The crucial Yemeni port city of Hudaydah, which has been living under fire from pro-Government forces for weeks now, could be just “one airstrike away from an unstoppable epidemic”, said the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in the country on Sunday.
UN staff and other humanitarians “know how important it is” to keep operations going in the crucial Yemeni port city of Hodeida, despite the intensifying battle to recapture it that’s now under way, headed by Saudi-led coalition forces.
That’s according to the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, Lise Grande, who told UN News that the worst-case scenario would be a prolonged siege, that could spark a fresh outbreak of deadly cholera.
She spoke from the capital Sana’a, to Reem Abaza.
There’s “tentative agreement” between the warring parties fighting in the Yemeni province of Taiz, to agree to a “humanitarian pause.”
That’s according to UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, Jamie McGoldrick, speaking after holding talks with all sides on Wednesday.
Yemen’s civil war has left more than 14 million food insecure and displaced 2.8 million.
A halt to fighting in Yemen will allow the humanitarian community to deliver aid to people living in areas which have been hard to reach over the previous months, according to the UN.
The conflict in the Gulf state has intensified over the past year as rebels continue to battle the government for control of the country.
The UN estimates that more than 14 million people are facing hunger.
A truce came into force on Monday morning and now humanitarian organizations are focusing on stepping up relief operations.
Negotiations aimed at ending the bloodshed in Yemen will soon get underway, aimed at restoring peace to the beleaguered country.
That’s according to the UN’s Special Envoy for Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheik Ahmed, who briefed the Security Council late last week on the situation there.
The conflict is taking “a dreadful toll” on civilians, with the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen reporting more than 2,500 deaths over the past seven months. Meanwhile, millions of people are in desperate need of food aid.