12 February 2010
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Contents
As-Safir: “Saleh and the Houthis “stop” their 6th war”
ISNA: “The president in the march of 22nd of Bahman: Obama will disappoint everyone; the first batch of 20% fuel was produced;….”
Al-Quds al-Arabi: “Ahmadinejad to Assad: Any Israeli attack on the region must be confronted-Iran intercepts Israeli military movements in Bab el-Mandeb-Tel Aviv asks America not to eliminate the military option…”
The New York Times: “Yemen’s Government Agrees to a Cease-Fire With Rebel Forces”
The Lebanese daily As-Safir carried the following report on its front page today: “Saleh and the Houthis “stop” their 6th war”
“After about six months of the breakout of the “sixth war” in Yemen and the death and displacement of tens of thousands of victims and questions around its futility, the two warring sides, the government of President Ali Abdullah Saleh and the Houthis led by Abdul Malek al-Houthi, announced yesterday a ceasefire starting midnight yesterday.
After a few hours of the Ali Abdullah Saleh’s announcement of the ceasefire, the Houthi’s press office issues a statement declaring that “based on what has been agreed upon, Abdul Malek Badreddine al-Houthi issued orders to all fronts and battlefields to cease fire … after the ceasefire has been established all roads will be opened and barracks will be taken down”.
While the Yemeni president mentioned the need for the Houthis to commit to the six points that were agreed upon, the Houthi had announced on January 25 the withdrawal of his forces from Saudi territories…
Experts consider the ceasefire in the Sa’ada province will allow the Yemeni government to direct its military and security efforts toward dealing with Al-Qaeda which has grown in force in the Yemeni territories, based on an agreement in the London Conference in January; which means Yemen will enter a new cycle of violence.
Saleh headed a meeting in Sana’a for “members of the national committee of the Parliament and the Consultative Council in charge of following up on the ground the implementation of the six points … to bring peace to the northern and western region…””
http://www.assafir.com/Article.aspx?EditionId=1460&articleId=1263&ChannelId=33872
The semi-official Iranian ISNA news agency in its headline today covered Ahmadinejad’s speech in the rally commemorating the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution of Iran: “The president in the march of 22nd of Bahman: Obama will disappoint everyone; the first batch of 20% fuel was produced;….”
“The Preseident by pointing to the issue of buying 20% fuel for the Tehran reactor said: according to the regulations of the [International Atomic Energy] Agency all members are obliged to provide a member of the agency who requires 20% fuel, with the fuel without and conditions….
Based on what went on, we have begun producing 20% fuel… based on the report of the head of the nuclear energy, the first batch of 20% fuel has been produced
The president, in relation to the west, said: you prepare the 20% fuel, come, and we will also give you this (3.5 % enriched uranium), and pay you for your work… They must do something in order to gain our trust and the trust of other nations…. “
http://isna.ir/Isna/NewsView.aspx?ID=News-1490801&Lang=P
Al-Quds al-Arabi led its front page today with the following report: “Ahmadinejad to Assad: Any Israeli attack on the region must be confronted-Iran intercepts Israeli military movements in Bab el-Mandeb-Tel Aviv asks America not to eliminate the military option…”
“Iranian media sources said that the Iranian navy intercepted Israeli warships in Bab el-Mandeb and the Yemeni authorities, in charge of the straits, prevented them from crossing through it. The Iranian sources said [the Israeli move] was worrisome especially that it was taking place under the international umbrella after the Israeli navy became part of the NATO navy which sail across oceans without supervision.
Iranian diplomatic sources said that the Iranian warships were present in the region of Bab el-Mandeb that connects the Gulf of Aden with the Red Sea, since it is an international territory. Meanwhile the straits are crowded with warships from Western countries such as the United States … They added that the real reason behind the Western and Iranian presence is the tension generated by the war between Saudi Arabia and Yemen on the one hand and the Houthis on the other …
They added that the ships … also “look at Iran with exaggerated suspicion after the campaign of threats waged by the international community over its nuclear file that were not limited to [threats] of economic sanctions, that Iran will confront by all means, but exceeded them to include military threats as well.”
The Islamic Iranian Radio said Thursday that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad that Israel must be confronted and destroyed if it wages an attack in the region. Experts explained the statement as a call from the Iranian president to his Syrian counterpart to join in a war if Israel attacks Iran…
In a telephone call with Assad, Ahmadinejad said: “We have information that the Zionist regime is looking for a way to compensate for its shameful losses inflicted on its by the sons of Gaza and the Lebanese Hezbollah…”
“If the Zionist regime repeats its mistakes and launched a military operation, then it must be confronted by force to put an end to it forever,” he added.
A delegation from the Knesset Foreign and Security Committee asked the White House during a visit to the United States not to eliminate the military option against Iran …”
The New York Times today covered the ceasefire between Yemen’s government and and the Houthis: “Yemen’s Government Agrees to a Cease-Fire With Rebel Forces”
Yemen’s government agreed to a cease-fire with the Houthi rebels late Thursday, saying it hoped to put an end to a six-year war that has drawn in neighboring Saudi Arabia and diverted resources from the struggle against Al Qaeda’s growing presence here.
President Ali Abdullah Saleh of Yemen announced that the cease-fire would take effect at midnight Thursday… The rebel leader, Abdel Malik al-Houthi, also released a statement on Thursday accepting the truce.
If it holds, the truce would remove a major source of instability for Yemen…
Mr. Houthi had previously accepted the government’s main conditions for a cease-fire, including opening blocked roads, withdrawing from civilian districts and returning detainees. But Yemeni officials were suspicious of the rebels, .. And the government wanted to ensure that the rebels would agree not to mount any more attacks on Saudi Arabia, which has supported Yemen’s military campaign …
Saudi Arabia was drawn into the war in early November, after Houthi fighters killed a Saudi border guard. The Saudis responded with overwhelming military force, including airstrikes and mortars….
The agreement comes three weeks after a major international conference on Yemen, held in London…
Western governments have indicated that development aid money will not flow as long as Yemen remains bogged down in conflicts …
The terms of the cease-fire represent a victory for the Yemeni government…
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/12/world/middleeast/12yemen.html?ref=middleeast
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