Omani officials, accompanied by senior Houthi figures, arrived in Sanaa on Saturday to try to convince the rebels who control the capital to accept a ceasefire, Houthi sources said.
Yemen has been devastated by a civil war between the government – supported by a Saudi-led military coalition – and Iran-backed Houthi rebels since 2014. The country is on the brink of famine.
Diplomatic efforts to end the conflict have intensified in recent weeks.
"An Omani delegation arrived [in Sanaa], accompanied by Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdul Salam and other [Houthi] officials," a rebel source told AFP on condition of anonymity.
The Saudi-led coalition controls Yemen's airspace and since 2016 had prevented Abdul Salam and other rebel figures from returning to Sanaa.
The delegation's arrival, which would have required approval from Riyadh, demonstrates a step forward in negotiations.
The Houthis have repeatedly demanded the reopening of Sanaa airport before any ceasefire agreement.
The source said the delegation would meet Houthi leader Abdulmalik Al Houthi and update him on talks held in Muscat.
The aim of the Omani mediators seems to be "to convince the Houthis to accept a ceasefire and take part in peace negotiations", the source added.
"We are working to advance arrangements on the humanitarian question as well as the peace process," Mr Abdul Salam told Houthi-run Al-Masirah television.
The visit aims to "complement efforts" made in Oman, he added.
The sultanate of Oman, which borders both Yemen and Saudi Arabia, is a close US ally but at the same time has good relations with Iran. It has regularly played the role of mediator in regional conflicts.
Muscat has hosted UN special envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths and US envoy Tim Lenderking in recent weeks, while Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif met with Abdul Salam in Oman in late April.
On Monday Mr Griffiths urged rival Yemeni forces to "bridge the gap" to reach a ceasefire, following talks in Sanaa with Houthi officials.
"There's an extraordinary amount of diplomatic consensus … there is a real diplomatic energy now, which hasn't always been the case," Mr Griffiths said.
The effort to secure peace in Yemen comes after regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran restarted talks in April, holding their first high-level meeting since Riyadh cut diplomatic ties with Tehran in 2016.
The UN says Yemen is suffering the world's worst humanitarian crisis as its years-long war rumbles on, with tens of thousands killed, millions displaced and two-thirds of its 30-million population dependent on aid.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Name: Brendalle Belaza
From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines
Arrived in the UAE: 2007
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus
Favourite photography style: Street photography
Favourite book: Harry Potter
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
About Karol Nawrocki
• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.
• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.
• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.
• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
