Originally posted on The Middle East Monitor, February 12, 2021
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis said that they will not stop their attacks on Saudi Arabia until the Riyadh-led military coalition ends its offensive against Houthi-controlled areas.
The Shia fighters took control of the capital, Sanaa, in 2014 leading a Saudi-led military coalition to launch a campaign to recapture areas under Houthi control and restore the rule of President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi.
At a press conference on Tuesday, the foreign minister of the Houthi government said that when Saudi attacks on the Houthi-controlled areas stop, the group will end its attacks on Saudi Arabia. Hisham Sharaf added that he is directing his message to both the Saudi government and the Biden administration in the United States.
Sharaf’s remarks came after his movement launched drone strikes at Saudi Arabia and intensified its offensive to seize control of the Yemeni city of Marib, to the east of Sanaa.
Sharaf said that the Houthi operations in the Marib area are directed against the “terrorist presence” accompanying the forces of the Hadi-led government.
He added that after battles began in Marib, Saudi air strikes targeted Houthi forces, which prompted the Houthis to respond by attacking Saudi Arabia.
