Yemen Stresses Role of Consultations and Reconciliation Commission in Backing Presidential Council

Al-Alimi meets with members of the Consultations and Reconciliation Commission in Aden on Sunday. (Saba)
Al-Alimi meets with members of the Consultations and Reconciliation Commission in Aden on Sunday. (Saba)
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Yemen Stresses Role of Consultations and Reconciliation Commission in Backing Presidential Council

Al-Alimi meets with members of the Consultations and Reconciliation Commission in Aden on Sunday. (Saba)
Al-Alimi meets with members of the Consultations and Reconciliation Commission in Aden on Sunday. (Saba)

Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad al-Alimi stressed the importance of the Consultations and Reconciliation Commission in supporting the council.

Official sources said al-Alimi and PLC member Aidarous al-Zubaidi met with head of the commission, Mohammed al-Ghaithi and his deputies Abdul Malik al-Mikhlafi, Sakhr al-Wajeeh, Jameela Ali Raja and Akram al-Aamiri in Aden on Sunday.

Talks focused on activating the role of the commission in supporting the PLC and efforts to consolidate the current national consensus, unity of ranks and desired partnership on all levels, reported the state news agency Saba.

They covered the developments in Yemen and the needed efforts to garner all forces and national components to achieve the goal of restoring the state, peace and stability.

The sources said the head of the commission stressed his support for the decisions taken by the council, the reforms tied to the transitional process and commitment to national, regional and international agreements.

The 50-member commission was formed as part of the PLC and it represents all segments of Yemeni society.

Prior to meeting with the commission, al-Alimi had met with the parliament speaker, lawmakers and the heads of various parliamentary committees to brief them on the PLC’s work since its formation in April.

Al-Alimi stressed the council’s determination to fulfill all the demands of the transitional period and confront all challenges and obstacles, stressing the priority to bolster security and stability in Aden and liberated provinces.

He underscored the commitment to reforming services and institutional sectors.

He hailed the role played by the Arab coalition, led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, rejecting any offense to it.

The coalition should be praised and respected for the sacrifices it has made for Yemen, he stated.

The meeting between al-Alimi and the parliament also tackled efforts to hold legislative sessions in the interim capital Aden.

The parliament had last convened in Aden in April to swear in the PLC.

Prior to that, the legislature had last met in Saiyoun city in Hadhramaut three years ago.

Efforts are underway for parliament to convene in Aden as part of the measures to activate the role of constitutional institutions so that they can support the PLC and government in confronting the Iran-backed Houthi militias.

Al-Alimi revealed that al-Zubaidi has been appointed as head of the higher financial resources committee that oversees all revenues generated at state ports and land, air and border crossings and from oil and other resources.

Moreover, he criticized internal disputes between the military and security and national forces, saying they should overcome their differences and aim their weapons at the common enemy, the Houthis.



Lebanon: Israeli Airstrikes, Demolitions Hit Southern Villages

Smoke rises after Israeli tanks shelled targets in  the municipality of Mais al-Jabal, as seen from Chaqra village, in southern Lebanon, 21 August 2026. EPA/STRINGER
Smoke rises after Israeli tanks shelled targets in the municipality of Mais al-Jabal, as seen from Chaqra village, in southern Lebanon, 21 August 2026. EPA/STRINGER
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Lebanon: Israeli Airstrikes, Demolitions Hit Southern Villages

Smoke rises after Israeli tanks shelled targets in  the municipality of Mais al-Jabal, as seen from Chaqra village, in southern Lebanon, 21 August 2026. EPA/STRINGER
Smoke rises after Israeli tanks shelled targets in the municipality of Mais al-Jabal, as seen from Chaqra village, in southern Lebanon, 21 August 2026. EPA/STRINGER

Israeli warplanes carried out a series of strikes on Saturday near the area of Kfar Rumman in southern Lebanon and also struck the vicinity of Ali al-Taher hills.

At dawn, Israeli shelling targeted the town of Mansouri, the outskirts of Buyut al-Siyad and the outskirts of Majdal Zoun in southern Lebanon.

Overnight, Israeli forces carried out extensive demolitions in the villages and towns of Mansouri, Majdal Zoun and Buyut al-Siyad. Reports said not a single house remained undamaged.

Similar Israeli demolitions were reported in Hadatha, Beit Yahoun and Aita al-Jabal, along with machine-gun fire directed toward nearby valleys. Israeli drones also continued to fly over villages and towns in the western and central sectors.


