HIGHLIGHTS
Food insecurity likely to worsen through December without improved humanitarian access
Peace negotiation participants agree on guiding principles, commence two-week consultation phase
Violations of CoH agreement continue to occur in Ta’izz and other governorates
KEY DEVELOPMENTS
On June 29, UN Special Envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed announced that peace negotiation participants had reached an agreement on guiding principles for the talks and confirmed the beginning of a two-week consultation period in which delegations will meet with their respective leadership and the UN Special Envoy will meet with key Yemeni and regional stakeholders to urge support for a comprehensive solution. The delegations are scheduled to return to Kuwait on July 15 with practical recommendations regarding the implementation of the key principles required to sign a peace accord and end the conflict, according to the UN. On June 26, UN SecretaryGeneral (SYG) Ban Ki-moon addressed Yemeni delegates participating in the peace talks in Kuwait, underscoring the need for the peace negotiations to progress and the conflict to end.
In violation of the continuing cessation of hostilities (CoH) agreement implemented in April, intensified clashes in some parts of Yemen, including Al Jawf, Marib, and Ta’izz governorates, have resulted in deaths and displacement in recent weeks. During his June 26 remarks to Yemeni delegations in Kuwait, SYG Ban acknowledged the relative reduction in hostilities since April, while also condemning serious violations of the CoH and calling for all fighting to halt immediately.
Limited fuel and medicine imports, conflict-related medical facility destruction, medical staff displacement, and the ongoing economic crisis continue to negatively impact Yemen’s health system, the UN reports. As of late May, Yemen had imported only 30 percent of the medicine and other medical supplies required countrywide, according to USAID/OFDA partner the UN World Health Organization (WHO).