Saudi Crown prince discusses plans to end Yemeni crisis with US National Security Adviser

Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammed bin Salman discussed the kingdom’s initiative to end the Yemeni crisis during discussions with US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, Saudi state news agency SPA said on Wednesday.

The initiative includes a comprehensive ceasefire under UN supervision and the opening of Yemen's Sanaa international airport for flights to and from selected locations, SPA said.

SPA said Sullivan affirmed his country's commitment to supporting the kingdom defending its territory against threats, including missile and drone attacks backed by Iran.

Yemen has been convulsed by civil war since 2014, when the Iran-backed Houthis captured the capital of Sanaa and much of the country's north, forcing President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and his government to flee to the south, then to Saudi Arabia.

A Saudi-led coalition entered the war in March 2015, backed by the United States, to try restore Hadi to power.

Despite a relentless air campaign and ground fighting, the war has deteriorated largely into a stalemate and spawned the world's worst humanitarian crisis.