The US and France have condemned Saturday’s attack on a convoy of Yemeni authorities in the southern governorate of Taiz and called for an end to what could be a new escalation of violence in the country in light of a recent upsurge in fighting after weeks of low-intensity skirmishes between the army and the Huthi insurgency.
Yesterday’s attack, carried out by a drone, left at least one dead and two wounded, both bodyguards of a convoy carrying at least the governor of Taiz, Nabil Shamsan, as confirmed by the Yemeni government.
However, multiple sources have confirmed to Arab News and the Yemeni news portal South24 that the convoy also included the Minister of Defense, Mohsen al Daari, and the Chief of Army Staff, Sagheer bin Aziz.
All of them came from the port city of Mocha where, this past Friday, the minister and the chief of the General Staff participated in a meeting of the security leadership with a delegation from Saudi Arabia, a major ally of the Yemeni government in the conflict.
The Yemeni government and its allies have condemned the attack, which they attribute to the Huthi insurgency. The French Embassy in Yemen has expressed in a statement »its condolences to the families of the victims» for an »attack shows once again the violent nature of the Huthis, which impedes all peace efforts».
The attack comes after several days of spike in fighting that has claimed the lives of dozens of members of both sides, which began with an insurgent offensive against government troops in the district of Hareb, southern Marib province.
These attacks, as well as other less intense shelling and ground attacks in Taiz, have shattered hopes for a peaceful solution to the war, which had emerged following the last successful round of prisoner exchange talks between the Huthis and the Yemeni government, which resulted in an agreement in principle to release more than 800 prisoners during Ramadan.
The US Embassy in Yemen, in this regard, has conveyed its condemnation of the »Huthi escalation in Taiz and Marib. »We need to stop exacerbating the suffering of Yemenis,» according to a statement posted on its social networks.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
