Yemen truce for lifeline port city

  13 December 2018    Read: 1768
 Yemen truce for lifeline port city

Warring parties in Yemen have agreed to a ceasefire for the port city of Hudaydah, principal lifeline for two-thirds of the country.

They reached agreement at the end of talks in Sweden brokered by the UN, which were aimed at ending nearly four years of civil war.

The war has caused the world's worst humanitarian crisis in recent times.

Thousands of people have died in fighting and millions have been pushed to the brink of starvation.

Leaders of the delegations from the Yemeni government and the Houthi rebels, who control much of the country, shook hands after the ceasefire was agreed on Thursday.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said the ceasefire was crucial to getting aid to millions of civilians: "You have reached an agreement on Hudaydah port and city which will see a mutual redeployment of forces from the port and the city and the establishment of a governorate-wide ceasefire.

"The UN will play a leading role in the port and this will facilitate the humanitarian access and the flow of goods to the civilian population. And it will improve the living conditions for millions of Yemenis."


Thursday's agreements could "be a starting point for peace and for ending [the] humanitarian crisis in Yemen", he said.


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