Local Editor

Yemeni political factions have agreed to a humanitarian ceasefire during the holy fasting month of Ramadan as consultations continue in Switzerland’s Geneva for the settlement of the crisis in Yemen, a UN spokesman said on Thursday.

Ahmad Fawzi said in a statement on Thursday as Sputnik news agency reported that, "The parties of the Yemeni interlocutors with the United Nations [UN] agreed to declare a humanitarian truce with the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan". 

He added that the ceasefire is expected to be officially announced in the "coming hours."

"The terrible and catastrophic crisis in Yemen requires the attention for 21 million people who are now in need of humanitarian assistance," Fawzi further aid.

The UN-backed peace talks in Geneva are expected to continue until Saturday. Yemeni political factions, including representatives of the Ansraullah Houthi movement, and members of Yemen’s ousted government of Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi are attending the talks.

The fugitive president Hadi is currently in Saudi Arabia, where he has been supporting the kingdom’s three-month-long aggression against Yemen.

Saudi Arabia first started its US-led military aggression against Yemenon March 26 - without a UN mandate - in an attempt to weaken the Houthi Ansarullah movement and bring Hadi back to power.

According to the UN, at least 2,600 people have been killed and 11,000 others wounded due to the conflict in Yemen since March 19.

UN Human Rights spokesman Rupert Colville also said recently this week that at least 1,412 civilians, including 210 women, have been killed and a further 3,423 injured since March 26.