Yemen FM: Houthi rebels refuse to attend third round of talks

Yemeni Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdel Malek Al-Mekhlafi said on Sunday that Houthi rebels have refused to attend a third round of negotiations with a government delegation.

Mekhlafi made the remarks on the side-lines of the Ministerial Meeting of the Arab-India Cooperation Forum in Manama.

The Yemeni official explained that the Houthi rebels and militias loyal to former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh have resorted to military action and escalated the situation. He said this comes at a time when the “legitimate authorities continue to reach out for peace, and had agreed to go to Geneva twice in order to relieve Yemen from darkness”.