New Delhi: Riyadh is negotiating with the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, in an attempt to end the war in Yemen, an official from Saudi Arabia told AFP. This comes a few weeks after the Houthis halted their attack on Saudi Arabia.
Riyadh also brokered a power sharing agreement between Yemen’s internationally recognized government and southern separatists last week to halt infighting.
It is attempting to negotiate a wider peace deal in the country with the United Arab Emirates’ backing. Anwar Gargesh, UAE’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, expressed optimism that the power sharing agreement could lead to a more permanent political solution in Yemen.
“Such an agreement must take account of the legitimate aspirations of all parts of Yemeni society. That includes the Houthis,” said Gargesh at a political conference.
India’s Ministry of External affairs also “welcomed” the peace efforts in Yemen.
The war in Yemen
Yemen has been devastated by a massive proxy war since 2015.
Houthi rebels seized capital Sanaa and much of northern Yemen in 2014, sparking a Saudi-led military intervention the following March, noted the AFP report.
The rebels have been backed by Iran, while the internationally recognised government in Aden is backed by Saudi Arabia.
Many observers view this war as the worst humanitarian crisis of the past two decades. Yemen was pushed to the brink of famine on several occasions due to the war.
A bid to end the war
A few months ago, Saudi’s key oil facilities were targeted by drone strikes. While the Houthis claimed responsibility for the strikes, both Riyadh and Washington believe that Iran was behind it.
Since the strikes, there has been an increased attempt to end the war and facilitate a broader peace deal in Yemen.
“We have had an open channel with the Houthis since 2016. We are continuing these communications to support peace in Yemen. We don’t close our doors with the Houthis,” the unnamed Saudi official told AFP.
Yemen’s Riyadh-backed government signed a power sharing agreement with the UAE-backed southern separatists to prevent a “war-within-a-war between the southern separatists and [Abdrabbuh Mansur] Hadi’s government,” reported Al Jazeera.
“It also provides more credibility to future government negotiations with the Houthis,” the report added.
Peter Salisbury, a Yemen expert at the International Crisis Group said, “The deal prevents a collapse of the fragile alliance of Yemeni forces that Saudi Arabia has supported since intervening in Yemen in March 2015 to prevent Houthi rebels from taking over the country.”
“The question now is whether the agreement can act as a bridge to a nationwide political settlement or if it simply marks a pause before another round of violence,” he added.