Reuters, Marib :
Rival sides in Yemen’s year-long conflict began a tentative truce overnight on Sunday, saying they were committed to the halt in hostilities despite pockets of fighting in the hours leading up to it.
The conflict between the Yemeni army and rival Houthi rebels has killed more than 6,200 people and triggered a humanitarian crisis in one of the Arab world’s poorest countries.
The truce from Sunday midnight (2100 GMT) precedes peace talks on April 18 in Kuwait.
A spokesman for a Saudi-led military coalition, which has been carrying out air strikes over the past year, urged the Iran-allied Houthis to respect the agreement which he said the Yemeni government and the coalition would adhere to.
“But if there is any violation of this ceasefire, we will have the right to retaliate, to assess the situation at that time and take whatever steps are necessary to stop these violations,” Brigadier General Ahmed al-Asiri told the Reuters news agency by telephone.
He said Yemeni military officials and some militia representatives had met over the past two days in southern Saudi Arabia to prepare for the ceasefire and had signed agreements on how it would be implemented and monitored.
The rival sides had formed committees to observe the cessation of hostilities and facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid, he said.
The military alliance will continue to carry out intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and monitor the Saudi-Yemeni border, territorial waters and airspace, he added.
Rival sides in Yemen’s year-long conflict began a tentative truce overnight on Sunday, saying they were committed to the halt in hostilities despite pockets of fighting in the hours leading up to it.
The conflict between the Yemeni army and rival Houthi rebels has killed more than 6,200 people and triggered a humanitarian crisis in one of the Arab world’s poorest countries.
The truce from Sunday midnight (2100 GMT) precedes peace talks on April 18 in Kuwait.
A spokesman for a Saudi-led military coalition, which has been carrying out air strikes over the past year, urged the Iran-allied Houthis to respect the agreement which he said the Yemeni government and the coalition would adhere to.
“But if there is any violation of this ceasefire, we will have the right to retaliate, to assess the situation at that time and take whatever steps are necessary to stop these violations,” Brigadier General Ahmed al-Asiri told the Reuters news agency by telephone.
He said Yemeni military officials and some militia representatives had met over the past two days in southern Saudi Arabia to prepare for the ceasefire and had signed agreements on how it would be implemented and monitored.
The rival sides had formed committees to observe the cessation of hostilities and facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid, he said.
The military alliance will continue to carry out intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and monitor the Saudi-Yemeni border, territorial waters and airspace, he added.