At Least 13 Tunisians Missing after Migrant Boat Sinks off Tunisia

Migrants on a boat waiting for assistance from a rescue vessel in the Mediterranean Sea, July 24, 2025 (Reuters)
Migrants on a boat waiting for assistance from a rescue vessel in the Mediterranean Sea, July 24, 2025 (Reuters)
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At Least 13 Tunisians Missing after Migrant Boat Sinks off Tunisia

Migrants on a boat waiting for assistance from a rescue vessel in the Mediterranean Sea, July 24, 2025 (Reuters)
Migrants on a boat waiting for assistance from a rescue vessel in the Mediterranean Sea, July 24, 2025 (Reuters)

At least 13 Tunisians are missing after a migrant boat sank off the Tunisian coast while sailing towards Italy, and two people were rescued, the head of a migrant rights group said on Saturday.

The boat set off early on Thursday, Mostafa Abdelkebir, the head of the Tunisian Observatory for Human Rights, told Reuters.

One of the two ‌survivors told ‌rescuers in a local boat ‌they had ⁠been stranded at ⁠sea for hours after their vessel capsized. The second survivor was in critical condition, said Abdelkebir, whose group monitors migration issues.

Tunisia was once a major departure point for migrants crossing the Mediterranean, but departures have fallen sharply over the ⁠past two years amid a crackdown ‌and tighter maritime controls, ‌backed by European funding and modern border-monitoring equipment, particularly ‌from Italy.

Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and ‌dozens of other human rights and humanitarian groups said in a statement last month that the EU-Tunisia migration deal had fueled and normalized serious abuses against ‌migrants and asylum seekers in Tunisia.

The groups called on the EU to suspend ⁠funding ⁠for migration and border-control activities involving Tunisian security forces.

Tunisia has not commented on the statement but has repeatedly said it is bearing the brunt of a major migration influx. President Kais Saied said in 2023 that the influx was aimed at changing the country's demographic makeup.

The central Mediterranean route is one of the world's deadliest migration routes, used by migrants from Africa and the Middle East seeking to reach Europe, often in overcrowded or unseaworthy boats.


Salam Inspects Military Units South of Litani: No Capable Lebanese State without One Strong Army

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam during his visit to South Lebanon on Friday. (NNA)
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam during his visit to South Lebanon on Friday. (NNA)
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Salam Inspects Military Units South of Litani: No Capable Lebanese State without One Strong Army

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam during his visit to South Lebanon on Friday. (NNA)
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam during his visit to South Lebanon on Friday. (NNA)

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam tied the restoration of state authority in South Lebanon to a broader process extending beyond military deployment to strengthening institutions, restoring services and advancing reconstruction.

During a visit to the Benoit Barakat Barracks in Tyre, Salam stressed that “every position where the army deploys in the South is a place where the state regains its authority.”

“Restoring sovereignty requires building a capable state, and there can be no capable state without one strong army,” he added, arguing that sovereignty restored through security must also be consolidated economically and socially.

One authority

“We want the South, like all of Lebanon, to be under one authority, and Lebanese citizens there to feel safe because they have an army protecting them,” the PM declared, linking lasting stability to the state and its constitutional institutions regaining control over decisions of war and peace.

At the same time, he acknowledged the challenges confronting the military amid continuing Israeli attacks. “True sovereignty is neither taken nor given; it is built,” he emphasized.

Salam reaffirmed his government’s commitment to building a national state faithful to the constitution, describing efforts to strengthen the army as “a strategic choice at the heart of our project to restore the state,” rather than a secondary priority.

The government continues to mobilize Arab and international support to develop the army’s personnel capabilities, improve its equipment and enhance service members’ living conditions, he went on to say.

He described the military as one of the few institutions around which Lebanese citizens remain united.

Addressing troops, Salam urged them to shield the army from political and sectarian divisions.

“Preserve the unity of the army. Do not allow politics to divide you and accept only the constitution and the law as your guide,” he told them, warning against allowing “the evils of sectarianism” to infiltrate their ranks.

Lebanon could emerge from its current predicament only by having “one army, one flag and one state,” he maintained.

Salam also paid tribute to fallen service members, telling their families: “Your sons are not only martyrs of the military institution; they are martyrs of the entire nation.”

Beyond army deployment

“The return of the state to the South is not limited to the deployment of the army, but extends across all sectors, including education, reconstruction and everything else,” he added, reiterating the government’s commitment to providing the military with everything needed to carry out its mission successfully.

He pledged that the state would spare no effort to secure Israel’s complete withdrawal from Lebanese territory, recover prisoners and advance reconstruction.

Defense Minister Michel Menassa similarly framed Salam’s visit as an affirmation of state sovereignty.

“Our visit to the South is not merely an inspection tour. We are here today to reaffirm our unwavering position seeking to restore state sovereignty,” he vowed.

He identified the government’s primary negotiating objective as “the complete withdrawal of the Israeli enemy from Lebanon.”

Menassa praised the army as a symbol of “dignity, sacrifice and loyalty” that brings Lebanese citizens together and safeguards national unity and civil peace.

He also commended its professionalism in carrying out missions despite difficult conditions and pressure.