US Secretary of State John Kerry arrived on Monday in Muscat, to discuss Yemen crisis with Omani officials and efforts to reach a peaceful settlement to the 19-month conflict.

Kerry met with Yousuf Bin Alawi, Minster Responsible for Foreign Affairs on Monday and discussed with him the regional issues particularly the Yemeni crisis, according to Oman News Agency (ONA).

Kerry and Oman’s Bin Alawi discussed the “peaceful and humanitarian role played by the sultanate in Yemen,” ONA reported.

The US chief diplomat has been pushing for a settlement of Yemen’s deadly conflict, which escalated with the military intervention of a Saudi-led coalition to support the government against Iran-backed Al Houthi rebels in March 2015.

According to the US State Department, Kerry was expected to meet Sultan Qaboos Bin Said on Monday. The Ministry of Forein Affairs had not issued a statement in this regard.

According to news reports, Kerry was expected to meet the official spokesman of Ansar Allah Mohamad Abdul Salam in Muscat on Monday to discuss the UN peace plan to end the crisis in Yemen.

Ansar Allah is the political arm for the Al Houthi movement.

Kerry was also expected to push Abdul Salam to release detained Americans in Sana’a. Three of them were released through Omani mediation recently

Yemeni President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi rejected last month a peace proposal submitted by UN envoy Esmail Ould Shaikh Ahmad aimed at ending the war in his impoverished country.

Oman has played the role of mediator to facilitate communications between the warring parties in Yemen. In October, Ould Shaikh Ahmad, Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Yemen, met with several Yemeni parties in Muscat to find a peaceful solution for the crisis.

After Oman, Kerry will travel to Abu Dhabi for talks on regional conflicts, including Syria

source : gulfnews