MUSCAT/LONDON: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met a senior official from Yemen’s Houthi movement in Muscat on Monday, according to his office, the latest stop in a wide-ranging diplomatic tour of the region.

The Iranian foreign ministry released pictures of the talks with Mohammed Abdelsalam in the Omani capital as Araghchi consults with allies and other Middle East powers following Israel’s vow to retaliate against an Iranian missile attack.

Araghchi held a “meeting and discussion with Mohammad Abdelsalam, the spokesman and chief negotiator of the Yemen National Salvation Government”, read the photo caption, referring to the Houthi administration. The Houthi-run Al Masirah television also reported the meeting without providing any details on the talks.

Araghchi also met with his Omani counterpart Badr Albusaidi to discuss developments in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip where Israel is fighting Hezbollah and Hamas.

UK govt sanctions Iranian military chiefs after Israel attack

They “urged an immediate end to the Israeli regime’s genocide and aggression in Gaza and Lebanon,” said Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei.

Oman’s foreign ministry said the two officials agreed on “harnessing diplomacy as an essential tool for resolving disputes and conflicts” in the region. Araghchi’s visit to Muscat came after a trip to Baghdad. Last week, he visited Qatar and Saudi Arabia where talks mainly revolved around establishing a ceasefire in Lebanon and Gaza as well as ways to contain the conflict from spreading across the region. On Sunday, Araghchi reiterated that Iran was “fully prepared for a war situation… but we do not want war, we want peace.”

Sanctions

Britain on Monday ordered sanctions against top Iranian military figures after the Islamic republic’s Oct 1 ballistic missile attack on Israel.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy said Iran had ignored repeated warnings that its “dangerous actions” — and those of its proxies — were fuelling conflict in the Middle East.

Among the individuals subject to a travel ban and assets freeze are the commander-in-chief of the Iranian army, Abdolrahim Mousavi, and the head of the air force Hamid Vahedi.

Published in Dawn, October 15th, 2024