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War-Ravaged Yemen 'Running out of Time' on COVID-19

Margaret Besheer

   NEW YORK - The United Nations warned Thursday that the threat of the
   coronavirus in war-ravaged Yemen requires attention and resources,
   making a nationwide cease-fire even more urgent.

   "Yemen cannot face two fronts at the same time: a war and a pandemic,"
   U.N. Yemen envoy Martin Griffiths told a virtual meeting of the
   Security Council on Thursday. "The new battle that Yemen faces in
   confronting the virus will be all-consuming. We can do no less than
   stop this war and turn all our attention to this new threat."

   Griffiths said both the Yemeni government and Houthi rebels understand
   this, as do the actors who back them.

   "There cannot be a more timely moment for the two parties to commit to
   silencing the guns and ending the conflict through a peaceful,
   political solution," Griffiths said. He said he expects the parties to
   formally accept proposals on a cease-fire, as well as humanitarian and
   economic agreements in the "immediate future."

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