Pro-Hadi Delegation Suspends Participation in Yemen Talks
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The delegation representing Yemen’s fugitive former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi suspended its participation in talks with Houthi movement Tuesday for the second time this month, the delegation head said, in a new setback to the UN-backed peace process.
Abdulmalek al-Mikhlafi Twitter put the blame on Houthis who control the capital, claiming they had "torpedoed the talks completely," by backtracking on their commitments after a month of negotiations.
"I have asked the UN envoy not to allow the rebels to waste any more time ... and to make them comply with the reference issues before we resume the talks," said Mikhlafi, Referring to Houthis.
Sources close to the both negotiating delegations confirmed to AFP that a session scheduled to take place Tuesday morning was cancelled after the pro-Hadi delegation withdrew.
The pullout comes two days after UN special envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said he was optimistic about achieving a peaceful settlement in the war-torn country.
The two delegations were on the verge of finalizing a deal to release half of the detainees and prisoners before the start of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan in early June.
The United Nations estimates that more than 6,400 people have been killed and 2.8 million displaced in Yemen since March last year.
A major stumbling block at the talks in Kuwait City remains the form of government that would control Yemen in a transitional period.
