UN Envoy: Yemen Talks Send Upbeat Message

Local Editor

The UN special envoy for Yemen has described as encouraging the atmosphere of the first day of negotiations between Yemen's warring factions, calling for an end to a deadly Saudi military campaign on the impoverished state.

Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed hailed as "very constructive" Friday's direct discussions between Ansarullah fighters and their allies on the one side and Saudi-backed loyalists to ex-president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi on the other side in Kuwait.

"There was a consensus on strengthening the cease-fire and the two sides were committed to the need to achieve peace and that this is the last opportunity," he said.

Ahmed further noted that an open-ended ceasefire that began at midnight on April 10 is respected 70-80 percent across Yemen. The truce was announced as a step to calm the situation ahead of the talks.

The negotiations had been planned by the UN to open on April 18, but were delayed over accusations of ceasefire violations from the parties to the Yemeni conflict.

Elsewhere in his remarks, the UN official noted that he had contacted Riyadh about its aerial assaults.

The Ansarullah fighters and their allies stressed that they are observing the truce as an important step towards the success of the Kuwait peace talks.

Meanwhile, Saudi military spokesman Brigadier General Ahmed Asiri claimed Riyadh reserves the right to strike if ceasefire violations cannot be resolved.

In January, he admitted that Saudi Arabia was stuck in a "static war" against its southern neighbor.

Yemen had seen almost daily military attacks by Saudi Arabia since late March 2015, with internal sources putting the toll from the bloody aggression at more than 9,500.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team