Clashes Resume in Yemen's Hudaydah

Date: 20 November 2018 - 21:26

News ID: ۵۹۸۶۳

ADEN (Dispatches) – Intense fighting has broken out in Yemen’s port city of Hudaydah, shattering a lull in violence that had raised hopes of a ceasefire between a Saudi-led coalition and Houthi Ansarullah fighters as the United Nations tried to resume peace talks.
Saudi-led warplanes conducted more than 10 air strikes on Houthi positions and battles could be heard in the "July 7” district, four km (2.5 miles) away from the port, residents said. One resident said a medium-range missile had been fired from the city center towards the district in the suburbs.
"The fighting is escalating and we can clearly hear machine guns and mortar fire. This is one of the worst nights we have experienced,” said Hudaydah resident Mustafa Abdo.
The coalition led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates had last week ordered a halt in its offensive against the Red Sea port city, now a focus of the war, amid pressure from the West to end a conflict that has pushed Yemen to the brink of famine.
Saudi-backed militiamen and foreign mercenaries had last week been "ordered” to halt their offensive aimed at taking the Red Sea port city from the Ansarullah fighters amid growing international pressure on the Saudi regime to end the war.
The Monday attacks followed a draft UN Security Council resolution that urges an immediate truce in Hudaydah. The UK-drafted resolution sets a two-week deadline for removing all barriers to humanitarian aid.
Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah movement backed the UN’s peace bid on Sunday and announced it was halting its counterstrikes as a goodwill measure to speed up the process.
The movement also said it was ready for a broader ceasefire if "the Saudi-led coalition wants peace."
The UN welcomed the decision and called on all warring sides to show restraint to pave the way for talks.
In recent days, the military coalition led by the Saudi regime and militia groups loyal to Hadi have intensified their attacks on Hudaydah, which is seen as the main entry point for food imports and aid relief needed by millions in the war-torn country.
The Hudaydah offensive has sparked concerns over its impact on the civilian population as well as on humanitarian aid operations.
Saudi Arabia and a number of its regional allies launched the devastating campaign against Yemen in March 2015, with the aim of bringing the government of Hadi back to power.
According to a new report by the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), a nonprofit conflict-research organization, the Saudi-led war has so far claimed the lives of around 56,000 Yemenis.

Armored vehicles of Saudi-backed militants are seen driving past destruction in an industrial district in the eastern outskirts of the port city of Hudaydah on November 18, 2018.