Iran Hails Breakthrough in Yemen Peace Talks
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Tehran welcomes an initial agreement between Yemen’s warring sides who have gathered in Sweden for UN-sponsored peace talks.
“Iran welcomes initial agreements between Yemeni parties in Stockholm under supervision of UNSG envoy, and strongly supports continuation of talks to achieve final accords on all issues,” Zarif said in a post on his Twitter account on Tuesday.
Bashing the Saudi-led military coalition that has been pounding Yemen for around four years, Zarif added, “It is well past time for foreign aggressors to end their airstrikes and crimes against humanity.”
Officials from the government of Yemen’s fugitive former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and representatives from the Houthi Ansarullah movement are engaged in talks with the UN in Sweden until December 14 to find ways to end the Saudi-led war that has killed thousands of people.
The Houthi delegation says the talks have been divided into five main sections, including discussions on a political framework and the opening of the airport in the capital of Sana’a for aid.
The talks in Sweden have come at a critical time as about 20 million Yemenis, more than two-thirds of the country, are going hungry and in urgent need of food assistance.
Since March 2015, Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies have been carrying out airstrikes against Houthis in an attempt to restore power to Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh.