Opposing Yemeni sides agree on transitional council: UN

The UN says the opposing sides in Yemen’s conflict have agreed on the formation of a democratic transitional council, which will be tasked with making efforts to end the chaos in the Arab country.

The United Nations Special Adviser on Yemen Jamal Benomar announced the news on Friday, saying the development marked a “breakthrough that paves the way towards a comprehensive agreement.”

The council, which is to replace the upper house of legislature, is to join forces with the house of representatives, making laws.The transitional council is called the People’s Assembly.

On February 6, Ansarullah fighters of the Houthi movement, dissolved the Yemeni parliament following weeks of clashes with government forces.

A day earlier, the Ansarullah movement had announced a constitutional declaration on Transitional National Council. The declaration had said the council would be set up to elect the presidential council in a bid to end the country’s persisting political deadlock.

The leader of the Houthi movement, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, said on February 7 that the establishment of a transitional council can foil all conspiracies as it would put an end to the political vacuum in the Arab country.

Last week, the UN Security Council (UNSC) unanimously approved a resolution drafted on the situation in the country, calling on the involved parties to negotiate an end to the conflict.

The 15-member world body further called on the Houthi movement to “withdraw their forces from government institutions.”

The Shia Houthi movement, however, rejected the UNSC demand to relinquish power and said the 15-nation body should “respect the will and sovereignty of the Yemeni people, and to be accurate and objective.”

The revolutionaries also cautioned the UN council against following “the lead of regional powers” which they said “aim tirelessly to eliminate the will of the Yemeni people in a flagrant violation of international conventions that criminalize meddling in internal affairs.”

The Houthi movement played a key role in the popular revolution that forced former dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down after 33 years of rule.

Ansarullah fighters have also helped drive al-Qaeda militants out of many areas in the country.