Wednesday

27th Sep 2023

Opinion

The chance for peace in Yemen

  • Yemen's civil war started in 2014 (Photo: eesti)

The current Yemeni government was formed in December 2020, consisting of the key parties involved and whose components and competencies are properly reflected in its cabinet.

At its formation, it called on the Houthi militia to stop the war and to pursue national reconciliation.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Become an expert on Europe

Get instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

It also clearly asserted to Houthis that the door is open for participation in power as long as overall governance adhered to the constitution, and embraced principles of equal citizenship rights while also abandoning violence and any claim of a divine right-to-rule.

The government has called for a peaceful and comprehensive solution, even after it was heinously targeted by the Houthis upon arrival at Aden International Airport with ballistic missiles in what was a brazen attempt, on live television broadcast, to commit killings against the lives of ministers and civilian travellers from all over the country.

Unfortunately, dozens of innocent civilians were killed or wounded in this terrorist attack launched by the Houthis. Among the victims was Yasmine Al-Awadi, undersecretary of the Ministry of Public Works.

Nonetheless, the government, with regional and international support, continued to call for peace and showed great flexibility.

Through its determination for achieving peace, the government aims to protect all Yemenis, including the Houthis. However, the Houthi coup against the legitimate authority and its control of certain provinces caused a civil war and afterwards the world's worse humanitarian crisis according to the United Nations.

Regrettably, the Houthis have interpreted in a wrong way the positive messages from the Yemeni government, our quest for peace and also the international community's eagerness to help restore security and stability.

Additionally, the more the government calls for peace, the more the Houthi militia become intransigent and insistent on continuing its war against the people of Yemen — even quite appalling, recruiting children and placing them in frontlines, exposing them to injury, trauma or death.

The Houthis were not only mistaken in reading the political messages, but also in their reading of history and changes in Yemen.

They further escalated military attacks in the Marib governorate based on wrongful calculations and without realising that this governorate (ie, province), which holds a great historical legacy, would be difficult to conquer.

Queen of Sheba

The people of Marib will never symbolically allow the Houthis to reach the throne of their Queen Bilqis (Sheba). With just 350,000 inhabitants in 2015, it has now dramatically grown in population, exceeding four million people as a result of the massive influx of internally displaced people from Houthi-controlled areas who came escaping injustice, persecution and crimes practiced by the Houthi militia.

But the Houthi attacks on Marib have another story that must be told. Marib does not have air defences that protect it from aerial attacks.

For the past six months, its residents, displaced persons, civilian areas and public facilities have been bombed and destroyed with ballistic missiles, drones and katuysha rockets.

The Houthi militia committed acts of barbarism due to their failures on other battlefronts. Their terrorist acts, in cold blood, have killed and injured hundreds of civilians, including women, children and the elderly.

Indeed, the Houthi militia's objection to and obstruction of all peace efforts is prolonging the war and exacerbating human suffering. Their refusal to accept peace proposals and initiatives has produced dramatic changes in the Houthi-controlled areas. New tribal uprisings against Houthis have occurred in the provinces of Al-Bayda and Al-Jawf.

This is not the first time that tribes have revolted against the Houthis, as it has happened multiple times and in many areas; but the difference this time, is the Houthis' inability to suppress them because of exasperation with the Houthis rejection of opportunities to finally achieve peace in Yemen.

Therefore, to have a real chance for peace, the negative attitude and actions of the Houthi militia towards peace must change. And this change also requires, in particular, a new European approach to help solve the Yemeni crisis — an approach based on supporting the Yemeni government politically and economically (as it represents all Yemenis), and for creating a full partnership with it to achieve peace.

Moreover, strenuous pressures on the Houthis can alter their behaviour to accept the peace plan for a total ceasefire, a pivotal step to national reconciliation and recovery.

Author bio

Dr Ahmed BinMubarak is Yemen minister of foreign and expatriates affairs.

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author's, not those of EUobserver.

How the EU can better pursue peace in Yemen

The EU is keen to display its capacity as a global actor: it has leverage in Yemen to be a force for peace-driven change, and to support Yemenis who are already pursuing peace, despite the horrific risks of doing so.

French liberal MEPs silent on EU weapons in Yemen

French and Spanish liberal MEPs attempted to water down a resolution on Yemen and abstained on key points demanding accountability for EU states that violate arms export rules.

A chance for peace in Yemen?

I want to reaffirm the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council and government are sincerely seeking to end the war, but there is a stubborn party, that is afraid of the consequences of peace, and that is the Iranian-backed Houthi militia.

How do you make embarrassing EU documents 'disappear'?

The EU Commission's new magic formula for avoiding scrutiny is simple. You declare the documents in question to be "short-lived correspondence for a preliminary exchange of views" and thus exempt them from being logged in the official inventory.

Column

Will Poles vote for the end of democracy?

International media must make clear that these are not fair, democratic elections. The flawed race should be the story at least as much as the race itself.

Latest News

  1. Germany tightens police checks on Czech and Polish border
  2. EU Ombudsman warns of 'new normal' of crisis decision-making
  3. How do you make embarrassing EU documents 'disappear'?
  4. Resurgent Fico hopes for Slovak comeback at Saturday's election
  5. EU and US urge Azerbijan to allow aid access to Armenians
  6. EU warns of Russian 'mass manipulation' as elections loom
  7. Blocking minority of EU states risks derailing asylum overhaul
  8. Will Poles vote for the end of democracy?

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. International Medical Devices Regulators Forum (IMDRF)Join regulators, industry & healthcare experts at the 24th IMDRF session, September 25-26, Berlin. Register by 20 Sept to join in person or online.
  2. UNOPSUNOPS begins works under EU-funded project to repair schools in Ukraine
  3. Georgia Ministry of Foreign AffairsGeorgia effectively prevents sanctions evasion against Russia – confirm EU, UK, USA
  4. International Medical Devices Regulators Forum (IMDRF)Join regulators & industry experts at the 24th IMDRF session- Berlin September 25-26. Register early for discounted hotel rates
  5. Nordic Council of MinistersGlobal interest in the new Nordic Nutrition Recommendations – here are the speakers for the launch
  6. Nordic Council of Ministers20 June: Launch of the new Nordic Nutrition Recommendations

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. International Sustainable Finance CentreJoin CEE Sustainable Finance Summit, 15 – 19 May 2023, high-level event for finance & business
  2. ICLEISeven actionable measures to make food procurement in Europe more sustainable
  3. World BankWorld Bank Report Highlights Role of Human Development for a Successful Green Transition in Europe
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersNordic summit to step up the fight against food loss and waste
  5. Nordic Council of MinistersThink-tank: Strengthen co-operation around tech giants’ influence in the Nordics
  6. EFBWWEFBWW calls for the EC to stop exploitation in subcontracting chains

Join EUobserver

Support quality EU news

Join us