Saudi Gazette report

Jeddah — The Coalition for Supporting the Legitimacy in Yemen has succeeded in restoring and liberating more than 85% of Yemeni territories with its commitment to the rules of engagement, protecting civilians and supporting the Yemeni people, Saudi Minister of Media Awwad Al-Awwad said here on Saturday.

He was addressing a meeting of the Ministers of Media of member states of the Coalition for Supporting the Legitimacy in Yemen to discuss the ways of coordinating media efforts and providing media support for the Coalition countries.

He said the coalition has achieved remarkable victories on various fronts, notably in Saada, the main stronghold of Houthi coup militias and Nahm front, east of the capital Sanaa, where the Coalition has achieved qualitative progress.

Awwad said Houthi militias are one of the tools of Iran to threaten the stability of the region.

He said the Houthis are not only attacking Yemenis and seizing their land but have also threatened the security of Saudi Arabia by launching more than 152 ballistic missiles intercepted by Saudi air defense forces.

Houthis did not even spare the holiest site of Makkah, which they unsuccessfully tried to hit, Awwad said, adding this reflects the indifference of these Iranian-backed militias to the sanctity of Islamic sanctuaries.

“Therefore, it was necessary for the Coalition for Supporting the Legitimacy in Yemen to confront these coup militias to cut off Iran’s arms in the region and restore the legitimacy to Yemen,” he said.

Awwad said the meeting comes as a continuation of the coordination of efforts and joint action of Coalition which was formed in response to an invitation from President Abdrabbu Mansour Hadi in March 2015 to restore legitimacy to Yemen and confront Houthi militias backed by Iran.