An uptick in fighting between government troops and Houthi rebels in central Yemen has forced 9,000 people to flee their homes, a UN migration watchdog said Friday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th February, 2021) An uptick in fighting between government troops and Houthi rebels in central Yemen has forced 9,000 people to flee their homes, a UN migration watchdog said Friday.
"Hostilities in Yemen's Marib governorate have led to the displacement of at least 9,000 people in recent weeks, bringing the total number of displacements in that part of the country to more than 117,000," the International Organization for Migration said.
Humanitarian agencies estimated that a further 385,000 people could be forced out of their homes if frontlines shifted, impacting hundreds of thousands in the provincial capital.
Heavy fighting erupted after Houthis launched an offensive to capture the strategically located Sirwah district, west of Marib City. Government troops fought back with air support from the Saudi-led coalition, which has carried out more than 100 airstrikes since February 10.
IOM said that Sirwah alone hosted 30,000 displaced people at 14 sites. Three of the camps were directly affected by the fighting, forcing the people to look for safety again. It warned that the region's capacity to accommodate vulnerable people was already stretched.
