Foreign Minister Afrah al-Zouba tells Arab League that Red Sea security rests on Yemeni sovereignty
Yemen Herald News 
CAIRO, Egypt — Yemen told Arab foreign ministers that security in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab depends on rebuilding the Yemeni state’s control of its own coastline.
The position was set out in the Republic of Yemen’s address to the Council of the League of Arab States at its 166th regular session, delivered by Foreign Minister Afrah al-Zouba, the state news agency Saba reported.
Saba said Yemen described the security of the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Gulf of Aden as a pillar of the Arab national security system.
The account of the address rests on Saba, which is run by the internationally recognised government. Yemen Herald found no independent report of its contents.
Protecting ships at sea was not enough on its own, the address said. Sustainable security began with empowering coastal states, Yemen foremost among them, to exercise sovereign responsibilities over their coastlines, ports and territorial waters.
That meant strengthening the capabilities of naval forces and coast guards, according to the text carried by the agency.
“The Yemeni people have been living for twelve years under extremely harsh conditions as a result of the coup carried out by the terrorist Houthi militias against state institutions and the political consensus,” al-Zouba said in remarks quoted by Saba.
She said the violations that followed had affected the lives, rights and resources of Yemenis, with consequences reaching regional security and international maritime routes.
That characterisation is the Yemeni government’s. The Houthi movement rejects it and presents its 2014 takeover of Sanaa as a revolution against a corrupt administration.
Houthi fighters seized Sanaa in September 2014. The recognised government later moved its seat to Aden, where most of its ministries still sit.
Al-Zouba said the Houthis had used periods of de-escalation to build up their military capabilities and had widened attacks on government-held areas and on shipping lanes.
She called for a firm Arab position behind the Yemeni government in restoring state institutions, extending sovereignty across the country and ending the coup.
The address came days into renewed fighting that has broken the calm held since a United Nations-brokered truce halted large-scale combat in 2022.
Clashes resumed on 3 September. The internationally recognised government has since reported advances against Houthi forces in al-Jawf, al-Bayda, Taiz and Hodeidah.
Government forces said on 8 September that the offensive aimed to reach Sanaa, and reported taking the town of Yatma in al-Jawf.
On 8 September the Houthis struck the Saudi cities of Khamis Mushait, Abha, Jazan and Najran with drones and missiles, wounding 73 people, Saudi authorities said.
On the economy, al-Zouba said Yemen needed Arab support that moved from emergency response toward recovery, development and reconstruction.
She praised Saudi Arabia’s economic, development and humanitarian assistance, and its role in supporting state institutions and monetary stability.
She urged the creation of an Arab fund to finance Yemen’s Development Needs Plan, saying it would direct Arab resources toward services, infrastructure and the national economy.
The United Nations humanitarian plan for Yemen issued in March put the number of people needing assistance at more than 22 million, and sought 2.16 billion dollars to reach 12 million of them.
That plan recorded 18.3 million people as acutely food insecure and 5.2 million as internally displaced.
Yemen’s delegation put three items to the council before the session, according to Yemen TV: the standing item on developments in Yemen, support for urgent development and infrastructure needs, and a resolution on violations of Yemeni sovereignty and airspace.
Arab League permanent representatives adopted that sovereignty resolution at a preparatory meeting on 6 September. Yemen’s acting permanent representative, Minister Plenipotentiary Abdul Malik Dahan, took part.
The resolution called on Iran to halt activities infringing Yemen’s sovereignty or the safety of its airspace, Yemen TV reported.
It asked states and international organisations to avoid flights or operations connected to Yemen without the agreement of the recognised government.
The same meeting urged the Security Council to act to ensure respect for Yemen’s sovereignty and to hold those responsible for violations accountable, the broadcaster said.
That meeting also condemned Iranian attacks on several Arab states and took up maritime security and energy supplies in the Gulf, Yemen TV reported.
Iran denies arming the Houthis.
The ministerial session opened in Cairo on Monday under the presidency of Tunisia.
On the margins, al-Zouba met Egypt’s foreign minister, Badr Abdelatty. The two discussed bilateral relations and the effect of regional developments on Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab security and on trade, Saba reported.
Al-Zouba said the southern Red Sea and the Suez Canal formed connected links in one maritime corridor.
She also held talks with Djibouti’s foreign minister on economic and trade cooperation and on coordination over maritime security.
The UN Mission to Support the Hudaydah Agreement ended its mandate on 31 March. UN work on Yemen now runs through the Office of the Special Envoy for Yemen.
Al-Zouba said the Palestinian cause remained the central issue of the Arab nation.
She restated Yemen’s support for an independent Palestinian state on the borders of 4 June 1967 with East Jerusalem as its capital, in line with international resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative, and Yemen’s rejection of forced displacement and settlement expansion.
Saba published the text of the address on Tuesday morning.
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