Yemeni Ambassador Urges to Engage Houthis in Reconciliation Talks

Yemeni Houthi rebels should be pressured to take part in the UN-backed conference on reconciliation in the Arab country, to be held in Geneva starting on May 28, Yemen's permanent UN representative Khaled Alyemany said Wednesday.

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) – The Ansar Allah Shiite rebels, known as the Houthis, took control of large swathes of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa in early 2015. Their advance prompted President Hadi to flee the country and ask the Arab League for military aid.

A Saudi-led coalition has been bombing positions held by the Houthis and other anti-government forces since March. The airstrike campaign has killed more than 1,600, according to UN figures.

“We ask the Secretary General to pressure them, so that they can sort of react positively to the invitation to attend the conference in Geneva. So we still wait for some pressures to be applied on the Houthis so that they can be part of the solution. Until now, they are part of the destruction,” Alyemany told reporters.

The negotiations in Geneva, Switzerland, will succeed the previous round of talks on the issue held in the Saudi capital Riyadh on May 17-19. The Riyadh conference involved over 400 representatives of Yemen’s political spectrum and international organizations. However, representatives of the Houthi rebel group did not attend.