A/HRC/42/CRP.1 understanding on Ta’izz. Implementation of the Stockholm Agreement progressed slowly while, until May 2019, the de facto authorities blocked access to grain stored at the Red Sea Mills (enough to feed 3.7 million people for a month). Parties have also obstructed access to a 1.1 million barrel oil storage facility in the sea at Ras ‘Issa port, which urgently requires maintenance to avoid a leak, which could have a catastrophic environmental impact on the Red Sea. 120. January 2019 marked the end of a truce between the Houthis and the tribes of Hajour and, inside that part of Hajjah Governorate, the beginning of military operations, which ended with the takeover of Hajour by the Houthis on 8 March. The region, including Mount Kushar and Al-‘Abbaysa, is considered to be strategically important, given that it links several governorates. In early May, Houthi fighters started advancing south, capturing mountains and villages in Al-Dhale’e and Al-Bayda governorates after heavy fighting with Yemeni armed forces and affiliated armed groups. 121. On 13 April 2019, the Yemeni parliament convened for the first time since 2015, meeting in Seiyoun, Hadramaut Governorate. The de facto authorities subsequently threatened to strip around 100 parliamentarians living abroad of their immunity and to bring judicial proceedings against them for treason. Also in April, two separate political groupings, made up of individuals and small political parties, were formed in the south in support of the Government of Yemen. In early May, the Sana’a-based part of the General People’s Congress met and elected Ahmed Ali Saleh, the former head of the Republican Guard and son of former President Ali Abdallah Saleh, as second vice-president of the party, while he continued to live in the United Arab Emirates. 122. On 14 May, the Houthis claimed responsibility for drone attacks striking oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, which led to an intensification of the coalition air campaign and subsequent missile attacks claimed by the Houthis, including some that reportedly killed and injured civilians at Abha International Airport in Saudi Arabia. 123. The security situation remained very tense in the south. In August 2019, Aden saw the worst violence since the 2015 fighting. On 1 August 2019, a missile strike killed dozens of Security Belt fighters at a military parade, including one of its most prominent commanders, Munir "Abu al-Yamama" al-Yafei. Although the attack was claimed by the Houthis, Hani Bin Breik blamed al-Islah and renewed calls for secession. Ensuing tensions came to their peak on 7 August, when fighting broke out between UAE-backed Security Belt forces and those loyal to President Hadi. After a few days of fighting, in which dozens were reportedly killed and injured, including civilians, and Aden’s infrastructure was severely damaged, Security Belt Forces had gained control of most of Aden and parts of Abyan and Shabwah. The ceasefire reached in the aftermath of the fighting did not provide for any redeployment of forces. As this report was being finalized in late August, this situation continued to deteriorate. This further evidences the fragility of President Hadi’s political foothold in the governorate and the country as a whole. It also leaves unanswered questions over the coalition’s position in Aden and the Southern secession question. VI. Emblematic situations A. 1. The battle of Aden (March – September 2015) Background 124. In September 2014, Houthi-Saleh fighters took control of Sana’a and a few months later, in January 2015, President Hadi announced his resignation, after which he was placed under house arrest by the Houthis. President Hadi managed to escape to Aden on 21 February 2015 and from there he announced his intention to continue to exercise his presidential functions. In March 2015, Houthi-Saleh fighters launched a military offensive to take control of the south. 125. The forces fighting on behalf of the Government of Yemen were in disarray from the earliest stages of the battle and divisions between those supporting President Hadi and those with former President Saleh became clear. In the early stages of the fighting, the 28