Yemen Calls on UN to Identify Obstructors of Political Process

Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi warned on Thursday of the failure of the Sweden ceasefire deal that was reached between the legitimate government and Iran-backed Houthi militias in December.

He said that the collapse of the deal would be tantamount to the failure of the entire political process.

He made his remarks on the sidelines of a meeting he held in Riyadh with UN envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths and head of the UN team tasked with monitoring the truce, retired Dutch general Patrick Cammaert.

Hadi urged during the talks Griffiths to speed up the implementation of Sweden deal and inform the international community and all concerned powers of the sides to blame for the obstruction of the truce and peace process. He accused the Houthis of stalling in implementing the Stockholm deal and all other previous agreements.

In addition, officials present at the meeting reported the envoy’s unease when asked to comment on Cammaert’s alleged decision to quit his post.

UN diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the organization plans to replace Cammaert next month with Danish Major General Michael Anker Lollesgaard, who led a UN peacekeeping mission in Mali in 2015 and 2016, reported Reuters Friday.

During the Riyadh talks, Cammaert briefed the gatherers on the measures that he had taken since his appointment in December and the challenges he has faced.

Head of the media office of the Yemeni Congregation for Reform, Adnan al-Adeeny, who was present at the talks, said that the political parties expressed their disappointment with the UN’s lenient approach towards the Houthis.

Such an approach is harming the political and peace process and creating new conditions for war, he warned to Asharq Al-Awsat.

Moreover, the political parties urged Griffiths to be more strict in condemning Houthi violations in Hodeidah, informing him that he was “not a mediator,” but an executor of international resolutions.

The envoy, for his part, gave “unconvincing” answers when confronted with the demand to clarify Cammaert’s intention to resign, said Adeeny.

“He denied that the resignation was prompted by his yielding to Houthi demands, explaining instead that Cammaert was originally tasked to his position to simply form his team and then depart Yemen,” he added.

Also on Thursday, Griffiths held talks with Mohammed bin Saeed Al-Jaber, the Saudi ambassador to Yemen, executive director of the Isnad Center for Comprehensive Humanitarian Operations in Yemen and supervisor of the Saudi Reconstruction Program in Yemen.

Jaber highlighted Saudi and the Arab coalition efforts to support the humanitarian operations in Yemen and informed the envoy of Isnad’s future projects in the country.