Implementation Mechanism of the Ceasefire Agreement in the Governorate of Marib

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Country/entity: Yemen
Region: Middle East and North Africa
Agreement name: Implementation Mechanism of the Ceasefire Agreement in the Governorate of Marib
Date: 17 Apr 2016
Agreement status: Multiparty signed/agreed
Interim arrangement: Yes
Agreement/conflict level: Intrastate/local conflict
Yemeni Civil Wars (1994) (2011 - )
The Republic of Yemen was formed in May 1990 after the merger between the Yemeni Arab Republic (YAR) in the north and the People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY) in the south. The unification process was rushed and the final agreement between President Ali Abdullah Saleh and President Ali Salem al-Beidh was based on the imperfect promise of equality. Following the merger, integration of the militaries and civil services was at best incomplete or at times entirely non-existent. When Saleh’s General Congress Party (GPC) allied itself with the newly created Islamist Islah (‘reform’) party in 1993, the former ruling party of South Yemen – the Yemen Socialist Party (YSP) – was effectively side-lined in the 1993 General Elections. Violence involving the use of heavy weaponry and aerial bombardment erupted in April 1994 and on the 21 May 1994 Vice President al-Beidh declared the secession of the south, citing political centralization with the northern highland tribes, violence against the YSP and economic discrimination. In the midst of fighting, negotiations in Cairo, Egypt, collapsed. The war ended with the military victory of the north, and on the 1 October 1994, Ali Abdullah Saleh was elected President.

Despite the unification of Yemen in 1990, political power during the 1990s and 2000s remained centralized with the northern highland tribes, particularly the villages from which President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his confidants stemmed. The system of clientelism established through the ruling General People’s Congress party maintained relative loyalty among the fractured political allegiances of Yemen’s traditional tribal leadership. However, diminishing oil reserves and the shrinking opportunities for access to rent increased economic and political marginalization in Yemen’s peripheral communities. The degree of regionalism of conflicts is further defined by other local grievances. In the northern governorate of Sa’dah, a backlash was provoked among the local Zaydi Shi’a against Sunni Salafist cultural incursions resulting in six wars between 2004 and 2010. In the southern governorates of Hadramawt, Shabwa, al-Dhali and Abyan, civil and military personnel forcibly retired after the 1994 Civil War began protesting and eventually formed the secessionist Southern ‘al-Hiraak’ movement in 2007. Furthermore, tribal grievances have spurred attacks on oil companies and government installations to extract rents. Various takfiri groups including al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula have also increased their presence since 1995.

The Yemen Spring in early 2011 allowed all these movements to express their joint displeasure. Moreover, factionalism in the regime split the already weak military and thus allowed the Houthis, the takfiris and tribal-based militia known as popular committees, to assert themselves militarily. Mandated by the UN-sponsored Gulf Cooperation Council Initiative, the National Dialogue held from March 2013 to January 2014 aimed at guaranteeing power-sharing among the different parties. However, the GCC Initiative only included formal political parties that did not accurately reflect political realities. Furthermore, provisions lacked adequate transitional justice and provided former-President Saleh, as well as others, full amnesty. As a result, little faith was placed in the process by formerly marginalized groups such as the Zaydi Shia Houthi rebels (Ansar Allah) and al-Hiraak who opted to increase their bargaining power vis-à-vis the state by strengthening their own territorial enclaves. In September 2014 the Houthis succeeded in capturing the capital Sana’a and gradually expanded their control southward. The subsequent UN-mediated Peace and National Partnership Agreement between transitional president Hadi and the Houthis on a federal, democratic Yemeni state, failed to be implemented as the Houthis successfully dissolved the parliament and deposed Hadi in January 2015. Following the Saudi military intervention to restore the Hadi government in March 2015, ceasefire attempts continuously failed. A two-year deadlock ensued until negotiations between the Houthis and the government of Yemen finally culminated in the Stockholm Agreement in December 2018. However, throughout 2019 the Saudi-led coalition continues to launch airstrikes. Furthermore, in May 2017 the Southern al-Hiraak movement had declared the secessionist formation of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), seizing the interim-capital Aden by January 2018. Territorial divisions between the Yemeni government, the Houthis, forces affiliated with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, local militias and tribes have continued to fracture the country.
Stage: Ceasefire/related
Conflict nature: Government/territory
Peace process: Yemen peace process
Parties: Representatives of Government of President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi:
‘Abd Āllah ‘Alī al- Jimālī
Ra’id ‘Abd Āllah al- Thābatī
Nājī ‘Alī Manīf
Āhmad ‘Alī Rabī’
‘Abd al-Hakīm Rāshid al-Zūmhī
Muhammad Qāsim ‘Alwa
‘Abd Āllah Muhammad Kawīr
‘Abduh Hamid Shamalān
Mahmūd Sālih Haliyān
‘Abd al-Rahman ‘Alī ‘Āmur

