Aden, Jan 7 (IANS): United Nations Special Envoy to Yemen Hans Grundberg arrived in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, marking his first visit in nearly two years as part of efforts to push forward the stalled peace process.

A source at Sanaa International Airport told Xinhua that Grundberg, who landed on a UN plane on Monday with a team of assistants, was received by Houthi officials and left the airport shortly after for the city center.

In a brief statement posted on X, Grundberg emphasised that his visit aims to "urge for concrete and essential actions" by the Houthi group to advance the peace process, Xinhua news agency reported.

The envoy stated that his visit is part of "continuing efforts to support the release of arbitrarily detained UN, NGO, civil society and diplomatic mission personnel."

Grundberg's trip follows a meeting on Sunday in Muscat with the head of the Houthi negotiating delegation, where he reiterated the need for tangible measures to facilitate peace talks.

The visit is the first by the UN envoy in nearly two years, as tensions and detentions of international staff have hindered the progress of the talks.

Over the past two years, the Houthis have detained dozens of employees from UN agencies and international and local non-governmental organisations.

Yemen has been in a state of uneasy calm since October 2, 2022, when the government and the Houthi group failed to renew and expand a UN-brokered truce.

Despite years of diplomatic efforts, neither side has shown a willingness to resume negotiations to end the conflict, which the UN estimates has killed hundreds of thousands of people and pushed millions to the brink of famine in Yemen.