United Nations Special Envoy to Yemen Hans Grundberg concluded on Monday a visit to Muscat where he met Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi and several senior officials from the sultanate.

The officials discussed the latest developments, efforts to support regional stability and the UN-sponsored Yemeni peace process.

Albusaidi underscored Oman's keenness on achieving Yemen’s stability, security and national unity. It supports all efforts that meet the interests and aspirations of the Yemeni people and bolster security and peace in the region, he was quoted as saying by the Saudi Press Agency.

Grundberg had kicked off his latest tour of the region from Riyadh. Ahead of returning to the region, he had declared before the UN Security Council that he feared Yemen would plunge in a “new cycle of war” amid the ongoing attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi militias against vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

The Houthis have since November 19 been launching attacks against ships sailing through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, alleging that they are supporting the Palestinian people in Israel’s war against Gaza.

The legitimate Yemeni government has dismissed the claim, saying the Houthis were carrying out an Iranian agenda.

The Houthi attacks have obstructed Grundberg’s latest peace efforts as he was on the verge of a breakthrough on a roadmap that covers humanitarian measures and the launch of a comprehensive political process.

Ending the coup

Yemeni Prime Minister Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak warned that the Houthis were seeking to topple the legitimate authorities by waging an economic and military war.

They will not stop their hostile behavior against the Yemeni people, he added during a Ramadan event.

The state, government and all political powers have a historic extraordinary responsibility to work together to confront the current challenges, starting with the threat posed by the Iran-backed Houthi project, he went on to say.

Official sources said the PM underlined to the gatherers that the government is prioritizing combating corruption and carrying out real reforms.

This should not distract officials from the main cause: reclaiming the state, ending the coup and defeating the terrorist Houthi Iranian agenda in Yemen, he stressed.

On the ground, the Houthis have escalated their attacks in the Marib and Taiz provinces, raising fears that they were seeking to end the fragile truce and resume battles. The Houthis have exploited the war in Gaza to recruit thousands of new fighters.

Media Minister Moammar al-Eryani said the Houthis used heavy and medium weapons in an attack on al-Balaq al-Sharqi in Marib, underscoring that the militias will continue to “invest their charade in the Red Sea and public sympathy towards the Palestinian people to recruit more fighters and collect more funds that will be used in their escalation against cities and villages and in killing Yemenis.”

He said the army repelled the “cowardly” attack, incurring massive losses among the Houthis.

Hours earlier, the Houthis launched an Iranian ballistic missile at Marib city when people were breaking their Ramadan fast.

He called on the international community and UN to assume their responsibilities in confronting the Houthis and to designate them as a terrorist organization.

He urged them for more support to the Presidential Leadership Council and government in their effort to reclaim the state and impose their control throughout Yemeni territories.