Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for Yemen, Hans Grundberg welcomed on Saturday the positive reactions by all sides to the two-month truce reached in Yemen.
In a statement, he further stresses the importance of building on the agreement to restore some trust between the warring parties and resume a political process aimed at ending the conflict.
“The two-month truce started at 7 p.m. tonight. As of tonight, all offensive ground, aerial and naval military operations should cease,” he announced.
“The success of this initiative will depend on the warring parties’ continued commitment to implementing the truce agreement with its accompanying humanitarian measures. I also hope the goodwill that we saw from all sides in public will translate into long-term de-escalation of inflammatory media rhetoric and hate speech.”
The terms of the two-months truce include facilitating the entry of 18 fuel ships into the ports of Hodeidah and allowing two commercial flights a week to and from Sanaa airport. The terms also include convening a meeting between the parties to agree on opening roads in Taiz and elsewhere to improve civilians’ freedom of movement inside Yemen.
“My heartfelt congratulations to all Yemenis on the start of the holy month of Ramadan,” Grundberg said. “I hope the onset of this truce will give Yemenis a chance to celebrate the holy month in peace, safety and tranquility.”
The truce was declared during the intra-Yemeni consultations that kicked off in Riyadh on Wednesday. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is sponsoring the talks, which will end on April 7.
The consultations will resume on Sunday with talks focusing on challenges in six fields: politics, economy, security, media, and humanitarian and social affairs. The first phase of the consultations focused on diagnosing the situation in Yemen.
