Saudi Arabia sees Yemen intervention as defence of ‘backyard’

Saudi Arabia defends its military intervention in Yemen as being based on a UN resolution authorising the restoration of the internationally recognised government in Sana’a. It also insists that the intervention is necessary to defend its own security.

 

The Saudi government made no official comment on Wednesday on the leaked UN panel report highlighting civilian casualties and breaches of international humanitarian law. But a Saudi analyst said the report documented allegations that were “largely based on hearsay”.

 

The conservative kingdom sees its neighbour, the Arab world’s poorest country, as its backyard, and blames its strategic rival, Iran, for backing Houthi rebels – from the country’s Zaydi minority – who are fighting alongside the former Yemeni president, Ali Abdullah Saleh.

 

Read More: Saudi Arabia sees Yemen intervention as defence of ‘backyard’ | World news | The Guardian