Houthi rebels seized control of a military brigade headquarters in Taiz, Yemen’s third-largest city, as ground fighting continued there and in the southern port city of Aden Wednesday.
After the rebels took the base from forces backing President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, an airstrike hit the area.
Saudi Arabia had declared the end of its month-long bombing campaign aimed at halting the advance of the Houthis, but said Tuesday that its new focus on supporting a political solution could also include actions to prevent the rebels from acquiring or using weapons from Yemen’s military.
A Saudi statement also prioritized resuming U.N.-led peace talks for Yemen.
Hadi gave a televised address from Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, saying the crisis in his country will end “soon.” He also thanked the Saudi-led coalition and said his government will restore hope to the people of Yemen.
“I express the deepest gratitude and respect to our Arab and Muslim brothers and friends in this exceptional alliance in my name and on behalf of the Yemeni people,” Hadi said.
“The alliance that supported (the government’s) legitimacy which responded to the calls of Yemenis to serve its interests. A people who are looking to live and restore their state, this is why this was the primary objective of Operations Decisive Storm,” he added.
Saudi Arabia said it will now focus on political efforts in Yemen, including the resumption of U.N.-sponsored peace talks.
Iran, which supports the Houthis, welcomed what it called the end to “killing innocent and defenseless civilians” and called the move a “step forward” toward a political resolution.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Barack Obama said Tuesday that his government has told Iran that any weapons shipments to the Houthis would be a “problem.”
“We’re not sending obscure messages, we send them very direct messages about it,” Obama said in an interview on MSNBC’s Hardball with Chris Matthews. “My hope is generally that we can settle down the situation in Yemen.”
The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt sailed toward the Gulf of Aden off the Yemeni coast Tuesday to join other U.S. warships to ensure vital Gulf shipping lanes remain open.
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