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UN official urges for implementation of ceasefire in Yemen

Xinhua, May 13, 2015 Adjust font size:

A United Nations official on Tuesday appealed to all parties in the war-stricken Yemen to implement a five-day ceasefire to enable the UN scale up relief operations.

Trond Jensen, head of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Office in Yemen, said the humanitarian situation there is horrible, and urged for a free humanitarian access to help UN and other aid agencies to carry out a large-scale relief operation.

The Yemen-based UN official made the remarks during a media briefing for journalists at OCHA External and Media Relations Unit in the Egyptian capital of Cairo.

The conflict in Yemen has roughly claimed more than 1,500 lives and injured some 6,000 others since it started in late March.

Jensen pointed out that the humanitarian community is currently seeking 747.5 million U.S. dollars to provide a range of life-saving, protection and resilience services, including 284.6 million dollars for the most urgent life-saving and protection programs.

He also added that many Yemenis have been deprived of access to basic services, including medical treatment, food, water and other necessities.

He urged all parties in the conflict to avoid inflicting harm upon civilians and observe their duty to protect civilians.

On Friday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Saudi Arabia Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told reporters that a ceasefire would begin on Tuesday night and the implementation was contingent on cooperation with the Houthis who seized large parts of the country including its capital Sanaa.

The Saudi-led coalition forces launched the bombing campaign against the Shiite Houthi group and forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who forced President Abd-Rabbo Mansour Hadi to flee to Saudi Arabia, aiming to reinstate the Yemeni government.

Hundreds of thousands of people, especially in the southern regions, fled their homes after Houthi fighters entered southern provinces to fight supporters of Hadi. Endit