As the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen has announced a ceasefire, Iran-backed Houthis have called the measure “meaningless” if the siege against the rebels is in full effect.

Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a senior member of Ansarullah's political bureau made the comment in a post on his Twitter page on Wednesday, a few hours after the coalition halted military operations for the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.

“The Yemen blockade is considered a military action because it was imposed by force of arms. If the siege is not lifted, the coalition’s announcement of the cessation of military operations will be meaningless”, he said.

The cessation of military operations coincides with the launch of Yemeni-Yemeni consultations that began at the GCC headquarters in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday and are expected to run until April 7.

The US special envoy for Yemen, Tim Lenderking, appreciated the Arab Coalition’s decision to start a ceasefire, saying that Washington encourages the recent announcement.

“A peaceful solution is the only way to end the crisis in Yemen,” the Secretary General of the GCC Nayef al-Hajraf said during a speech at the opening session, noting “the Riyadh Agreement constitutes a road map in Yemen and the completion of its provisions is a Yemeni demand.”

The United States, its Western allies and others blame Iran’s drones and missiles for attacks by Houthis on Saudi and Emirati energy facilities.