Yemen 'welcomes political process but after end to Saudi war, siege'

Mohammed Abdul-Salam, the movement's spokesman, who is also the head of the Yemeni National Salvation Government's negotiating team, made the remarks in a tweet on Tuesday, after the US administration called on the Yemeni forces and allied fighters from Popular Committees to stop their push to take control of the northern city of Ma'rib. Turning a blind eye to the continuation of the Saudi-led aggression and the brutal siege on the Yemeni people that has been going on for nearly six years, the US State Department said the army and popular defense forces must stop all military operations and return to the negotiating table."We are the ones calling for constructive and successful political action after a comprehensive cessation of aggression and an end to the siege," Abdul-Salam wrote in his tweet. "Based on past experiences, no political process will ever succeed under conditions of fire and siege. The aggressor must end his hostility and attacks and lift the siege of Yemen, and we are ready to deal with this issue with a positive approach.”Earlier this month, the Yemeni army soldiers and their allied fighters resumed an offensive to take control of oil-rich Ma'rib, the last urban stronghold of militiamen loyal to pro-Saudi former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, in northern Yemen, which is some 120 kilometers east of the capital, Sana’a. Media reports said at least 16 pro-Hadi militiamen were killed and 21 others wounded in clashes with the Yemeni forces near Ma'rib on Sunday.