Coalition: ‘We Have Carried Out Operations to Target Houthi Leaders’

Colonel Turki al-Malki. Reuters
Colonel Turki al-Malki. Reuters
TT
20

Coalition: ‘We Have Carried Out Operations to Target Houthi Leaders’

Colonel Turki al-Malki. Reuters
Colonel Turki al-Malki. Reuters

The leadership of the coalition forces in support of legitimacy in Yemen stressed targeting senior Houthi leaders during the past few days.

It said that it will reveal the details of these operations after confirming the information that it is currently gathering and said that Houthi militias are using "Sam-7" missiles.

The coalition’s leadership considered that the peace opportunity with the Iranian Houthi militias is still available if they abandon the coup project and agree on a political solution based on the three references, which are the Gulf initiative and its executive mechanism, the outputs of the comprehensive Yemeni national dialogue and Security Council resolution 2216.

It warned the militias from not bowing to the international will as it leads to the continuation of operations carried by coalition forces until it returns legitimacy to all the Yemeni territories.

Coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Malki told a news conference that what happened lately, including killing former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, was as a turning point in the Yemeni conflict.

He noted that it revealed the true face of the criminal terrorist group, and the conflict has become open between the people and this group.

The Iranian Houthi militias have two options, either peace or war, Malki said, explaining that peace will take place only with the implementation of the political solution based on the three references or else war will continue.

Speaking at a news conference, Malki said the legitimate forces have knocked out a large number of military vehicles and arms depots for the Houthi militias. Moreover, they have seized weapons provided by Iran to the Houthis.

Maliki also revealed aerial photos showing a militiaman carrying a SAM-7 missile, who was targeted by Apache plane, the same plane that also targeted Houthi militia border posts.

He added that the Apache planes also destroyed military vehicles belonging to Houthis, as well as weapon depots and Houthi checkpoints.

He also said that the areas where Houthi ballistic missiles are being kept have been located and destroyed.

The coalition and Yemeni army are specifically focusing on eliminating Houthi bases near the Saudi Arabian border, he added.

Maliki also stressed the coalition’s humanitarian aid efforts through airdrops of aid in several parts of Yemen and the work of human rights organizations in Sana’a amid threats by Houthis.

The Arab Coalition has also distributed leaflets along with the Yemeni army to help those seeking safety, he said.



Rights Defenders Denounce US Sanctions on UN Expert on Palestinians

UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese gives a press conference at the UN City in Copenhagen, Denmark February 5, 2025. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo
UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese gives a press conference at the UN City in Copenhagen, Denmark February 5, 2025. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo
TT
20

Rights Defenders Denounce US Sanctions on UN Expert on Palestinians

UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese gives a press conference at the UN City in Copenhagen, Denmark February 5, 2025. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo
UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese gives a press conference at the UN City in Copenhagen, Denmark February 5, 2025. Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS/File Photo

Human rights defenders rallied on Thursday to support the top UN expert on Palestinian rights, after the United States imposed sanctions on her over what it said was unfair criticism of Israel.

Italian lawyer Francesca Albanese serves as special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, one of dozens of experts appointed by the 47-member UN Human Rights Council to report on specific global issues.

She has long criticized Israeli treatment of the Palestinians, and this month published a report accusing over 60 companies, including some US firms, of supporting Israeli settlements in the West Bank and military actions in Gaza.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Wednesday Albanese would be added to the US sanctions list for work which had prompted what he described as illegitimate prosecutions of Israelis at the International Criminal Court.

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk urged Washington to reverse course.

"Even in the face of fierce disagreement, UN Member States should engage substantively and constructively, rather than resort to punitive measures," he said, Reuters reported.

Juerg Lauber, the Swiss permanent representative to the UN who now holds the rotating presidency of the Human Rights Council, said he regretted the sanctions, and called on states to "refrain from any acts of intimidation or reprisal" against the body's experts.

Mariana Katzarova, who serves as the special rapporteur for human rights in Russia, said her concern was that other countries would follow the US lead.

"This is totally unacceptable and opens the gates for any other government to do the same," she told Reuters. "It is an attack on UN system as a whole. Member states must stand up and denounce this."

Russia has rejected Katzarova's mandate and refused to let her enter the country, but it has so far stopped short of publicly adding her to a sanctions list.

Washington has already imposed sanctions against officials at the International Criminal Court, which has issued arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister for suspected war crimes in Gaza. Another court, the International Court of Justice, is hearing a case brought by South Africa that accuses Israel of genocide.

Israel denies that its forces have carried out war crimes or genocide against Palestinians in the war in Gaza, which was precipitated by an attack by Hamas-led fighters in October 2023.

"The United States is working to dismantle the norms and institutions on which survivors of grave abuses rely," said Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch.

The group's former head, Kenneth Roth, called the US sanctions an attempt "to deter prosecution of Israeli war crimes and genocide in Gaza".

The United States, once one of the most active members of the Human Rights Council, has disengaged from it under President Donald Trump, alleging an anti-Israel bias.