Houthis attack Yemeni forces in Shabwa amid militia’s escalating operations

A Yemeni fighter backed by Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen fires his weapon during clashes with Houthi rebels. (AP/File Photo)
A Yemeni fighter backed by Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen fires his weapon during clashes with Houthi rebels. (AP/File Photo)
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Updated 26 March 2023
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Houthis attack Yemeni forces in Shabwa amid militia’s escalating operations

Houthis attack Yemeni forces in Shabwa amid militia’s escalating operations
  • Houthis attacked Shabwa Defense Forces on Saturday in a range of mountains
  • Government troops said that the Houthis were forced to suspend the assault and withdraw

AL-MUKALLA: Yemeni government troops in the southern province of Shabwa announced on Sunday that they had repelled a Houthi assault on their positions in the face of the militia’s continuing expansion of military operations.

Houthis attacked Shabwa Defense Forces on Saturday in a range of mountains which connect the Merkhah Al Ulya district with the adjacent Bayda province, resulting in a fierce battle that reportedly killed and wounded many soldiers on both sides.

Government troops said that the Houthis were forced to suspend the assault and withdraw after failing to capture control of the highlands, and that military reinforcements were sent to the front line to repel any future action.

Unofficial Houthi media sources said that its troops had moved 8 km into government-held territory in Merkhah Al Ulya.

A Yemeni official in Shabwa told Arab News that the Houthi attacks had been intended to distract government soldiers rather than occupy the province.

The official, who requested anonymity, said: “Rather than a full-scale military action in the area, the purpose of the strike is to stir up sluggish waters.”

The Houthi military buildup in Shabwa comes only days after heavy combat erupted in the central province of Marib when government soldiers were attacked in rural areas of Hareb.

The fighting subsided on Sunday amid reports that government forces had regained villages held by the Houthis.

Meanwhile, Taiz Gov. Nabil Shamsan said on Twitter that Houthis had attacked his convoy for 90 minutes on Saturday with a guided missile, mortars, and artillery bombs as he was returning to Taiz from the city of Mocha on the Red Sea.

One of his bodyguards was killed and two others were injured in the incident.

Houthi assaults and the militia’s military escalation have sparked outrage and warnings of the impending failure of UN-led diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.

Separately, Yemen’s Ministry of Human Rights said on Sunday that Houthis had encircled ancient areas in the city of Ibb and had detained scores of people, including two social media activists who took part in a rally against the militia last week.

The burial of a social media influencer turned into a protest against the Houthis on Thursday.

Protesters accused the militia of kidnapping, torturing, and executing Hamdi Abdel-Razzaq, also known as Al-Mukahal, an influencer abducted by the Houthis in October for criticizing corruption.

The Yemeni government said that armed Houthi forces in military vehicles surrounded Ibb, where the influencer had lived, and conducted raids on homes, detaining many people.

The government’s statement added: “The ministry has monitored the savage Houthi terrorist militia’s campaign of arbitrary arrests against Ibb residents, looting and destruction of their property, and terrorization of children and women.”


Houthis told to release citizens detained for celebrating revolution

Houthis told to release citizens detained for celebrating revolution
Updated 30 September 2023
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Houthis told to release citizens detained for celebrating revolution

Houthis told to release citizens detained for celebrating revolution
  • Yemenis marched through the streets of Sanaa with flags and chanted slogans in praise of the republic
  • The Geneva-based SAM Organization for Rights and Liberties condemned Houthi attacks on peaceful gatherings in the cities it controls

