Local Editor

US President Barack Obama spoke to Saudi King Salman bin Abd al Aziz al Saud by phone on Thursday about regional issues including the humanitarian crisis in Yemen and the recent violence at religious sites in occupied Al-Quds, the White House said.

Obama and King Salman were said to have discussed steps taken to address the humanitarian crisis in Yemen.

"They reaffirmed their commitment to work expeditiously to allow for unfettered access to all forms of humanitarian assistance, including fuel, into Yemen, and the opening of Red Sea ports," the White House statement said.

This is while a Saudi-led coalition, backed by the United States, has been carrying out a military aggression on Yemen by launching airstrikes against the country since March 26. The airstrikes have not been authorized by the United Nations [UN].

The US-led Saudi aggression began in a bid to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement and restore power to the country’s fugitive former Yemeni president, Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi, a close ally of Saudi Arabia.

The ’civilian’ death toll in Yemen has risen to at least 1,916, with another 4,186 civilians wounded since the escalation of the conflict in March, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights [OHCHR] reported recently last month.