Saudi Crown Prince in touch with Yemeni Brotherhood-linked leader

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince and Defence Minister Mohammad bin Salman has made a phone call to a Yemeni figure known for his links to Yemen's Islah party, the country's offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, Yemeni sources said on Friday.

The Saudi minister's conversation with Hmood Al Mikhlafy was reportedly focused on the battlefield as the Yemeni leader is in charge of a "resistance" force battling the Houthi militia in the city of Taiz.

However, the communication is seen as significant given Riyadh's hostility towards the Brotherhood, which it branded as a "terrorist" organisation in March last year.  

The move came as Yemeni Vice President and Prime Minister Khalid Bahah met in Riyadh a number of leading figures in the Islah party, according to Yemen's Sabaa News Agency.

The Islah leaders included the Chairman of the Supreme Committee of the party Muhammad Al-Yadumi, and the party's Secretary General Abd al-Wahab al-Ansi. 

Meanwhile separately, the Islah party accused the Houthi militia of torturing its members after kidnapping them and placing them in secret detention.