UN chief overseer of Hodeidah cease-fire arrives in Yemen

Patrick Cammaert (C) arrives at the Sanaa International Airport in Sanaa, Yemen, on Dec. 23, 2018. [Photo/Xinhua]

The head of a UN team monitoring the UN-backed cease-fire in Yemen's Red Sea port city of Hodeidah arrived on Sunday in Yemen's rebel-held capital Sanaa.

Patrick Cammaert, a retired Dutch general, joined his six-member team, which arrived in Sanaa a day earlier, before heading for Hodeidah to monitor the withdrawal of the Yemeni rival forces in a few hours,

Upon his arrival, Cammaert held a meeting with Ali al-Mushki, head of the Houthi representatives of the military committee, over the implementation of the cease-fire.

Notably, Cammaert arrived in the government-held Aden on Friday, where he met with the government representatives in the joint military committee.

Also on Friday, the UN Security Council voted unanimously to adopt Security Council Resolution 2451, a Britain-led resolution to bolster the UN-sponsored Yemeni peace process.

At midnight (2100 GMT) on Monday, the UN-sponsored cease-fire covering Hodeidah and the ports of Hodeidah, Salif and Ras Issa entered into force, as the first confidence-rebuilding measures between the Houthi rebels and the coalition-backed government.

According to the truce deal, the withdrawal from the ports of Hodeidah, Salif and Ras Issa and critical parts of the city associated with the humanitarian facilities should be completed within two weeks after the cease-fire enters into force, while the full withdrawal should be completed within a maximum period of 21 days.

However, both rival forces have blamed each other for violations of the cease-fire since it came into force.

Saudi Arabia has been leading an Arab military coalition in Yemen against the Iran-backed Houthi militia since March 2015, in order to reinstate the exiled government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.