Hudaydah's liberation fatal blow to Houthis, says UAE envoy

The ongoing military operation by the Saudi-led Arab coalition in the western Yemeni port city of al-Hudaydah is launched at the request of the legitimate Yemeni government, a United Arab Emirates diplomat said Thursday.

United Arab Emirates Ambassador in Cairo Jumaa Mubarak al-Junaibi added that the operation is also based on Security Council resolutions for the restoration of law and order in the port city.

The liberation of the city, al-Junaibi said, will alleviate its humanitarian crisis and bring about the required push for the stalled political process in Yemen.

He expected in a statement the liberation of al-Hudaydah to deal a fatal blow to the Houthi militia which uses the city's port in maintaining its illegitimate activities.

The liberation of the city, he said, will cut off Iranian arms supplies to the Houthis.

"This will be a very important step on the road to securing Red Sea navigation and cutting off Iranian supplies to the Houthi militia," al-Junaibi said.

He said the Houthis will prolong the ongoing war in Yemen by maintaining their control of al-Hudaydah Port, their main supply gate in Yemen.  

Al-Junaibi noted that arms and ballistic missiles smuggled into Yemen through the port help the Houthis stage aggressions on Saudi Arabia and against the Yemeni people.

The Houthis' mismanagement of the port, he said, has disastrous humanitarian consequences on the people of Yemen.

He revealed that the Houthis distribute the humanitarian aid that arrives in the city to their affiliates and loyalists only.

This, he said, makes the humanitarian crisis in the city get worse.

Al-Junaibi said the Houthi militia had rejected all attempts by the United Nations to resolve the crisis in al-Hudaydah for a whole year now.

One of the initiatives in this regard, he said, was for the Houthis to hand over the city's port to a third party.

"This is why the Arab coalition has to use force to ensure that law and order will go back to it and humanitarian aid is distributed fairly to its residents," al-Junaibi said.

He added that al-Hudaydah Port is the last remaining port under Houthi control.

This port, he added, is a direct maritime contact point between the Houthis and Iran.

"The liberation of the port from Houthi control will end threats to navigation in Bab al-Mandeb Strait," al-Junaibi said. "This will effect a remarkable change in the balance of power in Yemen and give stalled negotiations for settling the conflict in the restive country the required momentum."

He noted that the Arab coalition worked hard, together with the international community, to settle the conflict in Yemen peacefully and deliver humanitarian assistance to the residents of al-Hudaydah.  

He said the coalition informed the UN and all humanitarian and relief organizations about the operation for the liberation of al-Hudaydah from Houthi control beforehand to ensure the safety of humanitarian aid workers.