UN: A 72-Hour Ceasefire Will Be Established in Yemen

The United Nations announced that a 72-hour ceasefire will be established in Yemen starting Thursday (local time). Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the UN envoy for Yemen, stated that the parties involved in the country's crisis will cease fire exchanges for three days by the end of Wednesday. According to Mr. Ould Cheikh Ahmed, this ceasefire may be extended again. This is the first ceasefire since last April between the warring parties, namely the mainly Houthi rebels and the military loyal to Ali Abdullah Saleh, and on the other side, the armed groups supporting Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi and the Arab coalition backing him. The new agreement comes after Mr. Hadi agreed to the proposal on Monday. Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi is the President of Yemen, whose government is recognized as legitimate by the UN. The rebels forced him to resign; as they advanced southward, he fled to Saudi Arabia. A coalition led by Riyadh has been formed with the aim of restoring power to Mr. Hadi and has conducted attacks in Yemen. The Houthis are supported by Iranian officials. Since the start of the Arab attacks last spring in Yemen, nearly seven thousand people have been killed in the country, many of whom are civilians. Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed stated on Sunday that he has been in contact with both Hadi's government and the negotiating team of the Houthis. On the same day, Mr. Ould Cheikh Ahmed, representing the United Nations and also the countries of the United States and Britain, called on the warring parties to declare a ceasefire. Saudi Arabia announced on October 18 that if the Houthis accepted the ceasefire, the coalition it leads would also accept it. The spokesman for the 'Ansar Allah' group – which includes the Houthi militants of Yemen – stated that this group demands the 'lifting of the siege' and a 'comprehensive ceasefire, including land, sea, and air.' Mohammed Abdulsalam also called for flight restrictions over Yemen to prevent coalition attacks led by Saudi Arabia. The recent coalition attack led by Saudi Arabia on a mourning ceremony in Sana'a, which resulted in the deaths and injuries of hundreds of civilians, has increased criticism of Riyadh and the violence in Yemen. Coalition sources initially denied this attack but later, by accusing a 'Yemeni party' of providing false information, stated that they had carried out the attack.