Yemen’s leadership pushes for unity as political leaders meet to shape post-war transition

Yemen’s leadership pushes for unity as political leaders meet to shape post-war transition
Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, President Rashad Mohammed Al-Alimi, met with leaders of the National Bloc of Political Parties — a coalition of major political groups — to discuss how best to coordinate efforts during the transitional period. (SABA NEW)
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Updated 24 April 2025
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Yemen’s leadership pushes for unity as political leaders meet to shape post-war transition

Yemen’s leadership pushes for unity as political leaders meet to shape post-war transition
  • The PLC is working to restore state authority in areas under government control while countering the influence of the Houthis
  • The president called for a renewed sense of unity among Yemen’s political forces, urging them to set aside divisions

DUBAI: Yemen’s internationally recognized leadership convened key political figures in Riyadh on Wednesday to rally support for a unified national strategy to shape the country’s postwar transition and rebuild state institutions after nearly a decade of conflict.

Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, President Rashad Mohammed Al-Alimi, met with leaders of the National Bloc of Political Parties — a coalition of major political groups — to discuss how best to coordinate efforts during the transitional period. The meeting was part of consultations with political forces throughout Yemen to prepare for what officials describe as a pivotal phase in the country’s recovery.

The PLC, formed in 2022 to unify anti-Houthi factions and guide the country toward peace, is working to restore state authority in areas under government control while countering the influence of the Houthis, who continue to dominate much of northern Yemen.

During the meeting, the president called for a renewed sense of unity among Yemen’s political forces, urging them to set aside divisions and work together to restore stability, deliver basic services and lay the foundation for long-term governance.

“This is a moment for collective leadership and national alignment,” he said, stressing the importance of shared responsibility in rebuilding the state.

The national bloc reaffirmed its commitment to the PLC’s vision, presenting a political roadmap focused on national cohesion, economic recovery and effective governance in liberated areas. The group also underlined the importance of alleviating humanitarian suffering and accelerating institutional reforms.


Aid groups sue Belgium to do more to stop Israel’s war in Gaza

Aid groups sue Belgium to do more to stop Israel’s war in Gaza
Updated 11 sec ago
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Aid groups sue Belgium to do more to stop Israel’s war in Gaza

Aid groups sue Belgium to do more to stop Israel’s war in Gaza
  • Humanitarian organizations warn of starving children as European powers discuss the crisis

BRUSSELS: Two Belgian aid groups launched a court case on Friday seeking to pressure the country to do more to help stop Israel’s war in Gaza, as the EU struggles to take action.

Belgium has been one of the most outspoken of the EU’s 27 countries in seeking to call out Israel over its devastating military operation in Gaza.

The EU’s top diplomat floated a raft of options after Israel was found to have breached a cooperation agreement with the EU on human rights grounds.

But the bloc’s member states are deeply divided over their approach to the conflict.

FASTFACTS

• The two organizations behind the court case are pushing for Belgium to try to unilaterally halt the EU’s cooperation deal with Israel.

• They are also demanding other steps, including the closure of the country’s airspace for any flights taking military equipment to Tel Aviv.

The two organizations behind the court case — the Belgian-Palestinian Association and National Coordination for Peace and Democracy — are pushing for Belgium to try to unilaterally halt the EU’s cooperation deal with Israel.

They are also demanding other steps, including the closure of the country’s airspace for any flights taking military equipment to Israel.

“Unless there is a sudden change, the European Union will not be able to suspend the association agreement with Israel,” Vincent Letellier, a lawyer representing the NGOs said — alluding to the bloc’s divisions.

“Countries must now be put under pressure by their voters and by the courts.”

A preliminary hearing in the case was held before a judge in Brussels on Friday and full proceedings were scheduled for Sept. 15.

International criticism of Israel is growing over the plight of the more than 2 million Palestinians in Gaza, where more than 100 aid and rights groups have warned that “mass starvation” is spreading.

Aid groups warned of surging numbers of malnourished children in the enclave as a trio of European powers held an “emergency call” Friday.

