(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) As violence continues to rage in Yemen the country’s internationally-recognized government-in-exile says it will not participate in UN-backed peace talks later this week with the Shia Houthi militant group and its allies.
On Sunday Yemen’s presidency declared it would not take part in any meetings with what it described as the “Houthi-Saleh coup militias” – a reference to the Houthis and allied forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh – until the latter had met the terms of UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2216. Resolution 2216 – drafted by members of a Saudi Arabia-led anti-Houthi coalition and submitted by Jordan – was endorsed by the UNSC in April. The resolution calls on the Houthis and allied forces loyal to Saleh to withdraw from all areas they have recently captured; surrender all weapons seized from state institutions; recognize President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi; and release all political prisoners they are currently holding. Well-informed sources told Anadolu Agency that the UN planned to call on the parties involved in the conflict to take part in negotiations next week in Omani capital Muscat. Yemen descended into violent conflict one year ago after the Houthis overran capital Sanaa. In April the Shia militia also managed to capture Yemen’s southern Aden province from which Hadi – along with most of his government – was forced to flee to Saudi Arabia. In March Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies began an extensive air campaign targeting Houthi positions across Yemen which has led to the death of thousands of Yemeni civilians.
Ongoing violence
In recent days pro-Hadi forces claim to have killed large numbers of Houthi fighters especially in and around the southwestern city of Taiz which has seen violent clashes between the two sides for the last several months. One pro-Hadi source speaking to Anadolu Agency on condition of anonymity said that pro-Hadi forces on Saturday had ambushed a Houthi patrol – killing five Houthi fighters – north of Taiz. The assertion could not be confirmed by the Houthi leadership which generally refrains from disclosing information about clashes and military operations. According to the same pro-Hadi source clashes remain ongoing between pro-Hadi and Houthi forces in Taiz’s Al-Bararah district. The same source claimed that a major offensive in Taiz – carried out by the Houthis and their pro-Saleh allies – had been repelled. Early Sunday coalition warplanes reportedly struck several Houthi positions in Taiz resulting in several deaths and injuries. According to Yemen’s official SABA news agency which is controlled by the Houthis ten people were killed in the airstrikes which targeted the home of a local official. Recent weeks have also seen numerous airstrikes in and around capital Sanaa that targeted positions held by Houthi and pro-Saleh forces. Scores of Houthis were reportedly killed on Saturday by airstrikes carried out by the Saudi-led air coalition in the country’s central and northern regions. Pro-Hadi security sources speaking on condition of anonymity told Anadolu Agency that dozens of Houthis had been killed early Sunday by Saudi-led airstrikes on Houthi positions in the Asalmat region of the northern Al-Jawf province. One day earlier in Sanaa coalition warplanes struck several arms depots and military camps belonging to Houthi and pro-Saleh forces according to witnesses and security sources. Al-Qaeda Other armed factions meanwhile also remain active in war-torn Yemen. On Saturday five suspected Al-Qaeda members were killed by an unmanned aerial drone in the eastern city of Mukalla. Speaking via Twitter Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula – Al-Qaeda’s Yemen affiliate – said a U.S. drone had fired three missiles at an air-defense camp in the Rayyan Mukalla area killing five of its fighters. Al-Qaeda is said to control the air defense camp along with all other military and government sites in the coastal city of Mukalla. The operation came only hours after four suspected Al-Qaeda members were killed in a separate drone strike in eastern Yemen’s Jawf province.
By Ahmed Badawy