Yemeni parties hold face-to-face talks: UN
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KUWAIT CITY, April 30, (Agencies): Yemen’s warring parties held “productive” face-to-face peace talks on Saturday on “key issues” in a bid to end the confl ict in the impoverished Arab country, the UN envoy said. “The talks today were positive and productive… It is an encouraging beginning,” Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed told a news conference after the fi rst direct talks since the delayed negotiations began on April 21. “Today, we heard the parties pledge total commitment to (UN Security Council) Resolution 2216 and related decisions, the Gulf initiative and results of Yemeni national dialogue as the basis for a peaceful solution,” he said. Saturday’s talks came after the government and rebel delegations each submitted a framework for a political and security solution to end the 13-month war.
Ould Cheikh Ahmed said that despite the progress made “we still have obstacles and ideas are still far a part.” Most of the meetings in talks have so far been confi ned to encounters between rival delegations and Ould Cheikh Ahmed. More than 6,800 people have been killed and around 2.8 million displaced in Yemen since a Saudi-led coalition began operations in March 2015 against Iran-backed Huthi rebels, who seized swathes of territory including the capital Sanaa.
Key issues include the withdrawal of armed groups, a handover of heavy weapons, the resumption of a political transition and the release of prisoners. The government delegation said their proposal is based on implementing Resolution 2216, which states that the rebels must withdraw from seized territories and disarm before talks can progress.
The rebel delegation representing the Iran-backed Shiite Huthis and forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh said that their proposals include “forming a consensus authority that would oversee (political) transition.” The rebel proposals also call for the lifting of the blockade imposed by the Saudi-led military coalition on Yemen. Ould Cheikh Ahmed said although there has been an improvement in firming up the ceasefire that went into effect on April 11, some “grave violations” remain, especially in the besieged city of Taez. The UN envoy also said that the Saudiled Arab coalition has stopped air sorties in the past four to five days. The UN Security Council on Monday stressed the importance of agreeing on a “roadmap” to implement security measures including the withdrawal of heavy weapons from Yemeni towns.
Meanwhile, Yemeni journalists attending peace consultations have failed to report positive progress in Kuwait-hosted talks, but decided to break this deadlock by exploring Kuwait, a country they only heard of but never seen. “Being here to cover the intra-Yemeni talks, is a great chance to explore Kuwait’s attractions,” Yemeni Journalist Abdulkarim Al-Washli told KUNA. He pointed out that he has visited the headquarters of the leading Arab monthly magazine, Al-Arabi, and the museum of Bait Al-Othman.
“Bait Al-Othman embodies the historic roots of Kuwait,” he said. Al-Washli noted that he and a number of his colleagues have also visited and enjoyed Kuwaiti beaches. He expressed admiration of the urban and civilizational progress and development in Kuwait in various domains over the past few days. “We are here in the land of goodness, originality, the crossroad of cultures and center of humanitarian work and intellectual development are closely watching that nascent nation moving towards the future with confidence, “ he told KUNA. He voiced gratitude for Kuwait’s unforgettable supportive stances towards Arab causes, particularly Kuwait’s backing to Yemen in times of distress.
For his part, Yemeni News Agency (SABA) reporter Abdullah Hezam noted that he has been surprised by Kuwaiti women’s significant presence in different domains in the society. In his regard, he lauded the role of Kuwaiti female journalists in covering the marathon Yemeni talks. “I was also taken by the highly-civilized behavior of Kuwaiti people,” Hezam told KUNA. He pointed out that he and several other Yemeni reporters have visited Kuwait’s House of National Works. Hezam expressed admiration of the extreme precision of art master pieces, particularly those which document the Iraqi invasion and aggression of Kuwait.
Meanwhile, Editor-in-chief of the Yemen Today daily’s Ahmad Al-Hassan said that he has visited Al-Mubarakiya market. “I have witnessed various incidents which reflected the greatness of Kuwait and its people,” he told KUNA. He lauded the smoothness of the unique relations between Kuwaiti rulers and people as well as Kuwaitis and expats. “It is clear that these relations are based on mutual respect,” he said. In another news, Yemen’s al-Qaeda branch on Saturday confirmed it had withdrawn from the Yemeni seaport of Mukalla a week after government and Emirati soldiers seized the city used by Islamist militants to amass a fortune amid the chaos of civil war.
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) said it had retreated from the port on Yemen’s south coast to save it from destruction and that a handful of its fighters had been killed. “We only withdrew to prevent the enemy from moving the battle to your homes, markets, roads and mosques,” the group said in a rare statement posted on Twitter. Around 2,000 Yemeni and Emirati troops advanced into Mukalla last Sunday, local officials and residents said, taking control of its maritime port and airport and meeting little resistance.
Mukalla has been the centre of a rich mini-state along the Arabian Sea coastline that AQAP built up over the past year as it exploited conflict between government loyalists backed by a Gulf Arab coalition and Houthi rebels supported by Iran. “The coalition bombed an electricity plant and a food market that the Mujahideen recently built and a petrol station… that resulted in the killing of tens of Muslims,” the statement said.
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