Direct talks have begun between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi militia to re-implement a ceasefire in the war-ravaged country. A government official gave this information. The official told Xinhua news agency on Sunday that Saudi officials and the Houthis are holding talks for the first time in Yemen’s capital Sanaa. Sana’a is currently under the control of the Houthis, an Iran-backed militia. The official said that these talks have raised hopes of a solution to the ongoing conflict in Yemen.
The official expressed hope that the talks would yield a positive outcome. He indicated that ‘the local warring parties and Saudi Arabia have agreed to extend by one year an initially six-month ceasefire which has expired.’ He said an official announcement of the ceasefire is expected within the next three days. Earlier on Saturday, Yemeni officials revealed that a joint delegation of Saudi Arabia and Oman has arrived in Sanaa for ceasefire talks with militia leaders.
Yemen has been embroiled in a devastating civil war since 2014, although neither Riyadh nor the Houthis have yet officially revealed the details of the discussions. Yemen government officials gathered in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh on April 7 to discuss a comprehensive three-year peace plan to end the country’s civil war, according to a diplomat. He clarified that the proposed plan, which is the result of a series of behind-the-door talks between Saudi Arabia and Houthi militias in Muscat over the past few months, has three main phases that will be implemented over a period of three years.
Oman and the United Nations have mediated previous rounds of talks between the Yemeni government, Saudi Arabia and the Houthi group. Oman has been instrumental in facilitating the talks and maintaining good relations with both sides. The United Nations has been acting as a mediator to find a political solution to the conflict, but previous efforts have failed due to a lack of mutual trust between the warring parties and ongoing violence on the ground. Yemen has been embroiled in a devastating civil war since 2014. The Houthis are fighting against a globally recognized government. A Saudi Arabia-led coalition intervened in the conflict in 2015 in support of the Yemeni government.
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