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Sanaa Meetings Continue, Prisoner Swap to Begin Friday

The Saudi ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed Al-Jaber, shakes hands with the head of the Houthi governing council, Mehdi Al-Mashat, in Sanaa (AP)
The Saudi ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed Al-Jaber, shakes hands with the head of the Houthi governing council, Mehdi Al-Mashat, in Sanaa (AP)
    Yemen - Ali Rabih
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Sanaa Meetings Continue, Prisoner Swap to Begin Friday

The Saudi ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed Al-Jaber, shakes hands with the head of the Houthi governing council, Mehdi Al-Mashat, in Sanaa (AP)
The Saudi ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed Al-Jaber, shakes hands with the head of the Houthi governing council, Mehdi Al-Mashat, in Sanaa (AP)

Yemeni government officials have delayed the agreed-upon prisoner exchange deal to Friday from Thursday, as Saudi and Omani efforts continue in Sanaa to encourage Houthi leaders to implement an intra-Yemeni peace plan.

The plan seeks to establish a ceasefire, renew and expand humanitarian truce, and ultimately lead to a negotiating track to end the conflict.

The Consultations and Reconciliation Commission, which supports the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), has welcomed Saudi-led mediation efforts in Sanaa to promote peace and reach a final solution to the Yemeni crisis.

The efforts are led by Saudi Ambassador Mohammed Al-Jaber, who arrived in the Houthi-held Yemeni capital last Sunday with an Omani delegation.

Yemeni analysts who spoke with Asharq Al-Awsat have stated that Riyadh has gained the trust of various Yemeni factions, including the Houthis who received the Saudi ambassador.

Differences now revolve around “narratives” instead of violence, and this slight progress in the Yemeni scene is a positive alternative to the sound of gunfire.

Political sources in Sanaa, who spoke with Asharq Al-Awsat, stated that ongoing efforts and discussions with Houthi leaders are promising an imminent breakthrough in the Yemeni file.

Yemenis are hopeful that the coming days will bring a new turning point towards peace, following the roadmap presented by the Saudi and Omani delegations, sources revealed.

Houthi leaders usually wait for the green light and final approval from their leader, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, before agreeing to any proposals presented by UN or regional mediators.

The PLC, headed by Rashad Al-Alimi, gathered in Riyadh to discuss the proposed peace plan. According to Yemeni sources, the PLC provided feedback on the proposals.

In the meantime, the US State Department announced that Tim Lenderking, the Special Envoy for Yemen, left for the Arab Gulf region to aid efforts to reach a new agreement on a comprehensive peace process.

“After over a year of intensive US and UN diplomatic efforts and support from regional partners like Saudi Arabia and Oman, Yemen is witnessing an unprecedented opportunity for peace,” said the State Department in a statement.

The UN-mediated truce, which began in April 2022, laid the foundation for renewed peace efforts while delivering tangible benefits to the Yemeni people.

“Moving forward, only the Yemeni parties can bring lasting peace and shape a brighter future for their country, which is why a Yemeni-Yemeni political process is urgently needed,” added the statement.

During his visit, Lenderking will meet with Yemeni, Saudi, and international partners to discuss the necessary steps to secure a durable ceasefire and inclusive, UN-mediated political process, while ensuring continued efforts to ease the economic crisis and suffering of Yemenis.

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Arab World

Lebanon’s Salam Wins Enough Support to Become PM, Angering Hezbollah

Judge Nawaf Salam, president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) speaks at the ICJ at the start of a hearing in The Hague Netherlands May 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Judge Nawaf Salam, president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) speaks at the ICJ at the start of a hearing in The Hague Netherlands May 16, 2024. (Reuters)
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Lebanon’s Salam Wins Enough Support to Become PM, Angering Hezbollah

Judge Nawaf Salam, president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) speaks at the ICJ at the start of a hearing in The Hague Netherlands May 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Judge Nawaf Salam, president of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) speaks at the ICJ at the start of a hearing in The Hague Netherlands May 16, 2024. (Reuters)

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun summoned Nawaf Salam, head of the International Court of Justice, to designate him prime minister after most lawmakers nominated him on Monday, a big blow to Hezbollah, which accused opponents of seeking to exclude it.

The choice of Salam underlined the major shift in the power balance among Lebanon's sectarian factions since the Iran-backed Shiite group Hezbollah was pummeled in a war with Israel last year, and its Syrian ally Bashar al-Assad was toppled.

The presidency said Salam, currently outside the country and due to return on Tuesday, had secured the backing of 84 out of parliament's 128 lawmakers, and Aoun had summoned him to assign him to form the government.

Salam won backing from Christian and Druze factions, and prominent Sunni Muslim MPs, including Hezbollah allies and opponents of the group who have long demanded it give up its arsenal, arguing it has undermined the state.

But lawmakers from Hezbollah and its Shiite ally the Amal Movement, which hold all the seats reserved for Shiites in parliament, did not name anybody, indicating they currently do not intend to participate in Salam's government and raising the prospect of a sectarian rift if they remain outside cabinet.

Senior Hezbollah lawmaker Mohammed Raad, whose Iran-backed group had wanted incumbent Najib Mikati to stay in the post, said Hezbollah's opponents were working for fragmentation and exclusion. He said the group had "extended its hand" by electing Joseph Aoun as president last week only to find the "hand cut".

"Any government at odds with coexistence has no legitimacy whatsoever," Raad said. The group would act calmly and wisely "out of concern for the national interest", he added.

Last week's election of army commander General Aoun was another sign of shifts in the political landscape, in which Hezbollah had long held decisive sway.

Aoun's election and the designation of a new premier are steps towards reviving Lebanese government institutions which have been paralyzed for more than two years, with the country having neither a head of state nor a fully empowered cabinet.

Faisal Karami, a Sunni lawmaker aligned with the group, said he had nominated Salam, citing demands for "change and renewal" and pledges of Arab and international support for Lebanon.

Head of the Christian Free Patriotic Movement MP Gebran Bassil said Salam was the "face of reform". "Hope is in change," said the lawmaker, who was once allied with Hezbollah.

The new administration faces huge tasks including rebuilding areas levelled by Israeli airstrikes during the war with Hezbollah, and launching long-stalled reforms to revive the economy and address the root causes of the collapse of Lebanon's financial system in 2019.

Aoun said he hoped for a smooth and fast government formation because "we have great opportunities abroad", a reference to pledges of foreign support.

HEZBOLLAH MPS ARRIVE LATE

The prime minister must be a Sunni Muslim according to Lebanon's sectarian power-sharing system, which parcels out state positions on the basis of religious affiliation. The presidency goes to a Maronite Christian and the speaker of parliament must be a Shiite Muslim.

Hezbollah lawmakers attended their meeting with Aoun later than scheduled, delaying their arrival as they saw the momentum building behind Salam, a Hezbollah source said, according to Reuters.

Hezbollah believed a political understanding had been reached on Mikati's election before the group agreed to elect Aoun last week, the source said.

Salam took over the presidency of the ICJ, which is based in The Hague, as it held its first hearing in 2024 on a case filed by South Africa accusing Israel of genocide in the Gaza Strip, which Israel has dismissed as baseless.

Aoun, in his former role as commander of the US-backed army, played a critical role in the implementation of a US-brokered ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah.

The terms require the Lebanese army to deploy into south Lebanon as Israeli troops and Hezbollah withdraw forces.