Yemeni message to UN: Houthi siege of Taiz must be lifted
The Yemeni Presidential Council has officially submitted a letter to the United Nations regarding the Houthis’ renunciation of humanitarian truce pledges, including “lifting the siege of Taiz”.
Yemeni Foreign Minister Ahmed bin Mubarak delivered a written message from Chairman of the Presidential Command Council Rashad al-Alimi to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, stressing “the need to complete the implementation of the Armistice Agreement to lift the siege on Taiz and open humanitarian crossings to the city”.
In the letter, the president of the Presidential Council asked the UN to “exert all pressure to complete the implementation of all the provisions of the truce agreement, foremost among which is lifting the siege on Taiz province, opening crossings and roads, facilitating the movement of citizens, and allocating fees for fuel ships through the port of Hodeida to receive the salaries of employees”, the official news agency Saba reported.
He said the Yemeni government is committed to supporting the UN-led peace process and providing all facilities to ensure the truce’s success and alleviate the suffering of all Yemenis.
The Yemeni Foreign Minister referred to the efforts and concessions made by the Yemeni government to implement its commitments and to make the truce agreement a success, noting that “on the other hand, the Houthi militias continue to disavow and evade their obligations, which threatens to destabilize this agreement”.
He also touched on the humanitarian tragedy left behind by the millions of anti-personnel mines planted by Houthi militias in various parts of Yemen.
The primary victims of these mines are citizens, especially women and children, who are paying the price for the disregard of these militias for the lives of civilians and the future of Yemen, bin Mubarak said
He stressed the importance of exerting pressure on these militias to stop making and planting mines, to hand over maps of minefields, to stop planting more of them, and to make all those behind planting these mines accountable and hold them accountable for the consequences of their crimes.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres reiterated the UN’s commitment to pushing for the implementation of all the provisions of the Armistice Agreement, including opening roads and alleviating the human suffering of the citizens in Taiz province, expressing his appreciation for the efforts made by the Yemeni government to make the agreement a success.
The UN will make every effort to ensure the truce’s success and achieve comprehensive peace in Yemen, he said.
The UN efforts culminated in a two-month humanitarian truce (April 2-June 2, 2022) between the Yemeni government and Houthi militias that included de-escalation of violence and humanitarian and economic remedies, but the coup d’état took no concrete steps towards its success, including lifting the siege of Taiz.