AL-MUKALLA: Yemeni officials and international human rights organizations have demanded the Iran-backed Houthis release hundreds of detained citizens who took to the streets of Sanaa and other Yemeni cities last week to commemorate the 61st anniversary of the Sept. 26 revolution.
Yemenis marched through the streets of Sanaa with flags and chanted slogans in praise of the republic.
Social media videos show armed Houthi militia in military uniform and civilian clothing violently suppressing gatherings in the capital and the city of Ibb, dragging dozens of people from the streets and forcing them into military vehicles.
The Geneva-based SAM Organization for Rights and Liberties condemned Houthi attacks on peaceful gatherings in the cities it controls. The body demanded that the militia cease harassing those who lawfully express their opinions.
The organization said: “We call on the Houthi group to halt its brutal attacks, release all detainees, and instruct its members to respect the rights of individuals to express their opinions, and peaceful assembly.
“In addition, the Houthi group is required to prosecute all individuals involved in the attacks and arrests for their grave violations.”
Sanaa residents said the Houthis had deployed security forces throughout the capital, primarily around Al-Sabeen Square, in response to calls for demonstrations against the mass arrests following Friday prayer.
Amnesty International has demanded that the Houthis “immediately and unconditionally” release the detained individuals, adding that the Yemenis were arrested and assaulted for commemorating a national day.
It said: “In a draconian show of force, Houthi de facto authorities have carried out a wave of sweeping arrests, demonstrating their flagrant disregard for the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.”
Grazia Careccia, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said in a statement: “The authorities must immediately and unconditionally release anyone detained solely for exercising their rights.”
The Houthis have not officially commented on the arrests, but activists in Sanaa, including legal activist Abdul Wahab Qatran — who has contacted Houthi security agencies — say those seized are being questioned about “possible affiliations” with external groups.
Analysts say the gatherings in Sanaa have been occurring at a time when public pressure has been mounting on the Houthis to compensate thousands of state employees who have not been paid for years.
They add that the Houthis do not acknowledge the 1962 uprising against the imams.
Faisal Al-Shabibi, a Yemeni journalist, told Arab News: “They (the Houthis) view the events of Sept. 26 as a rebellion, not a revolution as the Yemenis do. They intend to transform the republic into a monarchy gradually.”
The Houthis, who took military control of Yemen in late 2014, have detained thousands of Yemeni politicians, activists, journalists, and members of the general public, as well as forcing tens of thousands to abandon their homes.


Calls for justice one year after Iran’s ‘Bloody Friday’

Calls for justice one year after Iran’s ‘Bloody Friday’
Updated 30 September 2023
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Calls for justice one year after Iran’s ‘Bloody Friday’

Calls for justice one year after Iran’s ‘Bloody Friday’
  • Iranian security forces used live fire to suppress a protest on September 30, 2022 in Zahedan
  • "No official has been held accountable for the unlawful killings of scores of men, women and children from Iran's oppressed Baluchi minority on Sept 30, 2022," Amnesty International said

PARIS: Campaign groups on Saturday demanded the perpetrators of the killing of dozens of protesters in southeast Iran one year ago be brought to justice, accusing authorities of using force to quell the latest demonstration in the region.
According to activists, Iranian security forces used live fire to suppress a protest on September 30, 2022 in Zahedan, the main city of southeastern Sistan-Baluchistan province.
At least 104 people were killed, according to the Norway-based Iran Human Rights NGO, in what is known as Zahedan’s “Bloody Friday.”
The violence marked the single deadliest day of months-long protests that erupted in Iran last year.
The Zahedan protests were triggered by reports a teenage girl was raped in custody by a police commander in the region and took place in parallel to nationwide demonstrations sparked by the September 16 death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, after her arrest in Tehran for an alleged breach of the country’s dress code for women.
Activists have long complained that the minority Baluch population in Sistan-Baluchistan, who adhere to Sunni Islam rather than the Shiism dominant in Iran, suffer from economic and political discrimination and are also disproportionately targeted by capital punishment.
“No official has been held accountable for the unlawful killings of scores of men, women and children from Iran’s oppressed Baluchi minority on Sept 30, 2022,” Amnesty International said in a statement.
“On the solemn anniversary of ‘Bloody Friday’, we remember the victims and stand together in the pursuit of justice.”
Even as the protest movement dwindled elsewhere in Iran, residents of Zahedan have held regular Friday protests throughout the last 12 months, and despite heavy security held a new protest this Friday, campaigners said.
Security forces used live fire and tear gas against protesters, wounding at least 25 people, including children, according to the Baloch Activists Campaign group.
Iran’s top Sunni cleric Molavi Abdolhamid, the Zahedan Friday prayer leader who has been outspoken in his support of the protesters during the past year, had in his sermon issued a new call for justice over “Bloody Friday,” telling the faithful to “know your rights.”
Footage posted on social media showed chaotic scenes as hospitals filled with patients including children, while people on the streets sought to flee to safety amid a sound of heavy gunfire on the streets.
“This is a horrifying display of indiscriminate violence by the Islamic republic as the state attempts to suppress peaceful demonstrations,” said Hadi Ghaemi, executive director of the New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran.
“It is imperative for the international community to shine a spotlight on this violence and to hold Iranian officials accountable in international courts, invoking the principle of international jurisdiction,” he said.


