Tag Archives: Saudi coalition

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group attacked the United Arab Emirates in what the group said was an operation using missiles and drones, setting off explosions in fuel trucks that killed three people and causing a fire near the airport of Abu Dhabi, capital of the region’s commercial and tourism hub. The strike on a leading Gulf Arab ally of …

The U.N. Security Council has condemned the seizure of a United Arab Emirates ship and demanded that Yemen’s Houthi rebels immediately release the vessel and its crew. A press statement from the U.N.’s most powerful body called on all sides “to resolve the issue quickly and underlined the importance of …

Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Lebanon, Waleed al Bukhari, said on Thursday that “the kingdom’s relations with Lebanon are too deep to be affected with irresponsible and absurd statements,” Saudi media reported, citing the ambassador. The ambassador comments are his first after the leader of Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah group accused Saudi …

The hijacking of a UAE-flagged cargo ship off the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah is a “flagrant violation” of the principles of international law, the Arab coalition said on Tuesday. The Rawabi had been transporting medical equipment from the remote Yemeni island of Socotra in the Arabian Sea to the …

Hizbullah on Monday dismissed as “ridiculous” Saudi charges that it aids Yemen’s Huthi rebels in launching strikes against the kingdom. On Sunday, the spokesman of the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said Huthi rebels were “militarizing” Sanaa airport and using it as a “main center for launching ballistic missiles and …

The US Navy seized a large cache of assault rifles and ammunition being smuggled by a fishing ship from Iran likely bound for war-ravaged Yemen. US Navy patrol ships discovered the weapons aboard what the Navy described as a stateless fishing vessel in an operation that began on Monday in …

Hizbullah military commander and expert Akram al-Sayyed has died in artillery shelling in Yemen’s Marib governorate, Yemeni Information, Culture and Tourism Minister Moammar al-Aryani has said, describing the development as “a painful blow to Tehran’s regime and its sectarian militias.” “Al-Sayyed, 35, had entered Yemen in August 2017 among a …

All steps made to restore ties between Lebanon and KSA “won’t be implemented in practice before the Gulf Cooperation Council Summit,” al-Joumhouria newspaper said Wednesday. The newspaper learned that the arrangements to normalize the relations between the two countries, based on French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Riyadh, won’t be …

The US seized two large caches of Iranian arms, including 171 surface-to-air missiles and eight anti-tank missiles, intended for the Houthi militia in Yemen.  The US justice department on Tuesday said navy troops seized the weapons from two vessels in the Arabian Sea while conducting routine maritime security operations.  “Iran’s …

Prime Minister Najib Miqati briefed Monday President Michel Aoun on the details of his call with French President Emmanuel Macron and Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. The two leaders met in Baabda and discussed the general situation in the country and the governmental developments. Macron and Bin Salman had held …

French President Emmanuel Macron announced Saturday that there will be a French-Saudi initiative to resolve the diplomatic crisis between Riyadh and Beirut, following talks with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah. Macron revealed that the prince and him held a joint phone call with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib …

The plummeting Lebanese pound on Friday regained some of its value against the dollar after dropping to a record low last week, after Information Minister George Kordahi announced his resignation, in a move that could defuse a major diplomatic crisis with Gulf countries. The pound, also known as lira, was …

Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi confirmed to Lebanon’s MTV on Friday that he will announce his resignation today at 1 p.m. local time (1100 GMT). He also said to the local television that his resignation may ease the crisis between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. He said “since the first day …

Prime Minister Najib Miqati affirmed that France has informed him that Information Minister George Kordahi must resign before French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Riyadh, al-Akhbar newspaper said. “If Information Minister George Kordahi doesn’t resign before December 4, Lebanon will not be on the agenda of French President Emmanuel Macron’s …

Hizbullah central council member Sheikh Nabil Qaouq on Sunday stressed that his party is supporting efforts aimed at resolving the governmental crisis and resuming Cabinet sessions. “Addressing the governmental crisis represents a necessary gateway for alleviating the suffering of the Lebanese and curbing collapse in the various fields,” Qaouq said. …

