US ambassador blames Houthis for Yemen peace deal delays in Hodeidah

The US ambassador to Yemen blamed the Houthi movement on Thursday for the stalling of a UN-led peace deal in the main port of Hodeidah, saying that the group’s weapons pose a threat to other countries in the region. The Saudi-backed Yemeni government and the Houthis reached a ceasefire and troop withdrawal deal for Hodeidah, which is under Houthi control, at talks in Sweden in December. The truce has largely held, but the troop withdrawal has yet to materialize. “We are greatly frustrated by what we see as delays and stalling on the part of the Houthis,” ambassador Matthew Tueller told a news conference in the southern port of Aden, where the internationally recognized government is based, Reuters reports.