Houthi cease-fire holding, officials say

SANAA, Yemen, Feb. 17 (UPI) -- A cease-fire agreement between government forces and Houthi rebels in the north of Yemeni is going well, supervisory officials said Wednesday.

Yemen reached a cease-fire agreement with Houthi rebels last week. Despite minor skirmishes during the weekend, U.N. officials described the measure as a reason for optimism.

Abdul Malik al-Makhlafi, a lawmaker on a Yemeni commission monitoring the cease-fire, said the terms of the agreement were holding, the official Saba news agency reports.

He told the news agency that roads out of Sanaa were opening and area farmers were reporting land mines were cleared from their fields

Yemen launched a scorched-earth campaign against Houthi rebels in August, breathing new life into a conflict that has simmered since 2004.

Saudi Arabia entered the fight in 2009 when Houthi rebels stormed border checkpoints. Houthi rebels have since returned captured Saudi soldiers to their homeland, London's pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat reports.

Committee member Mohammed al-Qubati told Saba he was optimistic the cease-fire would hold despite minor outbreaks of violence.

"We highly appreciate a brave decision taken by President Ali Abdullah Saleh to stop military operation," he added.