Yemen: Houthi siege, cholera outbreak and aid cuts put civilians in the crosshairs

Taiz, Yemen’s third largest city, has been a major battleground between the Iran-backed Houthi group and Yemen’s internationally recognized Saudi-backed government since the start of the war in 2014.

The Houthis have besieged the city since 2015 but tightened their blockade earlier this month when they took control of the last main road between Taiz and other government-controlled areas.

The developments are part of a broader offensive the Houthis launched in early September to capture key areas along Yemen’s southwestern Red Sea coast.

Supplies plummeted, prices skyrocketed

Current supplies of wheat and flour in Taiz could run out in less than three weeks, while food prices have reportedly risen by around 50 percent and cooking gas is largely unavailable, the UN warned.

Fuel prices have also tripled and fuel shortages are endangering water supplies and health services.

“We continue to press [the parties] to…uphold their obligations under international humanitarian law and refrain from direct attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure and continue to take precautions to save civilians and the infrastructure they use,” the UN’s Stéphane Dujarric stressed on Tuesday.

Epidemic of a disease

At the same time, conflict and mass displacement are increasing across the country disrupting health services and pushing people into overcrowded shelters with inadequate access to clean water.

As a consequence, Yemen is experiencing a surge cholera – an acute and potentially fatal intestinal infection, which is mostly spread through water or food contaminated with human waste.

The country has reported 8,034 suspected cholera cases and 27 deaths this year, with a quarter of them occurring in the last four weeks.

Since August, 200,000 people have been displacedwhich is the United Nations health organization WHO this record coincided with a sharp increase in cholera transmission.

Children also face serious risks from this disease measleswith more than 22,800 suspected cases and 128 deaths reported this year.

Vaccination coverage, estimated at 45 percent for each of the two recommended doses, is extremely low in Yemen, increasing the risk of outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases.

Health services are under pressure

Health facilities, which have treated thousands of people injured in the fighting, are struggling to keep up with the growing disease burden.

Around 500 health facilities in nine provinces are affected by a lack of partner support WHO found.

The agency is working with the Yemeni government to strengthen surveillance, testing and treatment, but its 90-day emergency response is woefully underfunded. The state needed $31 million and has only received $4.3 million, less than 14 percent of the total funds received.

“Without urgent funding and unimpeded access to clean water, vaccinations and essential health services, this outbreak could spread rapidly among already vulnerable populations,” said WHO official Dr Annette Heinzelmann.