Yemen’s Central Bank revokes licenses of 6 Sanaa banks
The action, after the banks defied order to move HQs to Aden, comes as riyal falls to record low against the dollar
Government accuses the Houthis of waging an economic war by prohibiting the use of government-printed banknotes
Updated 11 July 2024
Saeed Al-Batati
AL-MUKALLA: The Central Bank of Yemen has revoked the licenses of six Yemeni banks for failing to relocate their offices from Houthi-held Sanaa to the southern city of Aden, the war-torn country’s temporary capital. The decision is expected to provoke retaliation from the Houthis.
In a circular distributed on July 7, the contents of which were confirmed by Arab News on Thursday, the bank canceled the licenses of Tadhamon Bank, Yemen Kuwait Bank, Shamil Bank of Yemen and Bahrain, Al-Amal Microfinance Bank, Al-Kuraimi Islamic Microfinance Bank, and International Bank of Yemen for failing to comply with its relocation order. However, it said branches of the banks can continue to operate in government-controlled territories.
In April, the Central Bank gave banks in Sanaa two months to move their headquarters to Aden or face penalties. This came shortly after the Houthis announced the minting of a new, 100-riyal currency for the first time since the war began in late 2014, angering the Yemeni government and its Central Bank.
The government accuses the Houthis of waging an economic war by prohibiting the use of government-printed banknotes, attacking oil terminals in government-controlled Hadramout and Shabwa, preventing local traders from importing goods through Aden, and prohibiting imports of gas for cooking from the central city of Marib.
Authorities responded to the latest development by ordering banks and other key businesses, including telecoms companies and national airline Yemenia, to move their headquarters to Aden.
In May, the Central Bank ordered local financial institutions to stop dealing with the six sanctioned banks, accusing them of refusing to relocate and dealing with the Houthis, an organization classified as “terrorist” by the Yemeni government, the US and other countries.
Unlike previous actions taken by the Central Bank, which were publicized by Yemen’s official media, the decision to revoke the banks’ licenses was emailed to the targeted institutions rather than published publicly online.
An official familiar with the government’s economic measures told Arab News on Thursday that the Central Bank did not publicize its decision because it wanted to enable efforts by “mediators” to persuade the Houthis to halt their economic activities such as the printing of a new currency.
Meanwhile, Mustafa Nasr, the director of Yemen’s Studies and Economic Media Center, told Arab News that the Central Bank decision was expected because the banks were bowing to Houthi pressure, and that revoking their licenses would “isolate” financial institutions in Houthi-controlled areas.
“This step is harsher and more punitive in response to banks that have yet to move their headquarters to Aden,” he said.
“Allowing these banks’ branches to function in government-controlled regions provides a partial lifeline to avoiding total closure, which might expose them to the disaster of collapse.”
The revocation of the licenses comes as the Yemeni riyal fell to another record low against the dollar in government-controlled territories. In June, the riyal had fallen to 1,770 versus the dollar, down from 215 in early 2015. On Thursday, currency traders in Aden reported a further drop to 1,895.
Nasr attributed the depreciation of the riyal to depletion of Yemen’s foreign currency reserves as a result of the suspension of oil exports following Houthi attacks, speculation by money traders, Houthi purchases of hard currencies from government-controlled areas to weaken the riyal, and corruption in government institutions.
“The issue is not just with the Central Bank but also with the government’s financial policies and foreign-exchange income after the termination of the most significant source of foreign currency: oil exports,” he added.
