Humanitarian Ceasefire Takes Hold in Yemen

A five-day humanitarian ceasefire between combatants in Yemen took effect at 11:59pm local time Sunday. The break in hostilities was initiated by the Arab world coalition led by Saudi Arabia that has been providing devastating air support for troops loyal to exiled President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi which has arguably turned the tide of the sweeping victories amassed by the Iranian-supported Shiite Houthis before the bombardments began three months ago. But while the pan-Arab air cover has allowed Hadi’s ground troops to reclaim previously lost territory, it has caused some 3,000 casualties and wreaked havoc on infrastructure. International aid workers have been warning of a humanitarian crisis. There has been no word from the Houthis as to whether or not they will observe the ceasefire so that aid can be brought in to the besieged population, but eyewitnesses reported shelling by Houthi artillery into the city of Taiz in central Yemen and the port city of Aden in the south after the ceasefire went into effect. Prior to the time the truce was to take hold, a Houthi leader said his group had not received formal notice of the ceasefire from the United Nations.