This comes prior to a peace dialogue hosted by the UN in Switzerland
Image: AAP
The ceasefire, to be put into effect at noon on the 15th of December, until 21rst December, can be seen as a prerequisite to allow the peace talks in Switzerland to be carried out smoothly. However, the Saudi-led coalition which has continuously thrown its weight behind the Yemen government, has cautioned that it will respond without constraint if provoked. A war that has killed at least 6,000 people so far, out of which around half are known to be civilians, could escalate into a larger war unless intervention is practiced at this point— hence making the UN-led talks necessary.
It all began in March 2015, when the Yemeni government was pushed into exile by insurgents from a Houthi rebel group and its supporters. In that light, the deliberations in Switzerland will be attended by representatives of both, the government and the Shia-Houthi rebel group. The truce was proposed when a Saudi military commander and an Emirati official were allegedly killed alongside other Saudi, Yemeni and Sudanese soldiers, reportedly attacked by a Houthi missile in Taiz, a city under rebel control. The ceasefire that was to be enforced by midnight on Monday (14th December) was pushed back until Tuesday by Saudi officials, due to an attack that wasn’t called for.
The Houthi rebels, when infiltrating Yemen for the first time had seized the city of Sanaa and then Aden, after which the Saudi-led coalition was forced to launch a military effort. Although Aden and Marib have been taken back ever since, Taiz is still known to be hoarded with rebels. Moreover, these killings are thought to be the most lethal attacks on the military after 45 Emirati troops were left dead by a Tochka missile that hit Marib, a province located east of Sanaa.
This Middle-Eastern uprising in Yemen, that has driven out thousands of foreign residents and killed hundreds of others, has also left nearly four-fifths of the Yemeni population (21 million people) in poverty, distress and in desperate need of humanitarian aid.
Source: BBC
Tags: Yemen Yemen ceasefire
