Two Vessels Targeted Southwest of Yemen

Houthi supporters hold up weapons during a rally marking the Al-Quds Day, in Sanaa, Yemen, 05 April 2024.  EPA/YAHYA ARHAB
Houthi supporters hold up weapons during a rally marking the Al-Quds Day, in Sanaa, Yemen, 05 April 2024. EPA/YAHYA ARHAB
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Two Vessels Targeted Southwest of Yemen

Houthi supporters hold up weapons during a rally marking the Al-Quds Day, in Sanaa, Yemen, 05 April 2024.  EPA/YAHYA ARHAB
Houthi supporters hold up weapons during a rally marking the Al-Quds Day, in Sanaa, Yemen, 05 April 2024. EPA/YAHYA ARHAB

British security firm Ambrey said it had received information indicating that a vessel was attacked on Sunday in the Gulf of Aden about 102 nautical miles southwest of Mukalla in Yemen.

"Vessels in the vicinity were advised to exercise caution and report any suspicious activity," the firm said. It did not say who was responsible for the attack or give further details.

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi militias have staged months of attacks on shipping in the Red Sea region in support of Palestinians in the Gaza war.

Separately, a missile landed near a vessel in the Gulf of Aden on Sunday but there was no damage to the ship or injuries to crew in the incident, 59 nautical miles southwest of the Yemeni port of Aden, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said.

"The Master of the vessel reports a missile impacted the water in close proximity to the vessel’s port quarter," UKMTO said in an advisory note. "No damage to the vessel reported and crew reported safe," it added.

It did not say who fired the missile or give further details.

The Houthi attacks have disrupted global shipping through the Suez Canal, forcing firms to re-route to longer and more expensive journeys around southern Africa. The United States and Britain have launched strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen.



Humanitarian Corridors and Pauses Needed in Sudan, US Envoy Says

The US special envoy for Sudan, Tom Perriello, attends a press briefing on the sidelines of Sudan peace talks at the US Mission in Geneva, Switzerland, August 23, 2024. (Reuters)
The US special envoy for Sudan, Tom Perriello, attends a press briefing on the sidelines of Sudan peace talks at the US Mission in Geneva, Switzerland, August 23, 2024. (Reuters)
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Humanitarian Corridors and Pauses Needed in Sudan, US Envoy Says

The US special envoy for Sudan, Tom Perriello, attends a press briefing on the sidelines of Sudan peace talks at the US Mission in Geneva, Switzerland, August 23, 2024. (Reuters)
The US special envoy for Sudan, Tom Perriello, attends a press briefing on the sidelines of Sudan peace talks at the US Mission in Geneva, Switzerland, August 23, 2024. (Reuters)

More and faster aid deliveries are needed in Sudan, the US special envoy to the war-weary country told Reuters, ideally through the implementation of humanitarian corridors and pauses as discussed with government leaders in a visit on Sunday.

"We are pleased that there has been some progress, but we need to see much more," Tom Perriello said in an interview, following the approval of flights to hunger-striken South Kordofan and the extension of permission to use the Adre border crossing into Darfur by the Sudanese army.

The army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces have been locked in a 19-month conflict that has caused acute hunger and disease across the country. Both sides are accused of impeding aid deliveries, the RSF by looting and the army by bureaucratic delays.

Proposals including humanitarian corridors and pauses were shared with Sudanese sovereign council head Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and others on a trip to Port Sudan on Monday and progress was made, Perriello said.

In October, the sovereign council approved flights into Kadugli to provide assistance to rebel-held regions of South Kordofan state, where people have gone hungry without aid deliveries, through an agreement with the South Sudanese government.

"I think if we can see that same attitude on the ability to get corridors into places like Khartoum, Omdurman, El-Gezira, al-Fasher, Sennar I think we could get a lot of life-saving aid to some of the most desperate Sudanese," he said.

In a speech on Tuesday, however, Burhan cast doubt on the speed of progress.

"Our vision is clear to all those who want to help us. The war must stop first and the rebels must leave the areas they have occupied," he said.

"Once civilian life is back, relief can return and be available to all Sudanese," he added.

US-led efforts to bring the army and RSF to the negotiating table have not succeeded so far.

"We do remain in active lines of communication with RSF leadership on the negotiations around both humanitarian access and peace," Perriello said.