Yemen president ‘will not attend Geneva talks’

Sana’a: Yemeni government spokesman Rajeh Badi said Saturday that Yemeni president Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi will not attend upcoming peace talks in Geneva as Saudi-led airstrikes continued to hit multiple provinces in Yemen.

The announcement is a blow to the planned talks, which are aimed ending weeks of airstrikes against an Iran-supported militia amid a growing humanitarian crisis that has left millions short of food and fuel.

Badi says Hadi will not attend due to the security situation and because Al Houthis have not satisfied a government pre-condition to pull out of towns and cities they occupy - including the capital, Sana’a.

The leader of Al Houthi rebels, Abdul Malek Al Houthi, has called the talks the “only solution” for the conflict.

Meanwhile security officials said Saudi-led coalition airstrikes continued, hitting Sanaa, Dhamar, Hodeida and the Houthi stronghold of Saada early in the day. At dawn, planes hit targets belonging to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his family in the village of Sanhan, the officials said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to reporters.

Also on Saturday, authorities in Djibouti turned away an Iranian plane carrying aid for Yemeni refugees there, Iranian state television reported.

The report said the plane returned safely Saturday to Iran and that authorities hoped to make arrangements to allow the plane to land in the small African nation now hosting thousands of Yemenis who fled fighting in their country.

The television report claimed Saudi Arabia pressured Djibouti into not allowing the plane to land. The report did not elaborate and Saudi state media made no mention of the plane. Authorities in Djibouti could not be immediately reached for comment.

An Iranian boat carrying 2,500 tonnes of aid for Yemen docked late Friday in the port of Djibouti.

The cargo had been handed over to the WFP in Djibouti and was currently being offloaded, WFP spokeswoman Abeer Etefa said on Saturday.

“The ship carries 2,500 ton of humanitarian aid and that includes mainly rice and wheat flour, as well as medicine, water, tents and blankets,” she said.

The ship had initially been heading for the Yemeni port of Hodeida but had to change course after warnings from the United States and the Saudi-led coalition that has been pounding Shiite rebels in Yemen.

Saudi Arabia and the West accuse Iran of supporting Al Houthis militarily, something Tehran and the rebels both deny.

A delegation of Al Houthi rebels has travelled to neighboring Oman at the invitation of the Sultanate to discuss the current situation in Yemen, Al Houthi officials said.