The US is pressing all sides to negotiate a solution with the United Nations, while it continues support of the Saudi Arabian-led campaign against Houthi rebels inside Yemen, Defense Secretary James Mattis said en route to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. Mattis said the US support comes as Iranian-supplied missiles have been fired by Houthis into Saudi Arabia. “And this is something, with the number of innocent people dying inside Yemen, that has simply got to [be] brought to an end,” Mattis said. “So we will work with our allies, with our partners, to try to get it to the UN-brokered negotiating table.” The fight has gone on “for a long time” and a political solution needs to come soon, he said. Since March 2015, US aircraft and air advisers have helped the Saudi-led coalition fight Houthi forces in Yemen, including air refueling and a team of advisers inside a Saudi operations center.
The six-week government shutdown did not affect the hours flown by Air Force pilots, a service spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine—avoiding what could have been a major blow at a time when flying hours are already lower than they have been in decades.
