3 of 8 GPC Ministers Absent from Coup Cabinet Meeting in Sanaa

People load belongings on a van as they evacuate their house located on a street where Houthis have recently clashed with forces loyal to slain Yemeni former president Ali Abdullah Saleh in Sana'a, Yemen December 6, 2017. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
People load belongings on a van as they evacuate their house located on a street where Houthis have recently clashed with forces loyal to slain Yemeni former president Ali Abdullah Saleh in Sana'a, Yemen December 6, 2017. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
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3 of 8 GPC Ministers Absent from Coup Cabinet Meeting in Sanaa

People load belongings on a van as they evacuate their house located on a street where Houthis have recently clashed with forces loyal to slain Yemeni former president Ali Abdullah Saleh in Sana'a, Yemen December 6, 2017. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
People load belongings on a van as they evacuate their house located on a street where Houthis have recently clashed with forces loyal to slain Yemeni former president Ali Abdullah Saleh in Sana'a, Yemen December 6, 2017. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Coup government ministers in Sana’a have surrendered to the Houthi's will in turning a blind eye to the “bloody scenario” that has ended the life of ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh and a number of his followers.

Prime Minister of the internationally unrecognized government Abdul-Aziz bin Habtour and ministers loyal to the General People’s Congress (GPC) resumed on Sunday their daily activity at their headquarters.

Also, the Houthi edition of SABA agency announced that bin Habtour held an expanded meeting with the ministers to normalize the security situation.

Among attendees from the GPC were: Deputy Prime Minister for Security Affairs Major General Jalal Ali al-Rowaishan, Foreign Minister Hisham Sharaf, Health Minister Mohammed Salem bin Hafeez, Minister of Local Administration Ali al-Qaisi and Minister of State for Parliament and Shura Council Affairs Ali Abdullah Abu Hulaykah.

Among GPC representatives who didn’t attend the cabinet session were Minister of Telecoms & Information Technology Mahmoud Julaidan, Minister of Higher Education Hussein Hazeb and Minister of Defense Mohamed al-Atefi.

They are most probably still under house arrest, amid leaked information that Houthi militias have no confidence in them and accuse them of backing the uprising launched by Saleh.

In the same context, Saleh Al-Samad, head of the Supreme Political Council, met tribal sheikhs in Al Mahwit and Sana’a. Reliable Sources informed Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that Samad urged attendees to mobilize fighters and capture anyone who attempts to rebel against Houthis in Mahrit and Sana’a.

So far, it remains unknown whether coup ministers loyal to the GPC have willingly struck a deal with Houthis to maintain the alliance with them or were intimidated to preserve their positions.

Yemeni Deputy Prime Minister Foreign Minister Abdulmalik al-Mekhlafi stated that the assassination of Saleh will cause a political and militarily change in the Yemeni scene. Politically, the cover-up that GPC used to provide for Houthis is now gone, and military decision-making is now Houthi-centered.

Houthis continue to arrest 41 media personnel and employees from Yemen Today, whose headquarters was raided by armed men last week. 



Tunisia Groups Urge Inclusion of Rejected Candidates in Poll

FILE PHOTO: Tunisian President Kais Saied attends a signing ceremony with Chinese President Xi Jinping (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China May 31, 2024. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool/File Photo/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Tunisian President Kais Saied attends a signing ceremony with Chinese President Xi Jinping (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China May 31, 2024. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool/File Photo/File Photo
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Tunisia Groups Urge Inclusion of Rejected Candidates in Poll

FILE PHOTO: Tunisian President Kais Saied attends a signing ceremony with Chinese President Xi Jinping (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China May 31, 2024. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool/File Photo/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Tunisian President Kais Saied attends a signing ceremony with Chinese President Xi Jinping (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China May 31, 2024. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/Pool/File Photo/File Photo

A petition signed by prominent Tunisians and civil society groups was published on Saturday urging that rejected candidates be allowed to stand in the October 6 presidential election, Agence France Presse reported.

Signed by 26 groups including Legal Agenda, Lawyers Without Borders and the Tunisian Human Rights League, it welcomed an administrative court decision this week to reinstate three candidates who had been disqualified.

They are Imed Daimi, who was an adviser to former president Moncef Marzouki, former minister Mondher Zenaidi and opposition party leader Abdellatif Mekki.

The three were among 14 candidates barred by the Tunisian election authority, ISIE, from standing in the election.

If they do take part, they will join former parliamentarian Zouhair Maghzaoui and businessman Ayachi Zammel in challenging incumbent President Kais Saied.

Saturday's petition was also signed by more than 180 civil society figures including Wahid Ferchichi, dean of the public law faculty at Carthage University.

It called the administrative court "the only competent authority to adjudicate disputes related to presidential election candidacies.”

The petition referred to statements by ISIE head Farouk Bouasker, who on Thursday indicated that the authority will soon meet to finalize the list of candidates, "taking into consideration judicial judgements already pronounced.”

This has been interpreted as suggesting the ISIE may reject new candidacies if they are the subject of legal proceedings or have convictions.

The administrative court's rulings on appeals "are enforceable and cannot be contested by any means whatsoever,” the petition said.

It called on the electoral authority to "respect the law and avoid any practice that could undermine the transparency and integrity of the electoral process.”