Saudi Arabia, Yemen Sign Development, Reconstruction Agreement

The Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen signs a joint cooperation agreement on development and reconstruction in Yemen. (SPA)
The Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen signs a joint cooperation agreement on development and reconstruction in Yemen. (SPA)
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Saudi Arabia, Yemen Sign Development, Reconstruction Agreement

The Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen signs a joint cooperation agreement on development and reconstruction in Yemen. (SPA)
The Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen signs a joint cooperation agreement on development and reconstruction in Yemen. (SPA)

The Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen (SDRPY) signed a joint cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia and the Yemeni government on the development and reconstruction of Yemen.

The deal was signed by Supervisor of the Saudi Program for the Development and Reconstruction of Yemen and Saudi Ambassador to Yemen Mohammed bin Saeed Al Jaber and Yemen's Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Najib al-Auj at the SDRPY headquarters in Riyadh.

The agreement is part of the cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Yemen and the reinforcement of ties between the fraternal countries to provide and implement development and reconstruction projects and services in Yemen.

The SDRPY was established in May 2018 by a royal decree issued by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz to contribute with international donors and the World Bank in developing and reconstructing Yemen.

The SDRPY projects cover the health, education, energy and agriculture sectors. They have also tackled fishery resources, water, dams, roads, airports, government and residential buildings.



Aid to Gaza 'Facing Total Collapse', Warn 12 NGOs

 A Palestinian boy looks through a hole in the wall into a damaged room after an Israeli strike on a school housing displaced Palestinians in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on April 17, 2025. (AFP)
A Palestinian boy looks through a hole in the wall into a damaged room after an Israeli strike on a school housing displaced Palestinians in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on April 17, 2025. (AFP)
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Aid to Gaza 'Facing Total Collapse', Warn 12 NGOs

 A Palestinian boy looks through a hole in the wall into a damaged room after an Israeli strike on a school housing displaced Palestinians in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on April 17, 2025. (AFP)
A Palestinian boy looks through a hole in the wall into a damaged room after an Israeli strike on a school housing displaced Palestinians in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip on April 17, 2025. (AFP)

The humanitarian aid system in Gaza is "facing total collapse" because of Israel's blockade on aid supplies since March 2, the heads of 12 major aid organizations warned Thursday, urging Israel to let them "do our jobs".

Israel has vowed to maintain its blockage on humanitarian aid to the war-ravaged territory, saying it is the only way to force Hamas to release the 58 hostages still held there.

"Every single person in Gaza is relying on humanitarian aid to survive," the chief executives of 12 NGOs, including Oxfam and Save the Children, wrote in a joint statement.

"That lifeline has been completely cut off since a blockade on all aid supplies was imposed by Israeli authorities on March 2," they said, adding that "This is one of the worst humanitarian failures of our generation."

A survey of 43 international and Palestinian aid organizations working in Gaza found that almost all have suspended or drastically cut services since a ceasefire ended on March 18, "with widespread and indiscriminate bombing making it extremely dangerous to move around", the NGOs said.

"Famine is not just a risk, but likely rapidly unfolding in almost all parts of Gaza," they said. "Survival itself is now slipping out of reach and the humanitarian system is at breaking point."

"We call on all parties to guarantee the safety of our staff and to allow the safe, unfettered access of aid into and across Gaza through all entry points, and for world leaders to oppose further restrictions."

Israel's renewed assault has killed at least 1,691 people in Gaza, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, bringing the overall toll since the war erupted to 51,065, most of them civilians.

Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, also mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.