Al-Houthi Vows to Prolong Yemen War

Al-Houthi Vows to Prolong Yemen War
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Al-Houthi Vows to Prolong Yemen War

Al-Houthi Vows to Prolong Yemen War

The leader of Houthis insurgents, Abdul-Malek al-Houthi, warned on Tuesday that the war in Yemen would continue for a fifth year, renewing the rebel group’s rejection to withdraw from Hodeidah and its ports as stipulated by the UN-sponsored Stockholm Agreement.

Al-Houthi said his militias would not hand over the Red Sea port city to what he described as “traitors and agents,” in reference to members of Yemen’s legitimate government.

“Hodeidah should keep its current security and administrative status,” which is under the control of militias operating from Sanaa, he said.

The insurgent leader bragged about killing former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, whom he described as a “traitor,” pledging in the coming phase to cleanse state institutions in Aden from Saleh’s followers.

Meanwhile, Saudi Ambassador to Yemen Mohammed Al Jaber told Asharq Al-Awsat in an interview that the military operation launched by Riyadh four years ago to support the Yemeni people against the Houthi coup, was “necessary.”

It did not come by “choice,” he said.

The diplomat said that since their coup in 2015, Houthis have signed 70 peace agreements without implementing any of them.

“The Houthi militias constitute a very small minority in Yemen.” However, with the help of Iranian money and Hezbollah’s training, they have been able to take the state “captive” and control it using the force of arms,” Al Jaber said.



Iraq Holds Kurdish Government Legally Responsible for Continued Oil Smuggling

Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo
Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo
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Iraq Holds Kurdish Government Legally Responsible for Continued Oil Smuggling

Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo
Kurdish protesters block the road in front of trucks carrying oil in the Arbat area near Sulaymaniyah, Iraq February 23, 2025. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo

Iraq's oil ministry said on Thursday it holds the Kurdish regional government (KRG) legally responsible for the continued smuggling of oil from the Kurdish region outside the country.

The ministry reserves the right to take all legal measures in the matter, it added.

Control over oil and gas has long been a source of tension between Baghdad and Erbil, Reuters reported.

Iraq is under pressure from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to cut output to compensate for having produced more than its agreed volume. OPEC counts oil flows from Kurdistan as part of Iraq's quota.

In a ruling issued in 2022, Iraq's federal court deemed an oil and gas law regulating the oil industry in Iraqi Kurdistan unconstitutional and demanded that Kurdish authorities hand over their crude oil supplies.

The ministry said the KRG’s failure to comply with the law has hurt both oil exports and public revenue, forcing Baghdad to cut output from other fields to meet OPEC quotas.

The ministry added that it had urged the KRG to hand over crude produced from its fields, warning that failure to do so could result in significant financial losses and harm the country’s international reputation and oil commitments.

Negotiations to resume Kurdish oil exports via the Iraq-Türkiye oil pipeline, which once handled about 0.5% of global oil supply, have stalled over payment terms and contract details.