Rights groups call on Houthis to release detained aid workers

Members of security forces stand guard during a rally in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and in condemnation of US strikes, in Yemen's Huthi-run capital Sanaa on May 30, 2025. (AFP)
Members of security forces stand guard during a rally in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and in condemnation of US strikes, in Yemen's Huthi-run capital Sanaa on May 30, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 30 May 2025

Rights groups call on Houthis to release detained aid workers

Rights groups call on Houthis to release detained aid workers
  • Only seven aid workers have been released, while at least 50 remain in detention “without adequate access to lawyers or their families, and without charge,” HRW and Amnesty said, calling on the rebels to “immediately and unconditionally release” them

DUBAI: Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have called on Houthis to release dozens of UN and aid workers who have been detained for nearly a year.
The arrest and detention of aid workers has “a direct impact on the delivery of lifesaving assistance to people in critical need of aid” in a country enduring one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, the two rights groups said in a joint statement.
Since May 2024, the Houthis have carried out several waves of arrests in regions under their control, targeting UN staff as well as workers in local and international humanitarian organizations.
The arrests have prompted the UN to limit its deployments and suspend activities in some regions of the country devastated by more than a decade of civil war.

FASTFACT

The arrests have prompted the UN to limit its deployments and suspend activities in some regions of Yemen.

The Houthis at the time claimed there was an “American-Israeli spy cell” operating under the cover of aid groups — accusations firmly rejected by the UN.
Only seven aid workers have been released, while at least 50 remain in detention “without adequate access to lawyers or their families, and without charge,” HRW and Amnesty said, calling on the rebels to “immediately and unconditionally release” them.
“It is shocking that most of these UN and civil society staff have now spent almost a year in arbitrary detention for simply doing their work in providing medical and food assistance or promoting human rights, peace, and dialogue,” said Diala Haidar, Yemen researcher at Amnesty International.
“They should never have been arrested in the first place,” she continued.
Niku Jafarnia, Yemen and Bahrain researcher at HRW, meanwhile, said: “The Houthis need to facilitate the work of humanitarian workers and the movement of aid.
“All countries with influence, as well as the UN and civil society organizations, should use all the tools at their disposal to urge the release of those arbitrarily detained and to provide support to their family members.”


Egypt reclaims 13 artifacts from UK and Germany

Egypt reclaims 13 artifacts from UK and Germany
Updated 5 sec ago

Egypt reclaims 13 artifacts from UK and Germany

Egypt reclaims 13 artifacts from UK and Germany
  • London Metropolitan Police confiscated artifacts after verifying their illegal exit from Egypt
  • Authorities in Hamburg informed ministry of their intention to return several ancient pieces preserved in the city museum

LONDON: Egypt announced on Sunday the reclamation of 13 artifacts that ended up in the UK and Germany as part of Cairo’s efforts to protect Egyptian heritage and combat the illicit trafficking of cultural property.

The ministries of foreign affairs and tourism, in coordination with British and German authorities, recovered the artifacts that date back to different eras of ancient Egyptian civilization.

The 10 pieces that arrived in the UK include a limestone funeral plaque, a small amulet, a bronze crown fragment, a beaded funeral mask, and several black stone funeral amulets.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the London Metropolitan Police had confiscated the artifacts after verifying their illegal exit from Egypt via an international network specialized in smuggling antiquities.

German authorities in the city of Hamburg informed the ministry of their intention to return several artifacts preserved in the city museum after confirming that these items left Egypt illegally. The three pieces include a skull and a hand from a mummy, as well as an amulet that symbolized life in ancient Egyptian civilization.

Egyptian authorities continue to recover smuggled artifacts from various countries and combat the trafficking of such items. Last week, they thwarted an attempt to smuggle a shipment containing 2,189 ancient pieces at Nuweiba Port in South Sinai.


Far-right Israeli group Regavim calls for Palestinian school near Hebron to be destroyed

Far-right Israeli group Regavim calls for Palestinian school near Hebron to be destroyed
Updated 10 August 2025

Far-right Israeli group Regavim calls for Palestinian school near Hebron to be destroyed

Far-right Israeli group Regavim calls for Palestinian school near Hebron to be destroyed
  • Group argues that maintaining Zuwaydin Secondary School would encourage Palestinians to build and remain in the area
  • Regavim operates in the West Bank and in Israel and advocates for demolition orders against Palestinian homes and facilities

LONDON: Regavim, an Israeli settler group, on Sunday called for the demolition of a Palestinian school in the Bedouin Badia community, south of Hebron, in the occupied West Bank.

Osama Makhamreh, an activist, told the Wafa news agency that members of Regavim posted leaflets on the walls of the Bat Zuwaydin Secondary School in Badia.

The leaflets called for the school’s destruction and argued that maintaining the school would encourage Palestinians to build and remain in the area.

Badia is one of several Palestinian Bedouin communities near Hebron, known collectively as Masafer Yatta, that have endured attacks by Israeli settlers and government policies aimed at pushing them out of the area, designated as a military zone.

For more than four years, work has been underway to establish and build Bat Zuwaydin Secondary School, in the Zuwaydin municipal area, Wafa added.

Regavim, an extremist organization, was founded in 2006, with far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich being one of its notable founders. It aims to establish “legal channels” for enforcing Israeli demolition orders against Palestinian structures and operations in the West Bank, particularly Area C, which constitutes 60 percent of the territory.

