Iran-backed Houthi rebels have repeated their demand that a dispute with Yemen's internationally recognised government over civil servants' wages must be resolved before they can agree to a permanent ceasefire.
It came as the Yemeni government said it had reaffirmed a commitment to paying salaries, and a former government minister said the Houthis' claims were nothing new.
“We are working to get to a clear stage in Yemen where we can reach a truce or a permanent ceasefire,” rebel spokesman Mohammed Abdulsalam told the Houthi-run Al Masirah TV on Monday morning.
Efforts to restart peace negotiations between the Houthis and the Yemeni government have stalled in recent months, with the salaries of civil servants a major sticking point.
Mr Abdulsalam said any solution must be based on disbursing employee salaries from oil and gas revenue, according to the 2014 budget — the year the civil war began.
Other Houthi conditions include the reopening of Sanaa airport and roads, said the rebel spokesman.
Barring an official agreement to halt the violence, a return to full-scale war will remain an option despite the relative calm, former Yemeni diplomat, ambassador and Deputy Foreign Minister Mustapha Noman told The National.
“Both sides of the military equation have reached the point of fatigue and aren't rushing towards resumption of military actions,” he said.
It is the “strong will” in Riyadh to stay on the path of peace that has kept the truce unofficially in effect, Mr Noman said.
“Of course, one shouldn't disregard the possibility of a military agreement between Riyadh and the Houthis, although this can't be concluded without serious guaranteed commitments that hostilities in Yemen will not start again.”
Mr Noman also said the Houthis' comments on salaries are “nothing new”.
An Omani delegation visited Sanaa in early December in a bid to mediate between the government of Yemen and the Houthis.
Mr Abdulsalam said the payment of salaries and the reopening Sanaa airport and the port of Hodeidah were discussed in meetings with Omani officials.
He also said the UN was “informed” of the outcomes of the militants' meetings with the Omani mediators.
Yemen’s civil war began when the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, and much of the northern parts of the country, forcing the Yemeni government into exile.
In early 2015, a Saudi-led coalition intervened at the request of the internationally recognised government.
Both sides accepted a truce for two months at the start of Ramadan last April. It was subsequently extended three times, but talks to further extend it beyond October stalled.
The latest Houthi comments came hours after Yemeni President Rashad Al Alimi reaffirmed the Yemeni government’s commitment to continuing to work with international partners to end the war.
“We reaffirm our commitment to continuing to work together closely on alleviating the human suffering caused by the terrorist Iranian-backed Houthi militia, including regular payment of salaries for civilian and military forces, diplomatic missions, in addition to dues of scholarship students, according to the comprehensive state reforms,” Mr Al Alimi wrote on Twitter on New Year's Day.
Mr Al Alimi, who heads the Presidential Leadership Council, had previously said the government would be unable to pay civil servant salaries because of Houthi attacks.
The Houthis have been pushing the Yemeni government to pay salaries according to a 2022 payroll that contains employees working for Houthi-run state institutions.
The internationally recognised government said it would make such payments according to a payroll from 2014.
Last year, the UN reported that the conflict had resulted in more than 377,000 deaths, severe food insecurity, critical infrastructure damage and the collapse of essential services.
More than four million people have been displaced and 15.6 million people have fallen into extreme poverty, said the UN.
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Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
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Palestine and Israel - live updates
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Profile of Bitex UAE
Date of launch: November 2018
Founder: Monark Modi
Based: Business Bay, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: Eight employees
Investors: Self-funded to date with $1m of personal savings
Five famous companies founded by teens
There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:
- Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate.
- Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc.
- Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway.
- Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
- Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
