Yemen’s Islah Party Delegation Heads to Iran for Secret Talks

Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman supported direct secret talks between Iran and the Yemeni Islah Party to negotiate the peace process in Yemen and post-war arrangements, informed sources told Sheba Intelligence today.

The sources indicated that the Islah Party is internally divided regarding this step, given that the Iran-backed Houthi group focused on weakening and fighting the Islah Party once the group took over Sanaa in September 2014.

While a delegation from the Islah Party headed to Tehran for negotiations with Iranian officials, another Islah delegation has held meetings with American, British, and European officials, discussing the Houthi escalation in the Red Sea and the possible mechanism for restoring the Yemeni state and ending the “Houthi coup”.

The sources indicated that other negotiations are taking place in Washington and London with various Yemeni forces about supporting a military operation to end the Houthi takeover of the capital, Sanaa. However, according to the sources, the international community has fears about any ideological or regional hegemony over the government in Yemen after the fall of the Houthi group.

Sheba Intelligence contacted a senior member of the Islah Party, seeking details about the talks between his political party and Iran. However, he denied the existence of any negotiations with Iran regarding the peace process in Yemen and post-war arrangements.

He added, “There are no negotiations with any international body outside the framework of the Yemeni government. The meetings between the Islah Party and ambassadors or international community representatives are only part of the party’s diplomatic efforts to end the war in Yemen.”

Meanwhile, military sources told Sheba Intelligence that Brigadier General Tariq Saleh, a member of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council and commander of the National Resistance Forces stationed in Mocha on the Red Sea, expressed his unwillingness to enter into naval confrontations with the Houthis.

Instead, he said he is “ready” to support any international force to begin a ground war to recapture the Al-Hudaydah port from the Houthis. 

One of the sources quoted Tariq Saleh, saying, “The confrontation with the Houthis at sea requires high-quality technology and weapons, and highly trained force. This requires time and huge amounts of money, which is not available now.”

The sources confirmed that the Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE, refused to conclude any deal with the United States and Britain to participate in the war against the Houthis.

Since November last year, the Houthi group- in solidarity with Palestine- has launched several drone and missile attacks on commercial vessels and warships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, prompting the U.S. and the U.K. to strike Houthi sites in Yemen.