Family of Aysenur Eygi says Blinken offers no prospect of US inquiry into killing
Updated 9 sec ago
WASHINGTON: The family of a Turkish-born American human rights activist killed by Israel in the occupied West Bank pleaded with Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday for a US probe into her killing but got no promises, the woman’s husband said. Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, 26, was shot dead on Sept. 6 as she took part in a protest march in the town of Beita against Jewish settlement expansion in the West Bank. Speaking to reporters after meeting with the top US diplomat, Hamid Ali said Blinken was attentive but gave no assurances that Washington would carry out its own investigation and urged Eygi’s relatives to wait for Israel to finish its inquiry. “He was very deferential to the Israelis,” Ali said of Blinken. “It felt like he was saying his hands were tied and they weren’t able to really do much.” There was no clear timeline on when Israel would conclude its investigation, Ali said. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Blinken told the family that Israel had informed the United States in recent days that it was finalizing their probe and that the State Department would promptly share any findings with the family. “With respect to a United States investigation... that would be in the remit of the Justice Department,” Miller said. Israel has acknowledged its troops shot Eygi, but says it was an unintentional act during a demonstration that turned violent. Her family believes she was targeted as an activist. Although Washington has criticized Eygi’s killing and a surge of attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank as Israel wages war on the Palestinian Hamas group in Gaza, the US has announced no major policy change toward Israel. The International Court of Justice and most countries say Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories and expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank are illegal. Israel denies this, citing historical and biblical ties to the area.
Ten years after the downfall and death of Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, the country remains plagued by division and instability
Updated 4 min 10 sec ago
AFP
TRIPOLI: Libyans watched the fall of Syria’s Bashar Assad with a mixture of apprehension and hope, wishing “their brothers” in the Levant a better outcome than their own.
Ten years after the downfall and death of Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, the country remains plagued by division and instability.
“It’s now been 14 years since the people of Syria have been waiting for their turn to come,” said 47-year-old history and geography teacher Al-Mahdiya Rajab.
“Their Arab Spring was stopped in its tracks” in 2011, she said.
“At last, they have been delivered from more than half a century of tyranny.”
After a lightning 11-day offensive, a coalition dominated by Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham group in Syria swept into Damascus to end more than 50 years of rule by the Assad clan.
As in Libya in October 2011, when the death of Qaddafi was announced after he had ruled for 42 years, Syrians took to the streets to celebrate the “victory of the revolution.”
Residents of Libya’s capital, Tripoli, like 55-year-old activist Sami Essid, drew comparisons between Syria and the first days of the post-Qaddafi era.
“In the beginning, there was hope,” he said.
“The people were satisfied, peaceful, and happy.”
In 2012, Libya held its first-ever free election, choosing 200 national congress members or parliament members. This was followed in 2013 by municipal elections. Both polls were considered to have been a success.
But then, in August 2014, after weeks of violence, a coalition of militias seized Tripoli in the west of the country and installed a government, forcing the elected parliament into exile in the east.
Despite Fayez Al-Sarraj being appointed premier in December 2015 under a UN-mediated deal, the east-west split only deepened.
In parallel, armed militias and foreign interference mushroomed.
Essid said the main thing Libya and Syria have in common is “the people rising against injustice, tyranny, and dictatorship.”
But in Libya, he said: “We discovered that the struggle for power and the country’s riches were the objective all along.”
“We hope we will not see division and militias emerge in Syria, as in Libya,” he said.
“The danger in Syria is that there are different faiths, and this can lead to power struggles and communities being divided.”
Today, Libya has two governments. It is divided between a UN-recognized government based in Tripoli and a rival administration in the east, backed by Khalifa Haftar, who also controls the south.
“Now we know the outcome of the revolution in Libya,” Essid said.
“But no one knows what will happen in Syria after the revolution there.”
However, for civil society member Motaz Ben Zaher, “although they both aimed to overthrow a regime, there is no real common ground between the Libyan and Syrian revolutions.”
“The contexts differ profoundly, whether in terms of the scale of international intervention or geography,” said the 50-year-old.
How Security Council veto power politics has eroded UN’s credibility
Structure with five permanent members seen as unsuitable by many in today’s multipolar world order
The UN’s paralysis over the Syria and Gaza conflicts has renewed debate about need for systemic reforms
Updated 44 min 58 sec ago
RUA’A ALAMERI
LONDON: When the US vetoed another UN Security Council resolution in November calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, it sparked global outrage.
Critics said the US decision, which went against the 14 other Security Council members, would only prolong the suffering of civilians in the territory and exacerbate violence in the Middle East.
