عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Grundberg in Yemen to Urge Houthis to Accept Peace, Release Detainees

UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg arrives at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 06 January 2025. (EPA)
UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg arrives at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 06 January 2025. (EPA)
TT
TT

Grundberg in Yemen to Urge Houthis to Accept Peace, Release Detainees

UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg arrives at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 06 January 2025. (EPA)
UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg arrives at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 06 January 2025. (EPA)

UN Special Envoy for Yemen for Yemen Hans Grundberg arrived in Houthi-held Sanaa on Monday as part of his efforts to urge the Iran-backed militias to accept peace and release employees from the UN and humanitarian agencies.

Grundberg's “visit is part of the ongoing efforts to de-escalate the current tensions that have engulfed the region and Yemen,” UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said Monday. “In addition, his efforts will focus on advancing the peace process.”

The Houthis have stepped up their missile attacks against Israel, and have been targeting shipping in the Red Sea corridor for over a year — attacks they say won't stop until there's a ceasefire in Gaza. Israel has repeatedly bombarded Yemen's ports, oil infrastructure and the airport in Sanaa, some 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) away.

“We’ll also be pushing for the release of the arbitrarily detained UN personnel and also from other NGOs and civil society,” the UN spokesman said.

The Houthis claim the detainees, most of them held since June, are part of an “American-Israeli spy network,” an allegation vehemently denied by the UN, NGO organizations, governments and others.

Grundberg arrived in Yemen after holding talks with Omani officials in Muscat. Present at the talks was Houthi spokesman and chief negotiator Mohammed Abdelsalam.

The envoy is hoping to make a breakthrough in the Yemeni crisis after his efforts stalled with the Houthis launching their attacks on Red Sea and Gulf of Aden shipping.

A statement from his office said he is hoping his meetings in Sanaa will lead to the Houthis to take tangible steps to push the peace process forward.

“His visit is part of his ongoing efforts to urge for concrete and essential actions by the Houthis for advancing the peace process. It is also part of his continuing efforts to support the release of the arbitrarily detained UN, NGO, civil society and diplomatic mission personnel,” said the Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen (OSESGY) on the X platform.

He plans to conduct a series of national and regional meetings in the coming days under his mediation efforts.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
TT
TT

MSF Suspends Operations at Key Hospital in Sudan's Capital

FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)
FILE - South Sudanese people sit outside a nutrition clinic at a transit center in Renk, South Sudan, on May 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Sam Mednick, File)

Medical aid agency MSF said on Friday it has been forced to suspend its activities at one of the few remaining hospitals in southern Khartoum due to repeated attacks, cutting off yet another lifeline for those who remain in the Sudanese capital.
War has been raging in Sudan since April 2023, sparked by a power struggle between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) ahead of a planned transition to civilian rule, triggering the world's largest displacement and hunger crisis.
The hospital, which lies in territory controlled by the RSF, helped treat the victims of frequent airstrikes by the Sudanese Armed Forces, as well as hundreds of malnourished women and children in an area where two neighborhoods have been judged at risk of famine, reported Reuters.
"In the 20 months MSF teams have worked alongside hospital staff and volunteers, Bashair Hospital has experienced repeated incidents of armed fighters entering the hospital with weapons and threatening medical staff, often demanding fighters be treated before other patients," MSF said in a statement.
"Despite extensive engagements with all stakeholders, these attacks have continued in recent months. MSF has now taken the very difficult decision to suspend all medical activities in the hospital."
The fighting in Sudan has cut off up to 80% of hospitals in conflict areas, where millions who cannot afford to escape the violence remain. Civilians face frequent air and artillery fire and hunger as supplies are blocked by both warring parties and prices skyrocket.
Medical facilities, including MSF-supported ones that have suspended operations, have frequently come under attack by RSF soldiers demanding treatment or looting supplies. Bashair Hospital has served more than 25,000 people, MSF said, including 9,000 hurt by blasts, gunshot wounds, and other violence.
"Sometimes dozens of people arrived at the hospital at the same time after shelling or airstrikes on residential areas and markets," MSF said in the statement, citing an incident on Sunday where an airstrike one kilometer away drove 50 people to the emergency room, 12 of them already dead.