UN, US press for broader Yemen truce after unilateral moves
Gulf Times
A general view shows a conference on Yemen’s devastating war hosted by the six-nation Gulf Co-operation Council in the Saudi capital Riyadh, yesterday, hours after the coalition announced a ceasefire for the holy month of Ramadan.
United Nations and United States envoys yesterday welcomed unilateral truce moves by Yemen’s warring sides as encouraging steps, while stressing the need for a more comprehensive ceasefire that would help alleviate a dire humanitarian crisis. The coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthis had said it would temporarily halt military operations from yesterday after the group this week declared a three-day cessation of cross-border attacks and ground offensives in Yemen. As part of efforts to end the seven-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and pushed millions into hunger, the initiatives followed a UN call for a truce during the holy month of Ramadan that starts this week. UN special envoy Hans Grundberg and US special envoy Tim Lenderking, speaking at a gathering of allied Yemeni factions in Riyadh yesterday, said the unilateral announcements were a step in the right direction. The two envoys have been pressing Riyadh to ease coalition sea and air restrictions on areas held by the Houthis, who ousted the government from the capital, Sanaa, in late 2014, prompting the coalition to intervene months later. They have also urged the Houthis to end an offensive in energy-producing Marib, the internationally recognised government’s last stronghold in North Yemen. “Yemen needs a truce. I am engaging with the parties with a sense of urgency to reach this truce by the beginning of Ramadan. The truce will ease the fuel crisis and facilitate the freedom of movement,” Grundberg told the gathering. Lenderking said the UN proposal could serve as a first step towards a comprehensive ceasefire and a “new, more inclusive political process”. Two sources familiar with the matter had said the proposal was for a temporary truce in exchange for allowing fuel ships to dock at Houthi-held Hodeidah port and a small number of commercial flights to operate from Sanaa airport. A permanent ceasefire has proved elusive as both sides resisted compromise. The Houthis want the coalition to lift its blockade ahead of any truce talks while the alliance, which controls Yemen’s seas and air space, wants a simultaneous deal. Houthi chief negotiator Mohamed Abdulsalam told Reuters the group has for over a month been discussing a “humanitarian truce” with Grundberg and hoped “those efforts will succeed”.