Stop the Genocide in Yemen

YemenExtra

SH.A.

By: Sami Mohammed with a team to the UN

Escalating war in Yemen is making a dire humanitarian situation worse. We must do all we can to push for a permanent and immediate ceasefire. Before the current war, Yemen was already the poorest country in the Middle East.

We would like to remind everybody that today more than half of the population (14.1 million people) do not have enough food to eat – an increase of 4.1 million people in two years. Over 3.3 million people are acutely malnourished. Over 7 million are starving and a step away from famine if things do not improve. We also know that nearly 19 million people (almost 70% of the population) need some sort of humanitarian aid.

We would like to remind you that Violence has damaged homes, schools and even hospitals. So far, over 46,000 people have lost their lives or been injured since the escalation of the conflict in March 2015 and over 3 million people have had to flee their homes.

We would like to remind you that food and diesel, which is needed to pump clean water, are increasingly in short supply and their prices are rising – putting these basic necessities out of reach for ordinary families. And at a time when people desperately need them, vital supplies can’t enter the country. That could prove disastrous, because Yemen relies on imports for 90 per cent of its food.

We would like to remind you that Escalating violence is making an already dire humanitarian situation much worse. Basic health services like health, water supply and education are collapsing. The economy has been shattered. Only 45% of health facilities are still functioning.

We would like you to remember that Yemenis were isolated from the air, sea and land as no trading no traveling and no fishing. The Saudi-led coalition has imposed restrictions on airspace and ports, preventing humanitarian supplies from making it into the country.
We would like you to remember that seven million people do not know where their next meal might come from.

We would like you to remember that Helpless Mothers watch their babies die in their arms from starvation. This is a particularly painful way to die. The agony of both infant and mother must be immeasurable.

We call on the international community to take steps to bring an end to the escalation of violence on all sides and ensure the protection of civilians in Yemen. It is critical that all governments push for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, so that vital humanitarian assistance can be delivered to people in Yemen.

We must do all we can to prevent any further suffering to those who already desperately need help. We urge the UN to exert greater pressure on the government of Saudi Arabia to stop the ethnic cleansing in Yemen.