SANAA — The Yemeni government announced Saturday, September 19, a halt of a military offensive against Shiite rebels in northern Yemen to mark `Eid Al-Fitr holiday. "The government will cease military operations in the north western regions from this point forward," said a government statement cited by Reuters.
"The halt in operations comes into force at the time of publication of this communique" at 2:00 am, it added.
`Eid Al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, is expected to start in Yemen on Sunday according to astronomical calculations.
During `Eid days, families and friends exchange visits to express well wishes and children, wearing new clothes bought especially for `Eid, enjoy going out in parks and open fields.
The Yemeni government has been battling Shiite rebels in the north, leaving hundreds of people dead and forcing thousands to flee their homes.
Yemeni officials say the rebels have been fighting to restore the Zaidi imamate, which was overthrown in a 1962 republican coup in Yemen.
The rebels, known as Houthis, say they are defending their villages against what they call government aggression.
UN aid agencies say around 150,000 people have been made refugees since the fighting first began in 2004.
One of the poorest countries outside Africa, Yemen has been struggling with several conflicts in addition to its significant economic challenges.
Ceasefire
The government said the suspension of military operations would become a permanent ceasefire if the rebels abided by certain conditions, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
“(They must) respect the ceasefire and the opening of roads, evacuate their positions and free captured civilians and soldiers," said the statement.
Sanaa called on the rebels to "respond to the voice of reason and choose peace to bring an end to the spilling of blood."
The Shiite rebels said that they would consider the government conditions.
“We are ready to examine them, and that is natural,” spokesman Mohammed Abdelsalam told the Doha-based Al-Jazeera television.
He said the Shiite rebels had already made known its "commitment to a return to the situation as it was -- opening roads, pulling out of our positions and the return of the local authorities."
"We do not wish to keep holding our detainees despite the fact that those in power are holding on to their prisoners, in some cases for more than four years."
Earlier, the rebels accused the government troops of attacking civilians during its military offensive in Saada.
A statement on the rebels' website said that on Friday the army had carried out three air raids and blown up houses in Saada city.
Around 87 people were killed Wednesday in an air raid at a makeshift camp for displaced people Saada, and two days earlier a market in the town of al-Talh was bombed.
The attacks sparked international outrage, with UN chief Ban Ki-moon calling for an immediate end to the fighting.
Source: IslamOnline
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