ceasefire

January 12-18: UN Official Fired upon in Hudaydah, Conflict Parties meet in Jordan

Saturday, January 12

According to government sources, 37 civilians were killed and 312 injured by Houthi violations of the Hudaydah ceasefire agreement since it was put in place on December 18. The government is calling on Martin Griffiths to pressure the Houthis into complying with the ceasefire.

Reporter Baseem al-Jenani, meanwhile, tweeted that medical sources say 27 civilians were killed or injured in the city of Hudaydah by Houthi vehicles.

Sunday, January 13

The Guardian reports that the Houthis have threatened to continue drone strikes after the attack on a military base in Lahij province last week.

October 31st - November 9th: Escalation of fighting despite US calls for ceasefire; Fighting in Hudaydah threatens hospitals

10/31

Defense Secretary Mattis requested that “all parties” of the conflict in Yemen “take part in UN-led peace talks within the next thirty days.” Secretary of State Pompeo also came forward, urging “the Saudi-led coalition battling the rebel Houthi movement to end its air strikes on populated areas” in exchange for an end to Houthi missile attacks on Saudi Arabia.

35 Yemeni and International Organizations Call for an Immediate Cessation of Hostilities in Yemen

Paris, 7 November 2018 – As humanitarian, human rights and peacebuilding organizations working on Yemen, we welcome tomorrow’s unprecedented coming together of legislators from across nations and parties for the first International Parliamentary Conference for Peace in Yemen to demand their governments work together to end the crisis. With 14 million men, women and children on the brink of famine – half the country’s population – there has never been a more urgent time to act. 

October 22-30: coalition sends reinforcements to Hudaydah, Pompeo calls for ceasefire

10/22

Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that Germany will discontinue its weapon exports to Saudi Arabia in light of the killing of Jamal Khashoggi.

UNICEF warns that fighting around the key port of al-Hudaydah, in addition to Yemen’s economic crisis, continues to exacerbate the humanitarian situation, putting millions of families in a desperate situation without access to clean water, food, or sanitation.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that over 3,000 families were affected by Cyclone Luban. About 2,203 families were displaced from their homes in the districts of al-Masilah, Sayhut, Huswain, Qishn, and al-Ghaydah City in al-Mahrah.

UN Special Envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths is scheduled for a visit next Sunday to Ta’iz. Also in the works are plans for UN-sponsored meetings with the Yemeni government, Houthi representatives, and other regional and international actors in Nairobi in the near future.

The Hadi government’s Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation collaborated with UN Organization for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in a workshop to address Yemen’s 2019 humanitarian response plan in Aden.

August 1-6: Attacks in Hudaydah continue; coalition ties with al-Qaeda revealed

8/1

After facing criticism and threats for attacking vessels in the Red Sea, the Houthis announced a halt on naval military activity. The ceasefire will take place from August 1 to 15, according to Houthi leader Mohammed al-Houthi, who said this period could be extended with the cooperation of the coalition.

April 11-17: Shaky ceasefire takes hold one week before scheduled peace talks

Monday, April 11Yemen’s ceasefire, which was scheduled to begin at midnight on April 10, was delayed 24 hours. Soon after the truce took hold on Monday, both sides accused one another of breaking it. The typically pro-Hadi government site Mareb Press reported violations by Houthi forces, while the pro-Houthi outlet Al-Masirah documented continued Saudi-led coalition airstrikes near San’a, Ta’iz, and other provinces. Despite these violations, the ceasefire remained in place. 

Tuesday, April 12 Four people were killed and eight others wounded in Aden on Tuesday when a suicide bomber blew himself up near a group of young army recruits. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack.

Wednesday, April 13 Mareb Press reported that a pro-Hadi military commander was killed in Nihm, east of San’a, during clashes with Houthi forces. The source claims that Houthi fighters initiated the attack in violation of the ongoing ceasefire and a number of the rebels were killed and injured in the exchange. Here is the same story, from the Gulf News perspective.

Local tribal officials and officers were dispatched on Wednesday to the provinces of Marib, Ta’iz, and Hajjah to act as ceasefire monitors in an attempt to stop truce violations and allow humanitarian aid to pass through.

US Senators Chris Murphy and Rand Paul introduced a resolution that would place conditions on US arms sales to Saudi Arabia. The proposal comes after Human Rights Watch revealed that US-supplied weapons were used in the Saudi-led airstrikes on a Hajjah market in March, which killed at least 119 people, mostly civilians.

Coalition helicopters reportedly struck al-Qaeda militants in Abyan province on Wednesday. At least 10 were killed and a number of others injured in one of the rare occasions that the Saudi-led coalition has directly attacked the militant group.

Thursday, April 14 Military sources reported on Thursday that 13 pro-Hadi government fighters were killed during attacks by Houthi forces in Nihm, outside of San’a. This is one of many attacks reportedly launched by both sides since the ceasefire began on April 10.

An apparent disagreement between the UK’s Foreign and Home offices was revealed after the Home Office issued an assessment stating that returning refugees to war-torn Yemen would be a breach of human rights due to the ongoing and indiscriminate airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition. The Foreign Office, however, says that the government should not indulge these claims by “special interest groups” (meaning human rights groups and charities) that have repeatedly documented Saudi war crimes.

