Griffiths Discusses in Aden Ways to Push Hodeidah Plan Forward

UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths upon his departure of Sanaa, Yemen June 19, 2018. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths upon his departure of Sanaa, Yemen June 19, 2018. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
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Griffiths Discusses in Aden Ways to Push Hodeidah Plan Forward

UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths upon his departure of Sanaa, Yemen June 19, 2018. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths upon his departure of Sanaa, Yemen June 19, 2018. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

UN envoy Martin Griffiths is expected to discuss with the Yemeni legitimate government led by President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi on Wednesday the resumption of negotiations to avert an ongoing military operation by Yemeni Joint Forces, backed by the Arab Coalition, to liberate the city of Hodeidah from the Houthis’ grip.

Griffiths has said he would arrive in Aden on Wednesday to meet with Hadi and to work on preventing an all-out assault on the strategic port city.

In a tweet, the UN envoy said he would brief Hadi "on his latest efforts to avoid military escalation and return to the negotiation table."

Houthi leaders reject pulling out their militias from Hodeidah and refuse to hand over the city to the legitimate government.

Asharq Al-Awsat learned that Griffiths is seeking to convince the legitimate government and Houthi rebels to form a joint committee under UN supervision to manage the city and its port in exchange for stopping military operations and withdrawing Houthi militias to the city’s suburbs.

Meanwhile, the first two relief aircraft, dispatched by King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Acts Center (KSRelief), left Riyadh on Tuesday loaded with 70 tons of shelter and food items heading to Aden, Yemen, to help alleviate sufferings of the needy in the Hodeidah governorate.

The Advisor-Royal Court, the General Supervisor of the Center, Dr. Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Rabeeah, said in a press statement that the new relief bridge comes in implementation of the generous directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, and His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, to take care of the conditions of all Yemeni people, especially in the most affected areas, including Hodeidah, which suffered greatly from the control imposed by Houthi militias.



Tunisia Hands Lengthy Prison Terms to Top Politicians and Former Security Officials

Leader of Tunisia's Ennahda party House Speaker Rached Ghannouchi, center, flashes a victory sign as he arrives for questioning at the judicial police headquarters in Tunis, Tunisia, April 1, 2022. (AP)
Leader of Tunisia's Ennahda party House Speaker Rached Ghannouchi, center, flashes a victory sign as he arrives for questioning at the judicial police headquarters in Tunis, Tunisia, April 1, 2022. (AP)
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Tunisia Hands Lengthy Prison Terms to Top Politicians and Former Security Officials

Leader of Tunisia's Ennahda party House Speaker Rached Ghannouchi, center, flashes a victory sign as he arrives for questioning at the judicial police headquarters in Tunis, Tunisia, April 1, 2022. (AP)
Leader of Tunisia's Ennahda party House Speaker Rached Ghannouchi, center, flashes a victory sign as he arrives for questioning at the judicial police headquarters in Tunis, Tunisia, April 1, 2022. (AP)

A Tunisian court on Tuesday handed jail terms of 12 to 35 years on high-profile politicians, including opposition leader Rached Ghannouchi and former security officials, a move that critics say underscores the president's use of the judiciary to cement “authoritarian rule”.

Among those sentenced on charges of conspiring against the state in the major mass trial, were Nadia Akacha, the former chief of staff to President Kais Saied, local radio Mosaique FM said. Akacha who fled abroad received 35 years.

Ghannouchi, 84, veteran head of the Islamist-leaning Ennahda party, was handed a 14-year term.

Ghannouchi who was the speaker of the elected parliament dissolved by Saied, has been in prison since 2023, receiving three sentences of a total of 27 years in separate cases in recent months.

A total of 21 were charged in the case, with 10 already in custody and 11 having fled the country.

The court sentenced former intelligence chief Kamel Guizani to 35 years, former Foreign Minister Rafik Abdessalem to 35 years, and Mouadh Ghannouchi, son of Rached Ghannouchi, to 35 years. All three have fled the country.

Saied dissolved the parliament in 2021 and began ruling by decree, then dissolved the independent Supreme Judicial Council and sacked dozens of judges, a move that opposition called a coup which undermined the nascent democracy that sparked in 2011 the so-called “Arab Spring” uprisings.

Saied rejects the accusations and says his steps are legal and aim to end years of chaos and corruption hidden within the political elite.

Most opposition leaders, some journalists, and critics of Saied have been imprisoned since he seized control of most powers in 2021.

This year, a court handed jail terms of 5 to 66 years to opposition leaders, businessmen and lawyers on charges of conspiring as well, a case the opposition says is fabricated in an attempt to stamp out opposition to the president.