Yemeni president urges Saudi-led coalition to continue pounding Houthis

Yemeni President Abd Rabbou Mansour Hadi urged on Saturday the Arab states to continue their military operation against the Shiite Houthi group until it is fully defeated.

Speaking at the 26th Arab League summit in Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh city, Hadi urged the Saudi-led coalition forces which have been pounding the Iran-backed Houthi group to go on with their airstrikes until the rebels' surrender and defeat.

Saudi Arabia and fellow Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states launched airstrikes on Houthi positions in Yemen on Thursday, a move condemned by Iran but supported by the United States, Egypt, Jordan, and Morocco.

The airstrikes came hours after Yemen officially called for an Arab militarily intervention to thwart the Houthis' bid to seize power.

Yemen has been gripped by widespread violence in the southern region since early February, raising fears that the impoverished country is slipping into a civil war.

The Houthis, who have seized large parts of the country including its capital Sanaa, ousted the Yemeni president who fled to the southern port city of Aden.

The Yemeni president said he faced real hazards to be able to attend Saturday's summit meeting in order to represent Yemen's legitimate and constitutional authorities.

"We invited all parties to dialogue, but these militias and their allies outside the country have led an all-out bloody war in Yemen," Hadi said.

"This is why I had to ask for international protection," he stressed, adding that the Saudi-led campaign is meant to protect the Yemeni people.

Earlier on Saturday, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi said the Arabs have the right to deter any hostile actions against any Arab friendly country.

During the opening session of the 26th AL summit, Sisi, who chairs this year's meeting, said the Arabs will not attack any country, but they have the right to defend themselves from any hostilities. Endit