Washington: Yemen on Tuesday appeared to reject a UN plan to end its civil war, saying the road map would create a “dangerous international precedent” by legitimising the rebellion against the country’s internationally recognised government.
Yemen’s position deals a major setback to international efforts to end the 20-month conflict, which has unleashed a humanitarian disaster and killed more than 10,000 people.
A December 6 letter to the Security Council from Yemen’s UN mission, seen by Reuters, called UN envoy Esmail Ould Shaikh Ahmad’s plan a “free incentive to the Al Houthi-Saleh rebels, legitimising their rebellion, their agenda.” “The Ould Shaikh Roadmap creates a dangerous international precedent, encouraging coup trends against elected authorities and national consensus. Which are in clear violations of internationally established laws and norms.” Since March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition has been fighting Iran-allied Al Houthi rebels and forces loyal to former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh, and trying to restore power to internationally recognised President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi.
The coalition is yet to dislodge Al Houthis and their allies from the capital, Sana’a. The UN proposal to end the stalemate envisions Hadi handing his powers to a less divisive deputy in exchange for Al Houthis quitting major cities.
The December 6 letter detailed a list of actions necessary for any political solution, including that Saleh and Al Houthi leader Abdul Malik Al Houthi must “leave political life and leave the country with their families into self-imposed exile for a period of at least 10 years”. A senior diplomat at the United Nations told Reuters last month that Saudi Arabia appeared to accept Ould Shaikh’s initiative and had encouraged Hadi to deal with it.
The UAE, also a key country in the coalition, has said it supported the plan, which the United States and the United Kingdom also endorse.