“Mr. Ahmed is currently mustering the required Yemeni, regional and international support before announcing the start of the consultations. We hope to be able to make an announcement very soon,” Stéphane Dujarric said at a press briefing at UN Headquarters.

The Special Envoy is in Abu Dhabi today, following a visit to Riyadh, and is likely to undertake additional visits and extensive consultations in the subregion.

As efforts to convene the Yemen consultations continue, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon once again reiterates his call for a further humanitarian pause in order to allow assistance to reach the Yemeni people, Dujarric emphasized.

Humanitarian needs are becoming increasingly intense, and urgent measures by the international community, as well as regional States, are required to alleviate the worst consequences of the fighting.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that the Operations Room of the Ministry of Health in Sana’a, which manages all emergency operations for Yemen, was damaged on Wednesday.

The damage incurred is expected to further cripple already strained emergency health relief operations.