Alimi Returns to Aden, Thanks Coalition, Donor Countries

The Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, upon arriving in Aden (Saba)
The Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, upon arriving in Aden (Saba)
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Alimi Returns to Aden, Thanks Coalition, Donor Countries

The Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, upon arriving in Aden (Saba)
The Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, upon arriving in Aden (Saba)

The Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, affirmed the keenness of the Council and the government to fulfill their declared pledges to Yemenis.

Alimi arrived in Aden on Saturday, coming from Riyadh.

Alimi told Saba News Agency that the government aimed to increase Yemen's presence in the regional and international arenas, noting that this year will witness the opening of several projects, with the support of the Coalition to Support Legitimacy led by Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

He expressed great gratitude to the coalition countries, friends, and international donors who always respond to emergency support programs to alleviate human suffering caused by the Iran-backed Houthi militia.

In addition, the President affirmed the Council and the government's commitment to a comprehensive and sustainable peace approach based on the references agreed upon nationally, regionally, and internationally.

Meanwhile, Yemeni Foreign Minister Ahmed bin Mubarak discussed boosting bilateral relations with the US ambassador to Yemen, Steven Fagin.

The meeting addressed recent developments and efforts to establish peace in Yemen.

Bin Mubarak affirmed the Yemeni government's commitment to establishing a comprehensive and just peace that guarantees an end to the suffering caused by the war waged by the terrorist Houthi militia.

He stressed that the only obstacle to establishing peace in Yemen is the intransigence of the militias, who refuse to fulfill their obligations to achieve a comprehensive and just peace.

The Minister pointed out that these terrorist militias' affiliation with the Iranian regime threatens stability in Yemen and represents a threat to all regional countries and international peace and security.

Bin Mubarak also touched on the importance of supporting the Yemeni government and strengthening cooperation programs between Yemen and the US, especially in the economic, development, and security fields, noting that it would enable the government to face the challenges caused by the ongoing Houthi aggression.

He stressed that the government's support would reflect positively on improving services provided to citizens and contribute to alleviating their suffering.

For his part, Fagin reviewed the US support to Yemen, stressing that the embassy attaches particular importance to supporting humanitarian work.

The Ambassador asserted that the US supports the Yemeni government in achieving economic stability, reiterating Washington's position in support of the Presidential Leadership Council.



Israel Cuts off Gaza’s Southern City of Rafah, Vows to ‘Vigorously’ Expand in the Territory

 Displaced Palestinians flee from east to west of Gaza City after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders in the area, Friday April 11, 2025. (AP)
Displaced Palestinians flee from east to west of Gaza City after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders in the area, Friday April 11, 2025. (AP)
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Israel Cuts off Gaza’s Southern City of Rafah, Vows to ‘Vigorously’ Expand in the Territory

 Displaced Palestinians flee from east to west of Gaza City after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders in the area, Friday April 11, 2025. (AP)
Displaced Palestinians flee from east to west of Gaza City after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders in the area, Friday April 11, 2025. (AP)

Israel announced Saturday it has completed construction of a new security corridor that cuts off the southern city of Rafah from the rest of Gaza, as the military said it would soon expand "vigorously" in most of the small coastal territory. Palestinians were further squeezed into shrinking areas of land.

"Soon, (military) activity will expand rapidly to additional locations throughout most of Gaza and you will have to evacuate the fighting zones," Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement, without saying where Palestinians were meant to go.

The statement urged Palestinians to stand up and remove Hamas and release the remaining hostages, saying: "This is the only way to stop the war." There was no immediate Hamas response.

Israeli troops were deployed last week to the new security corridor referred to as Morag, the name of a Jewish settlement that once stood between Rafah and Khan Younis, after the army ordered sweeping evacuations covering most of Rafah, indicating it could soon launch another major ground operation.

Israel has vowed to seize large parts of Gaza to pressure Hamas to release the remaining 59 hostages, 24 of them believed to be alive, and accept proposed new ceasefire terms.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has also imposed a monthlong blockade on food, fuel and humanitarian aid that has left the territory’s roughly 2 million Palestinians facing acute shortages as supplies dwindle — a tactic that rights groups say is a war crime.

Israel has claimed that enough supplies entered Gaza during the two-month ceasefire that it shattered last month. Aid groups have disputed that.

Netanyahu has said Morag would be "a second Philadelphi corridor," referring to the Gaza side of the border with Egypt farther south, which has been under Israeli control since May 2024. Israel has also reasserted control of the Netzarim corridor, which cuts off Gaza's northern third from the rest of the territory.

The corridors, coupled with a buffer zone that Israel has razed and expanded, give it more than 50% control of the territory.

Katz said Palestinians interested in "voluntarily" relocating to other countries would be able to as part of a proposal by US President Donald Trump. Palestinians have rejected the proposal and expressed their determination to remain in their homeland.

Trump and Israeli officials have not said how they would respond if Palestinians refuse to leave Gaza. But Human Rights Watch and other groups say the plan would amount to "ethnic cleansing" — the forcible relocation of the civilian population of an ethnic group from a geographic area.

Many Palestinians have been crowding into squalid tent camps or the rubble of their previous homes, often displacing multiple times in response to Israel's evacuation orders since the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, killed some 1,200 people, many of them civilians, and sparked the war.

Israel on Saturday ordered the evacuation of areas east of Khan Younis ahead of an attack. Military spokesperson Avichay Adraee added that fighters had fired rockets into Israel from these areas.

Israeli strikes across Gaza continued, killing at least 21 people in the last 24 hours, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants but says most of the over 50,000 Palestinians killed in the war have been women and children.

The ministry said at least 1,500 people have been killed since Israel's surprise bombardment resumed the war last month.

Israel says it has killed around 20,000 fighters in the war, without providing evidence.