UN Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths is reporting that he sees growing momentum for reaching a deal to end the five year long war in Yemen, saying he sees signs “something is changing” in Yemen.
Griffiths cited improvements to the ceasefire, and developments to end in-fighting in south Yemen. In particular though, he saw a major decline in coalition airstrikes against the Shi’ite Houthis, calling it a “reduction in the tempo of war.”
He reported an 80% decline in coalition airstrikes, over the past two weeks. While that is significant, the fact that it is only over two weeks means it might end up being a blip in a protracted war, or representative of a shift in priority.
It’s not just the coalition though, as Griffiths noted that the Houthis have continued a promised halt to missile and drone strikes on Saudi Arabia, potentially opening both sides toward working on a ceasefire.