Yemeni President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi demanded a full Houthi withdrawal from the Red Sea port of al-Hodeida after talks with the UN's top envoy on Wednesday (June 27th) in Aden, AFP reported.
UN envoy Martin Griffiths met with Hadi, whose troops are battling the Iran-backed Houthis (Ansarallah) for control of the port city, in the latest round of talks aimed at containing the escalating violence.
"President Hadi insisted on the need for the Houthis to withdraw completely and without conditions from al-Hodeida, or face a military solution," a Yemeni government source told AFP.
Yemen's government also demanded a full Houthi withdrawal from the province of al-Hodeida in a Wednesday statement carried by local media.
On Monday, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said a Houthi withdrawal from al-Hodeida port and the city was "essential".
