Arab Coalition Accuses Iran, its Proxies of Destabilizing Regional Security

Foreign Ministers and Chiefs of Staff of States for the Coalition Supporting the Legitimacy in Yemen meet in Riyadh on Sunday/SPA
Foreign Ministers and Chiefs of Staff of States for the Coalition Supporting the Legitimacy in Yemen meet in Riyadh on Sunday/SPA
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Arab Coalition Accuses Iran, its Proxies of Destabilizing Regional Security

Foreign Ministers and Chiefs of Staff of States for the Coalition Supporting the Legitimacy in Yemen meet in Riyadh on Sunday/SPA
Foreign Ministers and Chiefs of Staff of States for the Coalition Supporting the Legitimacy in Yemen meet in Riyadh on Sunday/SPA

Foreign Ministers and Chiefs of Staff of States from the Coalition Supporting the Legitimacy in Yemen denounced on Sunday the negative role played by Tehran in supporting coup militias with weapons, ammunition, ballistic missiles and mines in a flagrant violation of Security Council Resolution 2216, stressing the Iranian regime and its proxies are responsible for destabilizing regional security.

A final communiqué read by Colonel Pilot Turki bin Saleh al-Maliki, official spokesperson of the coalition, during a press conference held Sunday in Riyadh said that member states condemned the militias for killing the Yemeni people and exposing them to famine, fear, disease, tampering with the capabilities of the Yemeni people and threatening the security and stability of the region’s countries, mainly Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

Al-Maliki told Asharq Al-Awsat that Houthis have targeted the Kingdom with 77 missiles.

The spokesperson said the insurgents are the first outlawed terrorist group that own ballistic powers, which he considered a very threatening challenge.

“Terrorist and armed groups cannot possess such powers, especially ballistic and surface-to-surface missiles,” he said.

The final communiqué also confirmed that the military operations of the coalition are carried out in line with the relevant international laws, including international humanitarian law.

With regard to the annual report of the UN Secretary General on children in armed conflicts issued early last month, participants rejected parts of it for containing false information, and called on the UN to revise the mechanisms and fact-finding tools.

Nevertheless, they lauded other parts of the report, which hailed measures taken by the coalition in protecting civilians.

Representatives of the Coalition forces in Yemen also condemned the coup militias' criminal acts, such as using, training and recruiting children in armed conflicts in addition to imposing a siege on cities and looting humanitarian aid, which has led to the spread of epidemics and famine among civilians.

They concluded by stressing the need for the coalition states to highlight their message and disclose the criminal practices and plans carried out by the insurgents with the support of Iran and Hezbollah.



Grossi Wants to Meet with Iran’s Pezeshkian ‘at Earliest Convenience’

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, US, March 15, 2023. (Reuters)
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, US, March 15, 2023. (Reuters)
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Grossi Wants to Meet with Iran’s Pezeshkian ‘at Earliest Convenience’

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, US, March 15, 2023. (Reuters)
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, US, March 15, 2023. (Reuters)

Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi announced he intends to visit Tehran through a letter he addressed to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Iranian Mehr Agency reported that Grossi sent a congratulatory message to the Iranian president-elect, which stated: “I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to you on your election win as President of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

“Cooperation between the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Islamic Republic of Iran has been at the focal attention of the international circles for many years. I am confident that, together, we will be able to make decisive progress on this crucial matter.”

“To that effect, I wish to express my readiness to travel to Iran to meet with you at the earliest convenience,” Iran’s Mehr news agency quoted Grossi as saying.

The meeting – should it take place - will be the first for Pezeshkian, who had pledged during his election campaign to be open to the West to resolve outstanding issues through dialogue.

Last week, American and Israeli officials told the Axios news site that Washington sent a secret warning to Tehran last month regarding its fears of Iranian research and development activities that might be used to produce nuclear weapons.

In May, Grossi expressed his dissatisfaction with the course of the talks he held over two days in Iran in an effort to resolve outstanding matters.

Since the death of the former Iranian president, Ibrahim Raisi, the IAEA chief refrained from raising the Iranian nuclear file, while European sources said that Tehran had asked to “freeze discussions” until the internal situation was arranged and a new president was elected.