Yemen's warring parties have agreed to a two-month ceasefire starting Saturday and to allow fuel ships to enter Houthi-held Hodeidah port and select flights from Sanaa airport, the UN special envoy for Yemen said on Friday.
Hans Grundberg said in a statement that the nationwide ceasefire could be renewed with the consent of the parties.
Yemen’s war began in September 2014, when the Houthis swept into the capital, Sanaa, from their northwestern stronghold in the Arab world’s poorest country.
The Houthis then pushed into exile the government of president Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, elected in 2012 as the sole candidate after the long rule of Ali Abdullah Saleh.
A Saudi-led coalition, including the UAE, entered the war in March 2015 to try and restore Hadi’s government to power. But the war stretched into long and bloody years, pushing Yemen to the brink of famine.
More than 150,000 people have been killed in the warfare, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project. - Reuters
Additional reporting by PA
