Yemen Monitor/ Riyadh/ Exclusive:
The Presidency of the Yemeni House of Representatives met with the President of the UAE-backed STC on Tuesday, according to the Speaker of Parliament, Sultan al-Barkani.
Al-Barkani posted a photo on his official X platform (formerly Twitter) of the Presidency of the House of Representatives meeting with the President of the STC, Aidrous al-Zubaidi, who is also a member of the Presidential Leadership Council.
Al-Barkani said, “The Presidency of the House of Representatives meets with Lieutenant General Aidrous Qasim al-Zubaidi, Deputy Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, today, Tuesday” with no more details.
This comes two days after the Presidency of the Council met with Rashad al-Alimi, Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, and discussed “the Council’s plan to resume its sessions and a draft agenda for its next session.”
The STC rejects the holding of sessions of the House of Representatives in the city of Aden, which is considered the temporary capital of the country.
A team of experts from the UN Security Council’s Yemen Sanctions Committee said in a report published last October that the STC rejects the holding of parliamentary sessions, claiming that it “represents the legacy of the old regime.” It instead promotes the “Consultative Body for Reconciliation to replace the parliament.”
The Consultative Body, which the STC promotes, came as part of the agreement to transfer power from President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi to an eight-member Presidential Council. It consists of 50 members, including party leaders, parliamentarians, diplomats, tribal leaders, and human rights activists, including 5 women. Its tasks focus on bringing together components to support the Presidential Leadership Council, unifying forces, preventing conflicts between forces opposing the Houthi group, and consulting with the armed group. It is headed by “Mohammed al-Ghaithi,” a leader in the STC.
