Geneva talks between gov't, Houthis raise hope among Yemenis for peace

Talks between Yemen's government and the Shiite Houthi group that are planned to take place in Switzerland on Dec. 15 gives some cause for optimism among Yemeni people over resuming the political process and ending civil war that killed thousands.

High-ranking officials of the Saudi-backed Yemeni government including the newly appointed Foreign Minister Abdulmalik AlMekhlafi and leaders of the Iran-backed Shiite Houthi group will probably move to Switzerland later this week after the UN special envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed encouraged them to sit down, bridge the trust gap and work for the revival of the peace process.

AlMekhlafi, who will be the head of government's delegation to Switzerland, told aljazeera TV channel that "We will attend the UN talks as a legitimate government and Houthis as rebels. We won't negotiate outside the UNSC 2216 resolution but will be flexible in the implementation mechanism."

Many Yemeni political analysts and observers agreed that the upcoming UN-sponsored peace negotiations will raise hopes for an end to the current political deadlock in case the two-warring sides agreed to sit together on one table to discuss and solve their disagreements peacefully.

"The United Nations should push forward and work with all those who would enter such a process with good intentions to end violence attacks on the Yemeni people, and at the same time stand firm against those who refuse to take the path of peace," Ahmed Baktheer, an Aden-based political analyst told Xinhua.

"Most of the Yemeni people had long been demanding the UN and the UNSC to show serious action against those who are responsible for fueling violence and are averse to peace process," said Baktheer.

He added that the results of meetings between the the UN special envoy and representatives of the two warring rivals in Oman's capital Muscat were not frustrating.

Mohamed Ali, a Yemeni photojournalist, said that "the Shiite Houthis as well as the legitimate government gave some indications of their willingness to join the peace process this time by submitting their negotiation team list to the UN early without any difficulties."

CAUTIOUS OPTIMISM

The internationally recognized Yemeni President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi informed the United Nations and the command of the Saudi-led coalition that he will announce an "extendable" seven-day humanitarian ceasefire on Dec. 15 to coincide with UN-facilitated peace talks.

Hadi said that the seven-day humanitarian cease-fire will be extended if the Shiite Houthis and their allies lift siege on Yemen's third largest city of Taiz, free detainees and end military actions.

However, a top government official told Xinhua on condition of anonymity that many Yemenis remain cautiously optimistic about the success of the UN-facilitated peace talks.

"It is obvious that the Shiite Houthi militia refused to implement the previous UNSC resolutions and pro-Houthi forces continue to carry out military operations and daily shellings on civilians houses in Taiz," said the government official based in Aden.

"Houthis and their ally Ali Abdullah Saleh consider the peace negotiations as diplomatic maneuvers to gain more time only and exploit any humanitarian ceasefire to advance on-ground militarily," added the government source. Endit