Saudi-led airstrikes get French backing

Saudi-led airstrikes hit a rebel base in central Yemen on Sunday and clashes raged in the southern city of Aden as France's foreign minister voiced Western support for the air campaign in Riyadh.

In the third week of airstrikes mounted by Saudi Arabia and its allies, Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said that France was "naturally on the side of its regional partners for the restoration of stability in Yemen", according to his entourage.

"Concerning Yemen, we are here to demonstrate our support, especially political, to the Saudi authorities," Fabius told reporters as he began a series of meetings with the Saudi leadership including King Salman.