A UN envoy held talks with Yemeni President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi on Monday (January 16th) as the UN said the death toll from the war had reached 10,000, AFP reported.
UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed was in the port city of Aden for a meeting that focused on a return to a ceasefire and to political talks to end the nearly two-year war.
The UN said the civilian death toll in fighting since March 2015 had reached 10,000, up from the previous figure of 7,000.
The higher toll "underscores the need to resolve the situation in Yemen without any further delay", said UN spokesman Farhan Haq. "There is a huge humanitarian cost."
Ould Cheikh Ahmed is hoping to revive peace prospects in Yemen after Hadi rejected his proposed roadmap. He is due to report to the UN Security Council later this month.
"A peace agreement, including a well-articulated security plan and the formation of an inclusive government, is the only way to end the war that has fueled the development of terrorism in Yemen and the region," Ould Cheikh Ahmed said in a statement.
"I asked the president to act swiftly and engage constructively with the UN's proposal for the sake of the country’s future," he said, adding that "the current political stalemate is causing death and destruction every day".
The envoy has been holding talks in the Gulf region in recent weeks, including in Riyadh, where he met with Yemen's central bank governor to ease a cash crisis in Houthi-held areas.
