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Saudis end air campaign in Yemen, Pakistan welcomes decision

Saudis end air campaign in Yemen, Pakistan welcomes decision
April 22, 2015
DUBAI - Pakistan on Tuesday welcomed the announcement by Saudi Arabia that it was ending a month-long campaign of air strikes against the Houthi rebels who seized large areas of Yemen. The Pakistan Foreign Office said in a statement that Pakistan welcomes the announcement by Saudi Arabia. "This will pave the way for political solution of the crisis in Yemen," the statement said. "We share the desire of Saudi Arabia for peaceful settlement of the crisis.and said it would back a political solution to bring peace to its war-ravaged neighbor." Iran, which has supported the fellow Shi'ite Houthis, welcomed the ceasefire, which followed months of factional fighting between the militant group and forces loyal to the government, which was driven out of the capital Sanaa. "Operation Decisive Storm has achieved its goals ...(including) removing the threat to Saudi Arabia and neighboring countries, especially in terms of heavy weapons," said a statement carried by Saudi state news agency SPA. It said a new phase called "Operation Restoring Hope" was beginning. It would combine political, diplomatic and military action but would focus on "the political process that will lead to a stable and secure future for Yemen." Saudi spokesman Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri said the alliance may still target Houthis. "The coalition will continue to prevent the Houthi militias from moving or undertaking any operations inside Yemen," he told reporters in Riyadh. The White House on Tuesday also welcomed Saudi Arabia's announcement. "The United States welcomes today's announcement by the government of Saudi Arabia and its coalition partners of the conclusion of Operation Decisive Storm in Yemen," said Alistair Baskey, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council. BLOODSHED CONTINUED The Saudis called for a quick resumption of UN-facilitated talks to try to get a peaceful political arrangement for Yemen, which has a long history of internal fighting. Saudi Arabia had earlier signaled a change in its mission by ordering its National Guard, widely regarded as the kingdom's best equipped military ground force, to join the campaign, but did not say what role it would play. The bloodshed in Yemen, racked by fighting between factions supported by different regional powers, had continued earlier in the day. At least 40 people, most of them civilians, were killed in two air strikes. One raid hit a security building in Haradh near Yemen's border with Saudi Arabia, killing seven soldiers and 13 civilians. Twenty people died in another strike in Ibb province when a bridge was hit as militia members drove across. The Houthis and military units loyal to the powerful former president Ali Abdullah Saleh have taken swathes of territory and forced the current president, Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, into exile in Saudi Arabia. The conflict created desperate shortages of food and other supplies in Yemen, where sea and airports are closed. Houthi politburo member Mohammed al-Bukhaiti accused the United States of worsening the "siege" on the country by sending warships to the waters off Yemen. - Reuters