Major Yemeni political parties resume UN-mediated talks

Representatives from major Yemeni political parties have resumed UN-brokered talks in a bid to reach a consensus aimed at overcoming the ongoing impasse in the Arab country.

Representatives of Ansarullah movement and its allies met with members of opposing political parties in the capital, Sana’a, on Monday for the first time after last week’s formation of a transitional council by Shia Houthi fighters.

The two sides failed to reach a consensus on Thursday.

The UN special envoy to Sana’a, Jamal Benomar, oversaw the talks, calling on all political leaders to “take up their responsibilities and achieve consensus” to reach a “peaceful solution.”

“The dialogue resumes from where it stopped on Thursday,” Benomar said on Monday.

On Friday, Yemen’s Ansarullah movement announced a constitutional declaration on Transitional National Council, which is to replace Yemen’s parliament.

According to the constitutional declaration, the Transitional National Council will be set up to elect the presidential council in a bid to end the country’s persisting political deadlock. Some political parties have so far refused to agree with the move.

The move by the Houthi movement came after the United Nations hosted a new round of talks between political factions in Yemen a day after a deadline set by the movement for Yemeni parties to resolve a power vacuum expired.

In September 2014, Ansarullah fighters gained control of the capital city of Sana’a, following a four-day battle with army forces loyal to General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, the half-brother of the country’s former dictator, Ali Abdullah Saleh.

The Ansarullah revolutionaries say the Yemeni government has been incapable of properly running the affairs of the country and providing security.