On Monday, Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan announced a new initiative to end the war in Yemen by “reaching a comprehensive political resolution” with the Houthi rebels. The proposal comes at a time when the United States President Joe Biden has ended support for the Saudi-led coalition’s military campaign in Yemen and even suspended arms sales to Riyadh.
The initiative seeks to achieve a “comprehensive ceasefire” across war-torn Yemen under the supervision of the United Nations (UN). It also proposes to deposit custom revenues for ships carrying oil products to the Hodeidah port in the Central Bank of Yemen in Hodeidah. Apart from this, the peace plan seeks to start consultations between all stakeholders in Yemen in order to reach a peaceful settlement to the crisis. These consultations would be based on the guidelines set by the UN Security Council Resolution 2216, which supports “political transition” through “UN-brokered negotiations” in Yemen.
However, the Houthis have dismissed the proposal as “nothing new”, as it does not address their demand for a complete removal of the blockade. According to Reuters, the chief negotiator for the Houthis, Mohammed Abdulsalam, said that the Houthis expected Saudi Arabia to “announce an end to the blockade of ports and airports.” Abdulsalam also stated that the Saudis were using a “humanitarian right” as a bargaining tool.
Not long before the peace proposal was announced, Saudi Arabia launched airstrikes on Sana’a as well as the port of Salif, which was declared as a neutral zone in 2018, as per the terms of the Stockholm Agreement. Saudi Arabia also continued its economic warfare in Yemen, as a grains port and a food production company were hit by the airstrikes as well.
This offensive can be seen as a response to recent drone attacks conducted by the Houthis in the Saudi city of Khamis Mushait on 5 March and on an Aramco oil facility on 19 March. The conflict was further escalated when the Houthis led a campaign to capture the Ma’arib governorate from the UN-recognized Yemeni government led by Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi. The Houthi offensive in Ma’arib could lead to a humanitarian catastrophe by potentially displacing around 385,000 people. If successful in Ma’arib, the Houthis would be a step closer to the border with Saudi Arabia, which would further destabilize the region.
The international community, which has been looking for ways to bring the conflict in Yemen to a halt, has mostly welcomed the Saudi proposal. A UN spokesperson said that the initiative aligned with its own efforts to end the war. Similarly, the US called on all parties to “commit seriously” in order to achieve a ceasefire. So far, there has been no official response from Iran, who is widely believed to be supporting the Houthis with funds and weapons, regarding the Saudi proposal.
There has been no end in sight to the war in Yemen which began in 2014. The UN has called the conflict in Yemen “the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.” International efforts to end the war in Yemen have failed to succeed, so far. While the peace initiative launched by Saudi Arabia this week has been welcomed by international actors, it is unlikely to yield the desired outcome without the elusive support of the Houthis.
Saudi Arabia Announces New Peace Plan to End Yemen War
Saudi Arabia offered the Houthi rebels a ceasefire initiative seeking to end the Yemen crisis, only for the plan to be dismissed as “nothing new.”
March 24, 2021
Saudi Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud SOURCE: FAYEZ NURELDINE / AFP