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A Crisis of Trust Between Yemeni Parties, and Saudi Arabia Threatens Houthis With a Harsh Response | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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The UN Special Envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed speaks to the media after the talks between the Yemeni parties in Switzerland (Reuters)


Ould Cheikh

The UN Special Envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed speaks to the media after the talks between the Yemeni parties in Switzerland (Reuters)

The UN Special Envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed yesterday called on the international community to intervene in support of peace in Yemen and acknowledged the existence of large obstacles including the lack of trust between the conflicting parties which are preventing the achievement of a significant breakthrough.

Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said during an address to the Security Council in New York that after recent consultations in Switzerland, the negotiations have made some progress and have led to the development of a framework to reach a compromise to end the crisis. In addition to this, the committee is striving to consolidate the truce to reach a permanent ceasefire and push for the delivery of humanitarian aid to those affected. He added that Yemeni parties agreed on a set of measures that aim to release prisoners and detainees, to establish a committee which brings together military advisers from both sides under the auspices of the UN to ensure that the ceasefire is observed, to lift the blockade from Yemeni cities and to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid.

Ould Cheikh described the talks as arduous and difficult but at the same time demonstrated optimism that an agreement would be made in the end, stressing that failure was not an option for the talks.

UN diplomatic sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that “Ismail Ould Cheikh will arrive today in Riyadh for meetings with the President of Yemen Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and members of the Yemeni government to discuss the obstacles faced by the peace talks and to agree on a date and venue for the coming round of consultations. They will also discuss how to compel the Houthis to comply with the consultation’s agenda”.

In a related matter, the leadership of the Arab alliance to support legitimacy in Yemen announced that the Saudi air defence intercepted a ballistic missile which was launched from Yemeni territory towards the city of Jazan yesterday evening for the second time in 24 hours, and warned that it would take harsh measures to deter these Houthi operations. The forces of the alliance clarified that the air defence forces immediately destroyed the missile platform.