Saudi Arabia has suspended operations at its embassy in Yemen, and evacuated its staff due to the deteriorating situation in the capital, Sanaa. The capital is now under the control of the Houthi rebels.
The Saudi foreign ministry said today:“due to the deteriorating security and political situation in the Yemeni capital, Saudi Arabia has suspended all embassy operations in Sanaa and evacuated all its staff, who have arrived safely in the kingdom.”
The kingdom is the first Arab country to evacuate embassy staff from Sanaa, after several Western governments, including the United States, shut their missions this week, after the Shia armed group took over the government in a coup.
It was learnt that Saudi’s decision is another sign of deterioration in the security front and is also aimed to increase the pressure on the Houthis to withdraw.
Saudi is leading a diplomatic effort in New York, asking the UN to pass a resolution demanding the withdrawal of the Houthis from Sanaa.
Earlier today, Italy also announced the closing of its embassy even as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said yesterday that Yemen is “collapsing before our eyes” and slipping closer to outright civil war. [myad]
