23 aid organizations working in Yemen warn in a joint statement that further military escalation could be “extremely serious” for the population of Yemen, writes the British The Guardian. They urgently ask the UK, the US and the Houthi militia to prioritize diplomatic solutions over military action. The Norwegian Refugee Council and Save the Children are among the organizations behind the statement. International Save the Children is one of the largest aid organizations in the country with 700 employees. – The crisis in Yemen is still one of the biggest in the world, and the latest escalation will only worsen the situation for the children, says Save the Children’s international manager, Nora Ingdal to news. Around 80 percent of the population in Yemen is in need of humanitarian aid. Eleven million of them are children. Houthi rebels in Yemen demonstrate after the attacks by the United Kingdom and the United States. Photo: AP The United States and Great Britain carried out a major attack against Houthi rebels in Yemen on the night of last Friday. The aim was to stop the Iran-backed Houthis’ attacks on shipping in the Red Sea. The Houthi rebels say their aim is to pressure Israel to allow more aid into Gaza and that they will immediately allow the ships to pass freely if Israel imposes a ceasefire. Fear of food shortage The aid organizations estimate that millions of people in Yemen have had to flee their homes after the attacks from the US and the UK and that many have problems obtaining food, fuel, medicine and other vital goods. – Hundreds of thousands of people risk starvation every day, says Ingdal in Save the Children. She says that the aid organizations are already noticing the consequences of the military escalation. The US carried out new attacks on Saturday night against Houthi targets in Yemen. The picture shows the destruction at a radar system connected to the airport in Sana after the previous wave of attacks on the night of Friday. Photo: Maxar Technologies / AP / NTB Several of their most important partners have already stopped work in the country, because they are afraid for the safety of the employees, says Shannon Orcutt, spokesperson for international Save the Children in Yemen to The Guardian. The country is completely dependent on imports. There are now delays and problems getting essential goods into the country. This has led to increased prices. “Lacks of basic goods such as food and fuel and increased prices will worsen the already catastrophic economic crisis and increase dependence on emergency aid,” the statement says. They demand that “the civilian population and civilian infrastructure must be protected, and that humanitarian aid must be guaranteed free access into the country.” In addition, they call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza “to save lives and prevent further instability in the region”. Armed men watch from the beach after Houthi rebels have boarded a ship in the Red Sea. Photo: Reuters USA with new missile attacks The USA has carried out new attacks against the Houthis in Yemen, American sources inform the news agency Reuters. The attacks took place on Tuesday and were aimed at the Houthis’ sea-targeting missiles. Despite the military actions by the United States and Great Britain in the last week, the Houthis have continued their attacks against ships in the area. On Monday, an American-owned cargo ship was hit by a missile near Aden, and on Tuesday, a Greek-owned vessel was hit. Norwegian ships have also been hit by rockets from the Houthi movement. Chemical tanks, including Strinda owned by the Bergen-based J. Ludwig Mowinckels Rederi were hit by rockets around 12 December. Photo: AS J. Ludwig Mowinckels Rederi – The Gaza war must be stopped The war in Gaza and the attacks in the Red Sea were also topics on the second day of the World economic forum (WEF) in Davos. – To stop the attacks in the Red Sea, the Gaza war must end, said Qatar’s Prime Minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani. The prime minister says the situation in the region is “a recipe for escalation everywhere” and that Qatar believes a de-escalation in the Gaza Strip will stop the escalation elsewhere. – We have to deal with the core issue, which is Gaza, in order to reduce the tension everywhere else. If we continue to focus on the symptoms without treating the underlying cause, all solutions will be temporary, says Prime Minister al-Thani. At the same time, EU member states are said to have been positive about initiating a European naval effort in the Red Sea, diplomats claim to the Reuters news agency. The aim is to start the project by 19 February and get it operational shortly afterwards. The mission is to protect ships in the Red Sea against attacks by the Houthi rebels.
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Aid organizations stop activity in Yemen – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
