Bahrain calls on Houthis to end US embassy raid, release hostages

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain yesterday condemned in strongest terms the storming of the US Embassy in Sana’a by Houthi militia, calling on the Iran-backed group to release detained employees and withdraw from the embassy building.

This is an “unacceptable act” and a “clear violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic relations, said the Foreign Ministry of Bahrain in a statement.

“This terrorist act is a clear violation of the inviolability of the diplomatic headquarters and missions”, the ministry added.

The US had issued similar calls to the Houthis last week after the rebels stormed the compound that formerly hosted the US embassy and took hostage an unspecified number of Yemenis working at the premises.

The US transferred its embassy to Riyadh in 2015 at the onset of the civil war in Yemen.

The embassy raid came on the heels of a visit by a mission representing the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (the US, the UK, France, Russia, and China).

US State Department has already vowed to intensify “diplomatic efforts to secure the release” of staff.

Coalition attacks 13 targets in Yemen

The Saudi-led coalition said yesterday it attacked 13 targets during a military operation against the Houthis in Yemen.

The attacks hit weapons depots, air defence systems and drones’ communication systems in Sanaa, Saada, and Marib provinces.

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement said yesterday it had fired 14 drones at several Saudi Arabian cities, including at Saudi Aramco facilities in Jeddah.

The coalition on Friday said it destroyed three drones launched towards southern Saudi Arabia and a fourth over Yemen.

It said the group “failed to launch two ballistic missiles” and they fell inside Yemen.

The Houthis have repeatedly launched cross-border attacks on Saudi Arabia using drones and missiles since the coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015.