Sanaa, May 15 (IANS): The Yemen government has accused the Houthi rebels of attacking the oil-rich province of Marib despite a two-month ceasefire brokered by the UN.

"The Houthis launched a sniper operation killing a member of the armed forces and injuring another on the northwestern front of Marib Province," the Defence Ministry said in a statement.

The Ministry accused the Houthis of committing a series of breaches of the UN-brokered truce in various areas of the war-ravaged Arab country, reports Xinhua news agency.

On May 13, the Yemeni army accused the Houthis of firing a number of shells randomly against a residential neighbourhood in the Dhabab area in the southwestern province of Taiz.

The attack killed a child and seriously injured his parents, according to the army, but the rebels did not respond to the accusations of the government forces.

The ceasefire agreement, meant to last two months, went into effect on April 2, marking the first major breakthrough in years to end the Yemeni war that has killed tens of thousands and pushed the country to the brink of starvation.

So far the ceasefire has been largely held despite occasional breaches alleged by the warring sides.

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014 when the Iran-backed Houthi militia seized control of several northern provinces and forced the Saudi-backed government out of the capital Sanaa.