The chairman of Yemen’s new Presidential Leadership Council has met Saudi Arabia's King Salman after arriving in Jeddah for an official visit.
Gen Rashad Al Alimi was met by King Salman at Al Salam Palace on Thursday, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Dr Al Alimi’s deputies on the council also attended the meeting.
Dr Al Alimi commended the kingdom's support for efforts to achieve peace in Yemen and the region, SPA reported. King Salman spoke of the kingdom's support for the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council and wished it success in achieving security and stability for Yemen and its people.
The reception was attended by King Salman’s advisor, Prince Khalid Al Faisal, Minister of State Prince Fahd bin Turki bin Abdulaziz, Deputy Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman, Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Minister of State Dr Musaed bin Mohammed Al Aiban, and senior officials from both countries.
Gen Al Alimi was selected to head the eight-man leadership council, which was given the task of running the country after President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi stepped down earlier this month.
The council was sworn in to power on April 19 in the southern city of Aden, only weeks after a truce between the government and the Houthi rebels began.
The UN-brokered truce, which came into effect on April 2, is the first nationwide ceasefire in Yemen in six years.
It arrived amid concerted international and regional efforts to find a settlement to the conflict, which has devastated the Arab world’s poorest country and pushed it to the brink of famine.
Yemen’s brutal civil war erupted in 2014, when the Iranian-backed Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, and forced the government into exile. The Saudi-led coalition entered the war in early 2015 to try restore the government to power.
The conflict has killed more than 150,000 people, including more than 14,500 civilians. It has also created one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world.
