Saudi-led coalition to let aid through Yemen ports held by Houthis

The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen says it will provide access for aid to be delivered through Hodeidah port and Sanaa airport.

The move, announced yesterday, comes after the coalition closed Yemen’s borders and shut access to its sea and air ports on November 6 in response to a missile attack launched by Yemen’s Houthi rebels towards Riyadh’s international airport.

The coalition, which includes the UAE, said aid would be allowed through Hodeidah port and Sanaa airport today.

They are both held by the Iran-backed Houthis against whom the coalition is fighting on behalf of the internationally recognised government of president Abdrabu Mansur Hadi.

The coalition said it had made the decision after “a comprehensive review of the inspection and verification procedures used to implement the UN security council resolution 2216, which prohibits the provision of weapons and military equipment to the Houthi militia and their supporters”.

Before yesterday, the coalition had eased some restrictions on ports controlled by the government, but aid agencies had called for more to be done to allow a free flow of aid into the country.

On Thursday last week, the leaders of the World Health Organisation, the UN children’s agency and the World Food Programme issued a joint appeal for the further easing of restrictions at ports.

It came one day after Save the Children said an estimated 130 children or more were dying every day in Yemen from extreme hunger and disease, with more than 50,000 already believed to have died this year.