US Ambassador in Yemen Voices Concern to Asharq Al-Awsat over Sana’a Unrest

Smoke rises during the battle between former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh's supporters and the Houthi militias in Sana’a, Yemen December 2, 2017. (Reuters)
Smoke rises during the battle between former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh's supporters and the Houthi militias in Sana’a, Yemen December 2, 2017. (Reuters)
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US Ambassador in Yemen Voices Concern to Asharq Al-Awsat over Sana’a Unrest

Smoke rises during the battle between former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh's supporters and the Houthi militias in Sana’a, Yemen December 2, 2017. (Reuters)
Smoke rises during the battle between former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh's supporters and the Houthi militias in Sana’a, Yemen December 2, 2017. (Reuters)

US Ambassador to Yemen Matthew Tueller welcomed on Saturday calls for reaching a peaceful resolution to the country’s conflict, while voicing concern over the fighting in the capital Sana’a.

He told Asharq Al-Awsat that Washington was very concerned with the reports on the unrest in Sana’a and the possibility of the fall of civilian casualties.

He therefore urged calm and welcomed the calls for a peaceful resolution.

Fighting as been raging in Sana’a between once allies the Houthi militias and supporters of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

The violence in the capital and the desperate humanitarian situation confirm the need for an immediate halt in fighting and for all sides to make concessions to end the war, added Tueller.

In wake of the clashes in Sana’a, Saleh announced on Saturday his readiness to open a new chapter of ties with the Saudi-led Arab coalition to restore legitimacy in Yemen, thereby ending his alliance with the Houthis.

He said in a televised address that Yemen has had enough violence, calling on all the people to defend the revolt against forces that have for three years wreaked havoc in the country.

He also called on the armed forces to ignore the commands of the Houthis militias.



Gaza: Polio Vaccine Campaign Kicks off a day Before Expected Pause in Fighting

A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child at a hospital in Khan Younis, Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child at a hospital in Khan Younis, Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
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Gaza: Polio Vaccine Campaign Kicks off a day Before Expected Pause in Fighting

A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child at a hospital in Khan Younis, Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child at a hospital in Khan Younis, Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

A campaign to inoculate children in Gaza against polio and prevent the spread of the virus began on Saturday, Gaza's Health Ministry said, as Palestinians in both the Hamas-governed enclave and the occupied West Bank reeled from Israel's ongoing military offensives.

Children in Gaza began receiving vaccines, the health ministry told a news conference, a day before the large-scale vaccine rollout and planned pause in fighting agreed to by Israel and the UN World Health Organization. The WHO confirmed the larger campaign would begin Sunday.

“There must be a ceasefire so that the teams can reach everyone targeted by this campaign,” said Dr. Yousef Abu Al-Rish, deputy health minister, describing scenes of sewage running through crowded tent camps in Gaza.

Associated Press journalists saw about 10 infants receiving vaccine doses at Nasser hospital in Khan Younis.

Israel is expected to pause some operations in Gaza on Sunday to allow health workers to administer vaccines to some 650,000 Palestinian children. Officials said the pause would last at least nine hours and is unrelated to ongoing cease-fire negotiations.

“We will vaccinate up to 10-year-olds and God willing we will be fine,” said Dr. Bassam Abu Ahmed, general coordinator of public health programs at Al-Quds University.

The vaccination campaign comes after the first polio case in 25 years in Gaza was discovered this month. Doctors concluded a 10-month-old had been partially paralyzed by a mutated strain of the virus after not being vaccinated due to fighting.

Healthcare workers in Gaza have been warning of the potential for a polio outbreak for months. The humanitarian crisis has deepened during the war that broke out after Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were militants.

Hours earlier, the Health Ministry said hospitals received 89 dead on Saturday, including 26 who died in an overnight Israeli bombardment, and 205 wounded — one of the highest daily tallies in months.