But it had another far-reaching impact that may come back to haunt Washington. The veto further undermined the credibility of the Security Council and sparked renewed calls for it to be restructured.
Inspired by the Oscar-nominated film "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri", three billboards circle the United Nations on February 22, 2018 for three hours to demand action on Syria in advance of a Security Council vote in New York. (AFP)
The organization, which is supposed to be the world’s premier body for maintaining international peace and security, has become paralyzed by the interests of its permanent members, hindering its ability to address global crises.
Founded in 1946, soon after the Second World War, the makeup of the Security Council has remained largely unchanged. The five permanent members, the US, the UK, France, Russia, and China, are allowed to use veto power to block resolutions even if they are outnumbered in votes.
It is now widely perceived as an ineffective relic of the post-war global order, that does not represent the interests of the world’s population and, most importantly, fails to help those suffering most amid the world’s conflicts.
INNUMBERS
• 45k+
Lives claimed by Israeli military operations against Palestinian militants in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023.
• 26%
Share of world’s current population by five permanent members of the UN Security Council.
• 90%
Proportion of Gaza’s population displaced by the Israel-Hamas conflict.
• 8
UNSC resolutions related to Gaza war that have been vetoed by the US.
• 49
UNSC resolutions related to Israel vetoed by the US since 1970.
“What we’ve seen in Gaza is that the UN has become an increasingly politicized body, paralyzed by geopolitical rivalries,” Simon Mabon, director of the SEPAD Peace and Conflict Research Center at Lancaster University, told Arab News.
A man runs with the body of a child victim that was rescued from the rubble following Israeli bombardment on the four-storey Muqat family house in the Zarqa neighbourhood in the north of Gaza City on October 26, 2024 amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
“This is not new. It has been a pattern since the UN was established. The UN Security Council’s structure, with veto power, allows its members to view decisions through the lens of their own strategic priorities, rather than a broader commitment to humanitarian ideals.”
The five permanent members with veto power reflect the recognition of the US and Soviet Union as the main victors of the Second World War, alongside the UK.
“The US pushed for China’s inclusion, while the UK advocated for France to create a European counterbalance to potential German or Soviet threats,” said Ephrem Kossaify, UN correspondent at Arab News.
Ambassador Robert Wood, Alternate Representative of the U.S. for Special Political Affairs in the UN, raises his hands to veto a draft resolution during a United Nations Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question at the UN headquarters on November 20, 2024 in New York City. (AFP)
“However, this structure has remained unchanged since then, leading to mounting calls for Security Council reforms to reflect the realities of today’s world order.”
The Security Council can impose binding decisions on all 193 member states to maintain peace. Its five permanent members, along with 10 rotating members elected by the General Assembly, assess security threats.
In recent years, competing interests among members have hindered effective responses to global crises like the war in Syria, COVID-19, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and, most recently, the Israel-Hamas conflict.
The Security Council struggled with this almost as soon as it was formed. With the world entering the Cold War, the rivalry between the US and the Soviet Union permeated through global hotspots.
As a result, very little got done. The Soviet Union applied 120 vetoes — far more than any other member — up until its dissolution in 1991. According to the Council on Foreign Relations, just 18 peacekeeping missions were authorized between 1948 and 1989.
Since 1991, by contrast, 48 peacekeeping missions have been approved by the Security Council.
A young Palestinian girl reacts in the courtyard of the al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City after the bodies of victims were transported there, following an Israeli strike that hit a school-turned-shelter in the Al-Shati refugee camp on November 7, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Hamas militant group. (AFP)
From 1970 onward, when it first used its veto power, the US became the primary permanent member to block Security Council votes, deploying the tactic at least 85 times. More than half of those vetoes were to stop resolutions related to Israel.
In recent years, Russia has also used its veto regularly, particularly with regard to the Syrian civil war, where it defended President Bashar Assad, and the Ukraine conflict.
Vetoes are a potent tool that often reflect national interests, alliances, and geopolitical strategies. For the US and Russia, the veto has been a key instrument to protect its strategic partners and advance its broader foreign policy goals.
