Saudi-led coalition delays truce with Yemen rebels

War locked in stalemate, Islamic State thrives in chaos * Both sides score successes in battle * USA fears Gulf Arabs preoccupied with Yemen, not IS fight By Mohammed Ghobari and Noah Browning DUBAI, Dec 14 ( Reuters ) – Alarmed by the rise of Islamic State, under pressure from the West and with stalemate on the battlefield, Yemen’s civil war foes are expected to launch their most serious peace efforts so far at U.N.-mediated talks in Geneva starting on Tuesday.

Hadi had said that he’d asked for a seven-day ceasefire, while Mekhlafi had previously said the ceasefire was subject to automatic renewal in the event the Houthis abided by it.

Yemen’s conflict has pitted local forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition fighting in support of Mr Hadi’s government against the Iran-backed Houthis and renegade troops still loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

A weeklong ceasefire in Yemen is set to begin on Monday. The U.N sponsored talks will be attended by senior officials from both sides of the gruesome civil war that has ravaged the region and claimed nearly 6,000 lives. It also praised the coalition’s role in supporting “Yemen’s legitimate authority in regaining control of state institutions”.

A Yemeni military source said they were killed when rebels fired a rocket at a coastal road in Taez, which overlooks the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait through which much of the world’s maritime traffic passes. The conflict was sparked when the rebels took control of the capital, forcing Hadi to flee.

Rebels and Saudi-allied forces agreed on a cease-fire as delegates from both sides prepare for United Nations talks in Switzerland.

A potential sticking point likely to return in the new talks is that Hadi’s government insists the Houthis obey a U.N. Security Council resolution requiring them to withdraw from all captured territory and return weapons they have seized during the insurrection.

Saudi Arabia responded by leading a coalition conducting airstrikes against the Houthis, who have been pushed out of Aden, allowing Hadi’s government to return there.

Previous ceasefires in Yemen have rarely lasted their full intended duration, with one of the most significant gains of pro-Saudi fighters, the capture of Aden, coming when a mid-July ceasefire was dishonored by Saudi forces, who later bragged they’d never formally agreed to that ceasefire to begin with.