Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi asked the UN Security Council on Tuesday to intervene militarily against the Houthis, as the Shiite group continues to expand its control over much of the country.
In his second letter to the Council in four days, Hadi urged the UN's most powerful body to adopt a binding resolution under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, which allows the use of military force.
The Security Council on Sunday condemned the Houthi actions, warning of "further measures" if the Shiite group failed to relinquish government institutions it had seized earlier.
"The Yemeni people are urging the Security Council to shoulder its responsibilities and to respond to abovementioned request of the Republic of Yemen, to safeguard Yemen from sliding into more chaos and destruction," said Hadi, who is in the southern port city of Aden after fleeing the seized capital, Sanaa, last month.
He said a Security Council resolution should sanction "all willing countries" to take all necessary measures, including the use of military force, to counter the Houthi advance.
The situation in Yemen has been on a rapid downward spiral in recent months, with the Shiite Houthi group seeking to expand its influence beyond Sanaa, which they took over last September.
UN Special Adviser on Yemen Jamal Benomar warned Sunday that the country was on the edge of civil war.
In his letter, Hadi informed the Council that he had recently asked the Gulf Cooperation Council to authorize a military intervention in Yemen to oust the Houthis. The six-nation body comprises Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia said Monday that regional countries would be obliged to interfere if the crisis was not peacefully resolved.
Yemeni officials accuse Iran of supporting the Houthis financially and militarily – claims Tehran denies – as part of a wider proxy war between Iran and Saudi Arabia that also involves Lebanon, Syria and Iraq.
