US gives 'yellow light' to UAE assault on Yemen port
A top United Arab Emirates official urged the international community to pressure the Houthi rebels to withdraw from the key Yemeni port city.
WASHINGTON — The United Arab Emirates warned today that it may proceed with a military operation on the key Yemeni port city of Hodeidah if the international community is unable to persuade the Houthi rebels holding the Red Sea port city of 400,000 to withdraw.
“The current and illegal Houthi occupation of Hodeida is prolonging the Yemeni war,” Anwar Gargash, the UAE minister of state for foreign affairs, wrote on Twitter today. “The liberation of the city and port will create a new reality and bring the Houthis to the negotiations.”
“The international community must pressure the Houthis to evacuate Hodeida and leave the port intact,” Gargash continued.
Gargash said the coalition had given UN Yemen envoy Martin Griffiths a 48-hour ultimatum to persuade the Houthis to withdraw from Hodeidah that expires overnight Tuesday to Wednesday.
