Battle will continue as long as Houthi militias refuse peace, says PM

[07/11/2017 05:20]

SHARM ELSHEIKH-SABA
Prime Minister Ahmed bin-Daghr said that "the battle will continue with the Houthi rebel militias as long as they refuse Arab (peace) Initiative and the UN resolutions, which the government's side showed willingness to be flexible in their implementation."

In an interview with the Middle East News Agency (MENA) in Sharm El Sheikh on Tuesday, bin-Daghr said the Houthi rebel militias have been receiving regular support from Iran for 10 years and is now pposing a direct threat to the security of the Kingdom (of Saudi Arabia) and the GCC states as a whole."

He said that the militias "imposed the war on the Yemeni people and the state." "Were it not the attacks of the armed Houthi militias … Yemen would not have slid into this turbulence which is meant to undermine the whole world ('speace)."

"The Houthis and (the ousted dictator) Ali Abdullah Saleh seek to topple the Republic and the country's unit, but this will never happen at all," he said.

He said: "Yemen is going through a crisis and a war but we are keen on continuing our joint efforts with the UN toward achieving peace. We supported the (UN envoy)IsmaiilOuldCheikh's efforts and we did our outmost to prove our flexibility toward the UN peace proposals. But as you know the Houthis still refuse peace; they refused peace in the Geneva 1 conference, the Geneva 2 conferences and then refused UN peace proposals in Kuwait."

"We accepted the UN peace proposals and signed them despite the urge to be reserved on points. Some points were indeed unfair to the Yemeni people. But for the sake of peace, we accepted and signed. At that moment, they (the Houthi-Saleh rebels) refused to sign any document that obliges them to adhere to peace, hand over their arms and withdraw from the capital (Sana'a). Iran was there backing them.

The more the Iranian support the more they increase in intransigence and haughtiness."

He warned that the rebels might morph into a new Hezbollah and fire ballistic missiles at any Arab country should they be not disarmed."