2023-08-16 23:53:00
Representatives of the UN and Western countries expressed concern this Wednesday (16) at the Security Council about the risk of an escalation of violence in Yemen, devastated by the humanitarian and economic crisis after more than seven years of conflict.
The UN envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, denounced in his intervention at the Security Council the “public threats of a return to war” in this country, the poorest of the Arabian peninsula, where according to the multilateral organization, around 14 million people are threatened by famine.
“This rhetoric is not the most conducive to maintaining a fruitful climate of mediation,” said the diplomat via videoconference to the 15 members of the main UN body and representatives of the Yemeni government and Saudi Arabia.
The conflict between the Houthi rebels, close to Iran, and the government, supported since 2015 by a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia, destroyed the country’s economy and caused one of the worst humanitarian crises on the planet, with hundreds of thousands of dead and millions of displaced people.
UN experts accused all parties to the conflict, including Saudi Arabia, of perpetrating war crimes.
After the truce negotiated by the UN in April 2022 and despite having expired last October, the violence has decreased considerably.
Grundberg urged “the parties to avoid all violent rhetoric and to follow the paths of dialogue established since the truce through a military coordination commission to reduce incidents” armed.
However, British UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward “urged” the Houthi rebels to “end ongoing attacks and threats to stop oil exports from government-controlled regions, which severely affect Yemen’s economy”.
For its part, the United States, through its ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, welcomed Saudi Arabia’s decision, announced on August 1, to grant US$ 1.2 billion (R$ 6 billion, at current exchange rates) ) to the internationally recognized Yemeni government.
“But more attention and financial support is needed to tackle Yemen’s economic and humanitarian crisis,” he said.
After condemning “the Houthis’ senseless attacks on shipping that exacerbate the humanitarian crisis”, Thomas-Greenfield called for “a lasting political solution that includes all parties to alleviate the suffering of the Yemeni people”.
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