Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Reuters
Reuters
Politics

Saudi foreign minister says efforts to extend the truce in Yemen still stand

FILE PHOTO: Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan speaks during a meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin at the Foreign Ministry in Seoul, South Korea July 20, 2022. Jung Yeon-je/Pool via REUTERS

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said that the efforts to extend the truce in Yemen still stand, Al Arabiya TV reported on Wednesday, after an initial U.N.-brokered pact between a Saudi-led coalition and the Houthi movement expired early this month.

The kingdom, the coalition and the Riyadh-backed Yemeni government are "keen on extending the truce," the Saudi-owned TV quoted Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud as saying.

The United Nations is pressing for an extended and expanded truce that would build on the two-month one that expired on Oct. 2 after being rolled over twice, and which has brought the longest stretch of relative calm in the seven-year conflict.

U.S. Special Envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking headed back to region on Tuesday to support the U.N.-led negotiations with Yemeni parties, according to the State Department.

Lenderking last week called on the Iran-aligned Houthis, de facto authorities in the north, to show more flexibility in the negotiations, specifically on the United Nations' proposed mechanism to pay public sector wages.

The Saudi-led coalition intervened in March 2015 after the Houthis ousted the internationally recognized government from the capital, Sanaa. The group says it is fighting a corrupt system and foreign aggression.

The conflict has killed tens of thousands and caused a dire humanitarian crisis that has pushed millions into hunger.

(Reporting by Enas Alashray; Writing by Ghaida Ghantous; Editing by Toby Chopra)

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.