Aden (IINA) – Yemen’s Prime Minister Khaled Bahah and several of his ministers traveled to Aden Wednesday from exile in Saudi Arabia, two months after loyalist forces pushed Houthis rebels out of the city.

“The government has moved its base from Riyadh to Aden,” AFP reported quoting government spokesman Rajeh Badi. There was no indication that President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi — who fled Yemen in late March when the rebels closed in on his refuge in the southern port — was set to return. Bahah’s government will conduct the country’s business from Aden, including “reinforcing the Popular Resistance in Taez” said Badi, in reference to pro-Hadi fighters battling rebels in the central region.

The legitimate government held its first meeting on Wednesday in the liberated seaport of Aden, under the chairmanship of Bahah, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

During the meeting, priorities for national action were discussed. These included restoring stability as a top priority, provision of medication for the injured and continuation of relief efforts and reconstruction.

The Cabinet is scheduled to convene its first official meeting here on Thursday. In March, a Saudi-led Arab coalition launched an air campaign against the rebels and their allies among renegade forces loyal to ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh.



AB/IINA