Yemen’s internationally recognised government is fighting an “existential” battle against the Houthi rebels in Marib and will not lose its last stronghold in the north of the country, a senior Yemeni official vowed on Friday.
Abdullah Al Alimi, chief of staff for President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi’s Saudi-Arabia-based government, said a Houthi victory over Marib would see Yemen descend into an Iranian-style theocracy.
“This is not a battle that we can lose,” Mr Al Alimi told a small group of reporters at an online briefing.
“For Yemenis, Marib is an existential part of life for them, for their children and for their future. It is the final battle between freedom, the republic and democracy and this religious theocracy that the Houthis are trying to implement.”
The UN’s envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, said this week that the latest round of talks on enacting a ceasefire in Marib and other hotspots in Yemen had stalled, killing hopes of a breakthrough after US President Joe Biden's administration made ending the war a priority.
In a statement on Friday, US Special Envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking bashed the Houthis for their ongoing assault on Marib and for refusing to meet Mr Griffiths to discuss the ceasefire.
“There is a fair deal on the table that will bring immediate relief to the Yemeni people,” the US State Department said.
“Contradictory to their pronouncements regarding the humanitarian situation in Yemen, the Houthis worsen it by continuing to attack Marib and exacerbating dire conditions for already vulnerable, internally displaced Yemenis.”
Supported and armed by Iran, the Houthis launched an assault on Marib in February and are now within a few kilometres of the government-held city, the site of the only oil refinery in the north and a gateway to nearby oilfields.
Mr Al Alimi said there had been “thousands of martyrs” in the battle, but that no expense would be spared in arming national forces and militias to defend the city. The Houthis have also suffered “strategic losses” in their campaign.
The rebel assault through the province, also called Marib, has displaced some 20,000 people and worsened the country’s humanitarian crisis, the UN says.
“If Marib falls, millions of people will become [internally displaced persons] and the military battle will turn from one in trying to restore the state into one between various armed groups,” said Mr Al Alimi.
He countered suggestions that Mr Hadi, who is living in exile in Saudi Arabia, was ill or disconnected from running Yemen, which is largely controlled by Houthis in the north and a secessionist-leaning movement in the south.
Mr Hadi’s government will return to operating from the southern city of Aden soon, Mr Al Alimi added at a briefing hosted by the Sanaa Centre For Strategic Studies, a think tank.
Yemen’s six year-long conflict was sparked when the Houthis ousted the country’s government from the capital, Sanaa, in 2014, saying they were fighting a corrupt system and foreign meddling.
A Saudi Arabia-led military coalition intervened the following year with an air bombing campaign to beat back the rebels.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Thursday that Yemen's humanitarian situation was "falling off a cliff", with 16 million people going hungry and a $2.5 billion hole in the global aid budget.
Two thirds of Yemenis needed aid in a nation on the brink of famine and ravaged by Covid-19, said Mr Dujarric. Donors have only paid about a third of the $3.85 billion needed this year to manage the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, he added.
Mr Griffiths said this week that the latest round of talks on enacting a ceasefire in the country had stalled, killing hopes of a breakthrough.
The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz C200 Coupe
Price, base: Dh201,153
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 204hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 300Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.7L / 100km
Company%C2%A0profile
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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South Korea
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EMILY%20IN%20PARIS%3A%20SEASON%203
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The Indoor Cricket World Cup
When: September 16-23
Where: Insportz, Dubai
Indoor cricket World Cup:
Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE fixtures:
Men
Saturday, September 16 – 1.45pm, v New Zealand
Sunday, September 17 – 10.30am, v Australia; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Monday, September 18 – 2pm, v England; 7.15pm, v India
Tuesday, September 19 – 12.15pm, v Singapore; 5.30pm, v Sri Lanka
Thursday, September 21 – 2pm v Malaysia
Friday, September 22 – 3.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 3pm, grand final
Women
Saturday, September 16 – 5.15pm, v Australia
Sunday, September 17 – 2pm, v South Africa; 7.15pm, v New Zealand
Monday, September 18 – 5.30pm, v England
Tuesday, September 19 – 10.30am, v New Zealand; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Thursday, September 21 – 12.15pm, v Australia
Friday, September 22 – 1.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 1pm, grand final
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Haltia.ai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202023%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Arto%20Bendiken%20and%20Talal%20Thabet%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20AI%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2041%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20About%20%241.7%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Self%2C%20family%20and%20friends%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Profile of Whizkey
Date founded: 04 November 2017
Founders: Abdulaziz AlBlooshi and Harsh Hirani
Based: Dubai, UAE
Number of employees: 10
Sector: AI, software
Cashflow: Dh2.5 Million
Funding stage: Series A
'Top Gun: Maverick'
Rating: 4/5
Directed by: Joseph Kosinski
Starring: Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Ed Harris
House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
- Edinburgh, Scotland
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