President Ali Abdullah Saleh announced on Thursday a ceasefire in Yemen's six-month campaign against rebels in a conflict that spilled over into Saudi territory in the north.
The ceasefire would kick in from midnight (212D GMT on Thursday), Saleh said in a decree that was read out on state television.
"We decided to stop military operations in the northwest from midnight," the president declared.
The leader of Houthi rebels in turn ordered his fighters to abide by the ceasefire with the Yemeni government, a rebel statement said.
"According to what was agreed upon, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi issued instructions to all fronts and fighting sites to stop firing coinciding with the timing announced by the government," the statement said.
Saleh made the announcement after reports that the government and Zaidi rebels, also known as Houthis, were close to reaching a deal to end the fighting.
The truce was made possible after the rebels accepted six conditions put forward by the government for the cessation of hostilities.
Even so, an official told AFP earlier on Thursday that 12 Yemeni soldiers and 24 rebels were killed in heavy clashes in Amran province north of the capital Sanaa.
The fighting had erupted late on Wednesday in the area of Burkat al-Shamsi following a sudden rebel attack.
"Six conditions"
We decided to stop military operations in the northwest from midnight
Separate clashes broke out around the same time in the al-Uqab suburb of Saada town, farther north, killing seven soldiers and 11 rebels.
The latest fighting occurred despite the announcement of an imminent accord to end the war.
"An agreement between the government and the Houthi (rebels) to end the war is imminent," the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP.
He said the development comes "in the light of al-Houthi's acceptance of the six conditions," put forward by the Sanaa government, which include a recently added condition to pledge not to attack neighboring Saudi Arabia.
A mediator close to the rebels said Houthi had agreed to "withdraw from the borders (with Saudi Arabia) and hand the area over to the Yemeni army."
The rebels have been fighting Yemeni troops since 2004 but they became engaged on a new front with Saudi Arabia in November following accusations they had killed a border guard and occupied two small villages.
The mediator said Houthi had also agreed that the rebels would "remove roadblocks ... vacate government buildings and hand Saudi prisoners over to the Yemeni government."
A committee including government and rebel representatives would be formed with the task of "establishing peace, and collecting heavy weapons from the Houthis," he told AFP.
It would also "follow up the issue of prisoners and compensation for those affected by the war," he added.
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