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Houthis call on Saudi Arabia to ‘search for peace’

April 6, 2017 at 8:58 pm

Houthis and supporters of ousted leader Ali Abdullah Saleh gather to protest the Saudi-led operations during a rally on the second anniversary of the Operation Decisive Storm at al-Sabin Square in Sanaa, Yemen on March 26, 2017. ( Mohammed Hamoud – Anadolu Agency )

Yemen’s Houthis and forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh today called on Saudi Arabia to “look for exits and proposals to bring peace and reach a just settlement” ending what they called the “unjustified aggression”.

This came in a statement by an official at the Houthi’s Foreign Ministry who was quoted by the Saba agency which is aligned with the group.

The remarks came after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman met with senior Yemeni tribal leaders in the Saudi capital Riyadh, and expressed the kingdom’s commitment to “stand by Yemen and support its legitimacy” adding that he sees Yemen as “strategic” for Arab nations.

The official in the Houthi government said: “There is no way to reach a solution that ends the aggression except through a peaceful settlement in which Saudi Arabia is a main party.”

The basis of the settlement would be to stop the aerial bombardment of Yemeni territory, lifting the siege, the withdrawal of foreign forces [in reference to the Saudi-led coalition’s forces] and the reopening of Sana’a airport.

Saudi Arabia was not immediately available for comment.

The kingdom launched its military operation on Houthi targets in Yemen on 26 March 2015 in response to President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi’s request to intervene militarily in an effort to prevent the insurgents from taking control of all Yemen.