The warring sides in Yemen's seven-year conflict have for the first time in years agreed a nationwide truce, which would also allow fuel imports into Houthi-held areas and some flights operating from Sanaa airport, the UN envoy said on Friday.
Most significant step in years towards ending conflict that has killed tens of thousandsA worker reacts as he stands on the wreckage of a store hit by Saudi-led air strikes, in Sanaa, Yemen, in this July 2, 2020, file photo. Warring sides have agreed to a nationwide truce for the first time in years.
UN special envoy Hans Grundberg said the two-month truce would come into effect on Saturday at 7 p.m. local time and could be renewed with consent of the parties. Saturday marks the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Yemen's economy and basic services including health care have collapsed, leaving 80 per cent of the population of around 30 million reliant on aid.'Must be a first step to ending ... war'
Grundberg said the parties agreed to discuss opening roads in Taiz, effectively under siege, and other Yemeni regions. "We immediately announce the release of the first two fuel ships through Hodeidah port," said Foreign Minister Ahmed Bin Mubarak.Houthi chief negotiator Mohammed Abdulsalam welcomed the truce. Another senior official, Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, said its "credibility would be in implementation."
The Saudi-led coalition, which intervened in March 2015 against the Houthis, controls Yemen's seas and air space.