Middle East & North Africa
Yemen: UN says more than 230,000 displaced since August, with food out in Taiz and 700 trauma patients in a week at some health facilities
The UN spokesperson relayed IOM, OCHA and ICRC figures on 15 October: more than 230,000 displaced since early August, emergency food exhausted in Taiz city and hospitals overwhelmed by trauma cases.
More than 230,000 people have been displaced by fighting in Yemen since the start of August, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has reported, according to the UN Secretary-General’s spokesperson, who briefed journalists on 15 October. Humanitarian partners have reached more than 152,000 people with emergency assistance.
The figures were relayed from the UN humanitarian office (OCHA), which warned that the fighting is continuing to drive people from their homes and is putting pressure on aid operations.
Food, medicine and fuel running short in Taiz
According to the briefing, resources are stretched and access constraints complicate the response. Partners providing emergency food in Taiz city have run out of supplies, and stocks held in Aden and Al Turbah cannot reach the city because of the fighting. Medicines, oxygen and fuel are also running low in Taiz.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reported a surge in people seeking treatment for conflict-related injuries. Some health facilities have received more than 700 trauma patients in a single week, the briefing said.
Appeal to the parties
The United Nations called on all parties to respect international humanitarian law, to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, and to guarantee safe passage for supplies, patients, ambulances and medical teams.
The briefing followed the World Food Programme’s warning on 14 October that fighting has cut off aid to about 800,000 people nationwide, a statement Geopolitiki reported in Yemen: WFP says fighting has cut aid to 800,000 people, most of them in Taiz. The UN Security Council was told on 9 October that Yemen has returned to full-scale war, according to the UN press service.
The displacement and treatment figures come from UN agencies and the ICRC as relayed in the Secretary-General’s spokesperson’s briefing. The briefing text does not give the date to which the IOM count refers, and IOM’s own latest tallies may differ from the figure quoted there.
