UAE warns Pak over Yemen

Pakistani lawmakers urging the government to remain neutral on the escalating crisis in Yemen has evoked a strong response from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) yesterday.

"The vague and contradictory stands of Pakistan and Turkey are an absolute proof that Arab security - from Libya to Yemen - is the responsibility of none but Arab countries," UAE's minister of state for foreign affairs Anwar Mohammed Gargash told The Khaleej Times daily.

Tap Here to Add The Daily Star As A Trusted Source

Garhash warned Pakistan of having to pay a "heavy price" for taking on what he called an "ambiguous stand". He added that Pakistan should take a clear position "in favour of its strategic relations with the six-nation Arab Gulf Cooperation Council".

"The Arabian Gulf is in a dangerous confrontation, its strategic security is on the edge, and the moment of truth distinguishes between the real ally and the ally of media and statements," Gargash tweeted moments after the Pakistani parliament passed the resolution on Friday insisting on neutrality in the Yemen conflict.

The Pakistani parliament on Friday passed a unanimous resolution, vowing to defend Saudi Arabia's territorial integrity and the holy places of Makkah and Madinah.

The Saudi-led coalition launched air strikes against the Houthi rebels on March 26 to support President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi's legitimacy after they seized the capital and forced him to flee to Aden.

Meanwhile, the Red Cross delivered its second plane-load of aid to Yemen's capital in as many days yesterday, urgently needed to treat hundreds wounded in fighting between pro-government forces and Iran-backed rebels.

Fierce clashes in south Yemen killed at least 25 people overnight, followed by a fresh wave of pre-dawn air strikes by a Saudi-led coalition against positions of the Huthi Shia rebels in Aden, the region's main city.