Arab Coalition forces, backing the freely elected government, reaffirmed that United Nations concerns expressed in Yemen over the ongoing military operations aiming to liberate Hodeidah were baseless and that current campaigns were proceeding according to international law.
Speaking during his weekly press conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh, Col. Turki Al-Maliki assured all Yemeni relief outlets and ports are fully operational at the current time.
“Military operations in Yemen are proceeding according to international law,” Al-Maliki added.
He pointed out that Arab Coalition forces, backing the Yemeni freely elected government, are allowing all ships scheduled to dock in Yemeni ports, whether in government-controlled or coup-held areas.
“These fears are not true, and if there are concerns, they should surround the fact that Houthi militias have obstructed the arrival of relief to cities.”
Col.Al-Maliki said that more than 7 ships in Hodeidah and Salif ports and 98 percent of requests received by the coalition were approved in less than 24 hours.
The Saudi-led coalition announced that it was launching “wide-scale military operations to liberate Yemen’s Hodeidah province.”
Col.Al-Maliki said the Houthis signing a memorandum of understanding with the UN to airlift critically ill patients abroad for treatment implicitly recognizes the former as a de facto authority, which is contrary to resolution 2216.
UN Security resolution 2216 outlaws Houthi militias and demands they hand over weapons.
Col.Al-Maliki pointed out that the World Health Organization has received 180 million dollars donation provided by the coalition, saying he hoped for more efforts for alternatives helping emergency medical conditions locally being found.
Citing an Arab Coalition initiative, Col.Al-Maliki noted that two flights for medical purposes have been approved from Sanaa to Cairo.
On the situation in Hodeidah, he said that a Houthi-fired mortar shell hit a World Food Program (WFP) warehouse, warning that the security situation is rapidly deteriorating and stands to threaten humanitarian assistance in the city and surrounding areas.
Col.Al-Maliki also cited a Houthi attack against Hodeidah silos. He expressed surprise at the lack of condemnation when addressing the international silence facing Houthi transgressions against areas protected by international law.
