The Houthi rebels have been in a civil war with the internationally recognized government of Yemen for years. The result is one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world. Now the conflicting parties are said to have agreed on a peace process.
According to the United Nations, in the Yemen conflict that has been going on for over nine years, the parties to the conflict have agreed on steps to end the devastating civil war. Among other things, this is about the path to a nationwide ceasefire and the opening of a new peace process, said the UN representative for Yemen, Hans Grundberg.
“The parties have taken a significant step,” said Grundberg after a series of talks with negotiators in Saudi Arabia and Oman. 30 million Yemenis are now waiting for steps towards lasting peace to follow, he emphasized. According to Grundberg, the chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Council, Rashad al-Alimi, and Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdel Salam, among others, took part in the talks.
The peace negotiations as part of a “comprehensive political process” should therefore take place under the auspices of the UN. Grundberg 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.
One of the worst humanitarian crises in the world
The conflict in the poorest country on the Arabian Peninsula and its consequences are among the worst humanitarian disasters in the world. The Shiite Houthi rebels have been in a civil war with the internationally recognized government of Yemen for years and have controlled the Yemeni capital Sanaa since 2014.
In March 2015, a Saudi-led military coalition began intervening on behalf of government forces. However, the alliance failed to defeat the Iran-backed Houthis.
Houthis attacked merchant ships bound for Israel
Since the war between Israel and the militant Islamist Palestinian organization Hamas began eleven weeks ago, the rebels have also attracted global attention with a series of attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea. According to the US Department of Defense, they carried out 100 drone and missile attacks on merchant ships. The Houthis see themselves as part of an “axis of resistance” against Israel.
In the Yemen conflict, however, the intensity of the fighting had decreased since a ceasefire brokered by the UN in April 2022. This expired in October 2022, but is still largely being adhered to.