Doctors Without Borders said that a quarter of the young children and pregnant or breastfeeding mothers it had screened at its clinics last week were malnourished, a day after the UN said one in five children in Gaza City were suffering from malnutrition.

More than 100 aid and human rights groups warned this week that “mass starvation” was spreading in Gaza.

Israel has rejected accusations it is responsible for the deepening crisis, which the World Health Organization has called “man-made.”

Israel placed the Gaza Strip under an aid blockade in March, which it only partially eased two months later.

 


Syria, US and France agree to engage in efforts to support Syria's transition

Syria, US and France agree to engage in efforts to support Syria's transition
Updated 15 min 54 sec ago
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Syria, US and France agree to engage in efforts to support Syria's transition

Syria, US and France agree to engage in efforts to support Syria's transition
  • In joint statement, Syrian, US and French officials said they held “a very frank and productive meeting at a critical moment for Syria”

PARIS: Syria’s foreign minister held frank and productive talks with the United States and France at which they said on Friday they underlined the importance of ensuring the success of Syria’s political transition, unity and territorial integrity.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shibani, French Foreign Minister Jean Noel Barrot and US Special Envoy for Syria Thomas Barrack met in Paris, days after a ceasefire halted bloodshed in Syria’s southern province of Sweida.

Hundreds of people were reported killed in the clashes between Druze fighters, Sunni Bedouin tribes and government forces, and Israel carried out airstrikes to prevent what it said was mass killing of Druze.

In a joint statement, the Syrian, US and French officials said they had held “a very frank and productive meeting at a critical moment for Syria.”

Underlining the importance of engaging quickly to ensure the success Syria’s political transition following the fall of President Bashar Assad, they said they had agreed on the need to ensure Syria’s neighbors do not pose a threat and that Syria does not pose a threat to its neighbors.

They also agreed to support efforts to hold those responsible for violence accountable, the statement said.

Last week’s clashes underlined the challenges interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa faces in stabilising Syria and maintaining centralized rule, despite warming ties with the US and his administration’s evolving security contacts with Israel.


Iran says it held ‘frank’ talks with European powers

Iran says it held ‘frank’ talks with European powers
Updated 20 min 9 sec ago
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Iran says it held ‘frank’ talks with European powers

Iran says it held ‘frank’ talks with European powers
  • Separately, a Russian rocket sent an Iranian communications satellite into orbit on Friday, a launch that highlighted strong ties between the two countries

ISTANBUL: Iranian diplomats said they held “frank and detailed” nuclear talks on Friday with counterparts from Germany, Britain and France, who have threatened to trigger sanctions if Tehran fails to agree a deal on uranium enrichment and cooperation with UN inspectors.

The meeting in Istanbul was the first since Israel launched an attack on Iran last month targeting key nuclear and military sites, sparking a 12-day war and leading Tehran to pull away from working with the UN watchdog.

Israel’s offensive — which killed top commanders, nuclear scientists and hundreds of others and in which residential areas and military sites were struck — also derailed US-Iran nuclear talks that began in April.

Separately, a Russian rocket sent an Iranian communications satellite into orbit on Friday, a launch that highlighted strong ties between the two countries.

HIGHLIGHTS

• The meeting in Istanbul was the first since Israel launched an attack on Iran last month targeting key nuclear and military sites.

• A Russian rocket sent an Iranian communications satellite into orbit on Friday, a launch that highlighted strong ties between the two countries.

The Soyuz rocket lifted off as scheduled from Vostochny launchpad in far eastern Russia, the country’s state-controlled Roscosmos corporation said. 

It carried two Russian Ionosphere-M Earth observation satellites, along with Iran’s Nahid-2 satellite and 17 smaller Russian satellites, and put them into designated orbits.

The 110-kg Iranian satellite is supposed to circle the Earth on a 500 km orbit and has a service lifetime of two years.

In November, Russia launched a pair of Iranian satellites named Kowsar and Hodhod, the first launched on behalf of the country’s private sector. It followed two previous Russian launches of Iranian satellites in 2022 and 2024.

