Yemen government trying to 'impose' own agenda on talks

Abdulmalek al-Huthi, leader of Yemen's Shiite rebels who bear his name, accused the exiled government Tuesday of attempting to impose its own agenda on the United Nations and peace talks in Geneva.

"They tried to impose their own agenda," said Huthi, in a televised speech on the Iran-backed rebels' Al-Masirah television channel, accusing the Yemeni government of using the United Nations and envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed as a "tool."

"Leave to the United Nations some neutrality to continue its mission... Stop your continuous attempts to control its new envoy," said Huthi.

The rebel delegation had delayed its departure from Sanaa Sunday over differences with the UN on formalities linked to the much-delayed talks that opened Monday, a day later than scheduled.

They had been demanding a statement published on Ould Cheikh Ahmed's Facebook page be treated as an official UN statement.

The statement names the various parties taking part in the talks without classifying them as a legitimate government and rebels -- a formulation adopted by the government that refers to the Huthis and their allies as "coup" forces.

In his speech, UN-sanctioned Huthi accused the government of "undermining the importance" of the Geneva meeting by calling it "consultative and not a serious dialogue aimed at reaching a solution... even though nothing is preventing a political solution" in the country.

"It is an easy matter."
Exiled President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi reiterated Tuesday that his government will only discuss with rebels a Security Council resolution ordering their withdrawal from seized territory.

Huthi said the government is "seeking to hamper any serious... outcomes that could resolve the country's political situation. They want chaos."

The Huthis, alongside troops loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, seized Sanaa in September and later expanded across the country, battling Hadi's supporters.

In March, Saudi Arabia formed an Arab coalition to launch air strikes against the rebels as Hadi sought refuge in the Sunni-dominated kingdom.

Huthi again criticised the "Saudi regime's... unjustified aggression," describing it as part of a "trio of evil" implementing the orders of the "United States and Israel."

A Huthi delegation had held talks earlier this month with US diplomats in neighbouring neutral Oman.

He warned the kingdom that "this aggression... will push many (Yemenis) to join the battlefield."

The conflict in Yemen has so far left more than 2,500 people dead since March.