Yemen: Escalation of Fighting in Hodeida Threatens Humanitarian Assistance
With the ongoing clashes around the frontline of Hodeida, one of Action Against Hunger’s main warehouses serving humanitarian operations in the country suffered collateral damage from the ongoing conflict. After calls for a ceasefire by the international community only a matter of weeks ago, this is a deeply disturbing development. Action Against Hunger calls on all parties to the conflict to respect humanitarian activities and facilities to preserve essential aid to thousands people in need in the country.
Action Against Hunger’s warehouse, located in the north of Hodeida, was hit by a stray bullet around 10:50 am on Thursday, November 22nd. It came in through a glass door while two of Action Against Hunger’s staff members were on duty in the warehouse. The two staff members are safe but had to stop their activities.
“The warehouse serves Action Against Hunger’s humanitarian operations in the north of the country and is a storage place for essential equipment such as medical supplies, hygiene kits, and other non-food items,” says Valentina Ferrante, Action Against Hunger’s Country Director in Yemen.
Action Against Hunger in Yemen is extremely concerned about the escalation of fighting in Hodeida and of the impact that it has on civilians. 80% of the population in Yemen need humanitarian assistance, including 11.3 million in need of lifesaving aid. The humanitarian agency calls on all warrying parties to respect the deconfliction mechanism that informs of the locations of humanitarian static locations and humanitarian movements in Yemen aiming to ensure the safety and security of humanitarian premises, personnel, equipment, and activities in areas of active military operations.
“All parties to the conflict must immediately stop the violence considering the catastrophic impact it has on the civilians across Yemen,” says Ferrante.
Action Against Hunger in Yemen
Since the start of the devastating conflict, Action Against Hunger has been providing humanitarian assistance to affected populations across Yemen. Despite difficult access, our teams reached more than 600,000 beneficiaries in 2017. Our nutrition and health programs provide support for acutely malnourished children under five and their mothers; food security and livelihoods programs through the direct distribution of food or money and/or food coupons; and water, sanitation and hygiene programs including promotion and distribution of kits, and rehabilitation of water points and latrines. We have trained health workers and treated nearly 30,000 suspected cases of cholera at Action Against Hunger-supported hospital near Hodeidah.