Yemeni rebel leader backs new UN peace talks in Geneva
SANAA - Peace talks on Yemen will begin next week in Geneva, the UN announced Wednesday, as the international community tries to end weeks of Saudi-led airstrikes against an Iran-supported rebel group and a growing humanitarian crisis that has left millions short of food and fuel.
As fighting in the Arab world's poorest country continued with airstrikes against the rebels in at least five of Yemen's northern provinces, the question quickly turned to who would show up for the talks starting May 28.
In a positive sign, the leader of the Houthi rebels, Abdul-Malek al-Houthi, called the talks the "only solution" for the conflict that the UN says has killed more than 1,800 people since mid-March.
Yemen's UN Ambassador Khaled Alyemany said the government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, now in exile in neighboring Saudi Arabia, will be represented at a high level, perhaps by the vice president.
