Three million displaced by Yemen conflict: UNHCR

By Zakaria al-Kamali

SANAA

More than three million Yemenis have been displaced by the ongoing conflict between the Yemeni government and the Shia Houthi group in Yemen, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The UNHCR and IOM said in a statement that the Yemeni conflict, which erupted in late 2014, have uprooted 3,154,572 people, including 2,205,102 individuals who remain displaced across the country.

The two organizations cited a 7% increase in displacement across Yemen since April -- when the Yemeni government and Houthis engaged in UN-brokered peace talks in Kuwait.

“The crisis is forcing more and more people to leave their homes in search of safety,” Ita Schuette, UNHCR’s Deputy Representative in Yemen, said.

“More than three million people now live in very transient and precarious situations, struggling to cover basic needs.”

The report painted a worrying picture of life for displaced Yemenis, evidencing challenges to basic survival with overwhelming needs continuing to be the essentials; food, followed by shelter and drinking water.

Yemen has been racked by chaos since late 2014, when the Houthis and their allies overran capital Sanaa and other parts of the country, forcing President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi and his Saudi-backed government to temporarily flee to Riyadh.

The conflict escalated when Saudi Arabia and Arab allies launched in May of last year a massive military campaign in the country aimed at reversing Houthi gains and restoring Hadi’s embattled government.