A Yemeni pro-government fighter takes aim from his position during fighting with Huthi rebels on the al-Jawba frontline south of Marib, the last remaining government stronghold in northern Yemen, on December 7, 2021. (Photo by AFP)

The ceasefire in Yemen, which has been in force for four months, has been extended by two more months at the last moment, according to the UN.

The conflicting parties have agreed to extend the ceasefire under the same rules until the beginning of October, said the UN special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, on Tuesday. The agreement was announced on the day the previous ceasefire would have ended.

The ceasefire “includes the parties’ commitment to intensify negotiations so that an expanded ceasefire agreement can be reached as soon as possible,” Grundberg said. One of the goals of the agreement is, among other things, “noticeable relief for the civilian population”.

There has been a war in Yemen since 2015 between government troops supported by Arab states and the Shiite Houthi rebels, who are backed by Iran.

According to the UN, around 380,000 people have been killed since the conflict began, most of them as a direct result of the fighting. Millions more people had to flee.