Clashes put an end to peace talks

GENEVA—Peace talks between warring sides in Yemen have ended as new fighting erupts in the country, the United Nations (UN) said.

The peace talks between progovernment fighters and Shiite rebels began on Tuesday in the Swiss village of Macolin. But the proceedings were marred by fierce fighting and air strikes by a Saudi-led coalition, which pounded northern Yemen on Saturday, as the two main parties in the country’s conflict continued to violate a cease-fire.

UN special envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed held a news conference late Sunday in Bern “on the conclusion of the Yemen peace talks in Switzerland,” a statement said.

The clashes in Hajjah province near the Saudi border between rebel units and progovernment Yemeni forces have killed more than 75 people over the past three days, according to Yemeni security officials.

The internationally recognized government of Yemen—backed by a Saudi-led, US-supported coalition—has been waging a war against rebels, known as Houthis, who are allied with a former president and backed by Iran. Local affiliates of al-Qaida and the Islamic State group have exploited the chaos by grabbing land and exercise influence.

According to UN figures, 5,884 people had been killed in Yemen since March, when fighting escalated after the Saudi-led coalition began launching air strikes targeting the rebels.