The UN Security Council held the Houthis responsible for not reaching a truce agreement in Yemen. It said the militia’s extreme demands during negotiations impeded the efforts of the United Nations to broker the agreement, risking negative consequences. The UN Council stressed the need to avoid the resumption of hostilities in Yemen and escalating attacks in the region and along the Red Sea. In a press statement Thursday, the Security Council members urgently called on the Yemeni parties, especially the Houthis, to refrain from provocations, give priority to the Yemeni people, return to constructive engagement under the auspices of the United Nations and work urgently to extend and expand the truce. The Council expressed deep disappointment as the October 2 deadline for extending the truce in Yemen has expired. The Council members hoped that the two parties would find a way forward to restore the truce, noting that the past six months had brought more calm and security than at any time in the past eight years, including a sharp reduction in civilian casualties, as well as the efforts of the Yemeni government to restore the flow of fuel to Hodeida and commercial flights to and out of Sanaa. Members of the UN Security Council said: With the extension of the truce, these benefits to the Yemeni people will continue to increase, including salaries for teachers, nurses and civil servants, opening of roads in Taiz and all over the country, expanding international flights and making sure fuel flows more freely to the port of Hodeida. They renewed their support for the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, stressing that the extension of the truce would also provide an opportunity to reach a ceasefire and ultimately a comprehensive Yemeni-led political settlement with the full, fair and meaningful participation of women, under the auspices of the United Nations, based on the agreed references and in accordance with relevant Security Council resolutions, with the aim of addressing the broader issues underlying the conflict. They also stated that returning to negotiations and restoring the truce is the way to permanently end this war and resolve Yemen"s humanitarian and economic crises, while pointing to the major losses resulting from ending the truce. They expressed deep concern about rhetoric that deliberately threatens negotiations and actions that have impeded economic stability in Yemen. On the other hand, the sanctions committee of the UN Security Council has recently announced imposing sanctions on three people from Yemen for their involvement in terrorist activities. The Council indicated that Ahmed Al-Hamzi, commander of Houthi air and air defense forces, as well as the drone program, was included on the sanctions list for his activities and role in Houthi military efforts that directly threaten peace, security and stability in Yemen. Sanctions were also imposed by the committee, according to Resolution No. 2140, on Mansour Al-Saadi, a Yemeni national, for his role as chief of staff of the Houthi naval forces, who orchestrated deadly attacks against international shipping in the Red Sea. He also has a leading role in Houthi naval efforts that threaten direct peace, security and stability in Yemen. Mutlaq Amer Al-Marani, a Yemeni national, was also sanctioned for his work as a deputy head of Houthi National Security Bureau (NSB), and supervisor of the national security detainees who were subjected to torture and other ill-treatment during detention, planning and directing them to the illegal arrest and detention of humanitarian workers in the field and the illegal diversion of humanitarian aid in violation of international law. — SPA