Displaced Yemenis affected by recent floods receive humanitarian in the Hays region, south of Hodeidah Governorate, west of August 16, 2024. (Photo by Khaled Ziad / AFP)
Cases of malnutrition have sharply increased in government-controlled regions of Yemen, with "extremely critical" levels of malnutrition reported in some southern areas of the country, a UN task force warned on Sunday.
"The number of children under five suffering from acute malnutrition, or wasting, has risen by 34% compared to the previous year (...), affecting more than 600,000 children, including 120,000 suffering from severe malnutrition," said the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) task force in Yemen, which includes several UN agencies.
Yemen has been embroiled in a conflict since 2014 between the government, supported by a Saudi-led military coalition, and Houthi rebels backed by Iran.
The war has plunged the country, already the poorest on the Arabian Peninsula before the conflict, into one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, according to the UN.
"This sharp increase is due to the combined effects of epidemics (cholera and measles), food insecurity, limited access to clean water, and economic decline," the task force stated in a press release from UNICEF.
The latest report covers 117 government-controlled areas, all of which are expected to experience high levels of malnutrition between July and October.
Coastal regions south of Hodeidah and Taiz have for the first time reached "extremely critical" levels of acute malnutrition, with prevalence exceeding 30%, the statement added.
"The report confirms an alarming trend," emphasized UNICEF's representative in Yemen, Peter Hawkins, as several international organizations have had to reduce their operations in the country due to a lack of funding.
The World Food Programme (WFP) "is currently forced to provide smaller rations, and these results should remind us that lives are at stake," said WFP's representative in Yemen, Pierre Honnorat.
The country could "sink further into food insecurity and malnutrition if the current low levels of humanitarian funding persist," he warned.
Cases of malnutrition have sharply increased in government-controlled regions of Yemen, with "extremely critical" levels of malnutrition reported in some southern areas of the country, a UN task force warned on Sunday."The number of children under five suffering from acute malnutrition, or wasting, has risen by 34% compared to the previous year (...), affecting more than...
