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Saudi Arabia, Yemen's Houthi Rebels in Indirect Peace Talks

Associated Press

   SANA'A, YEMEN - Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Iran-backed rebels are holding
   indirect, behind-the-scenes talks to end the devastating five-year war
   in Yemen, officials from both sides have told The Associated Press.

   The negotiations are taking place with Oman, a Gulf Arab country that
   borders both Yemen and Saudi Arabia, as mediator. Oman has positioned
   itself as a quiet mediator in the past and in a possible sign the
   back-channel talks could be stepping up, Saudi Deputy Defense Minister
   Prince Khalid bin Salman arrived in Muscat on Monday.

   The two sides have communicated via video conference over the past two
   months, according to Gamal Amer, a negotiator for the Yemeni rebels
   known as Houthis. They have also talked through European
   intermediaries, according to three Houthi officials.

   Yemen remains a divided country. The Iran-backed Houthis have
   controlled the capital, Sanaa, and much of the north since 2014. The
   Saudi-led military coalition, which entered the war in 2015, is
   fighting on behalf of Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and his
   internationally recognized government.

   The Oman-mediated talks began in September, after a Houthi-claimed
   drone struck a key crude processing plant in Saudi Arabia - the world's
   largest - and dramatically cut into global oil supplies. The United
   States blamed Iran, which denied involvement.