UN chief rejects Yemen president's accusation of bias

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has assured Yemen's leader that the world body will remain impartial in efforts to resolve the country's conflict, rejecting accusations that its envoy was siding with rebels in the country.

The pledge came in a letter from Guterres to President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, who had accused the UN special envoy to Yemen of impartiality.

"I would like to assure you that every effort will be made to maintain the impartial stance that is expected of the United Nations," while implementing a ceasefire agreement, Guterres said in the letter seen by AFP on Sunday.

In his own letter addressed to Guterres, Hadi accused envoy Martin Griffiths of "providing the Houthi militia with guarantees to stay in Hodeida and its ports under the umbrella of the UN".

"I can no longer accept these offences by your special envoy which threaten chances to find a (lasting) solution," Hadi said.

Hadi also accused Griffiths of treating the "rebels as a de-facto government and as an equal to the legitimate and elected government" of Yemen.

Hadi went on to say that Griffiths's "poor understanding" of the Yemeni conflict makes him unfit for his post.

Hodeida is the main entry point for the bulk of Yemen's imports and humanitarian aid, providing a lifeline to millions of people.

Read more: Yemen in Focus: Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia aggravate Gulf tensions

Earlier this month the United Nations supervised the rebels' handing over of the ports of Hodeida, Saleef and Ras Issa to a "coast guard", but the government said they were in fact Houthi forces in different uniforms.

While briefing the UN Security Council on the situation in Yemen last week, Griffiths urged the warring sides to maintain the momentum of the Houthi withdrawal from Hodeida — the country's lifeline to foreign aid — and to work urgently on a political solution to the devastating conflict.

There were "signs of hope" but "also alarming signs" that could threaten progress, Griffiths said, a reference to continuing clashes in the southern Dhale province.

Later on Friday, Houthi rebel leader Mohamed Ali al-Houthi tweeted that Hadi's letter to the UN chief was a "miserable attempt to curtail peace."

The Hodeida pullback is in line with a ceasefire deal for Hodeida reached in Stockholm in December.

Guterres said that he and Griffiths were prepared "to discuss the legitimate concerns of the government of Yemen referenced in your letter, which we take very seriously."

The Yemen conflict exacerbated after a Saudi-led coalition intervened in March 2015 to reinstate the Hadi government after the rebels overran the capital and other major cities.

The conflict, which forced Hadi to relocate to Saudi Arabia, has killed tens of thousands people, many of them civilians, relief agencies say. 

The fighting has triggered what the United Nations describes as the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with 24.1 million - more than two-thirds of the population - in need of aid.

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