Russia, which signed a “strategic partnership” treaty with Iran in January, strongly condemned the Israeli and US strikes on Iran last month. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin has suggested that Moscow could help negotiate a settlement that could allow Tehran to pursue a peaceful atomic program while assuaging Israeli security concerns.

At the same time, Putin has emphasized that Tehran hasn’t asked Moscow for military assistance and noted that the partnership treaty doesn’t envision such aid.

 


UK, French and German leaders press Israel over Gaza aid after Macron backs Palestinian state

UK, French and German leaders press Israel over Gaza aid after Macron backs Palestinian state
Updated 15 min 40 sec ago
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UK, French and German leaders press Israel over Gaza aid after Macron backs Palestinian state

UK, French and German leaders press Israel over Gaza aid after Macron backs Palestinian state
  • The joint statement called for an immediate ceasefire and said that “withholding essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable“
  • Macron’s surprise announcement exposed differences among the European allies

LONDON: The leaders of Britain, France and Germany demanded Israel allow unrestricted aid into Gaza to end a “humanitarian catastrophe,” after French President Emmanuel Macron announced that his country will become the first major Western power to recognize a Palestinian state.

The joint statement, issued after a call between Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, called for an immediate ceasefire and said that “withholding essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable,” though it broke no new diplomatic ground.

The leaders said they “stand ready to take further action to support an immediate ceasefire and a political process that leads to lasting security and peace for Israelis, Palestinians and the entire region,” but did not say what that action might be.

France’s move exposes European divisions

Macron’s surprise announcement exposed differences among the European allies, known as the E3, over how to ease the worsening humanitarian crisis and end the Israel-Hamas war.

All three support a Palestinian state in principle, but Germany said it has no immediate plans to follow France’s step, which Macron plans to formalize at the United Nations General Assembly in September.

Britain has not followed suit either, but Starmer is under mounting pressure to formally recognize Palestinian statehood, both from opposition lawmakers and from members of his own Labour Party government. Health Secretary Wes Streeting on Tuesday called for an announcement “while there’s still a state of Palestine left to recognize.”

On Friday, 221 of the 650 lawmakers in the House of Commons signed a letter urging Starmer to recognize a Palestinian state.

“Since 1980 we have backed a two-state solution. Such a recognition would give that position substance,” said the letter, signed by legislators from several government and opposition parties.

After the E3 call on Friday, Starmer condemned “the continued captivity of hostages, the starvation and denial of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people, the increasing violence from extremist settler groups, and Israel’s disproportionate military escalation in Gaza.”

He said that “recognition of a Palestinian state” must be one of the steps on a pathway to peace.

“I am unequivocal about that. But it must be part of a wider plan which ultimately results in a two-state solution and lasting security for Palestinians and Israelis,” he said.

More than 140 countries recognize a Palestinian state, including a dozen in Europe. But France is the first Group of Seven country and the largest European nation to take that step.

Israel and the United States both denounced France’s decision.

Britain has long supported the idea of an independent Palestinian state existing alongside Israel, but has said recognition should come as part of a negotiated two-state solution to the conflict.

Any such solution appears far off. There had been no substantive Israel-Palestinian negotiations for years even before the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and sparked the current war.

Humanitarian crisis alarms Israel’s allies

The worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where hunger is spreading and children have starved to death, has caused alarm even among Israel’s closest allies.

Germany has traditionally been a particularly staunch ally of Israel in Europe, with relations rooted in the history of the Holocaust. It says recognizing a Palestinian state should be “one of the concluding steps” in negotiating a two-state solution and it “does not plan to recognize a Palestinian state in the short term.”

But Berlin, too, has sharpened its tone recently, describing the Israeli military’s actions in Gaza as unacceptable and pushing for greater humanitarian aid, but still appears to favor trying to influence Israeli officials by direct contact.

The German government said in a statement on Friday that it is in a “constant exchange” with the Israeli government and other partners on issues that include a ceasefire in Gaza and the need to drastically improve humanitarian aid. It said it is “prepared to increase the pressure” if there is no progress, but didn’t elaborate on how.

Britain has halted some arms sales to Israel, suspended free trade talks and sanctioned far-right government ministers and extremist settlers, but Starmer is under intense pressure to do more.

