Omani delegation arrives in Sanaa for truce talks with Houthis

Sanaa: An Omani delegation arrived in Yemen’s rebel-held capital Sanaa to persuade the Houthi group to resume a truce with the Yemeni government, media reported.

The delegation will hold talks with Houthi leaders, said the Houthi-run al-Masirah TV on Thursday, without providing details.

Oman, which borders both Yemen and Saudi Arabia, has been actively engaged in brokering a truce between the Houthi rebels and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government, Xinhua news agency reported.

The previous truce, which was brokered by the United Nations, lasted for six months and expired in October last year. However, fighting between Houthi rebels and pro-government forces has largely abated on several frontlines in the absence of a truce.

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since 2014 when the Iran-backed Houthi group seized control of several northern provinces and forced the Yemeni government out of the capital Sanaa.

The war has killed tens of thousands of people and pushed the country to the brink of starvation.

(Except for the headline, the story has not been edited by Siasat staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)