Guterres to attend intra-Yemeni talks in Sweden

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will take part in the closing day of the intra-Yemeni political consultations on December 13 in Sweden, his press office said on Tuesday.

Guterres will hold meetings with the two Yemeni delegations and address the closing session of this round of consultations, the office said, reports Xinhua news agency.

UN Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Yemen Martin Griffiths has engaged the two Yemeni warring parties in an intensive round of consultations outside Stockholm since Thursday, the first such talks in years.

The two parties have been discussing the details of re-opening of the airport in Sana'a, the de-escalation measures in both Taiz and Hodeidah, and the implementation of the agreement on the exchange of prisoners, as well as the economic situation, Griffiths has said.

He noted that tangible agreements will be announced by the end of this round.

Yemen has been in a civil war since 2014 when the Houthi rebels overtook the capital Sana'a and toppled the government of Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi. A Saudi-led coalition has been fighting the Houthis since 2015.

The war has killed more than 10,000 people and created the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

The ongoing talks tackle a wide range of substantive issues, with the aim of putting Yemen back on the path of peace, and alleviating the suffering of the Yemeni people.

--IANS

vc