03 June, 2017
For the past two years, the country has been embroiled in fighting between forces loyal to the internationally recognised president, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, and Shia Houthi rebels. Regional enemies Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran are fighting a proxy war in the Middle Eastern country, considered the Arab world's poorest country.
The U.N. humanitarian chief warned Tuesday that civil war is causing Yemen to spiral toward total collapse with the threat of starvation increasing and over 55,000 suspected cholera cases since late April.
Speaking to the UN Security Council, Stephen O'Brien said "the time is now" to end the world's largest food emergency and put Yemen back on the path to survival. He said another 150,000 cases of the water-borne disease are projected over the coming six months.
According to World Health Organization figures, about 7.6 million Yemenis live in regions with a high risk of transmission of this bacterial disease that is transmitted by ingestion of food or contaminated water. The U.N. has called for an investigation into the incident. Food prices have increased.
"I am also concerned by the arbitrary arrest and threats to the safety of members of the Baha'i community", he said. Yemen is not facing a drought.
JEDDAH: A "significant escalation of violence" in Taiz, including "intensified shelling" by Houthi militias and troops loyal to ousted Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, has led to the deaths and injury of scores of civilians and "significant damage to civilian infrastructure", said the United Nations special envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed. Currently, Yemen is trying to keep cholera from spreading.
The disease has already killed hundreds.
The humanitarian leader said the cholera outbreak and food security in the war-torn nation will continue to worsen. "More than half of all health facilities in Yemen are either closed or only partially functioning".
Some 19 million out of the country's 28 million population are in dire need of humanitarian aid and many of them are reported to be on the brink of starvation.
"People are dying because even basic medical treatment, that we would take for granted, is no longer available", added O'Brien. The envoy lamented that "we are not close to a comprehensive agreement", expressing "regret" that on his last trip to Yemen, the rebel delegation in Sanaa "did not meet me to discuss the framework for such an agreement". There are an estimated 52,140 suspected cases across the country, notes IFRC.
An April funding conference arranged by the Secretary-General in aid of funding for Yemen humanitarian funds generated $1.1 billion in pledges, O'Brien said.
