US, UK call for immediate cease-fire in Yemen

LONDON (AA) - Britain and the United States have called for an immediate cease-fire in Yemen after months of fighting between government forces and the Shia Houthi militia.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson issued the call in a joint statement with Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the United Nations envoy to Yemen.

The trio met in London on the fringes of a summit convened to discuss the situation in Syria.

“We are not calling for this in a vacuum,” Kerry told a press conference Sunday.

“There have been communications to both the Houthi through various intermediaries as well as to [Yemeni] President Hadi, respectful of his position, but this is the time to implement a cease-fire unconditionally and to move to the negotiating table.

“We cannot emphasize enough today the urgency of ending the violence in Yemen, of providing for an opportunity for a political settlement, which is the only way it will be ultimately resolved.”

Yemen has been racked by chaos since late 2014, when the Houthis and their allies overran the capital Sanaa and other parts of the country, forcing President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi and his Saudi-backed government to temporarily flee to Riyadh.

In March of last year, Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched a massive military campaign in Yemen aimed at reversing Houthi gains and restoring Hadi’s embattled government.

Last week, the U.S. directly intervened in the conflict through a missile strike on a coastal area held by the Houthi.