It also operates in Israel, specifically targeting Palestinian citizens living in Bedouin communities in the southern Negev Desert, and conducts detailed aerial photography to document the expansion of Palestinian communities.


Israel’s Gaza plan risks ‘another calamity’: UN

Slovenia’s Ambassador to the United Nations Samuel Zbogar addresses delegates during a meeting on the situation in Middle East.
Slovenia’s Ambassador to the United Nations Samuel Zbogar addresses delegates during a meeting on the situation in Middle East.
Updated 10 August 2025

Israel’s Gaza plan risks ‘another calamity’: UN

Slovenia’s Ambassador to the United Nations Samuel Zbogar addresses delegates during a meeting on the situation in Middle East.
  • “This decision by the Israeli government will do nothing to secure the return of the hostages and risk further endangering their lives”: Slovenia’s ambassador to UN

UNITED NATIONS: A UN official on Sunday warned the Security Council that Israel’s plans to control Gaza City risked “another calamity” with far-reaching consequences as Benjamin Netanyahu insisted his goal was not to occupy the territory.
The UN Security Council held a rare emergency weekend meeting after Israel said its military would “take control” of Gaza City approved by Prime Minister Netanyahu’s security cabinet that sparked a wave of global criticism.
“If these plans are implemented, they will likely trigger another calamity in Gaza, reverberating across the region and causing further forced displacement, killings, and destruction,” UN Assistant Secretary Miroslav Jenca told the UNSC.
Slovenia’s ambassador to the UN Samuel Zbogar, speaking on behalf of the five European members of the Security Council ahead of the meeting, said “this decision by the Israeli government will do nothing to secure the return of the hostages and risk further endangering their lives.”
“It will also worsen the already catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and risk further death and mass displacement of Palestinian civilians.”
But Netanyahu said Sunday his country was “talking in terms of a fairly short timetable because we want to bring the war to an end,” as he insisted Israel did not want to occupy Gaza.
Palestinian ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour said Friday that “this escalation by the Israeli government is going in total contradiction to the will of the international community.”
The United States, a veto-wielding permanent member of the Security Council, is likely to seek to shield its staunch ally Israel from any practical measure of UN censure.
Israel’s ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said ahead of the meeting “Israel will not stop fighting for the release of all the hostages — and ensuring the safety and security of our citizens is our duty.”


UAE sends 200 trucks via Egypt to aid Palestinians in Gaza

UAE sends 200 trucks via Egypt to aid Palestinians in Gaza
Updated 10 August 2025

UAE sends 200 trucks via Egypt to aid Palestinians in Gaza

UAE sends 200 trucks via Egypt to aid Palestinians in Gaza
  • 10 UAE aid convoys have entered Gaza Strip via Egypt’s Rafah Crossing since late July as part of Operation Chivalrous Knight 3
  • Emirati team in Egyptian port town of Al-Arish oversaw loading of aid

LONDON: The UAE has sent more than 200 aid trucks in the past two weeks to assist Palestinians in the coastal enclave of Gaza who are suffering from hunger and starvation due to the ongoing war.

Ten UAE aid convoys have entered the Gaza Strip via Egypt’s Rafah Crossing since late July as part of Operation Chivalrous Knight 3 to support Palestinians, the Emirates News Agency has reported.

The convoys include 214 trucks transporting over 4,565 tonnes of humanitarian aid, food supplies, equipment, and pipes for desalination plants, the WAM added.

An Emirati team in the Egyptian port town of Al-Arish oversaw the loading and transportation of aid through the Rafah Crossing. It was earmarked for families and individuals in the Gaza Strip.

The UAE’s humanitarian efforts in Gaza reflect its commitment to support the Palestinian people, a statement said.

Emirati humanitarian teams are intensifying relief operations to assist Palestinians in Gaza, helping to alleviate suffering while providing necessities to vulnerable groups, the WAM added.

The UN — alongside several human rights organizations — has warned of mass starvation in Gaza as about 2 million Palestinians have endured almost two years of attacks from Israeli forces and the blocking of sufficient supplies from entering the territory.

The Israeli security cabinet on Friday approved plans for further military operations in Gaza, igniting global outrage.


Jordan says to host Syria-US meeting on reconstruction

US Special Envoy for Syria Thomas Barrack (L) during a meeting with Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa (C) Syria’s FM Al-Shaibani.
US Special Envoy for Syria Thomas Barrack (L) during a meeting with Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa (C) Syria’s FM Al-Shaibani.
Updated 10 August 2025

Jordan says to host Syria-US meeting on reconstruction

US Special Envoy for Syria Thomas Barrack (L) during a meeting with Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa (C) Syria’s FM Al-Shaibani.
  • Syrian foreign minister Asaad Al-Shibani and the US envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack will attend the meeting

AMMAN: Jordan will host a meeting between the United States and Syria to discuss the situation in the war-ravaged country and explore reconstruction efforts, Amman’s foreign ministry said Sunday.
The meeting on Tuesday, which will be attended by Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani and US special envoy for Syria Thomas Barrack, “will discuss the situation in Syria and ways to support the process of rebuilding Syria on foundations that guarantee its security, stability and sovereignty,” according to a statement.
It will be a continuation of discussions held between the officials in Amman on July 19 about deadly clashes in the Druze-majority Syrian province of Sweida.
Responding to the announcement of the meeting, Barrack expressed in a post on X “our collective determination to move toward a future in which Syria and all of its people can live in peace, security, and prosperity.”