Representatives of Ansar Allah and General People's Congress
Muhammad bin ‘Alī Ta’ymān
Sālim Hādī Raqīb
Sa’īd ‘Alī Salāmah
Sālih Sawda Ta’ymān
Sālih Yahya al-Suqāf
Khalid Sālih al-Āmīr
‘Abd Āllah Sālih al- Sharīf
Fāyaz Muhsin al- Suqāf
Third parties: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Description: Ceasefire in Ma'rib signed as part of the greater ceasefire arrangement signed in Dharan al-Janoub. Similar ceasefire signed in al-Dhalea. Agreement provides for a ceasefire, the monitoring of said ceasefire by a committee, an exchange of remains, prisoners and mine maps, the opening of roads, freedom of movement and movement of humanitarian aid as well as the reparation of electricity going into Sanaa.

Agreement document: YE_160417_Ceasefire in Marib between Hadi and Ansar Allah Forces_EN.pdf (opens in new tab) | Download PDF
Agreement document (original language): YE_160417_Ceasefire in Marib between Hadi and Ansar Allah Forces_AR.pdf (opens in new tab)| Download PDF

Groups

Children/youth: No specific mention.
Disabled persons: No specific mention.
Elderly/age: No specific mention.
Migrant workers: No specific mention.
Racial/ethnic/national group: No specific mention.
Religious groups: No specific mention.
Indigenous people: No specific mention.
Other groups: No specific mention.
Refugees/displaced persons: No specific mention.
Social class: No specific mention.

Gender

Women, girls and gender: No specific mention.
Men and boys: No specific mention.
LGBTI: No specific mention.
Family: No specific mention.

State definition

Nature of state (general): No specific mention.
State configuration: No specific mention.
Self determination: No specific mention.
Referendum: No specific mention.
State symbols: No specific mention.
Independence/secession: No specific mention.
Accession/unification: No specific mention.
Border delimitation: No specific mention.
Cross-border provision: No specific mention.

Governance

Political institutions (new or reformed): No specific mention.
Elections: No specific mention.
Electoral commission: No specific mention.
Political parties reform: No specific mention.
Civil society: Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 5- The two sides will facilitate relief work without objecting in any way. They will also facilitate its passage. Any obstacles from any side will be removed.
Traditional/religious leaders: No specific mention.
Public administration: No specific mention.
Constitution: No specific mention.

Power sharing

Political power sharing: No specific mention.
Territorial power sharing: No specific mention.
Economic power sharing: No specific mention.
Military power sharing: No specific mention.

Human rights and equality

Human rights/RoL general: Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 3- All the sides will stop the detention of innocents and travellers on the roads, paths and at checkpoints. Their rights will also be preserved.
Bill of rights/similar: No specific mention.
Treaty incorporation: No specific mention.
Civil and political rights: No specific mention.
Socio-economic rights: No specific mention.

