Clashes in the Yemeni city of Al Hudeida despite the UN truce
Violent clashes broke out on Monday between Houthi rebels and government forces in the port city of Al Hudeida, in western Yemen, despite the UN-brokered truce that has been in effect in the city since last December.
Residents of Al Hudeida told Efe that the clashes broke out in the southern and eastern suburbs of the city during the night of Sunday to Monday, and that the two sides exchanged artillery and mortar rounds.
One of the inhabitants, named Abdulkarim Ayish, said in a telephone conversation that the explosions "made the windows tremble" in his house, despite the distance from the fighting area and that he could not sleep all night.
"There is no truce," lamented Ayish, referring to the ceasefire declared in December with the UN measurement and which has been repeatedly violated by the two sides in conflict in recent months.
According to that pact, sealed in Stockholm by the Shiite rebels and the internationally recognized Government, the two sides should have withdrawn their forces from the city but have not yet done so, nor the port of the same, which is of great importance because Through it, most of the basic goods and humanitarian aid enter Yemen.
The agreement also stipulates an exchange of prisoners that has not taken place at the moment and both parties have accused each other of violating the points of the pact, while the UN is doing everything possible so that it does not collapse altogether.
The conflict in Yemen began in late 2014, when the Houthis took control of large areas of the west and north of the country, including Al Hudeida and the capital, Sanaa.
