The government of Yemen yesterday accused the Houthis and militias loyal to the ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh of bombing 299 mosques in the country.

The Yemeni Minister of Endowments Dr Ahmed Attiya said this during a meeting that he held with the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia who is also the head of the Permanent Committee for Islamic Research and Issuing Fatwas Abdul Aziz Al Sheikh yesterday in Riyadh.

The government news agency SABA quoted Dr Attiya as saying that “Houthi militias and those loyal to the ousted president Saleh” bombed more than 299 mosques, badly damaged 24 mosques and that 146 mosques were turned into military barracks for murder, destruction and the storage of weapons.

According to the agency, the Yemeni minister and the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia discussed strengthening the relationship between the two countries in the fields of religious guidance and advocacy, thereby contributing to a culture of tolerance, peace and moderation.

In other matters, Ethiopia confirmed its support for the efforts of the Yemeni government to end the coup carried out by Houthi militias and those loyal to the ousted president Saleh, and the establishment of peace in the country.

The Ethiopian Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr Workneh Gebeyehu said during a meeting yesterday in Addis Ababa with the Acting Yemeni Ambassador in Addis Ababa Yahya Al-Iryani that he hoped stability and peace would return to Yemen.

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