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AL chief warns against division in southern Yemen

Xinhua, May 13, 2017 Adjust font size:

Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Abul Gheit expressed on Saturday his deep concerns about current developments in southern Yemen, stressing full support for the unity of the war-torn country.

On Thursday, Aidarous Zubaidi, a former governor of Aden, Yemen's main southern city, declared the formation of a transitional political council that represents and administers the south of the country.

The council consists of 26 southern senior tribal, military and political leaders including former Cabinet minister Hani Bin Braik.

However, the internationally recognized Yemeni government headed by President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi rejected the formation of the new council on Friday, saying it seeks the secession of southern Yemen.

Abul Gheit urged the Yemeni citizens to unite in such difficult moments to avoid the hazards of sedition and division.

He added that the priority should be given to combating the outlawed group Shiite Houthi-Saleh alliance which controls the capital Sanaa.

"Opening new other fronts would divide the citizens and add more complications to the fragmentation factors," he said.

Yemen has been suffering from a civil war for about two years. The civil war began after the Houthi militants, supported by forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, ousted the UN-backed transitional government and occupied the capital Sanaa in September 2014.

The legitimate government controls the south and some eastern parts, while the Houthi-Saleh alliance controls the remaining areas.

The ground battles and air strikes in Yemen have so far killed more than 10,000 people, half of them civilians, injured over 35,000 and displaced two million others, according to humanitarian agencies. Endit