WHO warns of epidemic risk in Yemen after 100,000 people have escaped

Othe fighting between government forces with the support of Saudi Arabia and the Huthis rebels supported by Iran increased in early September, when the rebels supported by Iran launched an offensive in the west of the country.

“ Almost 20 million people in Yemen need health care,” WHO’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a press conference in the Swiss city of Geneva.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) today raised to more than 104,000 the number of people who fled due to the current Huthis offensive.

The head of WHO said that the threat is especially serious in displaced communities.

“ The attacks against health centers, the shortage of supplies and fuel and the interruptions of services are bringing the system closer and closer to collapse,” he warned, quoted by the Spanish agency EFE.

The WHO has asked health professionals to be protected from attacks, such as channels to bring assistance to the needy communities, at a time when such access remains severely reduced for safety reasons.

The number of people displaced by the conflict in recent weeks includes more than 2,700 people who have crossed the Red Sea to Djibouti, on the East African coast, according to the IOM.

The Yemeni province of Taiz on the southwest coast is the area most affected by the new wave of displaced persons, with more than 63,000 people forced to leave the usual place of residence.

“Yémen is a country devastated by war, displacement, poverty and climate impacts,” said IOM’s director-general Amy Pope.

“Ignoring the suffering of civilians is unacceptable, as needs continue to increase,” he added, quoted in a statement released today by the IOM in Geneva.

According to the IOM, humanitarian workers claim that the pace of travel is exceeding the ability to follow them in real time.

“ Families are moving under enemy fire, often at night. Many take with them little more than what they can carry”, said the organization.

“In total, 104,796 people, distributed by 17,461 households, are now displaced,” he said.

The offensive allowed the rebels greater control of access to the Red Sea through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which allows connection to the Suez Canal.

The Red Sea route gained greater importance due to the Iranian blockade of the Strait of Ormuz, on the eastern end of the Arabian peninsula, since the start of the Israeli-American offensive against Tehran on 28 February.

The two straits are crucial for world trade in hydrocarbons and other products, with disturbances in maritime traffic causing price increases with economic consequences in many countries.