An Ambassador appointed by Yemen’s Houthis to Tehran Ibrahim Dailami has signed a military cooperation deal with Iran, in the first such formal deal between the two parties.
“The group’s ambassador conveyed the greetings from the Minister of Defense in Sana’a, Major General Mohammad El-Atefi, and the Chief-of-Staff, Major General Mohammad Al-Ghammari, to the Iranian Minister of Defence,” praising “the cooperative relations that link the two countries at various levels and the Iranian position towards aggression against Yemen,” the Houthi affiliated Al-Masirah TV reported.
The Houthi envoy commended relations between the two countries and Tehran’s position on the aggression against Yemen, it added.
Iranian Defence Minister Amir Hatami stressed Tehran’s support for a political solution in Yemen, and to give the Yemenis the chance to determine the future of their country.
The announcement is the first official recognition by the Yemeni group of cooperating militarily with Iran.
The Houthis seized control of Sana’a in September 2014, forcing the then government into exile. In March the following year, a Saudi-led coalition launched a campaign to try to restore the ousted government of President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, carrying out thousands of air raids.
But despite more than four years of heavy fighting, the Houthis have maintained control over the most populated provinces including the capital Sana’a.
