Iran Waiting for Official Confirmation of Oman’s Yemen Peace Plan

The Iranian foreign ministry announced on Thursday that it is still waiting for Masqat’s official confirmation to study what the media call Oman’s 7-step plan to establish peace in Yemen.
“We have also seen the news released on the plan but we don’t have any further information beyond these news and reports,” Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham told FNA today.

“Naturally, if official sources confirm that it has been their plan, then precise studying and commenting will be possible,” she added.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham
Tehran had earlier called for closer cooperation between Iran and Oman to prevent escalation of the ongoing crisis in Yemen, saying that all countries of the region have a responsibility to restore peace and stability to the Arab country.

In a meeting with Omani Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi in Masqat earlier this month, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif welcomed Oman’s role in settling regional issues and declared Tehran’s readiness to engage in closer cooperation with Masqat over the crisis in Yemen.

In the meeting, Zarif voiced Iran’s deep concern about the humanitarian situation in Yemen, and stressed the necessity of taking actions to prevent the escalation of the conflict and the need for sending assistance to those injured and displaced.

The Iranian top diplomat also called for the establishment of dialogue between warring sides in Yemen, adding that all countries have a responsibility to help restore peace and stability to the country.

Alawi, for his part, reiterated that dialogue would be the only solution to the existing problems in Yemen, expressing hope that multilateral efforts aimed at launching regulated and purposeful negotiations would succeed in restoring stability to the country.

Iran has heightened efforts to broker talks among different Yemeni groups to establish peace in the country, and it sent a 4-step Yemen peace initiative to the UN chief last week.

Zarif wrote a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Friday, and demanded adoption of the necessary moves by the world body to put an immediate end to the bloodshed, describing the conditions on the ground in Yemen as “alarming”.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran believes that all efforts, particularly those by the United Nations, should be guided, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations and fundamental principles of international humanitarian law, by the following objectives: 1. Ceasefire and an immediate end to all foreign military attacks; 2. Unimpeded urgent humanitarian and medical assistance to the people of Yemen; 3. Resumption of Yemeni-lead and Yemeni-owned national dialogue, with the participation of the representatives of all political parties and social groups; 4. Establishment of an inclusive national unity government,” Zarif said in his letter.

Saudi Arabia launched its airstrikes on March 26 and has kept them in place for 29 days in a move to restore power to fugitive president Mansour Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh. The Saudi-led aggression has claimed the lives of around 2,900 Yemenis, including hundreds of women and children. The attacks have also left thousands of people injured.

Hadi stepped down in January and refused to reconsider the decision despite calls by Ansarullah revolutionaries of the Houthi movement.

Despite Riyadh’s claims that it was bombing the positions of the Ansarullah fighters, Saudi warplanes were flattening residential areas and civilian infrastructures.

Five Persian Gulf States — Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait — and Egypt that are also assisted by Israel and backed by the US declared war on Yemen in a joint statement issued on March 26.

Riyadh officials said the Saudi-led coalition operations in Yemen are now entering a political phase, but the latest reports from different Yemeni cities say that the Saudi airstrikes are still underway.