Gargash: Arab Coalition is preparing for next phase in Yemen conflict
The Arab Coalition fighting against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen is preparing for the next phase in the conflict, Dr Anwar Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, said yesterday.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE are leading the coalition that intervened in 2015 to try to restore the internationally recognised government pushed out of Sanaa by the rebels in late 2014.
“The coalition is preparing for the next phase with its political and military tools and is determined to achieve its strategic objectives,” Dr Gargash wrote on Twitter.
The coalition “repelled attempts to change the balance of power and restored the government and what now remains is restoring sustainable political stability,” he said.
Last week, Dr Gargash said the UAE remained committed to providing aid to Yemen.
Abu Dhabi and Riyadh are “the largest humanitarian donors in Yemen and will always fulfil their commitments”, Dr Gargash said.
The UAE provided $5.59 billion (Dh20.53bn) in aid to Yemen between April 2015 and June this year, assisting 17.2 million Yemenis in every governorate of the country, including Houthi heartlands such as Saada.
The UN said Yemen was the world’s worst humanitarian disaster, with millions of people on the brink of famine and deadly illnesses such as cholera also resurgent.
“Both Saudi Arabia and the UAE are currently working with the UN on the modalities of the 2019 commitment to ensure maximum benefits for the Yemeni people,” Dr Gargash said.
The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people since March 2015, according to the World Health Organisation.
The fighting has also displaced millions and left 24.1 million, more than two thirds of the population, in need of aid.
Meanwhile, UN-led mediation efforts in Yemen continued with the focus on introducing a ceasefire and withdrawal of troops from the port city of Hodeidah.
“My hope is that progress in Hodeidah will at last allow us to focus on the political process, and I hope that we will see this before the end of this summer,” the UN special envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, told the Security Council on Thursday.
Hodeidah became the focal point of the conflict last year when coalition forces launched an operation to take the city back from the rebels.
It is Yemen’s main supply line for millions of civilians.