Saudi-led coalition not abiding by Hudaydah ceasefire: Activist

Sunday, 16 December 2018 1:22 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 16 December 2018 1:26 PM ]

The latest airstrikes on Yemen’s port city of Hudaydah show that the military coalition led by the regime in Riyadh overlooks a ceasefire deal brokered by the United Nations, says an activist.

Yemen’s Houthi movement and the former Saudi-allied regime agreed Thursday to cease fighting and withdraw their forces from Hudaydah following lengthy peace talks in Sweden.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said the ceasefire agreement would see "a mutual redeployment of forces from the port and the city," with the UN playing "a leading role" there to facilitate humanitarian access.

The truce was the first significant breakthrough in Yemen's peace process, which is aimed at ending the Saudi war that has killed tens of thousands of people and pushed the country to the brink of famine.

“Even though that Ansarullah the Houthis and Yemeni army have agreed that they will withdraw from some key areas in Hudaydah like the main port just because the Saudi-led coalition used the existence of Ansarullah the Houthis there as a reason why the humanitarian aid is not reaching Yemen and this was all lie because the blockade is the one that is not allowing ships to dock in Hudaydah port and the Saudi-led coalition has conducted three strikes in Hudaydah city,” Hussein al-Bukhaiti told Press TV in an interview on Sunday.

“And now I just want to ask the international community, the United Nations, the UN envoy to Yemen, what about the agreement in Sweden? It says clearly that the ceasefire will start from the day of the release of that agreement … Where are the United States and the United Kingdom? Why are they not saying anything about the Saudi continuing their attack on Hudaydah? … It seems that the Saudi-backed forces in Hudaydah have nothing to do with what has been agreed in Sweden,” he added.

Hudaydah, a lifeline for millions of Yemeni people, is the entry point for most of the country’s commercial goods and vital aid. The port has seen some of the heaviest fighting in the four-year Saudi war on Yemen.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE launched their offensive against Hudaydah in June but they have faced a strong resistance put up by Yemeni armed forces – led by the Houthis -- as well as the city’s residents.