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Leading Congressional Figures Call for Immediate Cessation of Houthi Attack on Marib

Forces loyal to the Yemeni government hold a position against Houthis in Marib (AFP)
Forces loyal to the Yemeni government hold a position against Houthis in Marib (AFP)
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Leading Congressional Figures Call for Immediate Cessation of Houthi Attack on Marib

Forces loyal to the Yemeni government hold a position against Houthis in Marib (AFP)
Forces loyal to the Yemeni government hold a position against Houthis in Marib (AFP)

A number of Republican and Democratic congressional figures called on the Houthis to immediately end their attack on Marib.

“The ongoing Houthi assault on Marib is a catastrophe that threatens to further exacerbate the devastating humanitarian crisis in Yemen. We call on the Houthis to immediately end this siege,” a joint statement read.

The officials urged all parties to the conflict to agree to and uphold a ceasefire, stressing that “an immediate end to the fighting is urgently needed to prevent further suffering innocent Yemenis.”

Meanwhile, Republican Senator Jim Risch explained to Asharq Al-Awsat that confiscating thousands of Iranian weapons intended to be shipped to Houthis is another evidence of Tehran’s destabilizing influence in the region.

Risch indicated that this influence exists through Tehran's support for the Houthis, the Assad regime in Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and militias in Iraq.

Last week, the US Navy announced it seized an arms shipment of thousands of assault weapons, machine guns, and sniper rifles hidden aboard a ship in the Arabian Sea, apparently bound for Yemen to support the Houthis.

A number of Republican Senators also criticized the Biden administration's efforts to return to the 2015 nuclear deal, without setting conditions on Iran's support for the Houthis.

Republican Senator Tom Cotton said in a tweet: “Offering unilateral concessions only encouraged Houthi aggression, a lesson the administration should remember with the Iranian regime.”

Cotton accused Iran of being responsible for the attacks in Iraq, Yemen, and Israel this week, saying “now is absolutely the wrong time to lift sanctions and appease the ayatollahs.”

He said it is no surprise that the Navy confiscated weapons destined for Yemen, noting that “the US Navy seized another shipment of Iranian weapons bound for Yemen should come as no surprise. Iran has sought to fuel civil war in Yemen since at least 2013.”

For their part, Democratic Senators highlighted the Houthis’ role in the Yemen war.

Senator Chris Murphy, who was on a visit to the region, accompanied by US Special Envoy Tim Lenderking, said: “The ball is really in their court, and the Houthis — if they persist with this offensive — will have to answer to the world for the humanitarian catastrophe that will be created.”

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Arab World

Rescue Teams Search for Survivors in Building Collapse that Killed at Least 2 in Northern Lebanon

A Lebanese flag is pictured, in the aftermath of a massive explosion, in Beirut's damaged port area, Lebanon August 17, 2020. REUTERS/Hannah McKay
A Lebanese flag is pictured, in the aftermath of a massive explosion, in Beirut's damaged port area, Lebanon August 17, 2020. REUTERS/Hannah McKay
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Rescue Teams Search for Survivors in Building Collapse that Killed at Least 2 in Northern Lebanon

A Lebanese flag is pictured, in the aftermath of a massive explosion, in Beirut's damaged port area, Lebanon August 17, 2020. REUTERS/Hannah McKay
A Lebanese flag is pictured, in the aftermath of a massive explosion, in Beirut's damaged port area, Lebanon August 17, 2020. REUTERS/Hannah McKay

At least two people were killed and four rescued from the rubble of a multistory apartment building that collapsed Sunday in the city of Tripoli in northern Lebanon, state media reported.

Rescue teams were continuing to dig through the rubble. It was not immediately clear how many people were in the building when it fell.

The bodies pulled out were of a child and a woman, the state-run National News Agency reported.

Dozens of people crowded around the site of the crater left by the collapsed building, with some shooting in the air.

The building was in the neighborhood of Bab Tabbaneh, one of the poorest areas in Lebanon’s second largest city, where residents have long complained of government neglect and shoddy infrastructure. Building collapses are not uncommon in Tripoli due to poor building standards, according to The AP news.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry announced that those injured in the collapse would receive treatment at the state’s expense.

The national syndicate for property owners in a statement called the collapse the result of “blatant negligence and shortcomings of the Lebanese state toward the safety of citizens and their housing security,” and said it is “not an isolated incident.”

The syndicate called for the government to launch a comprehensive national survey of buildings at risk of collapse.

Arab World

Israel to Take More West Bank Powers and Relax Settler Land Buys

A view of Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, in the West Bank, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP)
A view of Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, in the West Bank, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP)
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Israel to Take More West Bank Powers and Relax Settler Land Buys

A view of Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, in the West Bank, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP)
A view of Israeli settlement of Maale Adumim, in the West Bank, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP)

Israel's security cabinet approved a series of steps on Sunday that would make it easier for settlers in the occupied West Bank to buy land while granting Israeli authorities more enforcement powers over Palestinians, Israeli media reported.

The West Bank is among the territories that the Palestinians seek for a future independent state. Much of it is under Israeli military control, with limited Palestinian self-rule in some areas run by the Western-backed Palestinian Authority (PA).

Citing statements by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Defense Minister Israel Katz, Israeli news sites Ynet and Haaretz said the measures included scrapping decades-old regulations that prevent Jewish private citizens buying land in the West Bank, The AP news reported.

They were also reported to include allowing Israeli authorities to administer some religious sites, and expand supervision and enforcement in areas under PA administration in matters of environmental hazards, water offences and damage to archaeological sites.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the new measures were dangerous, illegal and tantamount to de-facto annexation.

The Israeli ministers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The new measures come three days before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to meet in Washington with US President Donald Trump.

Trump has ruled out Israeli annexation of the West Bank but his administration has not sought to curb Israel's accelerated settlement building, which the Palestinians say denies them a potential state by eating away at its territory.

Netanyahu, who is facing an election later this year, deems the establishment of any Palestinian state a security threat.

His ruling coalition includes many pro-settler members who want Israel to annex the West Bank, land captured in the 1967 Middle East war to which Israel cites biblical and historical ties.

The United Nations' highest court said in a non-binding advisory opinion in 2024 that Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and settlements there is illegal and should be ended as soon as possible. Israel disputes this view.

Arab World

Arab League Condemns Attack on Aid Convoys in Sudan

A general view shows the opening session of the meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League Headquarters (Reuters)
A general view shows the opening session of the meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League Headquarters (Reuters)
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Arab League Condemns Attack on Aid Convoys in Sudan

A general view shows the opening session of the meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League Headquarters (Reuters)
A general view shows the opening session of the meeting of Arab foreign ministers at the Arab League Headquarters (Reuters)

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit strongly condemned the attack by the Rapid Support Forces on humanitarian aid convoys and relief workers in North Kordofan State, Sudan.

In a statement reported by SPA, secretary-general's spokesperson Jamal Rushdi quoted Aboul Gheit as saying the attack constitutes a war crime under international humanitarian law, which prohibits the deliberate targeting of civilians and depriving them of their means of survival.

Aboul Gheit stressed the need to hold those responsible accountable, end impunity, and ensure the full protection of civilians, humanitarian workers, and relief facilities in Sudan.