Yemen's Presidential Council to Up Economic Measures to Confront Houthis

Head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Rashad al-Alimi with three other members (Saba)
Head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Rashad al-Alimi with three other members (Saba)
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Yemen's Presidential Council to Up Economic Measures to Confront Houthis

Head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Rashad al-Alimi with three other members (Saba)
Head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Rashad al-Alimi with three other members (Saba)

The Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council asserted that the government would continue its efforts to curb the impact of Houthi attacks on oil export ports and address the economic war waged by the militias against the government.

Official Yemeni sources stated that the Council held a meeting chaired by Rashad al-Alimi to address the latest developments in the country, including the economic situation following the government policies aimed at alleviating the repercussions of Houthi attacks on oil facilities and ports.

The meeting also aimed to confront restrictions imposed on the activities of the private sector and the movement of individuals, commodities, and humanitarian aid.

Saba state news agency reported that the Council stressed the importance of doubling efforts to improve rational management of resources, public revenues, deposits, and generous development aid from Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

The Council praised the royal directives from the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman, to deposit $1 billion at the Central Bank of Yemen. The move promotes the bank's capabilities in managing monetary policy, maintaining the stability of the national currency, and thwarting the plans of terrorist militias.

Meanwhile, media in reported that local authority led by Mohammed Ali Yasser met with the US ambassador to Yemen, Steven Fagin, and the commander of the US Fifth Fleet, General Charles Cooper, and several US officials at the headquarters of the Coalition to Support Legitimacy.

The talks stressed on the importance of continuing efforts to combat the smuggling of Iranian weapons and drugs to Yemen.

It addressed efforts to combat arms and drug smuggling and boost cooperation, coordination, and capacity-building for the Coast Guard to enhance maritime security and international freedom of navigation.

The sources quoted the US ambassador as saying that the visit aims to show Washington's support for Yemen and al-Mahra governorate, and to boost many aspects in the security field and combating smuggling and terrorism.

Earlier, the British Royal Navy and the US Navy intercepted and confiscated an Iranian arms shipment in the Gulf of Oman, likely destined for the Houthis in Yemen.

Yemeni Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani said this confirmed the Tehran regime's escalation of arms smuggling operations to the Houthis in flagrant violation of international resolutions.

Eryani explained that the Joint Maritime Forces managed to carry out seven interception operations in the past three months.

He said the escalation of arms smuggling operations to Houthi militias revealed intentions to thwart international efforts to restore the ceasefire, accusing Tehran of blocking peace efforts.

The minister appreciated the efforts of the joint naval forces, led by the US Navy and the British Royal Navy, in thwarting Iranian arms smuggling operations. He called for support for the Yemeni Coast Guard to raise their readiness in combating terrorism, arms and drug smuggling and other illegal activities.

Eryani called on the international community, the United Nations, and the Security Council's permanent members to take a firm stance to stop Iranian activities that undermine security and regional and global peace.

Meanwhile, the Yemeni government affirmed its support for UN and international efforts to renew and expand the armistice to launch a comprehensive peace process leading to ending the coup and restoring the state.

Foreign Minister Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak urged the international community to pressure the Houthi militia and its supporters to comply with the requirements of a lasting and comprehensive peace that all Yemenis seek.

He called for providing the necessary support to the Yemeni government to carry out its responsibilities in normalizing economic conditions, providing services to citizens, and implementing the required reforms.



WHO Sends Over 1 Mln Polio Vaccines to Gaza to Protect Children 

Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
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WHO Sends Over 1 Mln Polio Vaccines to Gaza to Protect Children 

Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)
Displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, look out from a window as they take shelter, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, July 24, 2024. (Reuters)

The World Health Organization is sending more than one million polio vaccines to Gaza to be administered over the coming weeks to prevent children being infected after the virus was detected in sewage samples, its chief said on Friday.

"While no cases of polio have been recorded yet, without immediate action, it is just a matter of time before it reaches the thousands of children who have been left unprotected," Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in an opinion piece in Britain's The Guardian newspaper.

He wrote that children under five were most at risk from the viral disease, and especially infants under two since normal vaccination campaigns have been disrupted by more than nine months of conflict.

Poliomyelitis, which is spread mainly through the fecal-oral route, is a highly infectious virus that can invade the nervous system and cause paralysis. Cases of polio have declined by 99% worldwide since 1988 thanks to mass vaccination campaigns and efforts continue to eradicate it completely.

Israel's military said on Sunday it would start offering the polio vaccine to soldiers serving in the Gaza Strip after remnants of the virus were found in test samples in the enclave.

Besides polio, the UN reported last week a widespread increase in cases of Hepatitis A, dysentery and gastroenteritis as sanitary conditions deteriorate in Gaza, with sewage spilling into the streets near some camps for displaced people.