[The Yemeni government forces announced a counterattack against the Houthi armed forces] October 5, 2020. Majed Nuzaili, spokesman for the Yemeni government forces, issued a video statement on October 4, local time, announcing the launch of military operations to "recover all the country's territory and establish complete national sovereignty." Nuzaili also called on Houthi armed personnel to lay down their weapons and stop fighting, saying that they would be pardoned. Earlier in the day, Rashad Alimi, chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council that exercises presidential powers in Yemen, announced the launch of military operations in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, to regain areas recently controlled by the Houthi armed forces.