WFP warns of humanitarian relief suspension in Yemeni regions
The World Food Programme announced on Wednesday the interruption of life-saving aid to 800,000 people in Yemen due to escalating conflict, mostly in the southwestern city of Taiz, while warning of the imminent depletion of wheat flour stocks. The UN agency stated in a release that the escalation of conflict in Yemen has led to the cutoff of life-saving aid for many individuals, as shifting frontlines, road closures, and increasing insecurity severely restrict humanitarian access in Taiz and other conflict-affected areas. It explained that it and its partners cannot reach more than 600,000 people in Taiz who rely on humanitarian assistance, including over 200,000 women and children. It added that counting communities cut off on Yemen's western coast in early September, the total number of people unreachable by the program has risen to 800,000. It noted that the districts of Taiz, Yemen's third-largest city, host the largest numbers of internally displaced persons since the crisis began, while many remain currently unreachable due to ongoing fighting and the imminent closure of roads surrounding the governorate. The program warned that the access cutoff is of grave concern, especially since Taiz records some of the highest levels of food insecurity in the country, where 10 out of 16 districts were previously classified at the emergency level. It alerted that its latest monitoring indicates wheat flour stocks are near depletion, and remaining food supplies in local markets may only last a short time if access restrictions to these areas persist. Amid the escalation, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs OCHA announced on Monday that the number of displaced people in Yemen has risen to 216,000 since last August. It warned that ongoing hostilities and widespread displacement are exacerbating humanitarian needs across Yemen. This comes within a military escalation that began last July, the broadest since the relative calm Yemen witnessed thanks to a truce that started in April 2022.