Michael Lynk, Former UN human rights special rapporteur on Palestine
Another big argument for reform of the Security Council is that the world’s demographics have changed since 1946. At the time of its founding, the five permanent members accounted for more than half of the world’s population. Now they represent just 26 percent.
The body is therefore heavily skewed toward Europe and the West, discounting the growing populations, wealth, and influence of the emerging economies of Asia, Africa, and South America.
“The use of vetoes by the five permanent members on the Security Council is a relic of the end of the Second World War,” Michael Lynk, the former UN human rights special rapporteur on Palestine, told Arab News.
There is a global majority in support of Palestine.
Michael Lynk, Former UN human rights special rapporteur on Palestine
“It doesn’t reflect today’s power distribution or the extraordinary, large voice that the Global South has in the General Assembly.”
This imbalance has been laid bare by the Gaza conflict, which Lynk said has highlighted the deep global divide.
Palestinian civil defence members hand over to each other a child that was rescued following Israeli bombardment on the four-storey Muqat family house in the Zarqa neighbourhood in the north of Gaza City on October 26, 2024 amid the ongoing war in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
“The Israeli war on Gaza exposes an extraordinary fault line between the Global North and the Global South,” he said. “Overwhelmingly, the Global South supports Palestine in UN votes, while the Global North abstains or opposes.
“There is a global majority in support of Palestine, but the power dynamics of the Global North, led by the US alliance with Israel, override that majority.”
In the case of Gaza, the US vetoed the ceasefire resolution on Nov. 20 in support of Israel, its key ally in the Middle East. According to the Jewish Virtual Library, it marked the 49th time the US has vetoed a Security Council resolution related to Israel.
Palestinians walk in a devastated neighbourhood due to Israeli strikes in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Yunis on December 2, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. (AFP)
Beyond diplomatic backing, the US provides Israel with approximately $3 billion annually in military aid.
But the veto risks alienating other key US allies in the Middle East and damaging Washington’s diplomatic standing, particularly with the Gulf Cooperation Council, which recently called for an end to Israeli war crimes in Gaza.
The resolution called for an immediate, permanent ceasefire in Gaza, the unconditional release of all hostages seized during the Hamas-led attack of Oct. 7, 2023, and unrestricted humanitarian aid.
A Palestinian woman reacts as she stands amid the rubble of a building destroyed in an Israeli strike on the Shujaiyah neighbourhood in Gaza City in the northern Gaza Strip on November 30, 2024, during the ongoing war between Israel and the Hamas militant group. (AFP)
It aimed to address the humanitarian crisis by ensuring access to essential services like food, water and medical care. It would have forced Israel to stop restricting aid access to the territory, which has been pulverized by 14 months of military operations that have killed almost 45,000 Palestinians, including combatants.
In vetoing the resolution, the US argued that a ceasefire without preconditions could enable Hamas to regroup and continue to attack Israel. Robert Wood, the US deputy ambassador to the UN, criticized the resolution’s failure to explicitly link the ceasefire to the release of Israeli hostages.
“That is false,” said Lynk. The resolution, he added, did in fact link the ceasefire to the release of hostages, and even did so in the same paragraph. After using its veto, the US was accused of enabling Israel’s actions in Gaza.
Since the conflict began, the Security Council has voted on 12 resolutions. Of these, eight were vetoed — six by the US — and on four occasions America was the only permanent member to vote against.
“The pattern highlights the US’s role as a diplomatic shield for Israel,” said Lynk. “In practice, the US blocks resolutions critical of Israel or allows them to pass without ensuring their implementation.”
In the Gulf, Saudi Arabia and Qatar said the veto showed the need for reform of the Security Council.
The body’s failure to take decisive action on Gaza reflects the broader issues plaguing global governance. Even UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres accepts this assessment.
In September he told Arab News: “We have no real power, let’s be honest. The body of the UN that has some power is the Security Council, and you know, the Security Council is paralyzed.”
Kossaify warned that such paralysis erodes public confidence in the UN.
