Speech by Rashad al-Alimi, Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council of Yemen, at the 79th Session of the UNGA. teleSUR
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00:00relief workers, and human rights defenders,
00:02hence the need to reconsider these policies
00:05and measures immediately.
00:06Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen,
00:10Houthi militias, with their ongoing terrorist attacks
00:14on international maritime navigation in the Red Sea
00:18and the surrounding waterways,
00:20prove that they represent a growing threat,
00:22not only to Yemen, as some used to believe,
00:26but also to the stability of the region as a whole,
00:34and to the secure flow of international trade,
00:37which exceeds trillions of dollars.
00:40Today, they are reinforcing their position
00:42as the first rebel group in history,
00:44having used ballistic missiles and drones
00:47against civilian commercial vessels.
00:51Late last month, Houthi militias hit the Sonyan tanker,
00:56which was carrying one million barrels of crude oil,
01:00causing fires which could have led to one of the worst
01:05oil spills in history, before the vessel was salvaged
01:08by the international coalition.
01:10This is not the first such incident
01:13caused by these militias.
01:15These militias boasted having sinked two vessels previously.
01:19They also hindered for years the efforts
01:21to save the decaying Safar tanker,
01:27which was carrying similar amounts of crude oil.
01:30It proves that their terrorist activities
01:33will remain an ongoing threat to maritime navigation.
01:36Ladies and gentlemen, for years,
01:38the Yemeni economy has been facing complex challenges,
01:41but the terrorist Houthi attacks on the oil facilities
01:44deepened the funding crisis,
01:47and deprived the people and government of Yemen
01:50from necessary revenues to pay salaries
01:53and provide services.
01:54The economic war waged by these militias
01:56are part of a larger hostile strategy,
02:00aiming at weakening the ability of the government
02:02to provide basic services
02:04and to pay public service salaries,
02:06thus aggravating the humanitarian crisis
02:09for more than 14 million Yemenis.
02:12Therefore, the international community
02:15should seriously consider the devastating effects
02:18of these terrorist acts,
02:19and to provide the vital infrastructure
02:23to defend maritime transportation vessels
02:27in Yemeni ports,
02:28to support the right of the Yemenis
02:30and of the Yemeni government to benefit from their resources
02:33and improve their living conditions.
02:35Protecting the arteries of the Yemeni economy
02:38is necessary not only to recover and rebuild our future,
02:42but it is important also for the stability of the region
02:45and for the security of energy on the long term.
02:49Therefore, we reiterate our call to the international community
02:52to provide immediate comprehensive support
02:55to address the devastating humanitarian conditions
02:58and to lay the foundations for a long-term economic recovery.
03:02This should include not only immediate humanitarian assistance
03:05to alleviate sufferings,
03:08but it should also include accountability mechanisms,
03:11especially in the regions under Houthi control.
03:13It also requires greater investments
03:15in infrastructure, health care,
03:17education, and sustainable development.
03:19It requires building the national capacities
03:22to curb the impact of climate change,
03:24which has left hundreds of victims
03:28and displaced thousands within the last two months.
03:33Yemen's recovery is not only a national matter.
03:36It is a regional and international need.
03:38The stability of Yemen is decisive to safeguard peace
03:41and stability in the region and trade routes
03:44in the Arabian and Red Seas,
03:46as well as surrounding waterways,
03:48including the Suez Canal.
03:50We have appreciated international support in the past,
03:53and we will keep thanking you
03:55for shouldering your moral responsibilities.
03:59We also thank the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy,
04:02led by the KSA and the UAE,
04:04to meet the aspirations of the Yemeni people
04:07to stability, peace, and prosperity,
04:09and provide the resources we need to rebuild our institutions
04:12and our social fabric.
04:14Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen,
04:16the Arab region is facing today a challenging test
04:20in building the state
04:22and in joining the civilizational progress.
04:28However, every time the countries of the region
04:31achieve a true transformation towards development,
04:34peace, and prosperity,
04:35and towards empowering their people
04:38to exercise their political, economic, and social rights,
04:41they are met with evil forces,
04:43which intervene with their destructive agendas,
04:46emboldened by the international leniency
04:48towards these rogue groups and their supporters.
04:54The outcome of this battle between the forces of peace
04:58and the axis of evil will determine
05:01who will survive, develop,
05:03and develop on this part of the world.
05:08It will determine whether the region
05:10will be dragged into more chaos,
05:12civil wars, hegemony, weapons,
05:15oppression, and underdevelopment.
05:17The road to peace goes through the forces of moderation
05:21in the region, led by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,
05:24which has been defending the international resolutions
05:29and which extended a helping hand
05:31by hosting millions of those fleeing wars
05:34and armed conflicts.
05:36Therefore, we are grateful for these countries,
05:40and the world should depend on them
05:42to lay the foundations of peace and stability
05:44and to maximize our benefits
05:46from their economic and social development.
05:49Ladies and gentlemen, we should end the false rhetorics
05:53concerning the issue of Yemen,
05:55especially those minimizing the role of Iran
05:58and of their weapons and proxies
06:01in destabilizing Yemen, the region, and the world.
06:04Ladies and gentlemen, the brutal Israeli war
06:08on the Palestinian people should cease immediately.
06:12This is the first step to achieve peace
06:15and to eliminate Iran's proxies,
06:18which are escalating the situation in the region.
06:21Iran has been manipulating the just Palestinian cause,
06:24and this did not come from a vacuum.
06:27It stems from a history of blackmailing
06:30and of propaganda only leading to undermining
06:32the peace process
06:34and reversing the gains of the Palestinian people
06:36and their right to establish
06:38a fully sovereign and independent state.
06:41The same holds true for Yemen, ending the plight.
06:45And as is the case for Yemen,
06:46ending the plight of the Palestinian people
06:48should be based on implementing the international resolutions,
06:52especially the Arab Peace Initiative.
06:55And as is the case for both Yemen and Palestine,
06:58the only way to deter the wanton Israeli aggression on Lebanon
07:02will be through a firm stance from the international community
07:05through the unity of all the Lebanese
07:07and their independent decision
07:10and the non-interference in their internal affairs
07:13so that the Lebanese state
07:15can recover the choice of peace and war.
07:18Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen,
07:21it is important to recall
07:22that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights