United Nations envoy to Yemen Hans Grundberg made a new proposal to reopen routes to Taiz and other Yemeni regions.
Unexpectedly, however, he ruled out reopening any main roads that connect Taiz to other cities, taking into consideration all the proposals submitted by the Iran-backed Houthi militias.
Trusted sources said the envoy surprised the legitimate government with his proposal, which he handed in on Sunday.
Grundberg’s previous proposals on Taiz had called for reopening the main routes.
The envoy had met with a Houthi delegation in the Jordanian capital Amman over the past two days.
The Yemeni government was not invited to attend.
Days earlier, Chairman of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Dr. Rashad Al-Alimi had informed Grundberg his refusal to tackle any issues with the Houthis before they lift their siege on Taiz and reopen roads.
A Yemeni official told Asharq Al-Awsat that the envoy’s new proposal drops the demand to reopen the main route. The Houthis had rejected the opening of the main road.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said: “Unfortunately, not enough pressure was exerted on the Houthis to reopen the road to address pressing humanitarian needs.”
“Instead, pressure is being exerted on the Arab coalition and legitimate forces to renew the truce,” he added.
It is unreasonable to discuss a four-point UN agreement, when three of these points favor the Houthis, and stalling prevails when it comes to reopening the routes to Taiz and other regions, he continued.
“The Houthis are stalling and wasting time during every truce and they will suffer the consequences of its failure,” he warned.
