RIYADH: Cross-border shelling from war-torn Yemen killed four people in Saudi Arabia on Monday, authorities in the kingdom said.

Three others were wounded and hospitalised after the incident in the Jazan region, the civil defence agency said on Twitter without giving details.

Saudi Arabia has led a military coalition supporting the Yemeni government in its fight against Iran-backed rebels since March last year.

The rebels have in recent days intensified cross-border attacks on the kingdom as peace talks in Kuwait have failed to achieve a breakthrough.

Border clashes left a Saudi army officer and six soldiers dead on Saturday.

On July 25, five Saudi border guards were killed in similar clashes.

Around 100 members of the Saudi forces and civilians have been killed in skirmishes, by artillery fire or landmines inside the kingdom's borders since the coalition launched its campaign.

In Yemen itself, the conflict has killed more than 6,400 people and displaced 2.8 million since March last year, according to UN figures.

Yemen govt delegation quits talks

Yemen's government delegation to peace talks has decided to leave Kuwait on Monday after the rebel side rejected a draft peace plan proposed by the United Nations, a spokesman said.

“We are leaving today after having completed our part in the talks,” spokesman Mohammed al-Emrani told AFP.

“The ball is now in the rebels' court,” he said.

The delegation is returning to Riyadh after informing UN special envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed that it was ready to sign the proposed peace plan which the rebels rejected, Emrani said.

The Iran-backed Huthi rebels and their allies, former president Ali Abdullah Saleh's loyalists, rejected the peace plan on Sunday, saying it was incomplete.

“The other party now has the key to make the talks fail or succeed... If they agree to the plan, our delegation will return,” Emrani said.

The government delegation's decision to leave host country Kuwait came after a meeting with Ould Cheikh Ahmed.

Opinion

Rule by law

Rule by law

‘The rule of law’ is being weaponised, taking on whatever meaning that fits the political objectives of those invoking it.

Editorial

Isfahan strikes
Updated 20 Apr, 2024

Isfahan strikes

True de-escalation means Israel must start behaving like a normal state, not a rogue nation that threatens the entire region.
President’s speech
20 Apr, 2024

President’s speech

PRESIDENT Asif Ali Zardari seems to have managed to hit all the right notes in his address to the joint sitting of...
Karachi terror
20 Apr, 2024

Karachi terror

IS urban terrorism returning to Karachi? Yesterday’s deplorable suicide bombing attack on a van carrying five...
X post facto
Updated 19 Apr, 2024

X post facto

Our decision-makers should realise the harm they are causing.
Insufficient inquiry
19 Apr, 2024

Insufficient inquiry

UNLESS the state is honest about the mistakes its functionaries have made, we will be doomed to repeat our follies....
Melting glaciers
19 Apr, 2024

Melting glaciers

AFTER several rain-related deaths in KP in recent days, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority has sprung into...