United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres notified the Security Council on Tuesday of his intention to appoint former British diplomat Martin Griffiths as his new UN peace envoy to Yemen. Griffiths would replace Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed of Mauritania, who last month announced that he would not stay on as Yemen envoy beyond the end of his contract at the end of this month. Council members have until 5:00 pm (2200 GMT) Thursday to raise objections to the appointment of Griffiths. Diplomats, however, said they expected the council to endorse the appointment following weeks of consultations. Griffiths, who is executive director of the Brussels-based European Institute of Peace, "brings extensive experience in conflict resolution, negotiation, mediation and humanitarian affairs," Guterres wrote in his letter. Cheikh Ahmed, who is UN envoy since April 2015, failed to make progress in diplomatic efforts to end the conflict between Houthi insurgents and Yemens legitimate government backed by the Saudi-led Arab Coalition.