Rights related issues

Citizenship: No specific mention.
Democracy: No specific mention.
Detention procedures: No specific mention.
Media and communication: No specific mention.
Mobility/access: Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 3- All the sides will stop the detention of innocents and travellers on the roads, paths and at checkpoints. Their rights will also be preserved.  

Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 4- The concerned entities will work on their obligations of preparing, repairing and opening the roads as soon as possible.

Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 5- The two sides will facilitate relief work without objecting in any way. They will also facilitate its passage. Any obstacles from any side will be removed.
Protection measures: No specific mention.
Other: No specific mention.

Rights institutions

NHRI: No specific mention.
Regional or international human rights institutions: No specific mention.

Justice sector reform

Criminal justice and emergency law: No specific mention.
State of emergency provisions: No specific mention.
Judiciary and courts: No specific mention.
Prisons and detention: No specific mention.
Traditional Laws: No specific mention.

Socio-economic reconstruction

Development or socio-economic reconstruction: Socio-economic reconstruction→Development or socio-economic reconstruction→Humanitarian assistance
Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 5- The two sides will facilitate relief work without objecting in any way. They will also facilitate its passage. Any obstacles from any side will be removed.

Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 6- The concerned entities will be allowed to repair the power transmission lines (electricity) from Marib to Sana’a. The engineering teams ensure, and the concerned entities commit to provide the necessary requirements to connect and operate the gas station.
Socio-economic reconstruction→Development or socio-economic reconstruction→Infrastructure and reconstruction
Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 5- The two sides will facilitate relief work without objecting in any way. They will also facilitate its passage. Any obstacles from any side will be removed.

Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 6- The concerned entities will be allowed to repair the power transmission lines (electricity) from Marib to Sana’a. The engineering teams ensure, and the concerned entities commit to provide the necessary requirements to connect and operate the gas station.
National economic plan: No specific mention.
Natural resources: No specific mention.
International funds: No specific mention.
Business: No specific mention.
Taxation: No specific mention.
Banks: No specific mention.

Land, property and environment

Land reform/rights: No specific mention.
Pastoralist/nomadism rights: No specific mention.
Cultural heritage: No specific mention.
Environment: No specific mention.
Water or riparian rights or access: No specific mention.

Security sector

Security Guarantees: No specific mention.
Ceasefire: Security sector→Ceasefire→Ceasefire provision
Page 1, First:
1- There will be a ceasefire in all forms, starting at 11:00pm on Sunday 17/04/2016, on all fronts of battle in Sarwah, Nihm, al-Jad’an, al-Abdiyyah and Harib Bayhan and all locations of fighting under these fronts.  
2- There will be a complete prohibition of reinforcements and congregations in all forms on the battle fronts.  
3- The two committees shall have direct supervision of the ceasefire.  
4- Two people from each side from the Military Committee will be located for contacting,  communicating and reporting any movement and for working on its establishment and its mandate.
Police: No specific mention.
Armed forces: No specific mention.
DDR: Security sector→DDR→Demilitarisation provisions
Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 2- If found, mine maps will be handed over. If it is not possible to find them, their whereabouts will be located.
Intelligence services: No specific mention.
Parastatal/rebel and opposition group forces: No specific mention.
Withdrawal of foreign forces: No specific mention.
Corruption: No specific mention.
Crime/organised crime: No specific mention.
Drugs: No specific mention.
Terrorism: No specific mention.

Transitional justice

Transitional justice general: No specific mention.
Amnesty/pardon: No specific mention.
Courts: No specific mention.
Mechanism: No specific mention.
Prisoner release: Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
... 7- The Prisoners Committee will return and prepare lists of the prisoners and the detainees of the two sides. They will also coordinate with the Central Prisoners Committee to complete the exchange and their release.
Vetting: No specific mention.
Victims: Page 1, Second: After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:
1- The Red Crescent and the Red Cross, or whoever represents them, will be allowed to recover the remains of the two sides from the battle front without discrimination. In addition, the organisations will be kept safe while carrying out their work.
Missing persons: No specific mention.
Reparations: No specific mention.
Reconciliation: No specific mention.

