GENEVA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st October, 2018) Reduced imports and difficulty of movement in Yemen are aggravating the humanitarian situation in the country, which is already catastrophic, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said in a press release on Wednesday, emphasizing the necessity of political effort to end hostilities.
"Robust political efforts are needed to bring an end to warfare that has caused intense suffering for families in Yemen," the ICRC said.
According to the ICRC, lack of clean water and medication has already resulted in infectious diseases upsurge in Yemen. The depreciation of the national Currency has triggered a dramatic increase in the cost of living, with prices for flour, sugar, rice and milk going up by 30 percent since September. Scores of displaced Yemenis own nothing but the clothes that they are wearing, and suffer from poor living conditions.
The ICRC has provided food aid to around 500,000 Yemeni citizens in the first half of 2018, also helping over two million people access clean water and sanitation facilities, and providing support to over 14,000 injured Yemenis receiving medical assistance in 15 hospitals across the country.
For several years, Yemen has been in a state of a civil war, with the government forces fighting the rebel Houthi movement. The Saudi-led coalition of mostly Persian Gulf nations has been carrying out airstrikes targeting Houthis at the government's request since 2015. The situation in the country, which is also torn by an acute economic crisis, deteriorated even further in June, when the Saudi-led coalition launched an offensive to seize Al Hudaydah, a key port city for humanitarian aid, from the Houthis.
