Yemeni FM: Militias seek to foil truce

Yemeni Foreign Minister Abdel Malak al Makhlafi lashed out at the militias for not adhering to the 72-hour truce that was put into effect at 23:59 Yemen time (2059 GMT) on Wednesday.

The government is keen on rendering the United Nations-brokered truce successful to secure a chance for UN special envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed to continue his peace efforts.

The militias do not realize the domestic and international conditions, he said, referring to the deteriorating domestic conditions and the international community's rejection of the coup.

The Yemeni human rights observatory registered 125 violations committed by the militias in the first 10 hours of the ceasefire.

This is the fourth truce clinched between the government forces and the militias.

The first ceasefire was secured in May 2015, the second in December 2015 and the third in April 2016.

The militias used to initiate the violation of the truce.

Since 2014, Yemen has been engulfed in a military conflict between Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and the Ansar Allah movement, also known as the Houthis, which is the country’s main opposition force. The Houthis are backed by army units loyal to former Yemeni president Ali Saleh.

A Saudi–led coalition commenced airstrikes in Yemen in March 2015 in support of Hadi’s forces, which have been fighting Houthis in the country.

Source: MENA