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Enough of games. Houthis should seize chance for peace

The Houthis believe that they represent a large portion of the Yemeni people and so will win the battle, but the reality is that they don't even represent two per cent.

The United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, has received praise for the way he conducted negotiations with the warring parties in Yemen, which were held in Muscat recently. Ahmed sealed an agreement for a three-day ceasefire to move towards an international accord for a political solution. This has been accepted by the Saudi-led Arab coalition. This was amid moves by the rebels to buy time so that they can loot the wealth of the country and gain from Iranian support. The Houthis' mode of operation has become very evident, as can be seen from past instances during the first and second round of peace talks in Geneva, and negotiations hosted by Kuwait for three months.They tried to undermine the peace talks by launching attacks on the Yemen-Saudi border and avoided round-table talks. The recent attack on an Emirati civilian ship, Swift, poses a great danger to freedom of navigation in the Bab Al Mandeb Strait.
The Houthis believe that they represent a large portion of the Yemeni people and so will win the battle, but the reality is that they don't even represent two per cent. Despite this, the Houthis managed to draw the attention of the international community politically and allied with ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh. Saleh is striving to maintain the status quo in Yemen, with no real progress on the ground. He stole $4 billion from Yemen's central bank, and evoked people's sympathy so that he could tamper with the country's assets. With the Houthis capturing more areas and gaining more influence, they are craving for more power. They have now become the de facto leader of all rebel groups in Yemen and want to make full use of Iranian support and bring in weapons and financial support. They managed to smuggle some new weapons into Yemen, which were used in battle recently. Negotiations for them are a diversion as they want to extend talks for an indefinite period so that they can grab complete power on their terms.
This undermines real progress towards a peaceful solution through talks and election which will keep them away from the seat of power which they so covet. It has also become clear that the Houthis and forces loyal to Saleh have some differences. They are playing covert games against each other, and are influencing Al Qaeda-affiliated terrorists to carry out terror operations against the Arab coalition and the Yemeni people. Both the Houthis and forces loyal to Saleh are promoting violence to steer attention away from their own atrocities. This will not work with those who are aware of the situation in the country. The recent bombardment in Sanaa, which left 140 people dead, is just settling of scores for the reverses they have suffered in recent months. People in Sanaa are tired of the rebels' actions, and are now taking part in daily protests and demonstrations against them. The squares and streets there will brim with protesters against the illegal Houthi occupation soon. The rebels are using every trick in the book to stir up international public opinion against the Arab coalition that is fighting for the development of the country and its people. The militia are positioning their men and arms in schools and are using people as human shields. This cannot be allowed to continue. Millions of Yemeni lives are at stake. The Houthis should return to the negotiating table before it's too late.