Friday, April 15 Yemeni forces, backed by Apache helicopters from a Saudi-led coalition, recaptured the city of Houta in southern Lahj province from al-Qaeda fighters after a gun battle on Friday morning.

The United States is considering a request from the UAE for military support to wage an offensive in Yemen against AQAP, according to US officials. The UAE is reportedly asking the US for help with medical evacuation and combat search and rescue as part of a broad request for American air power, intelligence, and logistics support in fighting al-Qaeda.

Saturday, April 16 The US transferred on Saturday nine Yemeni detainees from Guantánamo Bay to Saudi Arabia, completing a long-sought diplomatic deal ahead of Obama’s visit to Riyadh in the coming week. There are now 80 prisoners left in Guantanamo, 43 of whom are from Yemen.

Local Yemeni committees agreed on Saturday to begin monitoring the ceasefire, according to security officials. Monitors in Ta’iz agreed to exchange records of prisoners in preparation to release them, while also agreeing to open roads to Ta’iz, which the Houthis have besieged for nearly a year.

Sunday, April 17 Both sides appeared to be ready for Monday’s peace talks in Kuwait, with Hadi’s Foreign Minister Abdel Malek al-Mekhlafi saying, “We are ready for a political transition which excludes no one...The world now looks to the Kuwait consultations as a landmark of peace for Yemenis, and we will give everything we can to alleviate the suffering of the people.” Meanwhile, Mohammed Abdul-Salam, spokesman for the Houthis, told Kuwaiti newspaper al-Rai that "There should be a consensus authority during a definite transitional phase to decide every political dispute," adding that "Iran does not have any role in our sovereign decisions and we are not tools in anyone's hands."

April 4-10: Fighting continues in lead-up to Sunday ceasefire

Monday, April 4Following Hadi’s unexpected cabinet reshuffle on Sunday, a 10-member group of Yemeni politicians said in a statement that they “completely support” the appointments of General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar as the new vice president and Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr as the new prime minister, who are replacing Khaled Bahah in both posts. The signing parties included The Southern Movement and The General People's Congress.

Weapons reportedly being shipped from Iran to Yemen were seized on March 28, according to a US Navy statement released on Monday. The weapons were hidden on a small boat and included AK-47s, RPGs, and .50 caliber machine guns.   The seizure comes eight days after another cache of weapons heading to Somalia was confiscated by French authorities.

Tuesday, April 5 Yemen's former vice president and prime minister Bahah, who was sacked by Hadi on Sunday, says that his removal is a "coup against legitimacy" that undermines the cabinet and its efforts to end the war. An unnamed Yemeni government official also said the shake-up might undermine the peace talks scheduled to start in Kuwait on April 18.

According to AlAraby, the leaked Panama Papers reveal that a number of offshore companies used as tax havens were founded by the family of Yemen’s prominent businessman, and close friend of Saleh, Shaher Abdulhak.

Thursday, April 7 Human Rights Watch released a report on Thursday which revealed that remnants of US-supplied weapons were found at the site of the Saudi coalition’s March 15 attack on the Hajjah market, which killed 97 civilians, including 25 children. Evidence of US-supplied MK-84 2,000-pound bomb mated with a JDAM satellite guidance kit, also US-supplied, were found at the site. The attack was the war’s deadliest so far.

Al-Masirah and a number of other outlets in Yemen reported airstrikes on Thursday in San’a, Bayda, Ma’rib, and Hajjah. These strikes came three days before the ceasefire was set to begin.

Friday, April 8 In comments to Middle East Eye, Houthi sources explain why Hadi will never be accepted as Yemen’s leader or as part of the post-war government. Hadi’s recent dismissal of his former prime minister and vice president Bahah isolates Hadi further, as Bahah’s supporters see this move as an attempt by Hadi to cling to power at the expense of upcoming peace talks.

Reuters reports that al-Qaeda in Yemen is one of the main benefactors of the Saudi-led war. As a result of the country’s destabilization, the group has managed to establish an “economic empire” in the port city of Mukalla and has gained over $100 million in stolen bank deposits and revenue, earning $2 million per day from taxes on goods and fuel.

Saturday, April 9 At least 20 pro-Hadi government soldiers were kidnapped and executed and 17 others were injured in southern Yemen’s Abyan province on Saturday, according to local officials. A military source says the killings were carried out by al-Qaeda, but the group denies these accusations, claiming that a local armed gang led by a man named Ali Aqeel is responsible for the incident.

An American man held in San'a was reportedly released by the Houthis after Omani negotiators interceded on his behalf. The man was flown from San'a to Muscat, according to a statement by Oman's foreign ministry. No details about the man have yet been provided.

Sunday, April 10 Hours before the ceasefire was due to start, clashes between pro-Hadi forces and Houthi fighters broke out north of Sana’a, in Ta’iz, and in Bayda province, where 20 people were killed. The ceasefire was postponed, however, by 24 hours and began midnight on Monday.