Statement by the Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen: Scores of innocent civilians wounded and killed in attacks in Hajjah Governorate

Sana’a, 11 March 2019 – Reports from Hajjah Governorate indicate that scores of civilians have been killed by strikes on houses in Kushar District during the past two days. Medical sources report that 22 people have died, including 12 children and 10 women. As many as 30 people have been reportedly injured, including 14 children aged between 1 and 18. Many of the injured children have been sent to hospitals in Abs district and in Sana’a for treatment and several require possible evacuation to survive.

“We condemn these deaths and injuries unequivocally,” said Ms. Lise Grande, Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen. “And we share our deep condolences with the families of the victims.”

“It is outrageous that innocent civilians continue to die needlessly in a conflict that should, and can be solved,” said Ms. Grande.

“A higher percentage of people in Yemen are hungry and suffering than in any other country,” said Ms. Grande.

Hajjah is one of the worst impacted provinces. More than a million people are hungry and thousands of new cholera cases are being reported across the governorate. “We fear that thousands of civilians are trapped between the parties and lack the basic services they need to survive,” said Ms. Grande.

“We’re doing everything we can to reach the people who need help in Hajjah and throughout the country. In Hajjah, we’re distributing emergency supplies and helping people to access safe drinking water and we’ve dispatched emergency Mobile Medical Teams,” said Ms. Grande.

“We desperately want to help people but we are facing serious problems. We need access, visas, specialized equipment and approvals for our programmes,” said Ms. Grande. “We are asking all parties to the conflict to help us do our life-saving work.”

Yemen is the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. Nearly 80 per cent of the total population, 24.1 million people, requires some form of humanitarian assistance and protection. Ten million people are a step away from famine and starvation and 7 million people are malnourished.

The 2019 Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan (YHRP) requires USD 4.2 billion to assist more than 20 million Yemenis including 10 million people who rely entirely on humanitarian assistance to meet their basic needs every month.