Yemen accuses Houthis of undermining peace efforts and exploiting truces to bolster their military capabilities
New York, 24 Sep (KUNA) -- Abdullah al-Olimi, Deputy Chairman of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council, accused the Houthi group on Thursday of undermining regional and international efforts aimed at achieving peace and ending the suffering of the Yemeni people, and of exploiting humanitarian truces to bolster their military capabilities.
He made these remarks in a speech delivered during the high-level general debate of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Al-Olimi stated that the Yemeni government had dealt "responsibly and positively" with all regional and international initiatives and had made significant concessions in pursuit of peace, whereas the Houthis met those efforts with "intransigence" and turned humanitarian truces into an opportunity to expand their military arsenal at the expense of citizens' livelihoods.
He argued that the international community's delay in designating the Houthi group as a terrorist organization provided them with a "precious opportunity" to expand their influence and increase their threat.
He accused the Iranian regime of supporting the Houthis with weapons, expertise, and military technology, warning that the continuation of what he described as the "coup" over the past years, and the extension of its threat from within Yemen to neighboring countries and international waterways, "would not have been possible without this support."
He warned against the Houthis benefiting from the absence of an "effective and decisive" international stance and from rhetoric that downplays the nature of the threat posed by the group.
Al-Olimi affirmed that the Houthis' use of maritime security as a "leverage for blackmail" does not pose a threat to Yemen alone, but represents "holding the world economy hostage," calling on the international community not to be reassured by what he described as false promises.
He added that sustainable maritime security in the Red Sea, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden cannot be built in the presence of an armed group operating outside the framework of the state, emphasizing that restoring the Yemeni state and securing Bab el-Mandeb is "one issue, not two, and one path, not two."
He clarified that the path to a safe Red Sea goes through a stable Yemen, and that Yemen's stability requires the restoration of the state, affirming that the Bab el-Mandeb Strait will, by virtue of geography, remain a bridge between peoples, a corridor for trade, and a gateway to peace.
He stressed that the conflict is not with a Yemeni citizen, or with the people of a region, governorate, sect, or social group, but with an "armed coup that has usurped the state and its institutions and held our people's suffering and our nation's geography hostage."
Al-Olimi noted that supporting the Yemeni government and strengthening its economic, security, and military capabilities represents an investment in the future of global security and safety, calling on the international community to assume its responsibility, implement its resolutions, and halt the flow of weapons and technology to the Houthis.
He stated that Yemen does not ask the world to build its future on behalf of its people, but rather seeks a "partnership that supports the state and its institutions and invests in the Yemeni people."
The Deputy Chairman of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council condemned what he described as the Houthis' "terrorist attacks" on the territory, facilities, and assets of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which he said had extended to targeting the Holy City of Mecca.
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