United Nations, April 09, 2020, SPA – Secretary General António Guterres of the United Nations welcomed the announcement by the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen of a comprehensive ceasefire in Yemen for two weeks, effective on Thursday 9, April, 2020. In a statement issued by his office, Guterres said " I welcome the announcement by the “Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen” of a ceasefire in Yemen. This can help to advance efforts towards peace as well as the country’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, I call upon the Government of Yemen and Houthis to follow through on their commitment to immediately cease hostilities. I also call on the Government and the Houthis to engage with each other, in good faith and without preconditions, in negotiations facilitated by my Special Envoy Martin Griffiths." "Only through dialogue, the parties will be able to agree on a mechanism for sustaining a nation-wide ceasefire, humanitarian and economic confidence-building measures to alleviate the suffering of the Yemeni people, and the resumption of the political process to reach a comprehensive settlement to end the conflict," he concluded. --SPA 16:51 LOCAL TIME 13:51 GMT 0021 www.spa.gov.sa/w1304195