By Matthew Russell Lee, for InnerCityPro.com
UNITED NATIONS, January 23 — After the Houthis essentially took over the presidency of Yemen, the UK put Yemen on the Security Council’s agenda for the afternoon of February 6, under Any Other Business, Inner City Pressfirst reported at 3:32 pm.
At the February 6 noon briefing, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that envoy Jamal Benomar had been in Saudi Arabia – where Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is headed – but is now heading back to Yemen. The Houthis are in control, at least in the capital, another UNSC Press Statement notwithstanding.
Back on January 23 after Yemen’s president and prime minister resigned, the UN put out a summary of what its envoy Jamal Benomar is doing, mentioning talks with each and well as with the Houthis.
What about Harak or the Southern Movement? We expect to have more on this soon. Here was the UN’s note to correspondents:
“Today, 23 January, the Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on Yemen, Jamal Benomar, met with President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, Prime Minister Khaled Bahah and Houthi representatives. His consistent message to all political parties is that they need to engage in inclusive consultations with each other that will produce an agreement on how to move forward from the current crisis.
“The Special Adviser also had meetings with members of the diplomatic community in Sana’a. In the immediate term, he will continue to actively engage with all parties and is seeking to meet with different political groupings in the coming days.”
Maybe that last part means Harak. At the January 23 US State Department briefing, the US spokesperson said the Hadi is still the president, as far as the US is concerned. We’ll see.
When the International Monetary Fund held an embargoed press briefing on January 22, after the Houthi rebels in Yemen have held the Presidential palace for days, Inner City Press asked about the impact on the IMF’s program with Yemen.
IMF Deputy Spokesperson William Murray said that recent events are “not positive from an economic standpoint,” but that the IMF’s first review of its program will not be until the Spring.
Where will the Houthis be then? And Hadi? And Saleh?