Saudi Arabia is prepared to agree to a ceasefire in Yemen if the Houthis agree., Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said on Monday, adding that he was skeptical about efforts for peace after previous ceasefire attempts had failed. reported Reuters.
According to Media reports, The Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen has faced heavy criticism since an air strike this month hit a funeral gathering in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, killing 140 people.
The United States and Britain, which have both supported the Saudi-led campaign, called on Sunday for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire between Houthis and the Saudi-backed, internationally recognized government.
“We would like to see a ceasefire yesterday,” Jubeir told reporters in London. “Everybody wants a ceasefire in Yemen, nobody more than the kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the coalition members.”
He accused the Houthis of reneging on previous deals.
“So yes, we come at this with a lot of cynicism. But we are prepared, the Yemeni government is prepared, to agree to a cessation of hostilities if the Houthis agree to it. The coalition countries will respect the desire of the Yemeni government,” Jubeir said.
The British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, together with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, met Jubeir and officials from the United Arab Emirates on Sunday and said the conflict in Yemen was causing increasing international concern.
“The fatalities that we’re seeing there are unacceptable,” Johnson said, adding that Saudi Arabia’s approach to humanitarian law will be a factor in London’s continual assessment of arms sales to the kingdom, and it would look into the air strike on the funeral as part of that process.
On the other hand, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir said that The Kingdom will “make amends” for the airstrike on a Yemen funeral hall, added that the responsible will be punished.
Al-Jubeir told the British website ITV News “nobody feels the pain” of the attack more than the kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the coalition partners”.
He also said “It was a mistake, a very tragic mistake, and we apologised for that and we will make amends for this”.
“We will punish those responsible and we will put in place procedures to hopefully prevent this from ever happening again,”outlined Adel Al-Jubeir and said “All of us want to bring this war to an end”.