Also weighing on Starmer is his desire to maintain good relations with the US administration, which has strongly criticized France’s decision. The British leader is due to meet President Donald Trump in the next few days while the president is in Scotland visiting two golf courses he owns there.

Yossi Mekelberg, a Middle East expert at the international affairs think-tank Chatham House, said Macron’s decision to defer finalizing recognition until September “creates some space” for other countries to get on board.

“We know that the UK is close, but not there,” he said. “This might encourage Starmer, who we know is not one to rush such a decision. … This might create some momentum, some dynamic, for the UK”


British surgeon alleges ‘target practice’ shootings of Gazans by Israeli forces

British surgeon alleges ‘target practice’ shootings of Gazans by Israeli forces
Updated 47 min 18 sec ago
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British surgeon alleges ‘target practice’ shootings of Gazans by Israeli forces

British surgeon alleges ‘target practice’ shootings of Gazans by Israeli forces
  • Dr. Nick Maynard, a veteran of humanitarian missions in Gaza over the past 15 years, spent four weeks working at Nasser Hospital

LONDON: A British surgeon who recently returned from Gaza has claimed Israeli soldiers are shooting civilians at aid distribution points “almost like a game of target practice,” allegations the Israeli military have strongly denied.

Dr. Nick Maynard, a veteran of humanitarian missions in Gaza over the past 15 years, spent four weeks working at Nasser Hospital in the south of the Strip.

He told Sky News that the population is suffering from “profound malnutrition” and described the medical crisis facing patients and healthcare workers.

Speaking to The World with Yalda Hakim on Sky News, Maynard said: “I met several doctors who had cartons of formula feed in their luggage — and they were all confiscated by the Israeli border guards. Nothing else got confiscated, just the formula feed.

“There were four premature babies who died during the first two weeks when I was in Nasser Hospital — and there will be many, many more deaths unless the Israelis allow proper food to get in there.”

Maynard, who has now visited Gaza three times since the war began, said the paediatric unit is relying on sugar water to feed children due to a lack of baby formula.

“They’ve got a small amount of formula feed for very small babies, but not enough,” he said.

The effects of the crisis have also been severe on his colleagues.

“I saw people I’d known for years and I didn’t recognise some of them,” he said.

“Two colleagues had lost 20kg and 30kg respectively. They were shells, they’re all hungry.

“They’re going to work every day, then going home to their tents where they have no food.”

In the most serious allegation, Maynard claimed civilians were being shot by Israeli forces while they were collecting food at aid points.

“Israeli soldiers are shooting civilians at aid points almost like a game of target practice,” he said.

Israel’s military “categorically rejects the claims of intentional harm to civilians, particularly in the manner described. For the sake of clarity, the army’s binding orders prohibit forces operating in the area from intentionally firing at civilians,” it said.

“We are aware of reports of casualties among those who arrived at the aid distribution sites. These incidents are under examination by the relevant (military) authorities. Any allegation of a violation of the law or regulations will be thoroughly investigated, including taking appropriate action if necessary.”

The military said it was “working to facilitate and ease the distribution of humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation at the designated distribution centres, as well as through other international actors. These efforts are being conducted under difficult and complex operational conditions.”

Maynard claimed to have operated on boys as young as 11 who had been shot while collecting food at distribution sites run by the US and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

“They had gone to get food for their starving families and they were shot,” he said. “I operated on one 12-year-old boy who died on the operating table because his injuries were so severe.”

He also alleged a disturbing pattern in the injuries observed during his time at the hospital.

“What was even more distressing was the pattern of injuries that we saw, the clustering of injuries to particular body parts on certain days,” he said.

“One day they’d be coming in predominately with gunshot wounds to the head or the neck, another day to the chest, another day to the abdomen.

“Twelve days ago, four young teenage boys came in, all of whom had been shot in the testicles and deliberately so. This is not coincidental.

“The clustering was far too obvious to be coincidental, and it seemed to us like this was almost like a game of target practice. I would never have believed this possible unless I'd witnessed this with my own eyes.”