Europe, US See Yemen as Market for Selling Weapons: Sana’a


TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Houthi Ansarullah movement’s spokesperson Mohammed Abdul-Salam said the countries involved in the war against Yemen are aiding war crimes in the country as their weapons are sold to Saudi Arabia.

“The positions of (the United States of) America, Britain, France and others on the Yemen crisis have to do with the fact that they view the country as a market for selling weapons,” Abdul-Salam said in an interview with al-Masirah television network on Wednesday evening.

He said that the regime of Riyadh and its allies lack the determination to end the war in Yemen and lift the air and sea blockade that has strangled Yemeni civilians for the past six years.

“The inability of the parties to the coalition of aggression to achieve their objectives has made ending the war and lifting the siege a total failure for them,” Abdul-Salam said.

The Ansarullah spokesman went on to say that the policies of US President Joe Biden's administration and his predecessor Donald Trump's administration are two sides of the same coin.

“Washington’s positions differ from one administration to another in terms of media coverage and choice of words. There isn’t actually any change when it comes to the content of the statements,” he said.

Abdul-Salam added that his group is in contact with the United States through mediator Oman, and that Ansarullah does not see any problems in sitting with the Americans at the negotiating table as they are the ones directing the Saudi-led military aggression against Yemen.

“We have, nevertheless, reservations whenever meetings are just for the sake of words but not actions,” he underscored.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Abdul-Salam pointed to the ongoing battle to liberate Ma’rib from the forces loyal to Saudi Arabia and the ex-Yemeni government.

“Ma’rib has been a conflict zone ever since the Yemen war started (back in March 2015). It has been used as a launch pad for attacks against the capital Sana’a, the northern province of al-Jawf and the central province of al-Bayda,” he commented.

The senior Ansarullah official also urged Saudi authorities to end their military aggression and siege against Yemen so that relations between Riyadh and Sana'a would have a chance to improve based on the concept of good neighborliness.

In March 2015, Saudi Arabia launched a destructive military campaign in Yemen, backed by the US and regional allies, with the aim of restoring Yemen's former president Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi back to power and crushing the popular Ansarullah movement.

Yemeni armed forces and allied Popular Committees have grown stronger in their fight against the Saudi-led invaders, stranding Riyadh and its allies in the region.

So far, the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen has resulted in the deaths and injuries of tens of thousands of Yemenis, as well as the displacement of millions of deprived people, infrastructure destruction, malnutrition, hunger, and the spread of infectious diseases.