The United Nations said on Friday that it was closely monitoring the situation after the Houthi group took control of the city of Tuhayta in the strategic Hodeidah Governorate, in western Yemen.
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This came in a press conference held by the Deputy Spokesman for the Secretary-General, Farhan Haq, at the United Nations Permanent Headquarters in New York.
And earlier on Friday, a Yemeni military source said that the Houthis had taken control of the city of Al-Tuhayta, south of Hodeidah, during the past hours, after the forces of the pro-government Giants Brigades withdrew.
On this, the UN spokesman said: “We are aware of reports of the withdrawal of Yemeni government forces from areas south of the city of Hodeidah to the Tuhayta district, and the Houthi forces have now moved to most of the evacuated areas.”
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He added, “The United Nations Mission in Support of the Hudaydah Agreement (UNMHA) is closely monitoring the situation and communicating with the parties to establish facts on the ground and deal as necessary, in accordance with its mandate.”
He continued, “We were not notified in advance of the movements, and the United Nations calls on all parties to the conflict to ensure the safety and security of civilians.
And in and around those areas where shifts have taken place on the front lines.
The United Nations Mission to Support the Hodeidah Agreement was established on December 13, 2018, pursuant to Council Resolution 2452, shortly after the signing of the Stockholm Agreement between the Yemeni government and the Houthi group.
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UNMHA helps the Yemeni parties to ensure the redeployment of forces in the city of Hodeidah and the ports of Hodeidah, Salif and Ras Issa stipulated in the Stockholm Agreement.
UNMHA includes 55 people, including 35 military and police observers, and 20 civil servants.
Yemen has been witnessing a war for nearly 7 years that has killed more than 233,000 people, and 80 percent of the population of about 30 million people has become dependent on support and aid in the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.
The conflict has had regional spillovers since March 2015, when a coalition led by neighboring Saudi Arabia has been carrying out military operations.
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This is in support of government forces in the face of the Iranian-backed Houthis, who control several governorates, including the capital, Sanaa.
