A ceasefire between warring factions will begin at 2359 local time (2059 GMT) on Wednesday, the United Nations said on Monday, raising hopes of an end to a war that has killed thousands of civilians and left people starving. A cessation of hostilities that first went into effect in April “will re-enter into force at 23:59 Yemen time (2059 GMT) on 19 October 2016, for an initial period of 72 hours, subject to renewal,” the UN’s special envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, said in a statement. Houthi rebels -- a minority Shia group from the north of the country -- drove out the US-backed government, led by President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi, and seized the capital of Sanaa. The Iranian-aligned Houthis and their allies, forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, hold most of Yemen’s northern half, while forces loyal to the Saudi-backed Hadi share control of the rest of the country with local tribes. Saudi Arabia and several Gulf Arab allies have carried out air strikes and deployed troops in Yemen in support of the exiled Yemeni government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, which was toppled by the Houthis in 2015. The conflict in Yemen has killed almost 6,900 people, wounded more than 35,000 and displaced at least three million since March last year, according to the United Nations.
The United Nations announces that the warring parties in Yemen have agreed to a 72-hour ceasefire starting October 19 at 23:59 AST (4:59 EDT).