ANKARA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th April, 2020) Ankara welcomed the decision of the Saudi-led coalition to call a two-week ceasefire in Yemen amid the raging pandemic, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Thursday.
"We welcome the announcement of ceasefire by the Arab Coalition led by Saudi Arabia, going into effect as of today (April 9) in response to the call of UN Secretary General, to prevent the spread of coronavirus in Yemen. We call on all parties to comply with the ceasefire and refrain from all acts which will impede the fight against the coronavirus pandemic in these extraordinary times that we are presently passing through," the statement read.
In late March, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a ceasefire in all of the world's conflict zones so that the focus could shift to fighting the pandemic. Both the UN-backed Yemeni government and the Houthi rebels have expressed support for the initiative, but clashes still occur.
