2023-12-23 19:16:14
According to the UN, the parties to the conflict in Yemen have agreed on steps to end the devastating civil war. Among other things, this is regarding the path to a nationwide ceasefire and the return to a political process, said the UN representative for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, on Saturday. “The parties have taken a significant step,” said Grundberg. 30 million Yemenis were now waiting for steps towards lasting peace to follow.
The announcement came amid an increasing number of attacks by Houthi rebels on ships in the Red Sea. They want to persuade Israel to end its attacks in the Gaza Strip.
The Iran-backed Houthi rebels have launched several uprisings in Yemen. In 2014 they captured the capital Sanaa and large parts of the north, which they now control. Saudi Arabia, with allies and alongside the Yemeni government, began bombing Houthi targets in the neighboring country in 2015. However, Riyadh is increasingly looking for a way out of the conflict, in which, according to estimates at the end of 2021, around 377,000 people died as a result of the direct and indirect consequences of the war. The country in the south of the Arabian Peninsula is in one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world.
According to Grundberg, the chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Council, Rashad al-Alimi, and Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdel Salam took part in the talks. The agreement follows several rounds of talks in Saudi Arabia and Oman, Grundberg said. He will now work with the parties to the conflict on a roadmap with the commitments made. This includes, among other things, resuming oil exports, easing the blockade of Sanaa airport and the port of Hudaida and opening important roads.
Through its attacks in Yemen, Saudi Arabia also wants to prevent its regional rival Iran from further expanding its influence with the help of the Houthi rebels. In March of this year, following China’s mediation, the regional powers announced that they wanted to resume diplomatic relations. This had also raised hopes of a possible easing of the civil war in Yemen.
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