Yemeni Foreign Minister announces Sanaa about to be liberated

Yemeni Foreign Minister Riad Yassin stressed on Thursday that the expulsion of Houthi and Ali Saleh militias from the province of Taiz will pave the way for government forces to regain control of the capital Sanaa.

“Full liberation of Taiz is the beginning of Sanaa’s liberation,” Yassin said following talks at the Arab League on the next steps toward resolving the Yemen crisis.

The pro-government forces, with the support of the Saudi-led coalition, are fighting fierce battles with militias in Taiz and Marib, located near Sanaa, after they succeeded in expelling Houthi and Saleh rebels from several provinces.

On the diplomatic track, Yassin stressed that there will be no political solution to the Yemen crisis without the implementation of Security Council Resolution 2216, which clearly stipulates that rebels withdraw from the areas they have seized and surrender their weapons. The UN Security Council unanimously approved Resolution 2216 in April, which supports Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi as Yemen’s legitimate president.