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Yemen’s foreign minister slams rebel political council

August 11, 2016 at 1:06 pm

Yemen’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abdul-Malik Al-Mekhlafi, has criticised the political council formed by Houthi rebels. The government official said that it is tantamount to a declaration of war.

In a press conference held on Wednesday in the Yemeni Embassy in Riyadh, Al-Mekhlafi called on members of parliament to reject all actions that legitimise the coup. “The government will make every effort to maintain the constitutional legitimacy in Yemen in the face of the coup,” he stressed.

The minister has also called on parliamentary blocs in the House of Representatives to reject the Houthis’ unilateral measures and warned that any session undertaken by the council would amount to “treason”.

Houthi rebels and forces loyal to ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh signed a political agreement at the end of July to form a political council to rule the country.

The UN envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, criticised the move and described it as a unilateral measure that violates Yemen’s Constitution and the relevant international resolutions.