and responsibilities outlined in the republican decision.

The organizational regulations specify the competencies of the Council’s leadership, sectors, divisions, and branches, as well as the general administrations overseen by each sector.

The presidential decision mandates that the heads of “Political Security” and “National Security,” along with the integration team formed by the PLC, develop a comprehensive implementation plan to conclude and finalize the integration process within a maximum period of six months from the issuance date of the decision.

Alimi’s decision obliges the novel Council to exercise its jurisdiction and carry out its tasks in a manner that upholds the principles of political pluralism, public freedoms, and human rights, and does not contradict the provisions of the constitution and applicable laws.

Furthermore, the organizational regulations for the Council will be issued based on recommendations and proposals from the integration committee formed by the PLC.

The head of the Council will issue organizational regulations for the administrative units and security force units, as well as permanent orders regarding duties, prohibitions for Council members, and the security of its elements and premises.

In addition, Alimi issued another decree outlining the establishment of a specialized counter-terrorism agency, headquartered in the interim capital of Aden and linked to the head of the Supreme Security Committee.

The decision defines the tasks, responsibilities, and organizational structure of the agency, specifying that its organizational regulations will be issued by a decision from the head of the PLC.

The agency will have an independent budget and financial system, supervised by the Supreme Security Committee.

The presidential decision obligates the agency to promptly refer cases involving suspects, seized items, and all related priorities to the State Security Council or relevant judicial authoritie



US Aid Cut Threatens Thousands of Sudanese with Starvation and Death

Sudanese women from community kitchens, run by local volunteers, prepare meals for people who are affected by conflict and extreme hunger and are out of reach of international aid efforts. (Reuters)
Sudanese women from community kitchens, run by local volunteers, prepare meals for people who are affected by conflict and extreme hunger and are out of reach of international aid efforts. (Reuters)
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US Aid Cut Threatens Thousands of Sudanese with Starvation and Death

Sudanese women from community kitchens, run by local volunteers, prepare meals for people who are affected by conflict and extreme hunger and are out of reach of international aid efforts. (Reuters)
Sudanese women from community kitchens, run by local volunteers, prepare meals for people who are affected by conflict and extreme hunger and are out of reach of international aid efforts. (Reuters)

The freezing of US humanitarian assistance has forced the closure of almost 80% of the emergency food kitchens set up to help people left destitute by Sudan's civil war, the BBC reported on Tuesday.

Last month, the administration of US President Donald Trump administration abruptly suspended all US aid to determine whether it was “serving US interests,” and moved to begin dismantling the US government's development organization (USAID).

Aid volunteers said the impact of Trump's executive order halting contributions from USAID for 90 days meant more than 1,100 communal kitchens had shut.

The kitchens are run by groups known as emergency response rooms, a grassroots network of activists who stayed on the frontlines to respond to the crises in their neighborhoods.

“People are knocking on the volunteers' doors,” says Duaa Tariq, one of the emergency room organizers. “People are screaming from hunger in the streets.”

Most of the kitchens had closed, she said. Some are trying to get food on credit from local fishermen and farmers, but very soon “we expect to see a lot of people starving.”

It is estimated that nearly two million people struggling to survive have been affected by the US decision.

It is a “huge setback” says Andrea Tracy, a former USAID official who has set up a fund, the Mutual Aid Sudan Coalition, for private donations to the emergency rooms.

The Mutual Aid Sudan Coalition fund will do what it can to plug the gap left by USAID, Tracy said.

The conflict between the army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has killed tens of thousands of people, forced millions from their homes and left many facing famine since it erupted in April 2023.

More than 25 million Sudanese are facing high levels of acute food insecurity across the country, according to UN estimates.