British ambassador to Yemen denies talks between UAE, Houthis

The United Kingdom is not in talks with the UAE and militias loyal to Yemen’s deposed leader Ali Abdullah Saleh, the British ambassador to the war-torn country said earlier this week denying reports of negotiations in Cairo.

“Reports that UK is in talks with USA, UAE & Saleh's GPC in Cairo not true. Met range of Yemenis there last week,” Edmund Fitten-Brown tweeted on July 23.

The same messaged linked to Tweet he had sent out earlier that read: “Useful conversations with Yemenis in Cairo over Eid. Reminder of historical links between Egypt and Yemen.”

The United Nations Security Council passed a resolution in April imposing an arms embargo against Yemen’s Houthi militias and blacklisting Saleh.

Resolution 2216 was passed under Chapter 7 of the U.N. Charter and imposes sanctions against the leader of the Houthi movement along with Saleh.

A coalition of Arab states has been bombarding Houthi forces since late March in a bid to reinstate Yemeni President Abdrabbu Mansour Hadi. It has also run training programs for Yemeni soldiers loyal to Hadi and dropped arms to local forces fighting the Houti and Saleh militiamen.