Yemen’s Hadi Says Riyadh Agreement Would Unite Front against Coup Militias

Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, AFP
Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, AFP
TT

Yemen’s Hadi Says Riyadh Agreement Would Unite Front against Coup Militias

Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, AFP
Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, AFP

Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi stressed the need to expedite the process of implementing the Riyadh Agreement, signed between the internationally recognized government and the Southern Transitional Council (STC).

Hadi argued that implementing the Riyadh Agreement would unite Yemeni parties and efforts to confront the Houthi coupist militias.

In his address on the 57th anniversary of the 14th October revolution on Tuesday, Hadi revealed that work is underway on a strategy for resuming the activities of all public institutions.

“Despite the woes of the war, work is underway to implement an integrated strategy aimed at restoring state agencies and institutions by implementing the Riyadh Agreement,” Hadi said.

The president also praised Saudi Arabia for spending great efforts to sponsor and ensure the implementation of the deal.

In July, Saudi Arabia presented a mechanism to accelerate the implementation of the agreement between the government and the STC. The two sides had agreed to form a power-sharing government and pull forces out of main cities.

Hadi said he hoped that the terms of the Riyadh Agreement are swiftly implemented to better focus and unite efforts against Houthi insurgent militias.

Implementing the agreement, according to Hadi, would also give state institutions the opportunity to carry out their responsibilities in serving Yemenis.

“The suffering of the people requires that everyone rises to the level of responsibility,” he noted.

Ever since he assumed office, Hadi has worked to consolidate the bonds of national unity and overcome the repercussions of the country’s political crisis.

“Everyone's dream was embodied in leaving conflict in the past and building a just federal state,” he affirmed.

Hadi accused Iran-backed Houthis of seeking to abort the national project through rebelling against the state and popular consensus in the country.

Houthis have gone far in waging war against multiple Yemeni governorates in hopes of emboldening Iran-inspired Houthi dynasty rule.



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)
TT

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.