Increasing Violence in Yemen: UNHCR Expects 230,000 Displaced by Year's End
More than 130,000 people have been forced to flee within Yemen since the beginning of the month. UN refugee workers warn that the number could rise significantly by the end of the year. The background is the advance of the pro-Iranian Houthi militia.
According to UN estimates, the increasing violence in Yemen could dramatically drive up the number of internally displaced people in the war-torn country. Since the beginning of September, more than 130,000 people have already fled within the country to escape the heavy fighting, the UN refugee agency UNHCR announced. Over the next three months, the number could exceed 230,000. Civilians continue to bear the brunt of the war.
Prior to the current escalation, a total of more than 5.2 million people had been displaced, according to the agency.
Mass Displacement in the Southern Province of Taiz
The backdrop is the advance of the Iran-backed Houthi militia into the south of the country over recent weeks. The vast majority of those displaced were driven from the province of Taiz near the Bab al-Mandab strait. The Houthis had brought the coastal strip largely under their control in a kind of lightning offensive.
Even before the latest fighting, Yemen was already mired in one of the world's most severe humanitarian crises. According to UNHCR, more than 22 million people in the country are in need of humanitarian assistance.
For more than ten years, the country has been embroiled in a multi-front war, in which Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, among others, have intervened.
The Houthis are fighting against the internationally recognized government and its allies. They are part of Iran's so-called "Axis of Resistance," a regional network of Iran-backed militias. Tehran supports the Houthis in a similar manner to Hezbollah in Lebanon, providing weapons, technology, expertise and financial resources.
