The United Nations is calling for all parties in the fighting in Yemen to suspend operations as the civilian toll on lives lost and people displaced continues to grow. 

Martin Griffiths, the U.N.’s Special Envoy, is trying to get the peace efforts restarted between the Saudi-led coalition that is supporting the Yemeni government and the Iranian-funded Houthi rebels trying to overthrow the country. 

“Last week I issued a public call for a freeze on military activities. Today, I am reiterating that call for an immediate and unconditional freeze… Yemen simply cannot wait,” Griffiths said in a statement in the city of Marib.

“Yemen is, in my view, at a critical juncture: we will either silence the guns and resume the political process, or we will slip back into a large-scale conflict,” he added.