“When the person in the street sees the Security Council unable to act in the most pressing situations that are threatening peace and security due to one member’s use of the prerogative, they lose faith in the entire organization,” he said.
Mabon of Lancaster University said the inability of the Security Council to press for a ceasefire showed that “strategic decisions are trumping humanitarian needs and interests, which I think is emblematic of the nature of global politics right now.
“This is a colossal failure of the global project, a colossal failure of world nations, and a stain on humanity.”
The international community’s response to Gaza highlights the growing consensus that reforms are needed in multilateral institutions like the UN.
In the years ahead, the effectiveness and legitimacy of the UN will continue to be debated, as the role of major powers in shaping global diplomacy is increasingly scrutinized.
Lynk suggests reforms that would allow the UN General Assembly to override a Security Council veto through a supermajority vote would introduce “democratic oversight to counter the P5’s stranglehold.”
The problem, of course, would be getting the permanent five members to consent to reforms that erode or remove their veto powers. “But reforms like this are worth fighting for,” said Lynk.
What is clear is that in today’s geopolitical landscape, the failure of the Security Council to protect lives in Gaza is likely to hasten moves towards overhauling the body that is meant to maintain international peace.
‘We’re all Syrians’: Soldiers hand in weapons, hope for quiet lives
Updated 16 December 2024
AFP
LATAKIA: When Syria’s new government put out a call on social media for soldiers and police to lay down their arms and register with the authorities, Kamal Merhej was happy to oblige.
“I don’t like the army, I want to get back on track with my life without anyone to give me orders,” the 28-year-old told AFP.
He spent nine years in the army, posted to the capital Damascus, and said he was now happy to be back in his home city of Latakia on the Mediterranean coast.
Latakia is located in the heartland of former president Bashar Assad’s Alawite sect, and Merhej was among several hundred servicemen waiting to register with the country’s new rulers.
Assad was ousted after a lightning offensive spearheaded by Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) that wrested from his control city after city until the rebels reached Damascus.
After the army fled the offensive, Syria’s new rulers announced an amnesty for conscripts while vowing to bring people who had committed serious crimes to justice.
Now, the interim government is registering former conscripts and soldiers and asking them to hand over their weapons.
After starting the process in the central city of Homs on Saturday, they set up offices in Latakia on Sunday.
Some 400 men showed up on the first day, according to 26-year-old Mohammed Mustafa, a fighter from the opposition stronghold of Idlib who was overseeing the operation.
“But there will be more today (Monday), we have drafted in more staff to speed up operations,” he said.
The men entered one by one, their identity cards in hand, and each took a number.
They stood next to the wall, had their photos quickly snapped on smartphones, before being directed to a bank of desks where they gave more details.
By mid-morning, the number was already at 671.
“In total, we are expecting at least 10,000 people, maybe more... we are in the region of the Assads,” said Mustafa, dressed in fatigues, a black cap and face mask.
He said the operation was running smoothly.
“We issue them a three-month permit for their protection and to give us time to investigate their past,” he said.
“If we find serious crimes they will be transferred to the judicial authorities.”
Soldiers, police and a few civilians came to surrender their weapons and in return they were given receipts.
A white-haired man approached the window and unpacked a veritable arsenal from plastic bags before leaving with his receipt.
Pistols, automatic rifles, ammunition, grenades and even a grenade launcher packed into a garbage bag piled up at the back of the room.
Like others in the queue, police officer Mohammed Fayoub said he wanted to get registered as soon as possible.
Clutching the receipt for the pistol he handed in, the 37-year-old, originally from Latakia, said he hoped to return to his job in Hama in central Syria.
“They behave well, they try to be polite. I want to be ready when they call me,” he said of the new administration.
“We’re all humans, all Syrians.”
There were nods of agreement from others waiting in the queue.
“We are tired of the war. We want to live in a peaceful, civilized country,” said a young man.
He lowered his voice to say he belonged to the Alawite minority, the same group as the Assad family.
“We need security, only security,” he said.
Hassun Nebras, 37, a mechanic in the army in Homs, said all he wanted was to restart civilian life and be with his children.
