Yemen’s PLC Rejects Houthi Blackmail, Calls for ‘Firm’ Int’l Pressure on Militias

PLC deputy head Aidarous al-Zubaidi meets with Charge d’Affaires of the Indian Embassy in Yemen Ram Prasad in Riyadh on Monday. (Saba)
PLC deputy head Aidarous al-Zubaidi meets with Charge d’Affaires of the Indian Embassy in Yemen Ram Prasad in Riyadh on Monday. (Saba)
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Yemen’s PLC Rejects Houthi Blackmail, Calls for ‘Firm’ Int’l Pressure on Militias

PLC deputy head Aidarous al-Zubaidi meets with Charge d’Affaires of the Indian Embassy in Yemen Ram Prasad in Riyadh on Monday. (Saba)
PLC deputy head Aidarous al-Zubaidi meets with Charge d’Affaires of the Indian Embassy in Yemen Ram Prasad in Riyadh on Monday. (Saba)

Members of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) reiterated on Monday their rejection of the Iran-backed Houthi militias’ attempted political blackmail, calling on the international community to pressure them to accept peace.

According to official sources, PLC deputy head Aidarous al-Zubaidi discussed on Monday with Charge d’Affaires of the Indian Embassy in Yemen Ram Prasad the renewed military escalation and the militias’ intransigence and rejection of all international efforts to extend the ceasefire, which expired on October 2.

Zubaidi warned that the militias are dragging the country towards the abyss due to their intransigence and insistence on continuing the war against the Yemeni people strictly in pursuit of Iran’s agenda, he was reported as saying by the state news agency Saba.

Meanwhile, official sources said PLC member Othman Megali met in Riyadh on Monday with the Chargé d'Affaires of the Japanese embassy to discuss the developments in Yemen.

He said the Houthis are pursuing a foreign agenda and are “delusional in believing that military escalation and the rejection of the truce will yield gains through shedding the blood of the Yemeni people”.

“We reject this hostile behavior and refuse to succumb to pressure and blackmail,” he vowed.

“We will not accept any Houthi conditions and dictates that keep Yemen hostage to a militia that has rebelled against the state and international resolutions,” he stressed.

He called on the international community to “firmly” deal with the “terrorist” Houthis.

Moreover, Megali said the ceasefire “is non-existent on the ground”, accusing the militias of committing thousands of violations and pursuing military escalation.

“Everything the Houthis do is ordered by Iran and the weapons they brandish to terrorize the Yemenis are made by Iran,” he said, adding that the militias are trained on using the arms by experts from the Iran-backed Hezbollah party and Iran.



Gaza's Health Ministry Says the Palestinian Death Toll from the War Has Surpassed 46,000

People search the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike on the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on January 8, 2025 as the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement continues. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
People search the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike on the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on January 8, 2025 as the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement continues. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
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Gaza's Health Ministry Says the Palestinian Death Toll from the War Has Surpassed 46,000

People search the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike on the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on January 8, 2025 as the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement continues. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)
People search the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike on the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on January 8, 2025 as the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement continues. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP)

More than 46,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war, Gaza's Health Ministry said Thursday, as the conflict raged into a 16th month with no end in sight.
The ministry said a total of 46,006 Palestinians have been killed and 109,378 wounded. It has said women and children make up more than half the fatalities, but does not say how many of the dead were fighters or civilians, said The Associated Press.
The Israeli military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence. It says it tries to avoid harming civilians and blames Hamas for their deaths because the militants operate in residential areas. Israel has also repeatedly struck what it claims are militants hiding in shelters and hospitals, often killing women and children.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. Some 100 hostages are still inside Gaza. Israeli authorities believe at least a third of them were killed in the initial attack or have died in captivity.
The war has flattened large areas of Gaza and displaced around 90% of its 2.3 million people, with many forced to flee multiple times. Hundreds of thousands are packed into sprawling tent camps along the coast with limited access to food and other essentials.
In recent weeks, Israel and Hamas have appeared to inch closer to an agreement for a ceasefire and the release of hostages. But the indirect talks mediated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt have repeatedly stalled over the past year, and major obstacles remain.