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UN Urges ’Restraint’ as Shaky Yemen Truce Holds

Local Editor

The UN special envoy for Yemen friday urged "restraint" as a shaky truce imposed under global pressure to end the war on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula takes hold.

The cease-fire "is fragile but largely holding," envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said in a statement. He urged participants "to show restraint, avoid further escalation, and strictly adhere to the 72-hour ceasefire." The UN official is liaising with the parties in an attempt to extend the ceasefire in order "to create a conducive environment for a long-lasting peace" in Yemen.

The envoy also "reminds all parties that the terms and conditions" of the ceasefire "include commitments for the unhindered access for humanitarian supplies and personnel to all parts of Yemen."

The truce, for an initial period of three days, took effect just before midnight on Wednesday to allow sorely needed aid deliveries in Yemen, where the conflict has left millions homeless and hungry.

Saudi Arabia began its deadly campaign against Yemen in late March 2015. The strikes were meant to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement and restore power to fugitive former president Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

About 10,000 people have been killed and over 16,000 injured since Riyadh launched the airstrikes. The Saudi aggression has also taken a heavy toll on Yemen’s facilities and infrastructure.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by Website Team