Daily Brief: Yemen Fighting Intensifies After Saleh's Death

Council on Foreign Relations Newsletter If you are unable to see the message below, click here to view. December 5, 2017 Daily News Brief   TOP OF THE AGENDA Yemen Fighting Intensifies After Saleh's Death Yemen's president in exile has called for an escalation of the fight against Houthi rebels (Al Jazeera) in the country following the killing of former Yemeni leader Ali Abdullah Saleh. The call by President Abed Rabbo Mansour al-Hadi came as warplanes from the Saudi-led coalition seeking to restore Hadi (Middle East Eye) carried out dozens of strikes on the Houthi-held capital of Sana'a. Saleh, who ruled Yemen for thirty-four years and was ousted in 2012 following Arab Spring protests (Guardian), was killed on Monday after he renounced an alliance with Houthi rebels (WSJ) and said he was open to dialogue with the Saudi-led coalition. At least 125 people have died in the fighting following the collapse of the alliance, according to the Red Cross. ANALYSIS "No politician has left a greater mark on Yemen's modern history than President Saleh. He was known as a master of establishing and disbanding political coalitions, knowing correctly that no single political power can rule Yemen," Gamal Gasim writes for Al Jazeera. "Although the Houthis are frequently described as an Iranian proxy, the amount of material support provided to them by the Islamic Republic is debatable. This, however, could change as the conflict continues to escalate," Hannah Porter writes for Middle East Eye. "Realistically, the best that can likely be achieved for now is a series of internationally brokered local cease-fires (perhaps mediated by a credible regional interlocutor such as Oman) and an easing of restrictions on humanitarian aid flowing into the country," CFR's Michael P. Dempsey writes for the Washington Post. PACIFIC RIM UN Official Makes Rare Visit to North Korea The United Nation's top diplomat is expected to visit North Korea on Tuesday, the first such visit since 2010 (WSJ). The official, Jeffrey Feltman, is set to meet with the foreign minister and UN agencies' fifty international staffers in the country. Siegfried S. Hecker discusses North Korea's weapons capabilities in Foreign Affairs. SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA Afghan Cabinet Nominees Approved After Months Afghan lawmakers approved eleven ministerial candidates on Monday, while they rejected the only female candidate among the group (Tolo), who had been put forward as minister of mines. More than half of Afghanistan's twenty-five cabinet positions sat vacant for months (RFE/RL). INDIA: Rahul Gandhi submitted documentation on Monday to succeed his mother, Sonia Gandhi, as head of the opposition Congress Party (AP). He would be the sixth member of the Nehru-Gandhi family to lead the organization (Bloomberg). MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA UN Warns Iraq Over Child Marriage Bill Proposed legislation in Iraq that would allow children as young as nine to marry (Reuters) drew rebuke on Monday from a UN envoy, who said the move would imperil children who are already "victims of grave violations" from years of conflict. SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA AU Vows to Repatriate Migrants Stranded in Libya The African Union said it will work to return some fifteen thousand migrants in Libya (BBC), who are attempting to reach Europe, to their home countries on a voluntary basis by the end of 2017. An estimated twenty thousand migrants and asylum seekers are currently in Libyan detention centers. KENYA: Environment ministers and envoys from more than a hundred countries began three days of meetings in the capital Nairobi on Monday to discuss a global strategy to reduce pollution (DW). EUROPE UK, EU Fail to Reach Brexit Divorce Deal A meeting between Prime Minister Theresa May and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to finalize a deal for Britain's exit from the European Union concluded without agreement on Monday after hard-line Northern Ireland unionists rejected terms from Dublin (FT) regarding the countries' shared border. At this CFR event, experts looked at the Northern Ireland peace process twenty years later. RUSSIA: Russia designated the U.S. state-funded media outlets (WaPo) Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, along with seven affiliated services, as foreign agents on Tuesday. AMERICAS Regional Bloc Casts Doubt Over Honduran Vote The head of the Organization of American States' mission in Honduras said Monday that the country must carry out a larger vote recount (Reuters) for a disputed presidential election last week due to irregularities. An initial vote tally indicated a win for incumbent President Juan Orlando Hernandez. BRAZIL: Brazil's economy is estimated to have grown 0.9 percent (LAHT) in 2017 and may see another 2.6 percent boost next year, according to a survey of private economists by the central bank. UNITED STATES Supreme Court Allows Travel Ban to Take Effect The U.S. Supreme Court voted Monday to allow the latest version of a ban on travelers from eight countries (NYT) ordered by the Trump administration to be enforced fully while appeals courts continue to hear challenges to the ban. President Donald J. Trump's plans to boost military spending could add $683 billion in additional expenditures (Hill) over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. GLOBAL UN Calls Plastic Trash in Oceans a 'Planetary Crisis' The United Nations' oceans chief said Monday that plastic waste is "ruining the ecosystem of the ocean" (BBC). Norway is expected this week to put forth a resolution on the elimination of plastic trash in seas globally.         Council on Foreign Relations — 58 East 68th Street — New York, NY 10065 CFR does not share email addresses with third parties. Forward This Email | Subscribe to CFR Newsletters | Unsubscribe - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -  

From: dailybrief@e.cfr.org

Date: December 05, 2017 at 11:03PM