First clashes hit Yemen's Hodeidah since truce deal

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Fighting broke out on the outskirts of Yemen's port city of Hodeidah on Friday, residents said, a day after a ceasefire agreement was reached by the warring parties at UN-sponsored peace talks.

Residents reported hearing sounds of exchange of gunfire and missiles in the Houthi-held city of Hodeidah, on whose outskirts Yemeni forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition have massed. The city is the main gateway for humanitarian aid and food supplies for the impoverished country.

Houthi-run Al Masirah TV said coalition warplanes had launched two strikes on Ras Isa city north of Hodeidah. The coalition did not immediately confirm the report.

Houthi delegation representatives arrive at the Sana'a International Airport after taking part in peace talks sponsored by the UN held in Sweden, December 14, 2018. /VCG Photo

The clashes came a day after the Houthis and the Saudi-backed government had agreed after a week of consultations to cease fighting in Hodeidah and withdraw their troops as part of confidence-building measures to pave the way for a wider truce and political negotiations.

It was the first significant breakthrough for UN-led peace efforts to end the nearly four-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands of people and pushed Yemen to the brink of famine.

UN envoy Martin Griffiths said at the end of the peace talks that both parties would withdraw within days from the port and then from the city. International monitors would be deployed and all armed forces would pull back completely within 21 days.

Griffiths told the UN Security Council on Friday that a robust monitoring regime was urgently needed in Hodeidah to oversee compliance with the truce.

(Top image: Houthi militants patrol a street in Hodeidah, Yemen, December 10, 2018. /VCG Photo)

Source(s): Reuters