Prime Minister Najib Miqati has dismissed the reports about a possible Cabinet reshuffle that would involve the replacement of the Justice Minister as “incorrect and baseless.” He added, in remarks to al-Joumhouria newspaper published Friday, that he is satisfied with the outcome of his Thursday talks with Pope Francis. The …

President Michel Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Najib Miqati held a meeting Monday at the Baabda Palace after overseeing a military parade marking Lebanon’s Independence Day. “Independence would not have been achieved had the Lebanese not gathered shoulder to shoulder in Rashaya,” Miqati said after the talks. …

President Michel Aoun is holding contacts with local and regional leaders to secure the resumption of Cabinet session and resolve the crisis with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries, Baabda Palace sources said. “Aoun is communicating with Hizbullah to soften its stance and prevent the Shiite ministers’ boycott of the …

The British ambassador to Yemen called on the Houthis to immediately release two Yemeni UN employees who are being detained by the militia. “The UK is alarmed by reports of detention of UN staff in Yemen,” Richard Oppenheim said on Saturday. “Aid workers must be allowed to do their work …

The Saudi-led coalition battling the Houthis in Yemen had on Friday said it destroyed three drones launched towards southern Saudi Arabia and a fourth over Yemen. It said the group “failed to launch two ballistic missiles” and they fell inside Yemen. Saudi Aramco, the state oil firm, said that it …

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced on Friday that he will soon call a cabinet session, saying that the situation in the country is “very difficult and the people should not have to deal with more crises.” His remarks came after protesters stormed the Ministry of Health building in Beirut …

The United States condemns the detention of Yemeni staff of the U.S. embassy in Sanaa by the Houthi movement and demands their immediate release, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement on Friday. Dozens of Yemeni citizens and their family members have been detained and mistreated by the …

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu on Tuesday urged all parties to overcome the problems in Lebanon so that the Lebanese people do not have to “pay the price of regional bargains.” Çavuşoğlu stated in a joint press conference with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bou Habib that “we feel sad over …

President Michel Aoun on Monday said “efforts are underway to address the situation that erupted between Lebanon, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and a number of Gulf countries.” He added that the efforts are based on “Lebanon’s keenness to establish the best relations with the brotherly Arab countries, especially KSA …

Yemen’s warring sides clashed south of the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah late on Saturday, after Iranian-backed Houthi fighters moved into territory ceded by forces allied to a Saudi-led coalition, military sources and witnesses said. Yemeni forces backed by the United Arab Emirates had on Friday announced they were …

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Sunday lashed out at those who are “undermining Lebanon’s ties with the world, paralyzing the judiciary and impeding the government.” “Wasting time and not solving the crisis with the Gulf countries plunges us into an exhausting economic and social crisis that would harm the interests …

Leaders of both the US Senate and House Foreign Relations committees on Friday condemned the Iranian-backed Houthis who recently breached the US Embassy in Sana’a, Yemen, and are holding staff hostage. Washington closed the embassy in 2015 amid escalating violence in the country and American diplomats left the country. However …

Democratic U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar filed legislation on Friday seeking to block the sale of $650 million air-to-air missiles to Saudi Arabia, the first major arms sale to the kingdom during President Joe Biden’s administration. Omar said she filed the measure, known as a joint resolution of disapproval, because of …

Information Minister George Kordahi announced Friday that he would consider resigning if Saudi Arabia offers Lebanon “guarantees” on reversing the measures it has taken since the eruption of the diplomatic row related to his remarks on the Yemen war. “I’m not clinging to any ministerial post and I don’t want …

The Hezbollah leader rejected calls for the resignation of a Lebanese minister who sparked a diplomatic rift with Riyadh by criticising its military intervention in Yemen, underlining the slim chances of the crisis easing any time soon. Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the Iran-backed Hezbollah, also said Saudi Arabia faced …

