The U.S. is talking with Houthi leaders to try and end the Yemen war, official says

The U.S. is once again moving to end the war in Yemen.

U.S. officials are "narrowly focused" on ending the Yemen conflict and "having talks" with the Houthi rebels to do so, David Schenker, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs, told Al Jazeera on Thursday in Saudi Arabia. This marks the first time the U.S. and the Iran-backed Houthis have talked in four years, though a Houthi leader wouldn't confirm or deny if the discussions were happening at all.

The U.S. is "having talks to the extent possible with the Houthis to try and find a mutually accepted negotiated solution to the conflict," Schenker said. His comments come after The Wall Street Journal reported last week that the U.S. was "preparing to initiate direct talks" with the Houthis, and that it was "looking to prod Saudi Arabia" into secret talks with both parties. "That the United States says they are talking to us is a great victory for us and proves that we are right," senior Houthi official Hamid Assem told AFP, refusing to say any more about whether those talks were actually taking place.

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The U.S. has supported the Yemeni government and Saudi bombing campaigns against the Houthis since 2015. Resulting famine and conflict have killed thousands of civilians in Yemen. Congress voted to end America's involvement in Yemen earlier this year, but President Trump vetoed the resolution.