Al-Alimi Stresses Unity of Yemeni Presidential Council, Questions Houthi Commitment to Peace Efforts

Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad al-Alimi receives well-wishers in Aden on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr. (Saba)
Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad al-Alimi receives well-wishers in Aden on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr. (Saba)
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Al-Alimi Stresses Unity of Yemeni Presidential Council, Questions Houthi Commitment to Peace Efforts

Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad al-Alimi receives well-wishers in Aden on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr. (Saba)
Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad al-Alimi receives well-wishers in Aden on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr. (Saba)

Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad al-Alimi underscored the unity of the PLC, saying it was more united than ever.

In an address from the interim capital Aden on the eve of Eid al-Fitr, he stressed that the Council was united over its “central goal” of restoring state institutions and peace and achieving legitimate spirations.

Al-Alimi had returned to Aden from the Saudi capital Riyadh where he had held a series of meetings aimed at launching a comprehensive peace plan. He is accompanied by PLC member Aidarous al-Zubaidi.

Al-Alimi added that a year since the formation of the PLC, the Iran-backed Houthi militias are still counting on its division.

“They will be proven wrong,” he stated, saying the Council will remain united and determined to fulfill its duties during the transitional period in line with the agreed national, regional and international references.

Furthermore, he highlighted the PLC and government’s efforts in accelerating growth and launching dozens of service projects that will be completed in various liberated provinces.

He hailed in this regard the Saudi efforts aimed at pushing the militias to renew the nationwide truce and ceasefire and kick off a comprehensive UN-sponsored political process.

Al-Alimi lamented, however, that the Houthis continue to stall and refuse to respond to peace efforts. Rather, they aim to exploit them for political gain and “misleading propaganda.”

“In order to liberate peace from such narrow interests, populist speeches and false victories, we must be diligent and hold on to hope and the pledge of peace,” he declared.

“We must confront the lies with the truth,” he stressed.

Moreover, he accused the Houthis of sparking the war and choosing to carry on with it in total disregard of the suffering of the people and their hopes for peace, security, stability and freedom.

He added that the PLC has made “necessary” concessions to ease the suffering of the people and facilitate the efforts of regional, international and UN mediators.

Al-Alimi noted the recent prisoner exchange between the legitimate government and Houthis, saying it could not have been possible without the flexibility shown by the government’s negotiations team, Saudi Arabia, UN envoy and International Committee of the Red Cross.

He vowed to spare no effort in ensuring the release of the remaining detainees held by the Houthis.



UN Rapporteur Calls for Global Action to Stop ‘Genocide’ in Gaza

 UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories Francesca Albanese speaks during a press conference following an Emergency Conference of States, hosted by Colombia and South Africa, to discuss measures against Israel in relation to the conflict in Gaza, in Bogota, Colombia, July 15, 2025. (Reuters)
UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories Francesca Albanese speaks during a press conference following an Emergency Conference of States, hosted by Colombia and South Africa, to discuss measures against Israel in relation to the conflict in Gaza, in Bogota, Colombia, July 15, 2025. (Reuters)
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UN Rapporteur Calls for Global Action to Stop ‘Genocide’ in Gaza

 UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories Francesca Albanese speaks during a press conference following an Emergency Conference of States, hosted by Colombia and South Africa, to discuss measures against Israel in relation to the conflict in Gaza, in Bogota, Colombia, July 15, 2025. (Reuters)
UN Special Rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories Francesca Albanese speaks during a press conference following an Emergency Conference of States, hosted by Colombia and South Africa, to discuss measures against Israel in relation to the conflict in Gaza, in Bogota, Colombia, July 15, 2025. (Reuters)

The United Nations’ special rapporteur for Gaza and the West Bank said Tuesday that it's time for nations around the world to take concrete actions to stop what she called the “genocide” in Gaza.

Francesca Albanese spoke to delegates from 30 countries meeting in Colombia’s capital to discuss the Israel-Hamas war and ways that nations can try to stop Israel’s military offensive in the territory. Many of the participating nations have described the violence as genocide against the Palestinians.

“Each state must immediately review and suspend all ties with the State of Israel ... and ensure its private sector does the same,” Albanese said. “The Israeli economy is structured to sustain the occupation that has now turned genocidal.”

The two-day conference organized by the governments of Colombia and South Africa is being attended mostly by developing nations, although the governments of Spain, Ireland and China have also sent delegates.

Israel, which was founded in the aftermath of the Holocaust, has adamantly rejected genocide allegations against it as an antisemitic “blood libel.”

Analysts say it’s not clear whether the conference's participating countries have enough leverage over Israel to force it to change its policies in Gaza, where more than 58,000 people have been killed in Israeli military operations following a deadly Hamas attack on Israel in 2023. The death toll comes from the health ministry, which is under Gaza’s Hamas government and does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. The UN and other international organizations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties.

“The United States has so far failed to influence Israel’s behavior ... so it is naive to think that this group of countries can have any influence over (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu’s behavior or on the government of Israel,” said Sandra Borda, a professor of international relations at Bogota’s Los Andes University.

She said, however, that the conference will enable some nations of the Global South to clarify their position toward the conflict and have their voices heard.

The conference is co-chaired by the governments of South Africa and Colombia, which last year suspended coal exports to Israeli power plants, and includes the participation of members of The Hague Group, a coalition of eight nations that earlier this year pledged to cut military ties with Israel and to comply with an International Criminal Court arrest warrant against Netanyahu.

For decades, South Africa’s ruling African National Congress party has compared Israel’s policies in Gaza and the West Bank with its own history of oppression under the harsh apartheid regime of white minority rule, which restricted most Blacks to “homelands” before ending in 1994.

South Africa’s current argument is rooted in the sentiment that Palestinians have been oppressed in their homeland as Black South Africans were under apartheid.

The gathering comes as the European Union weighs various measures against Israel that include a ban on imports from Israeli settlements, an arms embargo and individual sanctions against Israeli officials, who are found to be blocking a peaceful solution to the conflict.

Colombia’s Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Mauricio Jaramillo said Monday that the nations participating in the Bogota meeting, which also include Qatar and Türkiye, will be discussing diplomatic and judicial measures that can be taken to put more pressure on Israel to cease its attacks.

The Colombian official described Israel’s conduct in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank as an affront to the international order.

“This is not just about Palestine” Jaramillo said in a press conference. “It is about defending international law... and the right to self-determination.”