The UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, has urged the Houthi group to de-escalate tensions across the country and to immediately and unconditionally release UN staff members. This appeal was made during his meeting with a Houthi delegation in Muscat, according to a statement issued by his office on Wednesday.
The statement reported that Grundberg concluded his visit to Muscat, where he held meetings with senior Omani officials. During these meetings, he expressed his appreciation for Oman’s role in supporting UN efforts to achieve peace and stability in Yemen. Additionally, Grundberg met with the head of the Houthi negotiating delegation, Mohammed Abdul Salam, and stressed “the urgent need to de-escalate across Yemen.”
The UN envoy emphasized the importance of prioritizing the interests of the Yemeni people and called for constructive dialogue.
The statement also noted that during all his meetings, the UN envoy reiterated the Secretary-General’s urgent call for the immediate and unconditional release of UN staff members detained by the Houthis.
This visit coincides with increasing international pressure on the warring parties in Yemen to reach political solutions to end the years-long conflict, which has resulted in one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
On Friday, the Yemeni army announced that it had thwarted an attempt to target the Safer oil facility with drones launched by the Houthi group from the neighboring Al-Jawf province. This marks the latest escalation by the Houthis, seemingly aimed at undermining the economic de-escalation agreement announced by the UN envoy about a month ago.
