War against Yemen’s Houthis set to go on: Saudi prince

By Ahmed al-Masri

DOHA, Qatar (AA) - The Saudi-led war in Yemen -- launched two years ago to shore up Yemen’s internationally-recognized government -- is set to continue, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said Thursday.

Bin Salman made the assertion in an official statement carried by Saudi news channel Al-Arabiya.

“The war in Yemen will prevent the Houthis from becoming another Hezbollah on our borders,” he said.

Since 2015, Saudi Arabia has led a massive air campaign in Yemen aimed at destroying the Shia Houthi militia -- which overran Sanaa one year earlier -- and shoring up Yemen’s Saudi-backed government.

Saudi Arabia and its Sunni-Arab allies say the ongoing military intervention in Yemen comes at the request of Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi.

Bin Salman went on to describe the months-long political crisis pitting Qatar against a four-nation Arab bloc led by Saudi Arabia as “a very, very small thing”.

In June, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain all abruptly severed diplomatic and commercial ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups.

Qatar, for its part, denies the allegations, describing the four-nation bloc’s attempts to isolate it as a breach of international law and its national sovereignty.

Regarding plans to launch an initial public offering (IPO) for Saudi energy giant Aramco, Bin Salman said the IPO would likely be carried out “within the next year”.

“Aramco’s value after the IPO may end up exceeding $2 trillion,” he said.

The Saudi government plans to offer five percent of the company’s stock in an IPO slated for some time next year.