Yemen Monitor / Iftikhar Abdo
While the UN envoy intensifies efforts to bring peace to Yemen, the Houthis continue their military escalation in various battlefronts.
At this stage, the conflict parties in Yemen are expected to live under a continuous ceasefire until the UN envoy and international and regional mediators reach a political settlement and comprehensive solution to the ongoing Yemeni crisis that has persisted for ten years.
Despite the relentless and ongoing efforts by the UN envoy in recent times – where he met last Tuesday in Riyadh with the President of the Presidential Council Dr. Rashad Al-Alimi and Foreign Minister Shai’a Al-Zindani to discuss efforts to revive the political process in Yemen.
The UN envoy’s office also announced last Wednesday that he discussed with the British Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Commonwealth and Middle East Development Affairs, Lord Ahmed of Wimbledon, the necessity of maintaining an environment supporting constructive dialogue and ways to progress on the UN roadmap.
Major concessions
The Houthis recently denied reports of resuming negotiations with Saudi Arabia, which leads the Arab coalition in Yemen, blaming the United States and Britain for not allowing a peace agreement in Yemen.
The Houthis confirmed in a statement reported by their affiliated Yemeni news agency, Saba, that “the reports by the Emirati newspaper Al-Bayan and other media outlets about the resumption of negotiations and what was mentioned in the report are completely untrue.”
The legitimate government has made significant concessions in order to bring peace to Yemen, while the Houthis continue to show continuous stubbornness and block any initiatives seeking a life without war for the Yemeni people.
Political analysts and journalists predicts that the Houthi is taking advantage of this period to make military advancements, strengthen their military fronts, and portray the legitimate government as incapable of making any decisions, especially with ongoing international pressures on them.
Abdulwasea Al-Fatki, a political analyst, stated, “The UN envoy to Yemen is intensifying his efforts through meetings with officials from the legitimate authority, Saudi and Omani officials, and representatives of the Houthis in an attempt to break through the Yemeni crisis wall, sparking hope for the resumption of negotiations on the UN roadmap, paving the way for a political settlement to end the war in Yemen.”
Al-Fatki added specifically at this time, “The Houthis are escalating their military operations on various fronts and along the frontlines with the national army, as these fronts have witnessed Houthi military attacks on national army positions with heavy and medium weapons, the establishment of military fortifications, as well as the Houthi drone aircraft targeting civilians’ homes in Al-Dali government or the constant sniping of civilians, especially in Taiz.”
Opportunity to rectify the situation
He added, “The Houthis view negotiations with the legitimate authority, Saudi Arabia, and the international community as a tactical opportunity to focus on reorganizing their military situation and resuming military operations to make military advancements in the field.”
He continued, “The Houthis are also testing the legitimacy’s pulse, aiming to assess its reaction or showcase it as helpless, especially since they realize that the international community and the UN are constantly pressuring the legitimate authority not to respond to any military moves by the Houthi group.”
In the same context, journalist Mohammed Hafez stated, “The Houthi group is only heading towards peace talks as a tactic to dodge and gaining time, especially when faced with a major political or military failure.”
He added, “The Houthi group’s policy over the past years has been deliberately escalating militarily and provoking war and conflicts whenever it does not seek peace or believes the time for peace has not yet come.”
He continued, “The group has not adhered to any political agreements… for years, as they only aim to achieve their military or political goals by various means: political maneuvers, dodging, and also war in the field.”
Dodging
Today, as work begins on the UN roadmap, the Houthis have escalated militarily in the Red Sea and on the battlefronts, which hinders peace efforts, as confirmed by the UN envoy to Yemen in his speech to the Security Council last week, stating that the escalation in the Red Sea by the Houthi group and the threat of a return to conflict on the internal war fronts delays progress towards implementing the roadmap, which mainly aims to alleviate citizen suffering.
He emphasized that “external military escalation in the Red Sea or internally on the battlefronts undoubtedly threatens and obstructs the peace process, hindering the parties from progressing with the UN roadmap agreed upon by all parties in Yemen, including the Houthis.”
He further stated that “the Houthi group does not want the people to have even a brief respite from the economic and living conflict, or to get any of their rights to live after ten years of war.”
He concluded “The Houthis have not responded to internal initiatives led by local mediators to open the routes between provinces to alleviate the suffering of Yemenis, so how can they work on peace and support it if they have monopolized certain routes on the people?!”
In turn, journalist Saddam Al-Haribi believes that, “The military escalation being carried out by the Houthi group recently and the kill of members of the national army in the face of Houthi incursions, despite the ceasefire, threatens the peace roadmap sponsored by Saudi Arabia and Oman.”
He added to Yemen Monitor, “This escalation may force the legitimate government and the people behind it to suspend the alleged peace agreement, as the group, with its movements and practices, is working diligently to stop any efforts for peace.”
He continued, ” Houthis cannot continue their project without shedding blood and causing further destruction in the country, awaiting the legitimacy to act seriously and responsibly towards it and the people.”
In December, Grundberg presented a roadmap, saying that it came after extensive consultations in Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Oman, and other countries, and “would include, among other elements, a commitment by the parties to implement a nationwide ceasefire, pay all public sector salaries, resume oil exports, open roads in Taiz and other parts of Yemen, and continue to ease restrictions on Sana’a airport and Hodeidah port. The roadmap would also establish implementation mechanisms and prepare for a Yemeni-led political process under the auspices of the United Nations.”
Escalation in the Red Sea
“Gronberg” previously pointed out that escalation in the Red Sea is hindering peace efforts in Yemen. In February, he visited the provinces under the internationally recognized government’s control in February.
The Houthis accuse the United States of stopping the roadmap and linking it to halting their attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
US envoy Tim Lenderking stated that a halt to the escalation by the Houthis could help resume UN-brokered peace talks in Yemen, which have been stalled since October 7.
Since November, the Houthis have targeted over 60 commercial ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, and recently expanded their operations to the Indian Ocean. They claim to target ships linked to Israel, which is waging a brutal attack on Gaza. However, the Yemeni government and experts say that the Houthis’ objectives are domestic aiming to escape internal crises and improve their image in the region.
In response, since January 11, the United States and Britain have been conducting airstrikes against Iran-backed Houthis. As a result, the Houthis have announced an expansion of their operations to include American and British vessels.
