Medical sources said 13 Houthi fighters were killed in the fighting in Yemen’s third largest city.
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The Red Cross termed the situation in the city “increasingly dire”, warning of growing civilian casualties, 22 killed and 140 wounded, from the “indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas”. The situation in Taiz is, they say, even worse than the “appalling” conditions elsewhere in Yemen.
Civilians and traders are being stopped from transporting essential goods into Taiz, including water, fruit and vegetables, the United Nations said, adding that the price of water has soared by 300 per cent in the past week.
Mr Al Homaid said that he and others from his area had contacted pro-government fighters, who brought them to their headquarters in Al Roudha district.
The coalition has gained ground in the south, and Hadi’s government is now based in the southern Yemeni port of Aden, but Houthi forces remain in control of much of the country despite the nearly daily air strikes.
“This shipment is critical to save lives”, he said.
In Shabwa province, five Houthi and allied forces were killed in a coalition airstrike in the city of Bihan, according to security officials and witnesses. In Bayda province, six Houthis were killed in an airstrike that hit a rebel camp. HRW has said Houthi commanders and leaders could face war crimes tribunals over Houthi actions in Yemen. Mr Al Ahmar is now in Riyadh and his home may have been taken over by rebel forces.
Hadi said the current situation requires national solidarity and responsibility from all parties while looking towards the future that people across Yemen, from the governorate of Saada to the governorate of Al Mahra, are waiting for.
He added that the negotiations would be held on the basis of a framework stipulated by the Security Council in a resolution adopted in April, calling for the withdrawal of Houthis from territory and government institutions they had seized.
Without naming specific parties to the conflict, United Nations envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed told the United Nations Security Council on Friday that it had been characterized by “blatant disregard for the laws of war”.
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Previous UN-sponsored peace talks faltered in June after Hadi’s government demanded that the Houthis pull out of cities captured since last September as a precondition for a ceasefire.
