Houthis violate truce in Yemen to reap spoils

Ahmed Adel

The Iranian-backed Houthi militia in Yemen continues its intransigence against the Arab coalition forces led by Saudi Arabia and the UAE and against civilians in Yemen, fabricating obstacles to the ceasefire truce declared on April 24 that is aimed at preparing the appropriate conditions for the conclusion and success of the UN Special Envoy’s efforts to unify Yemen in order to prevent the spread of the corona virus pandemic.

Broken truce

Yemen’s legitimate government had agreed to a ceasefire, and after discussing the proposals submitted by the UN envoy and the ambassadors of the five permanent members of the Security Council, it informed the envoy in early May 2020 of its approval of the revised version of the ceasefire plan, which provides for a comprehensive ceasefire and the formation of a committee to monitor compliance, including representatives of the coalition, the legitimate government, the Houthi militia, and others from the United Nations. It also stipulated the formation of a joint unit to manage the corona pandemic, opening roads between cities and governorates, especially the ports of Taiz, opening the Sanaa airport for international trips, paying the salaries of all government employees, releasing all prisoners, and resuming political consultations for a comprehensive solution.

Houthi violation

The Houthi militia has repeatedly violated the ceasefire and has continued its terrorist attacks on various fronts, including an attack against Yemeni army forces in the Harad district, an attack against coalition forces near al-Hazm, the capital of Al-Jawf governorate, and another in Dhale governorate. On May 24, coalition forces repelled a Houthi attack near the main entrance to the city and port of Hodeidah.

Intensive international efforts

UN Envoy Martin Griffiths has led extensive efforts with the Houthis, the legitimate government, ambassadors of the permanent members of the Security Council, and those involved in the coalition to support legitimacy, considering the corona pandemic an opportunity to bring peace to Yemen.

In April, Griffiths announced that three peace proposals were submitted to the parties to the conflict, including agreements for a comprehensive ceasefire across Yemen and humanitarian and economic measures, including prisoner exchanges, opening airports, payment of salaries, and unifying efforts to confront the corona pandemic, in addition to the urgent resumption of the political process.

On May 24, Griffiths held a virtual meeting with three militia negotiators who reiterated their inability to control arms smuggling by sea or air, as well as for the floating oil tank that eroded due to lack of maintenance, threatening an environmental catastrophe if the estimated amount of two million barrels of crude oil contained inside it leaks.

Terrorist barter

The militia is trying to barter with the legitimate government, the coalition, and the international community by allowing the maintenance of the floating oil tank in exchange for allowing it to sell the amount of oil inside it and resuming the pumping of oil from the Marib fields to the tank. If they do not agree, then the militia will leave the tank to erode and leak into the sea, which would cause enormous marine pollution.

The Houthis have threatened to escalate attacks against the legitimate government and coalition forces, evading any serious engagement with the UN envoy’s efforts aimed at ending the fighting and uniting resources to counter the spread of the corona virus.

Houthi spokesman and effective Foreign Minister Mohamed Abdel Salam Fleetah tweeted on May 23 that the Yemeni government and the coalition supporting it will “regret” continuing their military operations against the militia, signaling that the terrorist militia would escalate attacks against them.

Meanwhile, Houthi Deputy Foreign Minister Hussein Al-Ezzi vowed on Twitter on May 24 to ignite battles on a large scale, claiming that his group “has run out of patience” and that the coalition operations have “exceeded the limits”.