Iran urges Saudi-led coalition to stop raids on Yemen

Iran's deputy foreign minister for Arab and African affairs on Thursday criticized the Saudi-led raids on Yemen, urging a complete stop of the attacks.

The Islamic republic has repeatedly expressed its disapproval of military action since the outset of crisis in Yemen, and Tehran will continue its efforts for encouraging dialogue among the Yemenis involved in the conflicts, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, the Iranian Foreign Ministry official, said.

Making the remarks in a telephone conversation with Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the UN special envoy to Yemen, Amir-Abdollahian welcomed the recent UN initiative to host peace talks on the ongoing conflict in Yemen, according to Press TV.

For his part, the UN envoy called on all sides involved in the conflict to contribute further to finding a solution to deadly conflict in the country.

The Yemeni government, which is supported by Saudi Arabia, has long accused Iran of arming and financing the Shiite Houthi group against President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, but Iran has denied the accusation.

The Saudi-led coalition of nine countries has been carrying out military operations against Houthis in Yemen since late March in an effort to restore Hadi's authority.

The coalition's airstrikes and ground battles in Yemen have left over 5,000 people killed, both civilians and the militants, and more than 1.5 million people displaced.

In a GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) summit on Thursday, Gulf Arab leaders called for a Yemen reconstruction conference to help Yemeni parties end their confrontations via political solutions, and develop practical programs to rehabilitate Yemeni economy.

Yemeni warring parties are due to gather in Switzerland next week for United Nations-sponsored peace talks, and a seven-day cease-fire is expected to take effect when the talks open. Enditem