Houthi Attacks Displace 10,000 Yemenis From Marib Outskirts

Children walk at a camp for people recently displaced by fighting in Yemen's northern province of al-Jawf between government forces and Houthis, in Marib, Yemen March 8, 2020. Picture taken March 8, 2020. REUTERS/Ali Owidha
Children walk at a camp for people recently displaced by fighting in Yemen's northern province of al-Jawf between government forces and Houthis, in Marib, Yemen March 8, 2020. Picture taken March 8, 2020. REUTERS/Ali Owidha
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Houthi Attacks Displace 10,000 Yemenis From Marib Outskirts

Children walk at a camp for people recently displaced by fighting in Yemen's northern province of al-Jawf between government forces and Houthis, in Marib, Yemen March 8, 2020. Picture taken March 8, 2020. REUTERS/Ali Owidha
Children walk at a camp for people recently displaced by fighting in Yemen's northern province of al-Jawf between government forces and Houthis, in Marib, Yemen March 8, 2020. Picture taken March 8, 2020. REUTERS/Ali Owidha

Houthi militias have not only displaced thousands of Yemenis over the past years but also targeted those displaced in the camps on the outskirts of Marib governorate with missiles, creating a new wave of displacement to Marib city.

The Government of Yemen's Executive Unit for Internally Displaced Persons issued a report on this and affirmed that more than 1,500 families, equal to 10,000 people, were forced to flee again from Mudghal district in Marib’s outskirts to its capital and other government-controlled districts as a result of Houthi attacks.

According to the report, of which Asharq Al-Awsat has obtained a copy, Raghwan district in northwestern Marib has hosted thousands of displaced people from the conflict areas in Majzar and Naham districts.

The total number of internally displaced persons has amounted to more than 20,000, the report noted.

“Due to the clashes and the intensified battles, thousands of families were forced to flee from their homes. Some were displaced for the second time and others for the third time.”

Some fled on feet and were displaced to the districts of Sirwah, Medina, and Wadi, while others were displaced to nearby locations within the directorate itself, the report indicated.

It recalled the first tragedy resulting from the torrents that swept away some camps in all directorates of the governorate, with the absence of any intervention by the humanitarian partners in the district.

It further pointed out that the meteorology department expects heavy rains in the coming days and fears a new tragedy for the displaced in the governorate directorates.

The Executive Unit’s field monitoring and evaluation team hastened to monitor the recent displacement to know the whereabouts of those displaced. It requested its partners to respond quickly to provide them with all their needs, in terms of shelter and non-food items.

It set toilets, provided water tanks and hygiene bags, and asked the Food Security Bloc to direct partners to respond rapidly and cover the needs of the displaced, including food baskets.



UNICEF: Gaza Fighting Pauses Agreed to Finish Polio Vaccinations

FILED - 01 September 2024, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: A child is vaccinated against the polio virus at the health center in Deir al-Balah. Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
FILED - 01 September 2024, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: A child is vaccinated against the polio virus at the health center in Deir al-Balah. Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
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UNICEF: Gaza Fighting Pauses Agreed to Finish Polio Vaccinations

FILED - 01 September 2024, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: A child is vaccinated against the polio virus at the health center in Deir al-Balah. Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa
FILED - 01 September 2024, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: A child is vaccinated against the polio virus at the health center in Deir al-Balah. Photo: Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa

Humanitarian pauses in the war in the Gaza Strip have been agreed to allow a second round of polio vaccinations targeting 590,000 children under the age of 10 to start on Oct. 14, the head of the UN children's agency UNICEF said on Thursday.
"Area-specific humanitarian pauses have been agreed. It is critical that these pauses are respected by all parties. Without them, it is impossible to vaccinate the children," UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement.
The first round of the polio vaccination campaign, which began on Sept. 1, reached its target of 90% of children under 10 years of age, the United Nations has said. It was carried out in phases over two weeks during humanitarian pauses in the fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas.
The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed in August that a baby was partially paralyzed by the type 2 polio virus, the first such case in the territory in 25 years.
"UNICEF will include Vitamin A supplements to strengthen children's immune systems. Children in Gaza live in extremely dire hygiene and sanitation conditions," Reuters quoted Russell as saying.
"With the additional vaccine equipment and cold boxes that arrived yesterday, UNICEF is ready to deliver and vaccinate children to stop the transmission of polio," she said. "The success of the first round shows that when agreements are respected, we can get the job done."