Yemeni leader urges public to enlist, offers amnesty to Houthi defectors
Rashad al-Alimi pledges amnesty for Houthi defectors in first speech since losing ground on the western Red Sea coast.
The head of Yemen’s governing body has called on people to mobilise and join the Saudi-backed armed forces as it seeks to counter advances made by the Houthis towards the critical Bab al-Mandeb strait.
The Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council chair Rashad al-Alimi also pledged on Friday to pardon any Houthi fighter who defects to the government forces in his first speech since the government forces were routed from the western Red Sea coast by the rebel group.
“I call on the sons of our great people to engage in a general mobilisation and national mobilisation to rally around their armed and security forces, join their ranks through official channels, and contribute each from their respective position in whatever way they can,” he said in a recorded speech.
“Our objective is clear to everyone both at home and abroad: to restore state institutions and exercise their sovereignty over the entire country, including Sana’a,” Al-Alimi said.