Saudi king: Yemen intervention won't stop until country safe

Saudi King Salman has vowed that the military intervention in Yemen will not stop until the country is stable and safe Saudi King Salman has vowed that the military intervention in Yemen will not stop until the country is stable and safe.

The king made the remark on March 28 at the opening session of an Arab summit held in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

The campaign of airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition was in response to a power grab in the impoverished nation by Iranian-backed Shiite rebels known as the Houthis.

Iran and the Houthis deny that Tehran arms the rebel movement.

Yemen's embattled president called Shiite rebels who forced him to flee the country "stooges of Iran," directly blaming the Islamic Republic for the chaos there and demanding airstrikes against rebel positions continue until they surrender.

Other leaders, including the leaders of Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, obliquely referenced Iran earlier at the opening session of the summit. 

They blamed Shiite, non-Arab Iran for meddling in the affairs of Arab nations, with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi saying, without mentioning Iran by name, that it was "spreading its ailment in the body."

Yemeni President Abdel Rabbo Mansour Hadi directly challenged Iran in his remarks. He also called for his supporters to rise up in peaceful protest against the Shiite rebels, known as Houthis. He said the airstrikes staged by Saudi Arabia and its allies against the Houthis must not stop before they surrender and return medium and heavy weapons they looted from army depots across much of the country.

Iran and the Houthis deny that Tehran arms the rebel movement. Officials there had no immediate comment on...