US Central Command captures Daesh official in Syria raid

US Central Command captures Daesh official in Syria raid
Updated 30 September 2023
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US Central Command captures Daesh official in Syria raid

US Central Command captures Daesh official in Syria raid
  • Last week, the Central Command forces said it had captured Abu Halil Al-Fad’ani, a Daesh Syria Operational and Facilitation official

DUBAI: US Central Command forces conducted a helicopter raid in northern Syria on Sept. 28 capturing Mamduh Ibrahim Al-Hajji Shaykh, a Daesh facilitator, Central Command said on Saturday.
Last week, the Central Command forces said it had captured Abu Halil Al-Fad’ani, a Daesh Syria Operational and Facilitation official, who was assessed to have relationships throughout the Daesh network in the region, during a raid on Sept. 25.
No civilians were injured or killed during both operations, both Central Command statements said.


Italy and Libya resume commercial flights after 10-year hiatus, officials say

Italy and Libya resume commercial flights after 10-year hiatus, officials say
Updated 30 September 2023
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Italy and Libya resume commercial flights after 10-year hiatus, officials say

Italy and Libya resume commercial flights after 10-year hiatus, officials say
  • Flight MT522, operated by the Libyan carrier Medsky Airways, departed Mitiga International Airport in Tripoli for Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport
  • A return flight was scheduled to land in Tripoli on Saturday afternoon

CAIRO: Italy and war-torn Libya on Saturday resumed commercial flights for the first time in a decade, authorities in the Libyan capital said.
Flight MT522, operated by the Libyan carrier Medsky Airways, departed Mitiga International Airport in Tripoli for Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport, according to Libyan airport authorities.
A return flight was scheduled to land in Tripoli on Saturday afternoon, according to Mitiga International Airport. Going forward, there will be one round-trip flight between the Libyan and Italian capitals on both Saturdays and Wednesdays, according to the Mitiga airport announcement.
The government of Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah in Tripoli lauded the resumed flights, posting photos on social media that showed passengers boarding the flight and officials celebrating.
Italy and other western nations banned flights from Libya as the oil-rich nation in North Africa plunged into chaos after a NATO-backed uprising toppled and killed longtime dictator Muammar Qaddafi in 2011.
In the disarray that followed, the country split into rival administrations in the east and west, each backed by rogue militias and foreign governments.
Amid the chaos, Libya has had direct flights to limited destinations, including cities in neighboring Egypt and Tunisia, and other Middle Eastern countries, such as Jordan.
The government of Premier Giorgia Meloni in July lifted Italy’s 10-year ban on civil aviation in Libya. Italian and Libyan authorities agreed that one airline company from each country would operate flights between the two capitals.
Dbeibah subsequently returned from attending a conference on migration in Rome on a chartered flight with a commercial airline.


Tunisia extends drinking water quota system, ban on agriculture use

Tunisia extends drinking water quota system, ban on agriculture use
Updated 30 September 2023
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Tunisia extends drinking water quota system, ban on agriculture use

Tunisia extends drinking water quota system, ban on agriculture use
  • In March, the North African country began cutting off water at night and banned its use in agriculture

TUNIS: Tunisia has extended the quota system for drinking water and a ban of use in agriculture until further notice, the agriculture ministry said on Saturday, in response to a drought that has lasted five years.
In March, the North African country began cutting off water at night and banned its use in agriculture, a decision that Tunisia had said would continue until Sept. 30.
It has also banned the use of drinking water to wash cars, water green areas and clean streets and public places.
Anyone who breaks the ban faces a fine and imprisonment for a period of between six days and six months.