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Russia and China clash with US and UK over attacks on Yemen rebels for strikes on Red Sea ships

Published

2 years ago

February 14, 2024

Russia and China clash with US and UK over attacks on Yemen rebels for strikes on Red Sea ships

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Russia and China on Wednesday accused the United States and Britain of illegally attacking military sites used by Yemen’s Houthi rebels to launch missiles at commercial vessels in the Red Sea, disrupting global shipping.

U.S. deputy ambassador Robert Wood and UK Ambassador Barbara Woodward countered that the Houthi attacks are illegal, and their “proportionate and legal action” against the Yemen rebels are being taken in self-defense.

Woodward said the Houthi attacks are “driving up the costs of global shipping, including the costs of food supplies and humanitarian aid in the region.”

But Russia’s deputy U.N. ambassador Dmitry Polyansky and China’s U.N. envoy Zhang Jun argued that the U.N. Security Council never authorized military action against Yemen.

The clashes came at a council meeting where U.N. special envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg said promising efforts to restore peace to Yemen have been slowed by rising regional tensions linked to the war in Gaza and “in particular the military escalation in the Red Sea.”

Since November, the Houthi rebels have targeted ships in the Red Sea to demand a cease-fire in Israel’s offensive in Gaza. They have frequently attacked vessels with tenuous or no clear links to Israel, imperiling shipping in a key route for trade among Asia, the Mideast and Europe.

In recent weeks, the United States and the United Kingdom, backed by other allies, have launched airstrikes targeting Houthi missile arsenals and launch sites for its attacks.

Wood, the U.S. envoy, said American strikes in response to attacks on U.S. naval vessels, “aim to disrupt and degrade the Houthis’ ability to continue their reckless attacks against vessels and commercial shipping in the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden.”

Since 2014, he said, Iran has provided the Houthis with “a growing arsenal of advanced weapons” that they have used to target commercial ships, and “Iran cannot deny its role in enabling and supporting the attacks carried out by the Houthis.”

Wood accused the Houthis of “trying to apply a chokehold on global shipping through the Red Sea” and urged all countries, especially those with direct channels to Iran, “to press Iran’s leaders to rein in the Houthis and stop these lawless attacks.”

Russia’s Polyansky stressed that Moscow “categorically condemns attacks and seizures of commercial vessels and (…) any attacks which impede freedom of navigation.” He said Russia has conveyed messages to the Houthi leaders to focus on Yemen’s domestic agenda and pursue peace.

Grundberg, the U.N. envoy, said that in late December the Houthis, who control the capital and much of the country’s north, and Yemen’s internationally recognized government “committed to a nationwide cease-fire, measures to improve living conditions, and restarting an intra-Yemeni political process.”

But he said Yemen’s peace process can’t be cordoned off from the events in the region, and the U.S. and UK attacks on Houthi targets, and the U.S. designation of the Houthis as a “Specially Designated Terrorist Group” are “concerning.”

“Despite potential complications, my work will continue no matter what,” he said. “It is therefore imperative that we protect the political space, that communication channels are kept open and that all actors remain actively engaged with my efforts.”

Russia’s Polyansky said the root cause of the current situation is Israel’s military offensive in Gaza following Hamas’ surprise attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, which has provoked a chain reaction in the Middle East including by the Houthis.

“An immediate cease-fire in Gaza will help to stabilize the situation in the Red Sea, and the de-escalation in those waters will in turn unblock the efforts of the special envoy, Mr. Grundberg,” Polyansky said.

Yemen’s civil war began in 2014 when the Houthis swept down from their northern stronghold and chased the internationally recognized government from Sanaa. A Saudi-led coalition intervened the following year on behalf of the government and in time the conflict turned into a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

The war has devastated Yemen, already the Arab region’s poorest country, and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters.

Edem Wosornu, the U.N. humanitarian office’s director of operations, told the council that Yemen faces “massive continuing needs.”

This year, she said, over 18 million people – over half the country’s population – will need humanitarian aid.

The U.N. anticipates that 17.6 million people will be “severely food insecure” — facing serious hunger, she said. “Nearly half of all children under five face moderate to severe stunting” of their growth and development.

Last year, the U.N. received just 40% of its $4.3 billion humanitarian appeal, she said. This year, the Yemen appeal is more targeted and seeks $2.7 billion to reach 11.2 million people across Yemen.

