Aden (South24 Center)

A government source in the capital Aden told South24 on Sunday, December 21, that the Yemeni Foreign Ministry in Riyadh refused to issue official permits for a number of UN officials and representatives of international and human rights organizations to visit Wadi Hadramout.

The source added that the refusal came without official clarifications, at a time when international teams were seeking to verify field conditions in Wadi and Desert Hadramout after being secured by the Southern Armed Forces.

Yemeni human rights organizations, supported by political parties, had published allegations and reports claiming human rights violations in the area by Southern forces.

Yesterday, Presidential Council Chairman Rashad Al-Alimi met with the head of the Yemeni Network for Rights and Freedoms, a network that spearheaded reports about alleged human rights violations in Hadramout by Southern forces.

The obstruction of the visit raises questions about the credibility of those allegations and undermines principles of transparency and cooperation with international institutions, especially amid repeated calls to allow the international community direct access to the security and humanitarian situation.

This development comes after a meeting held by the Chairman of the National Assembly of the Southern Transitional Council, Ali Al-Kathiri, via video call with leaders of the UN Envoy’s office in Amman and Aden, during which he discussed the latest security and service developments in Hadramout.

During the meeting, Al-Kathiri affirmed that Wadi and Desert Hadramout are witnessing a normal state of security stability, denying the validity of reports about killings, kidnappings, or assassinations, and called on the UN Envoy and his office to visit Hadramout and directly observe the situation on the ground.

He also pointed out that the suspension of operations at Seiyun Airport is temporary and due to technical reasons related to maintenance and security arrangements, with efforts underway to resume its operation as soon as possible.