TEHRAN: Tehran's new ambassador to Yemen has arrived in the rebel-held capital of the war-torn country, the Iranian foreign ministry said Saturday, five years after the last ambassador departed.

"Hassan Eyrlou... ambassador for the Islamic Republic of Iran in Yemen, has arrived in Sanaa," foreign ministry spokesman Said Khatibzadeh told the Fars news agency. "He has presented his letters of credentials to Mehdi al-Mashat, head of Yemen's supreme political council," he added, referring to an executive body formed by Huthi rebels. Iran backs the Huthis in Yemen's civil war against an internationally recognised government that is supported by a Saudi-led military coalition.