Saudi Ambassador to the United States of America Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir held a press conference at the Saudi Embassy here yesterday evening and issued the following statement: The Kingdom Saudi Arabia has launched military operations in Yemen, as part of a coalition of over ten countries in response to a direct request from the legitimate government of Yemen. The operation will be limited in nature, and designed to protect the people of Yemen and its legitimate government from a takeover by the Houthis and a Houthi violent and extremist militia. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries have tried to facilitate a peaceful transition of government in Yemen, but the Houthis have continuously undercut the process by occupying territory and seizing weapons belonging to the government. In spite of repeated efforts by the GCC, Group of 10 countries and the Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary General to seek a peaceful way to implement the GCC initiatives and the outcomes of the national dialogue that define the political transition in Yemen, the Houthis have reneged on every single agreement they have made and continue their quest to take over the country by violent means. They captured the capital city of Sana, they placed the legitimate president, prime minister and cabinet members under house arrest, they seized the security services and they continue to expand their occupation of the country. In a letter dated March 7, 2015, President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi of Yemen made a request to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz to convene a conference under the auspices of the GCC to which all Yemeni political factions seeking to preserve security and stability in Yemen would be invited. The Houthis rejected this invitation and continued their violent onslaught in Yemen to the point where they were threatening to occupy the city of Aden, which had become the temporary capital for the legitimate government of President Hadi after he was able to escape from Sana. In a letter, dated March 24, 2015, President Hadi made, based on the principle of self-defense, enshrined in Article 51 of the U.N. Charter, as well as in the Arab League charter collective defense mechanism, a request for immediate support - by all means necessary - including military intervention to protect Yemen and its people from the continued Houthi aggression and to support it in fighting al Qaeda and ISIS. Based on the appeal from President Hadi, and based on the Kingdom responsibility to Yemen and its people, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, along with its allies within the GCC and outside the GCC, launched military operations in support of the people of Yemen and their legitimate government. May Allah Almighty protect the brave soldiers and may He grant them success in their noble mission. In response to a question about the military operation in Yemen and the US position towards it, Ambassador Al-Jubeir said, 'This decision has not been taken easily and it has been thought of in a great depth. We have consulted very closely and intensively with a number of our friends and partners around the world, specifically the United States of America. We have held very fruitful talks with the United States of America, and we are very pleased with the outcome of these discussions. We greatly appreciate and are very pleased with the support we have received from our friends around the world, including the United States of America.' He declined to give details on the military operation, pointing out that these details are from the authority of the military officials, stressing that the aim of the operation is to defend and support the legitimate government in Yemen and to prevent the extremist Al-Houthi movement from controlling of the country. The Saudi Ambassador to USA added, 'We will do whatever is necessary to protect the legitimate government in Yemen, prevent it from falling and to encounter the dangers of the militia. The situation in Yemen is dangerous and has never happened in history that a militia was able to control air forces or ballistic missiles and heavy weapons and this is a very dangerous situation and we will do everything we can to protect the Yemeni people and the legitimate government in Yemen,' He said 'This operation as a whole was developed to protect the legitimacy in Yemen and we are committed to the safety and security of Yemen and its people as Yemen is a neighboring country with which we have great historical relations at all levels, and what is happening in Yemen has a direct impact on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Yemen is facing many challenges and we have the desire and determination to support Yemen in the face of its challenges, whether those challenges related to the economic affair, terrorism, security or political stability and we are committed, over the years, to help Yemen to move towards a better future, therefore, this operation has been developed for this purpose.'
