Yemen warring parties agree to ceasefire, UN-led peace process

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Yemen's warring parties have committed to a new ceasefire and agreed to engage in a UN-led peace process to end the war, the UN envoy for Yemen said Saturday.

The announcement by UN special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, marks the latest step to end the deadly nine-year war that has killed hundreds of thousands of people and triggered one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.

It follows recent meetings by Grundberg in Saudi Arabia and Oman with Rashad Al-Alimi, head of Yemen's Saudi-backed presidential council and Mohammed Abdul Salam, the chief negotiator of the Iran-backed Huthi rebels.

Grundberg said he "welcomes the parties' commitment to a set of measures to implement a nation-wide ceasefire... and (to) engage in preparations for the resumption of an inclusive political process," according to a statement by his office.

The envoy "will now engage with the parties to establish a road map under UN auspices that includes these commitments and supports their implementation," the statement added.

Yemen has been gripped by conflict since the Iran-backed Huthi rebels took control of the capital Sanaa in 2014, triggering a Saudi-led military intervention in support of the beleaguered government the following year.

A UN-brokered ceasefire that took effect in April 2022 brought a sharp reduction in hostilities. The truce expired in October last year, though fighting largely remains on hold.

Grundberg will now "engage with the parties to establish a roadmap under UN auspices" that includes these commitments.

It includes commitments to pay civil servants' salaries, open routes into the rebel-blockaded city of Taez and other parts of Yemen and resume oil exports, according to the statement.

"Yemenis are watching and waiting for this new opportunity to provide for tangible results and progress towards lasting peace," Grundberg said.

"The parties have taken a significant step. Their commitments are, first and foremost, an obligation to the Yemeni people."

The agreement comes amid a flurry of attacks by the Huthi rebels on key shipping lanes in the Red Sea in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where Israel is fighting Hamas