Saudis bomb Yemen hours after announcing end to airstrikes

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, April 22 (UPI) -- Saudi warplanes attacked Houthi rebel positions in southern Yemen on Wednesday, hours after Saudi Arabia announced an end to its month-long bombing campaign.

"Operation Decisive Storm" ended because aerial bombing by a coalition of Arab nations, notably Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, with the United States providing logistic and intelligence support, had achieved its goal, Saudi authorities said.

A new initiative aimed at shoring up Yemen politically, Operation Renewal of Hope, was announced, but thereafter rebel positions at Taiz were bombed during heavy fighting on the ground.

A goal, to eliminate Iran-backed Houthi rebels across Yemen, has not been accomplished. Neither has Saudi Arabia's objective of returning exiled Yemeni President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi to power. On Tuesday, in announcing the cessation of airstrikes, the Saudi government said it would still "counter any military moves by the Houthis or their allies," a suggestion that other countries could be brought into the conflict with Saudi financing of troops.

The bombing campaign was initially stopped because heavy weapons and missiles taken by the Houthis in Yemen had been destroyed, Saudi officials said.

Saudi Arabia has been under growing international pressure to halt the bombings, with the United Nations and others citing the large number of civilians killed in the airstrikes.

The Saudi-led coalition insisted it is concentrating on a political solution to the conflict. A statement from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Kuwait, each a coalition member, said it still seeks "security and stability through establishing a political process" in Yemen.