São Paulo – The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha) of the United Nations reported this Thursday (13th) that it’s necessary US$ 1.6 billion in donations to attend to the victims of the ongoing conflict in Yemen. According to the organization, 21 million people, or 80% of the population, need some kind of help. Ocha said, however, that only 18% of the total needed to attend the Yemenis were donated.
Ocha’s coordinator, Stephen O’Brien, visited Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, and also the cities of Amran and Aden this week, and said that despite the conflict, the government can’t stop with the services to the population. “Yemen needs peace. There is no military solution to this conflict. The fighting must stop. I call on parties to the conflict, and those who can influence them, especially in the region, to find a durable, political solution, for the sake of the Yemeni people. We must not fail them”, he said.
The country is in conflict since March, when the Houthi militia seized power and president Abdo Rabo Mansur Hadi left the country. Since then, Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations started the fight against the rebels to reestablish the elected government.
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
