Houthi and government delegates have been meeting in Biel in Switzerland to try to end months of fighting.
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Tribal sources said there was an upsurge in fighting early on Saturday as government forces – which are being backed by a Saudi-led coalition – advanced towards the Red Sea port of Midi and rebels brought in reinforcements.
Military sources said 28 troops were killed while Houthi rebels said they had lost 40 fighters.
The uptick in violence has left the peace talks, scheduled to wrap up with a press conference in Bern Sunday evening, looking increasingly fragile.
Since March, Saudi Arabia has led an Arab coalition whose warplanes and troops have supported embattled President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi against the rebels who have seized the capital and other areas.
In another move that had been seen as promising, the pro-government forces and rebels completed an exchange of hundreds of prisoners in the southern province of Lahj on Thursday.
The United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen voiced deep concern at “numerous reports of violations of the cessation of hostilities”, a U.N. statement said on Friday.
The blitz into the town of Hazm in Jawf Province came one day after supporters of Hadi captured Harad in neighboring Hajjah Province in violation of a one-week truce which came into effect hours before the talks started on December 15.
The discussions “focused mostly on security issues in Yemen, in light of the alarming developments on the ground”, it said, stressing that both sides had “renewed their commitment for a ceasefire”.
“A coordination and de-escalation committee was created to strengthen adherence to the cessation of hostilities”.
The UN announced a first breakthrough in the talks Thursday, saying the sides had agreed to “allow for a full and immediate resumption of humanitarian assistance” in the flashpoint Yemeni city of Taez.
But a local relief group, the Humanitarian Relief Coalition, said no United Nations aid had reached the city, accusing rebels of blocking aid delivery to areas where Hadi loyalists were holed up.
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More than 5,800 people have been killed – about half of them civilians – and over 27,000 wounded in Yemen since then, according to the UN.
