The European Union (EU) on Tuesday expressed its great regret at the Houthis’ rejection of the latest proposal of the United Nations Special Envoy to reopen roads, especially around Taiz Governorate.
“The reopening of the roads represents an essential humanitarian component of the truce, in addition to fuel shipments through the port of Hodeidah (west), and commercial flights to and from Sanaa,” the union said in a statement, a copy of which was received by the German news agency.
“The truce broke the diplomatic deadlock and brought unprecedented tangible benefits to Yemenis, and this momentum should not be lost,” he explained.
The European Union urged the Houthis to reconsider and accept the proposal of the United Nations Special Envoy, Hans Grundberg.
He called on the Yemeni parties to accept another extension of the truce for a period of six months, after the second of next August, stressing that “this is what the Yemenis desire and deserve after the long-suffering of the conflict.”
The European Union affirmed its full support for the UN-led peace efforts “aimed at ending the conflict in Yemen”.
The Houthis had announced their refusal to extend the truce, as well as the UN envoy’s proposal to reopen roads in Taiz and the rest of the regions.
A truce was agreed upon in early April, and it was scheduled to extend for two months before being extended in the hope of reaching the start of a political dialogue to end the eight-year war.
International and regional parties hope that the current truce will pave the way for a political solution to the war that has killed more than 376,000, the majority of whom are civilians, and put more than 16 million others on the brink of starvation.
The truce includes a ceasefire, in addition to allowing oil derivatives to enter the port of Hodeidah, inaugurating two weekly commercial flights from Sanaa airport, in addition to opening roads in Taiz and other governorates. All of these items have been implemented except for the last one.
Yemen is witnessing an ongoing war between forces loyal to the legitimate government, backed by a Saudi-led military coalition, and the Iranian-backed Houthis, who have controlled governorates, including Sanaa, since September 2014.