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Full AP coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

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World

Top US border official to face judge in Chicago over use of tear gas

Published

13 hours ago

October 28, 2025

Press Room

Top US border official to face judge in Chicago over use of tear gas

CHICAGO, Oct 28 (Reuters) – A federal judge has summoned a top U.S. Border Patrol official leading President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown in Chicago to appear in court on Tuesday, after a video appeared to show him deploying tear gas potentially in violation of a court order limiting its use against protesters.

Gregory Bovino, a roving Border Patrol operations commander who also played a lead role in immigration enforcement efforts in Los Angeles, was ordered to attend the hearing in person by U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis, who earlier this month barred federal agents from using certain crowd-control tactics following a legal challenge by protesters.

Trump, a Republican, has made Chicago the focus of his aggressive immigration enforcement push during the past two months. Under Bovino’s leadership, federal agents have used tear gas in residential areas and forcibly subdued protesters while attempting to arrest suspected immigration violators—sparking criticism and legal scrutiny.

Three former federal immigration officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity told Reuters that it was unusual for a top official to be summoned to court on short notice.

Ellis ordered Bovino’s appearance after the protesters submitted a video they said showed him violating her earlier court order directing federal agents to give multiple warnings before using tear gas and other anti-riot weapons.

In the video, Bovino appeared to toss a canister of gas at protesters who had gathered as federal agents conducted arrests last Thursday in a Chicago neighborhood known for being home to many Mexican immigrants.

In a statement on Friday, U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the agents were surrounded by a large group while conducting an enforcement operation. She said some people in the crowd shot fireworks and threw rocks, hitting Bovino in the head, and that agents gave warnings before deploying chemicals.

A DHS spokesperson on Monday defended Bovino and the agency’s crowd-control tactics.

“DHS can think of nobody better to correct Judge Ellis’s deep misconceptions about its mission, and we thank him for his service,” the spokesperson said.

TRUMP’S BLITZ OPERATION FACES RESISTANCE

Trump’s ongoing “Operation Midway Blitz” deportation drive in Chicago has spurred arrests across the city and sparked widespread protests. In response, Trump attempted to send hundreds of National Guard troops to Illinois to quell what his administration called unprecedented violence against federal law enforcement, but the move has been halted for now by another court.

Tuesday’s hearing stems from a lawsuit filed by protesters, journalists and clergy in Chicago against Trump, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and other federal officials earlier this month, alleging they were deliberately targeted and brutalized during demonstrations.

The judge has repeatedly expressed concerns that federal agents are violating her October 9 ruling requiring them to wear visible identification and limiting their use of anti-riot weapons such as pepper balls and tear gas. She later updated her order to require federal officers with body cameras to turn them on while conducting immigration enforcement activity and during interactions with the public.

Reporting by Diana Novak Jones in Chicago and Ted Hesson in Washington; Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Lisa Shumaker

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Diana reports on product liability, litigation, mass torts and the plaintiffs’ bar. She previously worked at Law360 and the Chicago Sun-Times.

Ted Hesson is an immigration reporter for Reuters, based in Washington, D.C. His work focuses on the policy and politics of immigration, asylum and border security. Prior to joining Reuters in 2019, Ted worked for the news outlet POLITICO, where he also covered immigration. His articles have appeared in POLITICO Magazine, The Atlantic and VICE News, among other publications. Ted holds a master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and bachelor’s degree from Boston College.

World

Hamas hands over remains of hostage whose body was recovered nearly 2 years ago

Published

15 hours ago

October 28, 2025

Press Room

Hamas hands over remains of hostage whose body was recovered nearly 2 years ago

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Israel announced Tuesday that it had received from Hamas via the Red Cross the remains of a deceased hostage as President Donald Trump’s 48-hour deadline looms.

The remains, however, did not match any of the 13 deceased hostages whose bodies are still in Gaza. Fox News has learned that the coffin handed over to Israel was assessed to contain the remains of a hostage whose body was already brought back to Israel for burial.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office urged the public to respect the privacy of the hostages’ families. Netanyahu’s office later identified the remains as belonging to Ofir Tzarfati, whose body was first recovered in 2023.

The Hostages and Missing Families forum released a statement following the return of more of Tzarfati’s remains.

“Ofir attended the Nova Festival to celebrate his birthday with his partner Shoval and close friends. The birthday celebration was brutally cut short when Ofir was abducted into captivity, where he was murdered. Ofir’s body was recovered at the end of November 2023 and brought to burial in Israel,” the forum wrote.

