Hadi: We Look Forward to Peace, Reject Houthis Importing Iranian Experience to Yemen

 Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi (Reuters)
Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi (Reuters)
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Hadi: We Look Forward to Peace, Reject Houthis Importing Iranian Experience to Yemen

 Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi (Reuters)
Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi (Reuters)

Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi on Monday reaffirmed his government’s keenness to achieve peace, years after Iran-backed Houthi militias waged a nationwide coup. The leader also accused the militant group of using the power of arms to transfer the Iranian experience to Yemen forcibly.

“This is a matter that the people of Yemen won’t accept,” noted the president about Houthis looking to import Iranian ideology and revolution to the war-torn country.

Hadi’s comments came during a meeting with the Chargé d’Affairs of the US Embassy in Yemen, Catherine Westley. On the same day, the president had also received the credentials of several new ambassadors appointed to Yemen.

While drawing emphasis on the need to achieve peace per international resolutions, especially UN Security Council Resolution 2216, Hadi stressed the need to stabilize the national economy in another Monday meeting with the Central Bank of Yemen (CBY).

Hadi acknowledged the CBY’s role in controlling the banking market, stabilizing the economy, and putting in place measures to limit the local currency’s decline against foreign currencies.

The president reiterated Yemen’s keenness on achieving the Yemeni people’s aspirations for peace after having long suffered from the war launched by Iran-backed Houthi militias.

Hadi explained that coup militias seek to impose their approach and transfer the Iranian experience to Yemen, which he confirmed Yemenis could not accept.

Hadi highlighted the official state’s commitment to all peace efforts in their various stages, the latest of which being the Stockholm Agreement, Saba News Agency reported.

“We have halted (according to the agreement) the entry of our forces into Hodeidah governorate after them having been only a few meters away from the port of Hodeidah,” said the president.

“On the other hand, Houthis did not abide by their pledges to end the siege on Taiz and release the prisoners and detainees (all for all) as the first steps towards peace,” he added.



Reports: US to Withdraw All Troops from Syria

A US Army patrol in the Syrian city of Qamishli (Reuters file photo)
A US Army patrol in the Syrian city of Qamishli (Reuters file photo)
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Reports: US to Withdraw All Troops from Syria

A US Army patrol in the Syrian city of Qamishli (Reuters file photo)
A US Army patrol in the Syrian city of Qamishli (Reuters file photo)

The United States is planning to withdraw all of its 1,000 troops from Syria over the next two months, according to US media reports.

Washington will end its presence in the country after the Syrian government extended its control over the country and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces once key to fighting ISIS pledged to integrate into the state, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Television network CBS also reported on the plan, citing unnamed US officials.

The decision comes after US forces recently withdrew from some bases
in Syria including Al-Tanf and Al-Shadadi, which were used in the US-led international coalition's fight against ISIS, AFP reported.

The US is building up its military capabilities near Iran, where officials have vowed to respond to any attack by laying siege to American military outposts in the region.

US media reported Wednesday that Washington will be ready to launch strikes against Iran as early as this weekend, though Trump has reportedly not made a final decision yet.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.


Canada Eases Sanctions on Syria

13 February 2026, Bavaria, Munich: Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada, arrives at the Bavarian Hof for the 62nd Munich Security Conference. Photo: Felix Hörhager/dpa
13 February 2026, Bavaria, Munich: Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada, arrives at the Bavarian Hof for the 62nd Munich Security Conference. Photo: Felix Hörhager/dpa
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Canada Eases Sanctions on Syria

13 February 2026, Bavaria, Munich: Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada, arrives at the Bavarian Hof for the 62nd Munich Security Conference. Photo: Felix Hörhager/dpa
13 February 2026, Bavaria, Munich: Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada, arrives at the Bavarian Hof for the 62nd Munich Security Conference. Photo: Felix Hörhager/dpa

Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand said on Wednesday that Canada had amended its economic sanctions on Syria ‌to ease ‌restrictions related ‌to the ⁠import and export ⁠of goods, investment activities and the provision of financial and other ⁠services, according to Reuters.

"The amendments also ‌remove ‌24 entities and ‌one individual from ‌the Syria Regulations to reduce barriers to economic activity and ‌to enable transactions with state-affiliated entities ⁠in ⁠key sectors critical to Syria’s recovery," Anand said in a statement.


Tetteh: Despite UN Engagement, No Progress in Libya Roadmap

Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya Hanna Tetteh Getty)
Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya Hanna Tetteh Getty)
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Tetteh: Despite UN Engagement, No Progress in Libya Roadmap

Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya Hanna Tetteh Getty)
Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya Hanna Tetteh Getty)

The UN’s top envoy for Libya, Hanna Tetteh, has informed the Security Council that despite active United Nations engagement, the Libyan House of Representatives and the High Council of State have failed to make progress on the first steps of the agreed political roadmap, including establishing a mechanism to select the board of the High National Elections Commission (HNEC) and advancing electoral legislation.

Briefing the Council in New York on Wednesday, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General said: “Their inability to use their agreed mechanism and follow-on unilateral actions has further eroded their credibility."

Tetteh added that Libyan public perceptions reflect a growing belief that the bodies are “unable or unwilling” to deliver.

She told Council members that she has begun consultations with key actors on an alternative two-step approach aimed at restoring momentum. Should a smaller group of Libyan representatives fail to agree on the roadmap’s milestones, she warned, a broader convening would be required. “We cannot wait indefinitely,” she emphasized.

The UN envoy also issued a stark warning about escalating tensions within Libya’s judicial system.

She said “contradictory, parallel judicial decisions put into jeopardy the unity of the legal and judicial systems,” cautioning that the situation “is a red line that if crossed can undermine the unity of the state.”

She urged Libyan leaders to refrain from further escalatory steps and called on the Council to hold accountable those taking actions that threaten to fracture the judiciary.

Tetteh also warned that transnational criminal networks continue to expand, turning Libya into a major transit hub for drug trafficking and sustaining illicit economies linked to corruption and armed groups.