U.N.'s Ban calls for Ramadan cease-fire in Yemen

GENEVA, Switzerland, June 15 (UPI) -- United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Monday called for a cease-fire in Yemen through the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

He spoke at the opening in Geneva, Switzerland, of U.N.-sponsored talks on ending the Yemen conflict.

Envoys of Yemen's exiled government, Houthi rebels, the General Peoples' Congress, the U.N. envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed and other groups are expected to attend the conference. Ban called Ramadan, which begins Wednesday, "a time for peace, reflection and harmony. Today, Yemen's very existence hangs in the balance. While parties bicker, Yemen burns."

Prior to the conference, Ahmed called on "Yemen's political actors to participate in these consultations in good faith and without preconditions and in a climate of trust and mutual respect."

The talks in Geneva are the first diplomatic attempt to contain the conflict since it began in March, with the exile of Yemeni President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi, the growth of Houthi strength in overtaking the country and the retaliatory airstrikes by a Saudi-led coalition.

The United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution demanding an end to Houthi violence and withdrawal from seized areas, as well as cooperation from all sides to facilitate the arrival of humanitarian aid to Yemen.

The United Nations said last week the majority of Yemen's population of 26 million was in need of aid, and that 1 million people have been displaced. The conflict has killed over 2,500 people.

Despite the peace talks, additional airstrikes were conducted Sunday in Sanaa, the Yemeni capital.