1st LD Writethru: UN looks forward to humanitarian truce in Yemen as of Friday

The United Nations looks forward to an unconditional humanitarian pause to start on Friday at 23:59 local time (2059 GMT) until the end of Ramadan on July 17, said a UN spokesperson here on Thursday.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has received assurances from the Houthis, the General People's Congress and other parties that "the pause will be fully respected and that there will be no violations from any combatants under their control," UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told a daily briefing.

"It is imperative and urgent that humanitarian aid can reach all vulnerable people of Yemen unimpeded and through an unconditional humanitarian pause," said Dujarric.

At the beginning of July, the UN declared its highest-level humanitarian emergency in Yemen, where more than 2.1 million people -- over 80 percent of Yemen's population -- need humanitarian assistance.

According to UN statistics, nearly 13 million people face a food security crisis and 9.4 million people have their access to water cut or severely disrupted, raising the risk of outbreaks of water-borne diseases, including cholera.

The UN envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed has warned that the conflict-torn country is just "one step from famine."

On early Sunday night, the Saudi-led coalition launched airstrikes overnight on military targets of the Houthi group in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa as the UN envoy arrived in the country to broker a ceasefire till the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan to allow for deliveries of humanitarian aid.

"The Secretary-General reminds the parties to the conflict of their obligations under international humanitarian law to protect civilians and calls on all sides to contribute to preventing a humanitarian catastrophe in the country," said Dujarric.

Saudi-led coalition has been fighting Houthis for months without any sign to end this war, especially after the failure of talks among Yemeni political parties in Geneva. Endite