Implementation

UN signatory: No specific mention.
Other international signatory: No specific mention.
Referendum for agreement: No specific mention.
International mission/force/similar: No specific mention.
Enforcement mechanism: Page 1, First:
... 3- The two committees shall have direct supervision of the ceasefire.  
4- Two people from each side from the Military Committee will be located for contacting,  communicating and reporting any movement and for working on its establishment and its mandate.
Related cases: No specific mention.
Source: Yemen Akhbar. ‘Hadi and Houthis sign ceasefire agreement in Marib’, 18 April 2016, https://www.yemenakhbar.com/245154

Implementation Mechanism of the Ceasefire Agreement in the Governorate of Marib

Praise be to Allah, who said:

“O you who have believed, enter into Islam completely and do not follow the footsteps of Satan.

Indeed, he is to you a clear enemy.

”1 Peace and blessings be upon His Noble Messenger, who said:

“I am a Merciful God.”

Based on the agreement signed in Dhahran al-Janub in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on 10 April 2016 between us as the two sides.

The committee summoned the Marib Committee from the two sides for a meeting on Sunday 17/04/2016 in the area of Swaydah in the al-Baydah Governorate.

The following points were agreed:

First:

1- There will be a ceasefire in all forms, starting at 11:00pm on Sunday 17/04/2016, on all fronts of battle in Sarwah, Nihm, al-Jad’an, al-Abdiyyah and Harib Bayhan and all locations of fighting under these fronts.

2- There will be a complete prohibition of reinforcements and congregations in all forms on the battle fronts.

3- The two committees shall have direct supervision of the ceasefire.

4- Two people from each side from the Military Committee will be located for contacting, communicating and reporting any movement and for working on its establishment and its mandate.

Second:

After the installation of a ceasefire and the prohibition of reinforcements and congregations, the following steps will be implemented:

1- The Red Crescent and the Red Cross, or whoever represents them, will be allowed to recover the remains of the two sides from the battle front without discrimination.

In addition, the organisations will be kept safe while carrying out their work.

2- If found, mine maps will be handed over.

If it is not possible to find them, their whereabouts will be located.

3- All the sides will stop the detention of innocents and travellers on the roads, paths and at checkpoints.

Their rights will also be preserved.

4- The concerned entities will work on their obligations of preparing, repairing and opening the roads as soon as possible.

5- The two sides will facilitate relief work without objecting in any way.

They will also facilitate its passage.

Any obstacles from any side will be removed.

6- The concerned entities will be allowed to repair the power transmission lines (electricity) from Marib to Sana’a.

The engineering teams ensure, and the concerned entities commit to provide the necessary requirements to connect and operate the gas station.

7- The Prisoners Committee will return and prepare lists of the prisoners and the detainees of the two sides.

They will also coordinate with the Central Prisoners Committee to complete the exchange and their release.

In conclusion, the price of the two sides are the efforts and endeavours of sponsors to bring about peace in Yemen.

Let them succeed in the Kuwait Conference.

Released on 10 Regep 1437

Side one:

‘Abd Āllah ‘Alī al-Jimālī

Ra’id ‘Abd Āllah al-Thābatī

Nājī ‘Alī Manīf

Āhmad ‘Alī Rabī’

‘Abd al-Hakīm Rāshid al-Zūmhī

Muhammad Qāsim ‘Alwa

‘Abd Āllah Muhammad Kawīr

‘Abduh Hamid Shamalān

Mahmūd Sālih Haliyān

‘Abd al-Rahman ‘Alī ‘Āmur

Side two:

Muhammad bin ‘Alī Ta’ymān

Sālim Hādī Raqīb

Sa’īd ‘Alī Salāmah

Sālih Sawda Ta’ymān

Sālih Yahya al-Suqāf

Khalid Sālih al-Āmīr

‘Abd Āllah Sālih al-Sharīf

Fāyaz Muhsin al-Suqāf