Discussions with Lebanon about its rift with Gulf states are going in “the right directon,” the assistant secretary-general of the Arab League said in televised remarks on Monday. A delegation from the Arab League is visiting Beirut to try and address the crisis that broke out following a minister’s critical …

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Thursday he had agreed with President Michel Aoun on a “roadmap” to solve a diplomatic row with Saudi Arabia, according to a Lebanese presidency post on Twitter. He did not give details. Lebanon is facing its worst rift yet with oil-rich Gulf Arab …

Expecting a possible siege, pro-government forces in central Yemen are preparing to defend Marib city, their last northern stronghold, against advancing Houthi fighters bent on taking full control of one of Yemen’s key energy-producing regions. Should Marib governorate fall to the Houthis it would deal a blow to the military …

Bahrain on Tuesday urged its citizens in Lebanon to immediately leave the country amid a row between Beirut and Arab Gulf states over a Lebanese minister’s remarks on the Yemen war. The foreign ministry “urged all citizens in Lebanon to leave immediately, following the tense situation there, which calls for …

Yemen’s Houthis on Sunday put up posters in support of a Lebanese minister whose criticism of the Saudi-led war in Yemen sparked a diplomatic row between Lebanon and Gulf states. Saudi Arabia has expelled Lebanon’s envoy and recalled its ambassador from Beirut, with Bahrain and Kuwait following suit. The UAE …

Riyadh has given Lebanon a two-day ultimatum to address the diplomatic crisis or else it will sever ties with Lebanon, media reports said on Monday. “It has been understood that the sacking or resignation of Information Minister George Kordahi would return the relation to the phase that preceded his remarks, …

Information Minister George Kordahi on Sunday stressed that he will not resign despite the growing diplomatic crisis with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries. In remarks to al-Jadeed television, Kordahi emphasized that such a move is “out of the question.” The crisis erupted Friday when Saudi Arabia gave Lebanon’s ambassador …

Embattled Information Minister George Kordahi on Saturday visited Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi in Bkirki and left without making a statement, amid a diplomatic storm sparked by his remarks on Yemen’s war. Asked upon his arrival whether he intends to resign, Kordahi told reporters that he would wait to “see what …

Washington and Paris have contacted Prime Minister Najib Miqati in the wake of the diplomatic crisis with KSA to urge him “not to resign,” media reports said on Saturday. The U.S. and France, however, told Miqati that “it is necessary to address the new problem with Saudi Arabia,” al-Akhbar newspaper …

Saudi Arabia is seeking Washington’s help in bolstering its defences as it comes under intense U.S. pressure to end a blockade of Yemeni ports that its Houthi enemies say is an obstacle to ceasefire talks, two sources with knowledge of efforts to end the Yemen war and a U.S. official …

Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Wednesday distanced himself from comments made by the country’s Information Minister George Kordahi suggesting that the Iran-backed Houthis were “defending themselves” in Yemen. Kordahi had been responding to a question from the host of “Barlamanasha3b,” an Al Jazeera-affiliated youth TV show, asking about his …

The Houthi militia’s planned attacks using explosive-rigged boats in the Red Sea pose a threat to global maritime trade lines in the area, Yemen’s information, culture and tourism minister Moammar Al-Eryani warned. The Arab coalition earlier said it destroyed four Houthi boats loaded with explosives during an airstrike in Yemen’s …

An Iranian warship on Saturday prevented an attack by pirates against two oil tankers that it was escorting in the Gulf of Aden, the country’s naval chief said. “Navy commandos were successful in repulsing this morning the attack by pirates against an Iranian commercial convoy in the Gulf of Aden,” …

The US on Wednesday demanded an end to the Houthi siege of Abedia to allow beleaguered civilians access to humanitarian aid. The Iran-backed militia has surrounded the district in the battleground Yemeni province of Marib for more than three weeks, denying 35,000 people access to food, drinking water, medicines and …