More than 46,000 people have been displaced in Yemen since fighting escalated last week, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Friday, warning that the number is rising “by the hour”.
The UN agency said many families are being uprooted for the second or third time since the conflict began.
“Families are being forced to flee for the second or third time in this conflict, with almost nothing left,” said IOM Director General Amy Pope.
Pope warned that delivering aid is becoming increasingly difficult as the fighting spreads.
“As fighting spreads, reaching people with lifesaving assistance is becoming harder. We urgently need safe, unimpeded access,” Pope added, calling on all sides to protect civilians, aid workers and the supplies, vehicles and facilities used to deliver help.
The displacement figures cover Yemen's western coast and Taiz province as of Thursday and are continuing to rise.
Large numbers of people were reportedly seen leaving the port city of Mokha overnight, carrying what belongings they could.
New arrivals have since been reported in the southern provinces of Lahj and Aden, while others are said to be moving north towards Ibb province.
Entire villages in Maqbanah, Jabal Habashi and Al-Ma'afer have reportedly been emptied as clashes move closer to populated areas.
The Mokha–Taiz road, a vital supply route, has also reportedly been cut off, placing further pressure on host communities already struggling to support displaced families.
The IOM said it has been supporting displaced people since the start of the conflict through its shelter, land and property teams, Camp Coordination and Camp Management units, and other teams operating in the field.
However, all operational movements were temporarily suspended on Friday due to what the agency called a “deteriorating security environment”.
The IOM called on the warring parties to ensure safe and sustained humanitarian access, protect aid workers and facilities, and restore communications and transport links needed to deliver assistance.
Emergency supplies had already been depleted during the response to last month’s floods, the agency said.
The most urgent needs now include shelter, food, water, household items, healthcare and protection services.
Widespread telecommunications disruptions are also making it harder for the IOM's Displacement Tracking Matrix team to compile up-to-date figures to help guide the humanitarian response.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX has launched its latest Starship flight into orbit, but failed to recover the rocket’s giant booster. ...
As Central Asia expands its hydropower infrastructure and high-rise construction, seismologists are examining whether large mountain reservoirs cou...
More than 30 people have been taken to hospital after a cargo ship collided with a passenger cruise docked on the Mississippi River in New Orleans ...
European leaders gathered in Dublin on Thursday, 12 November, for the ninth European Political Community (EPC) summit, with security, defence and energy high on the agenda. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held talks focused on peace, trade and regional cooperation.
Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang is stepping down amid reports linking him to a woman suspected by U.S. authorities of spying for China, throwing the future of the $4 trillion chipmaker into uncertainty.
Kazakhstan’s security service has arrested Nurlan Zhakupov, CEO of Samruk-Kazyna, the country’s sovereign wealth fund, on suspicion of corruption. Yelzhas Otynshiyev, Chairman of KTZ, Kazakhstan’s national railway firm has also been detained.
Eight people have been killed and at least 17 injured after an apartment building collapsed into a neighbouring construction site in Brooklyn, New York, as rescuers continued searching the rubble for possible survivors.
Iran’s Assembly of Experts has backed withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and overhauling the country’s defence doctrine, calling both steps essential to national security and deterrence.
As Central Asia expands its hydropower infrastructure and high-rise construction, seismologists are examining whether large mountain reservoirs could influence earthquake activity. The question is particularly pressing in a region where major cities lie close to active tectonic faults.
As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes part of everyday life, languages with smaller speaker communities risk being left behind. Georgian, spoken by around four million people worldwide, is facing a digital challenge: making sure it is understood by the machines shaping how the world communicates.
Tajikistan has urged the international community to increase funding to protect shrinking glaciers and help mountain communities adapt to climate change at the COP31 UN climate summit in Antalya, Türkiye.
Melting glaciers, recurring droughts and dust storms are putting growing pressure on Central Asia’s water resources, agriculture and public health.
Iran’s Assembly of Experts has backed withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and overhauling the country’s defence doctrine, calling both steps essential to national security and deterrence.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment