Hodeida calm after ceasefire takes effect

SANAA: Yemen’s flashpoint city of Hodeida was calm on Tuesday as a ceasefire took effect and a team including members of the warring sides prepared to monitor the truce agreed at talks in Sweden. A lasting ceasefire would be a major step in efforts to end Yemen’s devastating war, which has killed thousands and left 14 million people on the brink of famine.

The truce which came into force overnight was due to be followed by a team of observers deploying "within 24 hours", a United Nations official said.

The Redeployment Coordination Committee includes members of the Saudi-backed government and the Iran-aligned Huthi rebels but is chaired by the UN, said the official who requested anonymity.

"Both parties said publicly they are abiding by the ceasefire," the official told AFP. The observers are due to oversee the implementation of the truce, the withdrawal of both warring parties from Hodeida city and the pullout of Huthis from its major ports.

The committee chair is expected to report to the UN Security Council on a weekly basis, as part of a diplomatic push to end the conflict which erupted in 2014. The war between the Huthi rebels and troops loyal to President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi escalated in 2015, when a Saudi-led military coalition stepped in on the government’s side.

Since then some 10,000 people have been killed, according to the World Health Organisation, but some rights groups believe the toll is far higher. The ceasefire was meant to enter into force at midnight (2100 GMT) on Monday but clashes continued until 03:00 am, pro-government sources and residents said.

Calm held on Tuesday morning in Hodeida city, whose port is the gateway for the vast majority of imports to Yemen. "There has been complete calm since 03:00 am Yemen time in the city of Hodeida," a military source loyal to the government said.