UN envoy warns Yemen has returned to ‘full-scale war’, urges dialogue

Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s internationally recognised gov’t urge UN Security Council action amid escalating conflict with the Houthis.

Supporters of the Houthi authorities gather during a protest against the Saudi intervention in Yemen, in Sanaa on Friday [AFP]

United Nations Special Envoy to Yemen Hans Grundberg says that the country has slid back into “full-scale war” as fighting between the Houthis and internationally recognised government forces continues.

During a meeting at the UN Security Council on Friday to discuss the situation in Yemen, Grundberg said civilians, including women and children, were bearing the “brunt of escalating violence”.

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“Ongoing instability in the Middle East continues to impact dynamics in Yemen, while developments in Yemen, in turn, reverberate across the region,” he said.

“Regional security, freedom of navigation and the protection of international trade are legitimate concerns that must be addressed. International engagement on Yemen must also be grounded in the realities of Yemen and the needs and aspirations of its people,” Grundberg added.

The envoy stressed that “unless war is to become Yemen’s permanent reality, the time to consider political strategies is now.”

“Ultimately, gains on the battlefield cannot substitute for the negotiations that will be required to settle the conflict,” he said, urging Security Council members to collectively support mediation efforts.

According to the UN, at least 46 civilians have been killed and more than 130 others have been injured since August, with children bearing a disproportionate toll during the ongoing clashes.

‘Dangerous escalation’

The UN representative for Yemen’s internationally recognised government, Abdullah Ali Fadhel al-Saadi, told the Security Council that the threat from the Houthis was no longer an “internal Yemeni affair”.

Al-Saadi called on the council to take “decisive, practical measures” to reduce the flow of funding, weapons and technology to the Iranian-backed group and also strengthen cooperation with the Yemeni government.

He thanked Riyadh, which supports the government, for “standing beside the Yemeni people and their government, and for their continued support to state institutions and our economy”.

This comes as Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia continue, with the Saudi Civil Aviation Authority reporting on Friday that the King Khalid International Airport, north of Riyadh, was subjected to two attacks on Thursday, in which three Saudi citizens were killed.

Gulf states and European countries have condemned the attack on the airport, with Switzerland’s Federal Department of Foreign Affairs calling it “unacceptable”.

During the council meeting, Saudi Arabia’s UN representative, Abdulaziz al-Wasil, said the UN body must address the “dangerous escalation” ongoing in Yemen.

“These rapid developments in Yemen and the continued escalation by the terrorist Houthi militias must be addressed by the Council,” al-Wasil said.

Al-Wasil added that Riyadh will “not allow Yemen to be turned into a staging ground for threats to its security or to the freedom of navigation”.

沙特阿拉伯和也门国际公认的政府敦促联合国安理会采取行动，应对与胡塞武装不断升级的冲突。

周五，胡塞武装的支持者在也门首都萨那举行抗议活动，反对沙特干预也门局势。[法新社]

联合国也门问题特使汉斯·格伦伯格表示，随着胡塞武装与国际公认的政府军之间的战斗持续进行，也门已重新陷入“全面战争”。

在周五联合国安理会召开的讨论也门局势的会议上，格伦伯格表示，包括妇女和儿童在内的平民正承受着“不断升级的暴力带来的冲击”。

10月7日，重新绘制了中东地图，开辟了新的断层线（共3份清单，第1份）。

也门政府需要各部落的支持才能击败胡塞武装（共3条，此为第2条）。他们会加入吗？

沙特领导的联军称拦截了三枚胡塞武装的弹道导弹（共3条记录，此为第3条）。

他说：“中东持续的不稳定局势继续影响着也门的局势，而也门的局势发展反过来又对整个地区产生影响。”

格伦伯格补充说：“地区安全、航行自由和国际贸易保护都是必须解决的合理关切。国际社会对也门问题的参与也必须立足于也门的实际情况及其人民的需求和愿望。”

这位特使强调，“除非战争成为也门的永久现实，否则现在就是考虑政治战略的时候了。”

“归根结底，战场上的胜利不能取代解决冲突所需的谈判，”他说道，并敦促安理会成员共同支持调解努力。

据联合国称，自 8 月以来，至少有 46 名平民丧生，另有 130 多人受伤，在持续不断的冲突中，儿童受到的伤害尤为严重。

“危险的升级”

也门国际公认政府的联合国代表阿卜杜拉·阿里·法德尔·萨阿迪告诉安理会，胡塞武装的威胁不再是“也门内部事务”。

萨阿迪呼吁安理会采取“果断、务实的措施”，减少流向伊朗支持的组织的资金、武器和技术，并加强与也门政府的合作。

他感谢支持也门政府的利雅得“与也门人民及其政府站在一起，并继续支持国家机构和我们的经济”。

与此同时，胡塞武装对沙特阿拉伯的袭击仍在继续。沙特民航局周五报告称，利雅得以北的哈立德国王国际机场周四遭到两起袭击，造成三名沙特公民死亡。

海湾国家和欧洲国家谴责了对机场的袭击，瑞士联邦外交部称其“不可接受”。

在安理会会议期间，沙特阿拉伯驻联合国代表阿卜杜勒阿齐兹·瓦西尔表示，联合国机构必须解决也门正在发生的“危险升级”局势。

“也门局势的这些快速发展以及胡塞武装恐怖分子不断升级的行动，必须由安理会加以解决，”瓦西尔说。

瓦西尔补充说，利雅得“不会允许也门成为威胁其安全或航行自由的跳板”。