PEACE-loving people of the international community espe
cially the Muslim Ummah has taken a sigh of relief over signing of the peace deal between warring sides in Yemen brightening prospects for an end to the four-year conflict in the country. The deal brokered by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and supported by the United Arab Emirates has widely been hailed as the Yemeni government and separatists have agreed on power sharing arrangement, which is being seen as a crucial step towards peaceful and political solution of the bloody crisis.
The agreement is, indeed, a tribute to the leadership role and negotiating skills of the Saudi Crown Prince, who has been playing crucial role in regional and international affairs. In August, the UAE-backed separatist movement, which seeks self-rule in southern Yemen, turned on government troops as its forces seized their interim seat in the city of Aden. Weeks of bloody infighting stoked fears of a further weakening of the anti-Houthi rebel bloc and undermining chances for finding a negotiated solution to the civil war. Therefore, the deal is reflective of MBS’ visionary approach as it will result in a government reshuffle to include the separatists with equal representation and their armed forces will be placed under government control. It is because of this that while speaking at the signing ceremony in Riyadh, Prince MBS remarked that the agreement would open a new period of stability in Yemen. Pakistan too has welcomed the conclusion of the landmark Riyadh Agreement with Prime Minister Imran Khan describing it as a crucial and important step forward towards a political solution and durable peace and security in Yemen. It is believed that the accord would allow the anti-Houthi alliance to refocus on the fight against Houthi militia that has been in control of Sanaa and a large part of northern Yemen since 2014. The accord is, no doubt, a diplomatic victory for Saudi Arabia as it succeeded in preventing a war-within-a-war between the southern separatists and Hadi’s government but the real victory would come when it succeeds in final peaceful settlement of the long-drawn conflict in Yemen that is taking heavy toll.
