Mattis and Pompeo call for ceasefire in Yemen and peace talks

The US yesterday called for a ceasefire and peace talks in Yemen, as the Saudi-led coalition sent deployed 10,000 new troops.

Yemeni boy Ghazi Ali bin Ali, 10, suffering from severe malnutrition, at a hospital in Jabal Habashi. Picture: AFP

The US yesterday called for a ceasefire and peace talks in Yemen, as the Saudi-led military coalition sent more than 10,000 new troops towards a vital rebel-held port city ahead of a new assault.

Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said the US had been watching the conflict “for long enough”, adding that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which are in a US-backed coalition fighting Shia Houthi rebels, are ready for talks.

“We have got to move towards a peace effort here, and we can’t say we are going to do it some time in the future,” he said at the US Institute of Peace. “We need to be doing this in the next 30 days.”

Mr Mattis said the US was calling for all warring parties to meet with UN special envoy Martin Griffiths in Sweden this month and “come to a solution.”

US-Saudi ties have cooled in recent weeks after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a prominent critic of the conser­vative kingdom, that has also tarnished the image of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Saudi Arabia and its allies intervened in the conflict between Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, whose government is recognised by the UN, and the Houthis in 2015. Nearly 10,000 people have since been killed and the country stands at the brink of famine, with more than 22 million Yemenis — three-quarters of the population — in need of humanitarian assistance.

The pro-government coalition deployed its reinforcements to the Red Sea coast ahead of an offensive on Hodeida “within days,” a military official said earlier. He said they would also “secure areas liberated” from the Iran-linked Houthi rebels, and that forces from Sudan had moved in to ­“secure” areas around the city.

Houthis have for the past 10 days been stationing fighters on rooftops of buildings in Hodeida city. The adjacent port is the entry point for more than 70 per cent of imports to the country.

The US has faced fierce international criticism for its role in supporting the Saudi-led ­coalition, especially after a series of strikes killed scores of civilians.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called for an end to all ­coalition airstrikes in Yemen’s populated areas. “The time is now for the cessation of hostilities, including missile and UAV strikes from Houthi-controlled areas into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates,” he said. “Subsequently, coalition airstrikes must cease in all populated areas in Yemen.”

Mr Mattis said US support was based primarily on teaching the Saudi air force to improve targeting and to not drop bombs when there is any doubt about what they might hit. “Our goal right now is to achieve a level of capability by those forces fighting against the Houthis that they are not killing innocent people,” he said.

He said the ceasefire should be based on a pullback of rebels from the border and a ceasefire.

“That will permit the special envoy Martin Griffiths ... to get them together in Sweden and end this war. That is the only way we are going to really solve this,” Mr Mattis said.

Last month, UN-led peace talks failed to take off after the Houthis refused to fly to Geneva over what they said was the UN’s failure to guarantee a safe return to the capital, Sanaa, which the group has controlled since 2014.

Mr Pompeo said the talks would address the underlying ­issues of the conflict. “A cessation of hostilities and vigorous resumption of a political track will help ease the humanitarian crisis as well,” he said. “It is time to end this conflict, replace conflict with compromise and allow the Yemeni people to heal through peace and ­reconstruction.”

AFP