Yemen on brink of ‘major catastrophe’: UN aid chief

UN aid chief Mark Lowcock warned Saturday that Yemen was “on the brink of a major catastrophe”, as the world body pushes for peace talks in the impoverished and war-wracked country.

His comments came after renewed deadly clashes between Houthi fighters and Saudibacked forces in the Red Sea port city of Hodeida, vital for the flow of humanitarian aid, AFP reported.

“Yemen is on the brink of a major catastrophe,” Lowcock said, as he wrapped up a visit to the country.

He said conditions had deteriorated alarmingly since his last visit in October 2017 to Yemen, which the United Nations has termed the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

“In Aden, I met emaciated children so malnourished they could barely open their eyes,” Lowcock said in a statement.

“Humanitarian assistance helps many of these children recover. But I also heard heartbreaking stories of children relapsing again and again because their families simply can’t afford food or proper medical care,” he said.

Lowcock reiterated the UN’S readiness to play a role to ensure that the Houthi-held Hodeida port, a key entry point for imports and aid, can remain open.

Under heavy international pressure, Saudibacked forces have largely suspended an offensive launched in June to take the port city.

Sporadic clashes have however continued since a fragile truce began on November 13.

Fighting on Friday in the east and south of Hodeida left 10 fighters dead, an official and medical sources said on Saturday.

Medical sources confirmed the bodies of eight Houthis had been transferred to hospitals, and that two Saudi-backed militants were also killed.

Intermittent clashes continued on Saturday, Hodeida residents told AFP by phone.

The violence follows a visit to Hodeida last month by UN envoy Martin Griffiths to press for talks. The proposed peace talks have been backed by both the Houthis and the Saudi-led forces and were expected to take place in Sweden next week.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, however, has played down the early December schedule and said he hoped talks would start “this year”. “But, as you know, there have been some setbacks,” he said on Thursday.

Previous talks planned for September in Geneva failed to get underway as the Houthi delegation never left Yemen’s capital Sana’a which is under Houthi control, arguing that the United Nations could not guarantee their safe return.

Lowcock said it was “not too late” to pull back Yemen from the brink but warned that more resources were needed.

“Yemen is the world’s largest humanitarian operation, but in 2019 it will need to be substantially bigger,” he said.

Donors this year have provided $2.3 billion for the 2018 response plan, or about 80 percent of requirements, he added.

According to UN figures, nearly 10,000 people have been killed since the Saudi-led coalition invaded the conflict in 2015.

UN agencies say that 14 million people are at risk of starvation in Yemen.