ADEN, Yemen, July 14 (Xinhua) -- UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg on Tuesday called for immediate de-escalation and renewed negotiations amid heightened tensions in Yemen.
In a press statement, Grundberg's office said he held talks in Oman's Muscat with senior Omani officials and the Houthi group's chief negotiator Mohammed Abdul-Salam.
The talks focused on the need for "immediate de-escalation" and on establishing an agreed way forward to preserve the relative calm Yemen has experienced since the 2022 truce agreement.
Grundberg stressed the need for the parties to engage in UN-mediated negotiations across the political, military and security, and economic tracks of the mediation process, adding that progress on each track is essential to advancing "a comprehensive and sustainable solution" to the conflict.
The talks followed a new spike in tensions after airstrikes hit the runway of Houthi-controlled Sanaa International Airport on Monday.
The Houthi group later claimed retaliatory missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, while Yemen's internationally recognized government reiterated its resolve to control the country's airspace.
The developments have raised fresh concerns over the durability of Yemen's de facto ceasefire.
Yemen has been mired in conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized control of the capital, Sanaa, and much of the north, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene the following year in support of the internationally recognized government.
A UN-mediated truce between the Yemeni government and the Houthis took effect in April 2022 and expired after six months, although a de facto ceasefire has largely held despite sporadic clashes. ■