“We did what we were asked,” he said of his previous job. “We didn’t want to, but we had no choice.”
UN experts call for halt to sanctions on Syria to prevent further harm to poor and vulnerable
With relief efforts overwhelmed by scale of displacement crisis, Commission of Inquiry on Syria also urges international community to step up humanitarian aid
As fighting continues across the north and east of the country, more than a million people have been displaced by the escalating conflict since late November
NEW YORK CITY: The UN’s Commission of Inquiry on Syria on Monday called for urgent action to suspend international sanctions on the country, to ensure they do not impede the delivery of aid to more than 17 million Syrians in dire need of help.
It also urged the international community to step up humanitarian assistance to the war-ravaged country, where relief efforts are being overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the displacement crisis.
“Sanctions cause disproportionate harm to the poor and most vulnerable, and now is the time to give Syrians the chance to rebuild their own country,” said Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, who chairs the commission.
Following the start of the Syrian civil war in April 2011, key nations and international organizations, including the US and the EU, imposed a range of economic sanctions on the country. The main aim was to put pressure on President Bashar Assad and his regime over their actions during the conflict, including human rights abuses, war crimes and the use of chemical weapons.
The commission also called for all involved in the conflict to uphold their obligations relating to the protection of civilians, the humane treatment of those who lay down their weapons and surrender, and the safeguarding of evidence that could be used to hold those guilty of war crimes accountable for their actions.
As the conflict intensifies in northern Syria and the new government in Damascus consolidates its control, the commission stressed that all factions must comply with international human rights and humanitarian laws.
“The caretaker government in Damascus, as well as other parties in the Syrian conflict, should ensure that their forces are abiding by their stated commitments to prevent violence and protect civilians, in particular the most vulnerable communities,” said Pinheiro.
The commission also highlighted concerns about human rights abuses in detention facilities. It has documented widespread violations that have taken place since 2011, including enforced disappearances, torture, rape and other forms of sexual violence. The country’s former government is accused of crimes against humanity and war crimes in detention centers that are notorious for their brutality.
The commission stressed the importance of preserving the sites of mass graves and other evidence of war crimes to facilitate forensic investigations and efforts to ensure those responsible face justice. The new authorities in Damascus, it added, must ensure that arrest and detention records remain intact and protected “in a manner that ensures their utility in future accountability processes, and that no evidence is destroyed or tampered with.”
Commissioner Lynn Welchman said: “The relief felt by Syrians when prisoners are freed from the former government’s abominable detention facilities cannot be overstated.”
However, she added: “For all those Syrians who do not find their loved ones among the freed, this evidence may be their best hope to uncover the truth about their missing relatives, alongside the testimonies of their fellow detainees who survived the most dreadful suffering and who have just been released.
“They have a right to the truth and the evidence must not be destroyed or tampered with.”
The commission stated that any future trials for war crimes and crimes against humanity must be conducted in public, with full transparency and in full accordance with the standards required to ensure trials are fair.
Commissioner Hanny Megally said: “Syrians deserve justice after near 14 years of brutal war, where almost every crime listed in the Rome Statute has been committed.
“Perpetrators should be brought to justice, especially those most responsible, and Syrians must be in the lead in shaping the justice and accountability response. The international community must be ready to support them.
“Full justice for victims and survivors will undoubtedly need to be broader than trials, and they should be allowed to pursue their demands for truth, reparations and legal and institutional reforms.”
Meanwhile, the humanitarian situation remains dire as fighting continues across northern, eastern and northeastern Syria. Since late November, more than a million people have been displaced by the escalating conflict, with continuing airstrikes by Israel, the US and Turkey further complicating the crisis.
Israel reportedly has carried out more than 500 airstrikes in Syria, in violation of a 1974 disengagement agreement between the countries. US forces have carried out dozens of airstrikes against Daesh targets, while Turkish forces have stepped up strikes against Kurdish groups in northeastern Syria, including US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has described such military action as “extensive violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Against this volatile backdrop, the commission renewed its call for an immediate ceasefire among all warring parties.
