GCC Praises Saudi Arabia's Efforts in Yemen

 The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) was founded in 1981. Faisal Al Nasser/Reuters
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) was founded in 1981. Faisal Al Nasser/Reuters
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GCC Praises Saudi Arabia's Efforts in Yemen

 The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) was founded in 1981. Faisal Al Nasser/Reuters
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) was founded in 1981. Faisal Al Nasser/Reuters

Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Dr. Naif Al Hajraf has praised the efforts exerted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Yemen which resulted in accelerating and activating the implementation of the Riyadh Agreement.

Hajraf also confirmed GCC’s keenness to restore security and stability in Yemen and its return as an active member in the Gulf and Arab arenas.

He affirmed the Council’s support for the United Nations efforts to reach a comprehensive political solution to the Yemeni crisis in accordance with the GCC initiative and its mechanisms, the outcomes of the comprehensive national dialogue and the Security Council Resolution No. 2216.

In a phone call with Yemeni Premier Maeen Abdulmalik, Hajraf hailed the Saudi efforts aimed at implementing the Riyadh Agreement and expressed his wishes to cope with current difficulties to alleviate Yemenis' suffering and help them reach the stability they pursue.

Yemen's PM said everyone is determined to apply the recently reached mechanism, to accelerate the Riyadh Agreement implementation, that has already started with his mandate and the appointment of Aden governor and the police director in preparation for the next steps.

He further lauded the great efforts and unlimited support provided by Saudi Arabia in Yemen's decisively existential battle to maintain its Arab identity and abort the Iranian project assumed by the Houthi group.



Qatar PM Says Gaza Ceasefire Talks Make Some Progress

FILE PHOTO: The minaret of the Great Omari Mosque, which was hit in previous Israeli strike during the war, stands damaged in Gaza City, March 17, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The minaret of the Great Omari Mosque, which was hit in previous Israeli strike during the war, stands damaged in Gaza City, March 17, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas/File Photo
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Qatar PM Says Gaza Ceasefire Talks Make Some Progress

FILE PHOTO: The minaret of the Great Omari Mosque, which was hit in previous Israeli strike during the war, stands damaged in Gaza City, March 17, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The minaret of the Great Omari Mosque, which was hit in previous Israeli strike during the war, stands damaged in Gaza City, March 17, 2025. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas/File Photo

Qatar's prime minister said on Sunday that efforts to reach a new ceasefire in Gaza have made some progress but an agreement between Israel and Hamas to end the war remains elusive.

"We have seen on Thursday a bit of progress compared to other meetings yet we need to find an answer for the ultimate question: how to end this war. That's the key point of the entire negotiations," said Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, who also serves as foreign minister, Reuters reported.

Mossad Director David Barnea traveled to Doha on Thursday to meet Sheikh Mohammed amid efforts to reach a new ceasefire in Gaza, Axios reported last week.

Sheikh Mohammed didn't say which elements of the ceasefire talks had progressed in recent days, but said Hamas and Israel remained at odds over the ultimate goal of negotiations.

He said the militant group is willing to return all remaining Israeli hostages if Israel ends the war in Gaza. But Israel wants Hamas to release the remaining hostages without offering a clear vision on ending the war, he said.

"When you don't have a common objective, a common goal between the parties, I believe the opportunities (to end the war) become very thin," Sheikh Mohammed said at a press conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.

Fidan said talks Turkish officials have held with Hamas had shown the group would be more open to an agreement that goes beyond a ceasefire in Gaza and aims for a lasting solution to the crisis with Israel, including a two-state solution.

Israel resumed its offensive in Gaza on March 18 after a January ceasefire collapsed, saying it would keep up pressure on Hamas until it frees the remaining hostages still held in the enclave. Up to 24 of them are believed to still be alive.

The Gaza war started after Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack. Since then, Israel's offensive on the enclave killed more than 51,400, according to local health officials.