UN Envoy: Houthis Rejected Updated Proposal to Reopen Routes to Taiz

UN special envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg speaks to reporters upon his arrival at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 08 June 2022. (EPA)
UN special envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg speaks to reporters upon his arrival at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 08 June 2022. (EPA)
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UN Envoy: Houthis Rejected Updated Proposal to Reopen Routes to Taiz

UN special envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg speaks to reporters upon his arrival at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 08 June 2022. (EPA)
UN special envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg speaks to reporters upon his arrival at Sanaa Airport, in Sanaa, Yemen, 08 June 2022. (EPA)

The UN special envoy for Yemen said Monday he plans to explore the possibility of a longer and expanded truce with the country’s warring parties in the coming weeks.

Hans Grundberg said an extension could be a good step in moving toward a ceasefire in the country’s eight-year war. He didn’t provide details of the length or expansion he is seeking ahead of the Aug. 2 expiration of the current two-month truce extension.

Grundberg told the UN Security Council that renewing the truce would provide time and the opportunity to start serious discussions on Yemen's economy and security and to begin addressing priority issues such as revenues and payment of salaries.

"I ask the parties to engage with me on these issues with a sense of urgency and flexibility," he said.

The ceasefire between Yemen’s legitimate government and Iran-backed Houthi militias initially took effect April 2 and was extended on June 2. Though each side at times accused the other of violating the truce, it was the first nationwide halt in fighting in the past six years of the conflict.

"To date, the truce has been holding for over three months," Grundberg said.

Civilian casualties have been reduced by two-thirds, compared to the three months before the truce began, he said. And since the renewal of the truce June 2, seven fuel ships carrying nearly 200,000 metric tons of various fuel products have been cleared to enter Yemen’s main port of Hodeidah.

Since the start of the truce, 15 commercial round-trip flights have transported almost 7,000 passengers between Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, and the Jordanian capital, Amman, Grundberg added. He said discussions are under way with Egyptian authorities about regular flights to Cairo.

Under the truce, the parties committed to meet to agree on road openings, including lifting the Houthis' ground blockade of Taiz, Yemen’s third largest city. Grundberg said the Houthis rejected the latest UN updated proposal on a phased opening but his efforts to reach a solution will continue.

"An agreement on road openings in Taiz and other governorates would be momentous, and its benefits would reverberate across Yemen," he said.

The UN envoy expressed concern at "worrisome escalatory rhetoric by the parties questioning the benefits of the truce" in recent weeks.

He called this "a dangerous move," urged the parties to halt such rhetoric, and warned that the alternative to the truce "is a return to hostilities and likely an intensified phase of conflict with all of its predictable consequences or Yemeni civilians and regional security."

Grundberg said the UN continues to receive reports from both sides about alleged incidents including direct and indirect fire, drone attacks, reconnaissance overflights and new fortifications.

"The parties are also allegedly sending reinforcements to main front lines including in Marib, Hodeidah and Taiz," he said.

Joyce Msuya , assistant secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, told the council that the Yemeni rial is still falling and "many more families are going hungry again."

But she said the UN World Food Program was forced to cut rations for millions of people several weeks ago because the UN appeal for $4.27 billion for humanitarian aid for Yemen this year has received just over $1.1 billion.

In addition, Msuya said, a UN verification and inspection system created in 2016 to facilitate vital commercial imports to Yemen is also running out of money and will shut down in September unless it gets $3.5 million to cover operations for the year's final months.



Egypt, Somalia Hold Talks to Boost Cooperation in Horn of Africa

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty with his Somali counterpart Ahmed Moalim Fiqi in Riyadh. (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty with his Somali counterpart Ahmed Moalim Fiqi in Riyadh. (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
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Egypt, Somalia Hold Talks to Boost Cooperation in Horn of Africa

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty with his Somali counterpart Ahmed Moalim Fiqi in Riyadh. (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty with his Somali counterpart Ahmed Moalim Fiqi in Riyadh. (Egyptian Foreign Ministry)

Egypt and Somalia held new consultations on Monday as part of their high-level coordination that started early this year after Addis Ababa signed a deal with the breakaway Somaliland region, allowing it access to the Red Sea for trade and military purposes.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty met with his Somali counterpart Ahmed Moalim Fiqi in Riyadh on the sidelines of the Extraordinary Arab and Islamic Summit.

The meeting came to affirm Egypt’s contribution to the new peacekeeping mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), which will replace the current African Union mission by January 2025.

It also came two days after Mogadishu excluded Addis Ababa from the mission due to its violations against Somalia's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Experts told Asharq Al-Awsat that consultations in Riyadh between the two ministers are a continuation of the process of strengthening Egyptian-Somali cooperation in the Horn of Africa in light of the rising risks both countries currently face due to Ethiopia’s behavior that threatens regional stability.

They noted that such cooperation would be fruitful for the region and could expand to include Eritrea and other countries, something Addis Ababa will consider a threat.

The experts expect Ethiopia either to retract its illegal positions regarding the Renaissance Dam and its deal with the Somaliland region, or cause additional escalation and tension in the region.

Last January, Ethiopia signed an initial agreement with Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland to use its Red Sea port.

The MoU grants Ethiopia 20-km access to the Red Sea, specifically in the Berbera port, for a 50-year period.

In return, Ethiopia will recognize Somaliland as a republic, which has not been internationally recognized since it broke away from Somalia in 1991.

The port deal with Somaliland faced opposition from Egypt and other Arab nations.

It also sparked tighter relations between Egypt and Somalia. In August, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud signed a military cooperation agreement in Cairo.

Later that month, Somalia announced the arrival of Egyptian military equipment and personnel in Mogadishu in the fight against the Al Shabab terrorist group.

On Saturday, Somali Defense Minister Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur officially announced that the Ethiopian troops will not be part of the forthcoming AUSSOM. He said Ethiopia was excluded due to its “violations against Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

During his meeting on Monday with the Somali FM, Abdelatty reiterated Egypt’s unwavering stance in supporting Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, rejecting any foreign interference in its internal affairs, according to an Egyptian FM statement released on Tuesday.

He confirmed his country’s participation in the peacekeeping forces in Mogadishu and strengthening cooperation with Eritrea in the region.

The FM expressed Cairo’s commitment to continue coordinating with his Somali counterpart to follow up on the pledge made by the leaders of Egypt and Eritrea in early October to provide comprehensive support to Somalia.

Abdelatty reiterated Egypt’s support for the Somali federal government’s efforts to combat terrorism and uphold the state’s sovereignty over its entire territory.

For his part, Fiqi expressed deep appreciation for Egypt’s unwavering support in helping his country combat terrorism, assert its sovereignty, and uphold its unity and territorial integrity.

Ambassador Salah Halima, Former Assistant Minister for Sudan's affairs in Egypt, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Egyptian assurances are part of both countries’ efforts to strengthen cooperation.

“This growing partnership, that also involves Eritrea, may expand to include other countries and would achieve development and stability in the region,” Halima said. “But Ethiopia, with its hostile actions towards Egypt and Somalia, will be the cause of continued escalation and tension,” he warned.

Sudanese expert on African affairs Abdul Nasser Haj said the current Egyptian-Somali understandings are completely consistent with events happening in the Horn of Africa region, especially Ethiopia’s escalating acts concerning the Renaissance Dam and its port deal with Somaliland.