Hans Grundberg, the UN Special Envoy to Yemen, called on the country’s warring parties to take efforts to minimize bloodshed and alleviate the suffering of Yemenis on Wednesday.
Grundberg also encouraged all parties participating in Yemen’s war to “engage constructively and in good faith with the ongoing efforts to urgently reach a truce” in a message on Twitter.
The Yemeni government and the Houthi rebels have not responded to Grundberg’s call.
Grundberg said on Sunday that he discussed the establishment of “a possible truce” in Yemen with the Houthi party and Omani authorities during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which begins in early April.
Since 2014, when Iran-aligned Houthi rebels controlled much of the country, including the capital Sanaa, Yemen has been immersed in bloodshed and chaos.
According to UN estimates, the conflict has generated one of the world’s biggest man-made humanitarian catastrophes, with about 80 percent of the nation, or roughly 30 million people, in need of humanitarian aid and protection, and more than 13 million in danger of starvation.