IDF SAYS BODY TURNED OVER BY HAMAS DOESN’T MATCH ANY HOSTAGES

A protester holds a poster of hostage Ofir Tzarfati, 27 during a rally in Tel Aviv. (Ashley Chan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

The forum also noted that some of Tzarfati’s remains were returned in March 2024 and that in August 2024, Hamas published a photo of his body.

“We went to sleep last night with anticipation and hope that another family would close an agonizing two-year circle and bring their loved one home for burial. But once again, deception has been inflicted upon our family as we try to heal. This morning we were shown video footage of our beloved son’s remains being removed, buried, and handed over to the Red Cross — an abhorrent manipulation designed to sabotage the deal and abandon the effort to bring all the hostages home,” the Tzarfati family wrote in a statement.

“This is the third time we have been forced to open Ofir’s grave and rebury our son. The circle supposedly ‘closed’ back in December 2023, but it never truly closes. Since then, we have lived with a wound that constantly reopens, between memory and longing, between bereavement and mission.”

The Tzarfati family urged the public to support the families who were still waiting for their loved ones to be brought home for a dignified burial.

A hostage poster for Ofir Tzarfati is seen at the site of the Nova festival

The kidnapped poster of Ofir Tzarfati, who was recently declared killed and kidnapped, is seen at a memorial display of photos of people killed during Hamas’s attack on the Super Nova festival at the site on Nov. 30, 2023 in Re’im, Israel. (Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images)

HAMAS SAYS IT WILL HAND OVER ANOTHER HOSTAGE BODY, AS TRUMP’S 48-HOUR WARNING LOOMS

On Saturday, Trump touted the “very strong peace in the Middle East,” but then he slammed Hamas and demanded they “start returning the bodies of deceased hostages, including two Americans, quickly.” He said that if the terror group failed to hold up its end of the deal, other countries would “take action.”

“We have a very strong PEACE in the Middle East, and I believe it has a good chance of being EVERLASTING. Hamas is going to have to start returning the bodies of the deceased hostages, including two Americans, quickly, or the other countries involved in this GREAT PEACE will take action,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

The president added that while he said that “both dies would be treated fairly,” his promise would only apply if “they comply with their obligations.”

Protesters in Tel Aviv hold sign reading "President Trump Bring the Last Hostages Home"

A drone view shows participants holding a large banner during a rally held by hostage families and supporters at “Hostages Square” to demand the immediate release of the bodies of the deceased hostages who were kidnapped in the deadly October 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Oct. 18, 2025. (Ilan Rosenberg/Reuters)

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Trump acknowledged that “some of the bodies are hard to reach,” but said others could start being returned now, adding that “for some reason, they are not.” He then said that it would remain to be seen what actions Hamas would take in the coming 48 hours, adding, “I am watching this very closely.”

Since the U.S.-brokered ceasefire began, all living Israeli hostages held in Gaza have been released, while the country awaits the return of deceased hostages’ remains.

So far, Israel has received 15 of the 28 deceased hostages’ remains, including Aryeh Zalmanovich, Master Sergeant (Res.) Tamir Adar, Staff Sgt. Tal Haimi, Suntaya Akrasi, Ronen Tommy Engel, Eliyahu Margalit, Uriel Baruch, Staff Sgt. Tamir Nimrodi, Eitan Levi, Daniel Peretz, Yossi Sharabi, Guy Illuz, Bipin Joshi, Inbar Hayman and Sergeant Major Muhammad Al-Atresh. The remains of U.S.-Israeli citizens Cpt. Omer Neutra and Staff Sgt. Itay Chen, have not been returned to Israel.

The Israeli government and military have repeatedly called on Hamas to hold up its end of the deal and give families the closure they have been denied for over two years.

Rachel Wolf is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital and FOX Business.

World

Suspect pleads guilty to murdering former Japanese PM Abe

Published

17 hours ago

October 28, 2025

Press Room

Suspect pleads guilty to murdering former Japanese PM Abe

As trial opens, Tetsuya Yamagami admits murdering Japan’s longest serving leader three years ago.

Published On 28 Oct 2025

The man accused of killing former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022 has pleaded guilty to murder.

Forty-five-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami admitted all charges read out by prosecutors as his trial opened on Tuesday, according to the Japanese broadcaster NHK.