ADEN - Fierce gun battles erupted overnight between Yemeni rebels and pro-government forces along the border with Saudi Arabia despite a three-day ceasefire due to end late Saturday, military officials said.
Warplanes from the Saudi-led coalition fighting in support of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi also bombed suspected Huthi rebel missile launchers east of the capital Sanaa late Friday, a military official said.
The air raids came after Patriot missiles shot down two rebel missiles on Thursday over Marib, east of the rebel-held capital.
UN special envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said on Friday the ceasefire was “fragile but largely holding”, urging all parties “to show restraint, avoid further escalation, and strictly adhere to the 72-hour ceasefire”.
The truce took effect just before midnight on Wednesday to allow aid deliveries in Yemen, where the war has killed thousands of people and left millions homeless and hungry.
The UN envoy is liaising with the parties in an at tempt to extend the ceasefire in order “to create a conducive environment for a long-lasting peace” in Yemen, he said in a statement.
He met late Friday with Yemen’s Vice President Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar in Riyadh, Yemeni state media reported.
Ahmar said government forces were “exercising restraint” and stressed that there were orders to “abide by the truce and respect UN efforts.(AFP)