JamzNG Latest News, Gist, Entertainment in Nigeria
“We are deeply concerned by the escalation of conflict, but even more so by the increasing number of people we can no longer reach because of the conflict,” said El-Khidir Daloum, WFP country director in Yemen.
He noted that many affected families had been displaced several times and were even having difficulty purchasing basic foodstuffs.
“This situation could quickly turn into a humanitarian disaster if aid cannot be delivered safely and reach those who need it most,” he warned.
Trapped families, increasing needs
Taiz is Yemen’s third largest city and the capital of a pseudonymous province. Several districts have hosted the largest number of refugees due to escalating violence between Saudi-backed government forces and Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
Many of the refugees are now inaccessible due to ongoing fighting and road closures around the province.
WFP said the situation was particularly worrying because Taiz had the highest level of food insecurity, with 10 of the 16 districts already classified at emergency level.
Food stocks are running low
Recent monitoring shows that wheat flour stocks are running low while local markets are running out of food, according to the UN agency.
WFP and its partners are unable to access more than 600,000 people in Taiz who depend on humanitarian assistance, including more than 200,000 women and children.
About 800,000 people are now out of coverage nationwide, including communities impacted by loss of access on the West Coast.
Millions of people are starving across the country
The UN continues to sound the alarm over the crisis in Yemen, where more than 18 million people face acute food insecurity. Approximately 2.2 million children under five suffer from acute malnutrition, including 500,000 children suffering from severe acute malnutrition, which is the most life-threatening form of the condition.
Recent WFP monitoring in accessible areas found this almost 75 percent of households unable to meet their basic food needs – a record high this year and a sign that food security is deteriorating significantly.
WFP said the escalation has also seriously disrupted its operations, with many offices broken into, assets and food stocks lost, and critical supply chain routes disrupted.
Operations disrupted, personnel detained
Meanwhile, 37 of its staff are among 72 UN personnel still being detained by the de facto Houthi authorities. WFP has joined the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres repeatedly called for their immediate and unconditional release.
The agency continues to uphold the critical need for safe and sustainable humanitarian access in Yemen and immediate funding. The team has provided emergency assistance to more than 115,000 new refugees and is preparing to expand to cover 1.5 million people when access is restored.
WFP emphasized that $268 million is needed to sustain operations through 2027, covering emergency food assistance, nutrition programs, school meals, resilience activities and critical humanitarian logistics services.
