The Kuwaiti government is reported to have approved a decision to send an undisclosed number of ground troops to Saudi Arabia to reinforce security at the kingdom’s border with Yemen.

Citing an informed source, a local Kuwaiti newspaper said on 29 December that Kuwait has agreed to send an artillery battalion to strike at positions of Houthi aggression against Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia shares a 1,800 kilometre border with Yemen. On 27 December, it was reported that the Saudi-led coalition intercepted a scud missile fired from a rebel position in Sanaa, Yemen’s capital, towards Najran, in the south of Saudi Arabia.

Until now, Kuwait’s participation in the Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen is understood to have been limited to air force personnel. Earlier in September, Qatar had sent 1,000 ground troops to join the Saudi-led coalition. Qatar’s support also included 200 armoured vehicles and 30 fighter helicopters.

This development coincides with the end of the latest round of UN-brokered peace talks between the warring factions held in Switzerland. The peace talks accomplished little, with the fighting continuing throughout the supposed ceasefire period. A new round of peace talks is scheduled to resume by mid-January.

In a report, UN envoy Ould Cheikh Ahmed had noted that the parties - comprising representatives from the government and rebel forces - agreed to develop a package of confidence building measures including a mechanism for the release of prisoners once a permanent ceasefire is in place.

Main prisoners the Yemeni government is seeking the rebels to release include Defence Minister Mahmoud al-Subaihi, army general Faisal Rajab, and Nasr Mansour Hadi, president Hadi’s brother. Nasr Hadi is understood to be responsible for intelligence operations in the provinces of Aden, Lahej and Abyan.

The prisoners, cited a local media report, are being used by the Houthi rebels as leverage for bargaining. It is understood that the rebels will only agree to releasing the prisoners once the foreign intervention in Yemen ends.

A temporary ceasefire was being sought to allow the safe passage of humanitarian aid to millions of Yemenis affected by the military conflict. The UN has reported that more than 5,800 people have been killed and more than 27,000 wounded since the armed conflict began in March.