Five-day cease-fire begins in Yemen
SANAA, Yemen – With cargo ships poised to launch a desperately needed aid operation in embattled Yemen, a five-day humanitarian cease-fire began Tuesday night, just hours after Saudi-led coalition warplanes struck against Shiite rebels and their allies.
It wasn’t immediately clear if the two sides were honoring the cease-fire, which began at 11 p.m. The halt to the fighting, which has killed hundreds of civilians, will test the adversaries’ desire to enter into peace talks. Both sides say they are ready to respond with violence if their opponent breaks the cease-fire.
The Saudi-led strikes in Yemen came to a halt shortly before the new U.N. envoy, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, flew into the capital, Sanaa, on his first official visit to the country.
Castro: Cuba, U.S. to name envoys soon
HAVANA – Cuba and the U.S. will name ambassadors to each other’s countries after the island is removed from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism later this month, Cuban President Raul Castro said Tuesday.
Castro spoke to journalists at Havana’s international airport after seeing off visiting French President François Hollande.
The United States and Cuba have not had full diplomatic relations since 1961. Currently, they have lower-level missions in each other’s countries, under the protection of the Swiss government.
Associated Press
