Houthi Escalation in Taiz, Marib Undermines Peace Efforts, Truce

A general view of Taiz city that has been besieged by the Houthis for eight years. (Saba)
A general view of Taiz city that has been besieged by the Houthis for eight years. (Saba)
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Houthi Escalation in Taiz, Marib Undermines Peace Efforts, Truce

A general view of Taiz city that has been besieged by the Houthis for eight years. (Saba)
A general view of Taiz city that has been besieged by the Houthis for eight years. (Saba)

The Iran-backed Houthi militias kicked off Eid al-Fitr celebrations in Yemen by committing more crimes in violation of the fragile calm that had prevailed in the country and that had given hope that the militants would agree to a permanent peace roadmap sought by Saudi Arabia and Oman.

The Houthis shelled civilian areas in the western countryside of the Taiz province, killing three civilians, including a child, and wounding nine others.

Local and medical sources identified the child as 12-year-old Najwa Hassan Moqbel Bshaj and the two other victims as Mohammed Abdulbaset al-Habishi and his sister Mariam, reported the Saba news agency.

The wounded suffered various injuries, some serious, added the sources. They are being treated in Mokha city. The sources warned that the death toll from the shelling could rise.

Saba said the attack is part of the daily crimes committed by the terrorist Houthis to “thwart local and regional peace efforts and continue to spill the blood of Yemenis.”

Meanwhile, the Houthis blew up three houses in the Sirwah district in the Marib province on Friday, which was the first day of Eid, revealed a local rights group.

The “Mousawat” rights and freedoms group said the Houthis blew up the homes of Saleh bin Saleh al-Dawla, Abdullah Saleh al-Dawla, and Saleh Nasser al-Dawla al-Jahmy in al-Zour village in Marib.

In a statement, it revealed that the latest attack brought to nine the total number of houses blown up by the Houthis since mid-February as part of their systematic terrorization and forced displacement of opponents.



Sudan's RSF Says It Has Not Been Officially Notified of Humanitarian Truce in El Fasher

RSF fighters in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur (File photo – Telegram)
RSF fighters in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur (File photo – Telegram)
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Sudan's RSF Says It Has Not Been Officially Notified of Humanitarian Truce in El Fasher

RSF fighters in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur (File photo – Telegram)
RSF fighters in El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur (File photo – Telegram)

Sudan's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) said it had not received any official request from international actors to implement a humanitarian truce in the city of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur, where thousands of civilians remain trapped and at risk of famine.

The statement came a day after Sudanese army chief and head of the ruling Sovereign Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, agreed to a week-long ceasefire in El Fasher at the request of United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

RSF legal adviser Mohamed al-Mukhtar al-Nour told Asharq Al-Awsat that the group rejects any partial or full ceasefire, whether in El Fasher or elsewhere. He said the RSF had not received formal communication from the UN or the United States regarding the proposed truce.

According to al-Nour, El Fasher is now largely deserted, with most civilians having fled to areas such as Tawila, Karma, and Jebel Marra.

Those remaining in the city, he claimed, are Sudanese Armed Forces personnel and allied fighters from armed movements supporting the army.

El Fasher has been the focal point of intense fighting in recent weeks, raising alarm among humanitarian agencies about the safety of civilians and the worsening humanitarian crisis in Darfur.