Yemen truce vital chance to ‘reverse’ humanitarian crisis
The Un-led truce is an opportunity for aid agencies to scale up assistance and to reach more people in acute need, including in areas where access was limited due to armed conflict: Gressly
The United Nations (UN) has warned of a “worsening” humanitarian situation in Yemen but said a fragile two-month truce since early April could help reverse the situation.
“The worsening humanitarian crisis in Yemen is a reality that we need to urgently address,” UN humanitarian co-ordinator for Yemen, David Gressly, said in a statement released late on Saturday.
“Over 23 million people — or almost threequarters of Yemen’s population — now need assistance... an increase of almost three million people from 2021,” he said.
Gressly urged donors to take advantage of a Un-brokered truce that has largely held since April 2.
“The Un-led truce is a vital opportunity for aid agencies to scale up life-saving assistance and to reach more people in acute need quickly, including in areas where access was limited due to armed conflict and insecurity,” he said.
“For aid agencies to immediately step up efforts, we count on sufficient donor funding. Otherwise, the aid operation will collapse despite the positive momentum we are seeing in Yemen today,” Gressly warned.
He said the UN needs around $4.3 billion for its 2022 humanitarian response plan for Yemen “to reverse a steady deterioration of the humanitarian situation.”
The plan aims to target 17.3 million people, he said, adding that nearly 13 million people “are already facing acute levels of need.”
Yemen’s conflict pits the government against Iran-aligned Houthi rebels who seized the capital Sanaa in 2014.
Eighty per cent of the 30 million population is dependent on aid.
The truce, which can be renewed, has provided the impoverished country with a rare respite from violence.
It has also seen oil tankers begin arriving at the port of Hodeidah, potentially easing fuel shortages in Sanaa and elsewhere.
The truce also involved a deal to resume commercial flights out of Sanaa’s airport for the first time in six years, though the inaugural flight planned for late April was postponed indefinitely, with each side blaming the other for holding it up.
Recently, the Saudi-led military coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthi insurgents announced it would free 163 rebel prisoners, a gesture it said was part of efforts to end the brutal seven-year war.
The move came ater a Houthi official called this week for both sides to release 200 prisoners before the Eid Al Fitr celebrations, marking the end of Ramadan, and several weeks into a fragile truce that has raised hopes of a lasting ceasefire.
“The leadership of the joint forces of the coalition will release 163 Houthi prisoners who participated in the hostilities against the kingdom’s lands, as a humanitarian initiative,” coalition spokesman Turki Al Malki said in a statement carried by Saudi state media.
Coalition leaders were finalising steps to release the prisoners in coordination with the International Commitee of the Red Cross, and the prisoners will be transferred to Yemen’s Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa, he said.
In late March, just before the truce took effect, the Houthis said they had agreed to a prisoner swap that would free 1,400 of their fighters in exchange for 823 pro-government personnel — including 16 Saudis and three Sudanese.
The last such swap was in October 2020, when 1,056 prisoners were released on each side, according to the Red Cross.
Houthi media reported the rebels had released 42 prisoners.
On Wednesday, it was reported that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and US Agency for International Development (USAID) will together contribute nearly $700 million to international food aid efforts in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The money will go to emergency food operations in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan and Yemen. $282 million will come from the Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust (BEHT), which is co-managed by the agencies.
USDA will additionally provide $388 million for transportation, shipping, and other costs, the agency said.