Jane Ferguson:

Both sides fighting in Hodeidah battled one another right up until the Tuesday deadline for a cease-fire. Houthi rebels still control the city, but they are being encircled.

Yemeni fighters loyal to the internationally recognized government, supported by Saudi-led coalition warplanes and heavy weaponry, are fighting to take it over.

We were given rare access to the city through the one road in and out not yet cut off by the fighting and watched closely by the Houthis, piles of earth and metal containers dragged across the road, the first sign that this is a war zone.

When troops loyal to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates pushed inside the city in November, the battle reached into ordinary people's homes and neighborhoods.

Yemeni troops backed by the coalition are just about 500 yards in that direction. And this neighborhood, which has been hit by airstrikes, is a residential one, filled with civilians.

This apartment building took a direct hit two weeks ago, people told us. The house next door was also hit. Thirteen-year-old Mohammed Qudaish showed us the cuts on his body he received while running for his life.

Were you afraid?