More than 80,000 Yemeni children may be starving, humanitarian group says

DUBAI / ADEN (Reuters) – In Yemen, some 85,000 children under five may have starved to death since a Saudi-led coalition intervened in the civil war in 2015. Wednesday announced a humanitarian agency on the arrival of the United Nations Special Envoy to Yemen. continue peace talks.

Western countries are calling for a renewed ceasefire and renewed peace efforts to end the disastrous conflict that triggered the world's most urgent humanitarian crisis: 8.4 million people are on the brink of starvation.

Save the Children said that a conservative estimate based on UN data showed that 84,700 severely malnourished children could have died between April 2015 and October 2018, when an Arab alliance supported by the West fight against the houthi movement aligned with Iran which holds the capital. Sanaa.

"We are horrified by the fact that some 85,000 children in Yemen have died of extreme hunger since the beginning of the war. For every child killed by bombs and bullets, dozens of people are dying of hunger and disease and this is totally preventable, "the statement said.

The latest available figure of the United Nations for the record of the conflict, considered an indirect war between Saudi Arabia and Iran, was in 2016 and rose to more than 10,000.

The global organization has not quantified the number of victims of malnutrition but warned last month that half of the population, or about 14 million people, may soon be on the verge of starvation and depend on entirely of humanitarian aid.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has stated that it has no figures on the number of casualties, but that malnutrition and fighting are causing heavy losses to civilians.

"What we see in the various health centers and health centers in which we work is a very catastrophic humanitarian situation, but not just malnutrition," Carlos Batallas, head of the ICRC delegation, told Reuters in Geneva. in Aden.

"One of the problems we're seeing today is that the vaccination has not been followed, that you have pregnant women who do not have antenatal care, women who can not give birth in the hospital or in a health center with nurses. "

The Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), a database on violence in Yemen, reports that about 57,000 people have been killed since the beginning of 2016.

The Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 to re-establish the government, which was ousted from Sanaa in 2014 by the Houthis, who control most of the population centers.

Since it's taken the port city of Aden, in the south of the country, in 2015, the Arab coalition is in a military stalemate and is focusing on taking control of the main port city of Hodeidah in order to weaken the Houthis by cutting off their main supply line.

NO CEASEFIRE AGAIN

So far, fighting in Hodeida has not stopped, despite last week's announcement by the coalition that it will stop military operations in the region. A few days later, the Houthis announced the cessation of missile and drone attacks against coalition leaders, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and their Yemeni allies.

Intense fighting took place in Hodeida over the last two days, mostly at night, with each side trying to strengthen its positions during the de-escalation of hostilities.

"Heavy noises, bombings and artillery fire could be heard throughout the city until dawn," said a resident of Hodeidah on Wednesday.

Doctors Without Borders, a medical charity, said the fighting was being prepared in a hospital where its staff operates.

"Our staff can hear the explosions and gunfire that occur every day near Al-Salakhana Hospital," said his operations manager for Yemen in a statement.

A pro-coalition Yemeni military source told Reuters on Monday that a ceasefire in Hodeidah would only begin after the UN Security Council adopted a resolution on Yemen drafted by the United Nations. -Britain. Humanitarian organizations fear a total assault on the city, the entry point for more than 80 percent of Yemen's food imports, which would trigger famine.

US envoy Martin Griffiths arrived in Sana'a on Wednesday to meet with Houthi leaders and discuss the convening of peace talks in Sweden next month. The Houthis did not show up for the peace talks in September. Kuwait proposed to provide aircraft to the parties to ensure the participation of both parties in Stockholm.

Griffiths faces a daunting challenge to overcome the deep mistrust between all parties. A draft resolution, seen by Reuters, calls for the cessation of fighting in Hodeida, attacks on populated areas of Yemen and the end of attacks on countries in the region.

It also calls for an unhindered flow of commercial and humanitarian goods and a large and rapid injection of foreign exchange into the economy through the central bank.

"We hope that these peace talks in Sweden next month will constitute a ceasefire and build confidence. That humanitarian organizations and the population will have more opportunities to start moving, to return to a normal life, "said Mr. Batallas of the ICRC.