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Russian diplomat calls on Yemeni forces to pool efforts against terrorists

Armed confrontation between government forces and Houthi rebels from the Ansar Allah movement has been going on in Yemen since August 2014, reaching the most active phase in March 2015

UNITED NATIONS, November 22. /TASS/. Russia’s First Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Dmitry Polyansky has called on Yemen’s political forces to consolidate efforts to counter terrorism.

"We have to state that the armed confrontation in Yemen only fosters terrorism, helping terrorist organizations to consolidate their positions," Polyansky told the United Nations Security Council session on the situation in Yemen.

"Based on Syria’s experience, we know that it is necessary to fight against militants already now, not putting off these efforts," he stressed. "The sooner Yemeni parties pool their efforts against the terrorist threat, the less chances there are that radicals will be able to keep their positions."

Armed confrontation between government forces and Houthi rebels from the Ansar Allah movement has been going on in Yemen since August 2014, reaching the most active phase in March 2015 after the Saudi-led coalition invaded the country. Along with Saudi Arabia, the coalition includes Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Pakistan and Sudan. The country’s capital city Sana’a is now controlled by the Houthi.

The conflict has entailed the most severe humanitarian crisis of today, with more than 24 million Yemenis, or about 80% of the country’s population, being in need of humanitarian assistance and the number of internally displaced people exceeding three million, according to the United Nations data.