Al-Jubeir slams Houthi 'escalation' despite Yemen ceasefire

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir on Thursday accused Yemen’s Houthi militias of stepping up their attacks Thursday and of putting in danger a day-old UN-mandated cease-fire.
Jubeir told reporters in Washington that Saudi Arabia reserves the right to defend itself from further Houthi attacks, but stopped short of declaring the truce a failure.
Earlier Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition accused Yemeni rebels of repeatedly breaching a cease-fire on the first day of a truce under global pressure to end a war which has killed thousands.
At least 11 people were killed in sporadic clashes between rebels and pro-government forces, despite all sides insisting they will pause the fighting.
The truce, for an initial period of three days, took effect just before midnight on Wednesday to allow sorely needed aid deliveries in Yemen where the conflict has also left millions homeless and hungry.
The Saudi-led Arab coalition intervened in March 2015 to support the government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi after Houthi rebels overran much of the impoverished country on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.
Five previous truce attempts failed but cautious optimism preceded the current pause after intensified international pressure following an escalation of combat.
But Maj. Gen. Ahmed Assiri, the coalition spokesman, told AFP, “there is no cease-fire at all” because of repeated rebel breaches.
“This is the same situation as the previous time when we called for a cease-fire,” Assiri said.
Saudi Arabia and Washington accuse Iran of arming the Shiite Houthi insurgents allied with forces loyal to ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Tehran denies the charges and the conflict has stoked tensions between the rival Middle East powers.
The coalition and Hadi both vowed to abide by the cease-fire despite alleged violations by the rebels.
Pro-government forces declared “respect for the truce” but reserved the right to respond to infractions.
The rebels said they would respect the cease-fire as long as “the enemy” abides by it, but urged their fighters to be ready to retaliate against “all aggression.”

Embargo to continue
The coalition says it will continue an air and maritime embargo, to prevent weapons shipments to the rebels, and maintains airborne reconnaissance.
Residents in rebel-held Sanaa claimed that coalition aircraft flew twice over the rebel-held capital without conducting raids, according to residents, who said they have had enough of failed cease-fires.
Assiri denied that any air strikes took place over Yemen, although coalition warplanes carried out surveillance.
He said a Patriot missile shot down a missile fired by rebels in Marib, east of the capital Sanaa.
Five pro-government fighters were killed in two rebel attacks in Saada and Haja provinces, according to loyalist forces, while three rebels were said to have died in attacks in the Red Sea province of Hodeida.
A man and his daughter were wounded in a cross-border attack from Yemen on the kingdom’s Jazan region, Saudi civil defense authorities said.
Assiri said coalition artillery and aircraft retaliated.

Source: Arab News