Rabat halts participation in Saudi-led Yemen coalition

By Khaled Majdoub</p> <p>RABAT (AA) – Morocco has suspended its participation in a Saudi-led military coalition that has been fighting Yemen’s Houthi rebel group since 2015, Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita confirmed Wednesday evening.</p> <p>Speaking to Al Jazeera, Bourita attributed the move to Rabat’s assessment of “developments on the ground” in Yemen, “especially in regards to the humanitarian situation”.</p> <p>According to the foreign minister, Rabat had already scaled down its participation in coalition activities in May of 2015 after a Moroccan F-16 crashed in Yemen (the Houthis claimed to have shot down the aircraft).</p> <p>Morocco has not participated in recent coalition exercises, nor has it taken part in recent meetings between representatives of coalition member states, Bourita told Al Jazeera.</p> <p>In early January, Moroccan contingents were absent — for the second time in a row — from Saudi-hosted “Red Wave” military exercises.