Russia suspends diplomatic presence in Yemen over security situation

Russia has suspended its diplomatic presence in Yemen and all its staff have left the country due to the situation in the capital Sanaa, the RIA news agency cited Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying on Tuesday.

The Russian ambassador to Yemen and some diplomatic staff will be working temporarily out of the Saudi capital Riyadh, the Interfax news agency cited the ministry as saying.

Yemen's conflict, pitting the Houthi movement against a Saudi-led military alliance which backs a government based in the south, has unleashed what the United Nations calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

A Russian plane evacuated embassy staff and some Russian nationals from Sanaa earlier on Tuesday, Saudi state news agency SPA said, citing the Saudi-led military coalition fighting against the Houthi movement that controls the Yemeni capital.

The agency quoted an official source in the coalition as saying it had received a request for permission for a Russian plane to evacuate the personnel, and that the plane had left Sanaa airport. 

More than 8,750 people have been killed since Saudi Arabia and its allies joined the government's fight against the Houthis in 2015, triggering what the UN has called the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

Russia has previously expressed concern about the strikes by the Saudi-led coalition, which killed 26 people at the weekend, following the killing of ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh at the hands of the Houthis.