UN envoy warns Yemen has returned to ‘full-scale war’, urges dialogue

United Nations Special Envoy to Yemen Hans Grundberg says that the country has slid back into “full-scale war” as fighting between the Houthis and internationally recognised government forces continues.

During a meeting at the UN Security Council on Friday to discuss the situation in Yemen, Grundberg said civilians, including women and children, were bearing the “brunt of escalating violence”.

“Ongoing instability in the Middle East continues to impact dynamics in Yemen, while developments in Yemen, in turn, reverberate across the region,” he said.

“Regional security, freedom of navigation and the protection of international trade are legitimate concerns that must be addressed. International engagement on Yemen must also be grounded in the realities of Yemen and the needs and aspirations of its people,” Grundberg added.

The envoy stressed that “unless war is to become Yemen’s permanent reality, the time to consider political strategies is now.”

“Ultimately, gains on the battlefield cannot substitute for the negotiations that will be required to settle the conflict,” he said, urging Security Council members to collectively support mediation efforts.

According to the UN, at least 46 civilians have been killed and more than 130 others have been injured since August, with children bearing a disproportionate toll during the ongoing clashes.

‘Dangerous escalation’

The UN representative for Yemen’s internationally recognised government, Abdullah Ali Fadhel al-Saadi, told the Security Council that the threat from the Houthis was no longer an “internal Yemeni affair”.

Al-Saadi called on the council to take “decisive, practical measures” to reduce the flow of funding, weapons and technology to the Iranian-backed group and also strengthen cooperation with the Yemeni government.

He thanked Riyadh, which supports the government, for “standing beside the Yemeni people and their government, and for their continued support to state institutions and our economy”.

This comes as Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia continue, with the Saudi Civil Aviation Authority reporting on Friday that the King Khalid International Airport, north of Riyadh, was subjected to two attacks on Thursday, in which three Saudi citizens were killed.

Gulf states and European countries have condemned the attack on the airport, with Switzerland’s Federal Department of Foreign Affairs calling it “unacceptable”.

During the council meeting, Saudi Arabia’s UN representative, Abdulaziz al-Wasil, said the UN body must address the “dangerous escalation” ongoing in Yemen.

“These rapid developments in Yemen and the continued escalation by the terrorist Houthi militias must be addressed by the Council,” al-Wasil said.

Al-Wasil added that Riyadh will “not allow Yemen to be turned into a staging ground for threats to its security or to the freedom of navigation”.