UN Security Council Renews Sanctions on Houthis

The Security Council voting on extending sanctions against Houthis (Security Council)
The Security Council voting on extending sanctions against Houthis (Security Council)
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UN Security Council Renews Sanctions on Houthis

The Security Council voting on extending sanctions against Houthis (Security Council)
The Security Council voting on extending sanctions against Houthis (Security Council)

The UN Security Council extended the sanctions imposed on Yemen until Nov. 15, including the arms embargo on several Houthi leaders, classified as a terrorist entity under UN Resolution 2624.

The Council also extended the mandate of the panel of experts tasked with managing the sanctions until Dec. 15.

The 15 members voted unanimously on Resolution No. 2675 to technically extend the previous resolution that imposed a comprehensive arms embargo on the Houthis, described as entities threatening peace, security, and stability in Yemen.

It also accused the Houthis of attacking civilians and civil infrastructure in Yemen, targeting tankers in the Red Sea using explosives and naval mines, and repeatedly committing cross-border terrorist attacks.

The Council accused the Houthis of attacking civilians and infrastructure in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The new vote technically extended the former decision and maintained its classification of the Houthi militia as a "terrorist group."

It also condemns their cross-border terrorist attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

It called for immediate measures to stop such attacks and the inclusion of the Houthis as an "entity" in the sanctions list within the UN's arms embargo.

The Security Council also held a closed consultation session in which Security Council members received a briefing on Yemen.

The briefers were Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg, Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Joyce Msuya, and the head of the UN Mission to Support the Hodeidah Agreement (UNMHA), Major General Michael Beary.

Diplomats reported that Grundberg told Council members that Yemen was still witnessing the most prolonged period of calm in the fighting since the start of the UN-led ceasefire between the Yemeni government and the Houthi group in Apr. 2022, despite the failure of the two parties to renew the agreement in early Oct. 2022.

The Special Envoy addressed diplomatic efforts and his visits to Saudi Arabia to discuss progress toward a national ceasefire and a comprehensive political process by the Yemenis under the auspices of the United Nations.

He also briefed the meeting on his talks with the head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, in Aden, and Omani officials and chief Houthi negotiator Mohammed Abdulsalam in Muscat.



Schools Closed in Beirut after Deadly Israeli Strike

Firefighters douse flames at the site of an Israeli strike on a building in the Lebanese capital - AFP
Firefighters douse flames at the site of an Israeli strike on a building in the Lebanese capital - AFP
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Schools Closed in Beirut after Deadly Israeli Strike

Firefighters douse flames at the site of an Israeli strike on a building in the Lebanese capital - AFP
Firefighters douse flames at the site of an Israeli strike on a building in the Lebanese capital - AFP

Schools in Beirut were closed on Monday after Israeli strikes on the Lebanese capital killed six people including Hezbollah's spokesman, the latest in a string of top militant targets slain in the war.

Israel escalated its bombardment of Hezbollah strongholds in late September, vowing to secure its northern border with Lebanon to allow Israelis displaced by cross-border fire to return home.

Sunday's strikes hit densely populated districts of central Beirut that had so far been spared the violence engulfing other areas of Lebanon.

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The strikes prompted the education ministry to shut schools and higher education institutions in the Beirut area for two days.

Children and young people around Lebanon have been heavily impacted by the war, which has seen schools around the country turned into shelters for the displaced.

Lebanese authorities say more than 3,480 people have been killed since October last year, with most casualties recorded since September.

Israel says 48 soldiers have been killed fighting Hezbollah, AFP reported.

Another strike hit a busy shopping district of Beirut, sparking a huge blaze that engulfed part of a building and several shops nearby.

Lebanon's National News Agency said the fire had largely been extinguished by Monday morning, noting it had caused diesel fuel tanks to explode.

"In a quarter of an hour our whole life's work was lost," said Shukri Fuad, who owned a shop destroyed in the strike.

Ayman Darwish worked at an electronics shop that was hit.

"Everyone knows us, everyone knows this area is a civilian area, no one is armed here," he said.

One of those killed in the strike, Darwish said, was the son of the owner of the store where he worked.

"The martyr Mahmud used to come after working hours, in the evenings and even on Sundays, to deal with client requests," he said.

The NNA reported new strikes early Monday on locations around south Lebanon, long a stronghold of Hezbollah.