European official accuses the Houthis of violence against humanitarian organizations in Yemen
English - Sunday 26 July 2020 الساعة 07:28 pm
Aden, Newsyemen:
A European official said that the year 2019 witnessed a worrying increase in violence against aid workers and against humanitarian assets in Yemen, and that ranged from killing and assault to arbitrary detention and robbery, referring to the practices of the Houthi militia against international relief agencies operating in the country.
Janez Lenarčič, Commissioner for Crisis Management and Humanitarian Aid in the European Union, explained in an article he wrote under the title "Time to Stand with the Yemeni People", that a coordinated media campaign in northern Yemen (Houthi-controlled areas) to the point of arousing hate speech and violence against humanitarian organizations.
Lenarčič stressed that obstructing humanitarian aid and attacking aid workers is a violation of international humanitarian law, calling on the parties to the conflict in Yemen to comply with their obligations under the law of war and lifting obstacles to humanitarian organizations.
He stated that humanitarian workers in Yemen are doing a heroic job, as they provide critical assistance under tremendous pressure and deliberate obstacles.
The European official noted that last year, restrictions on humanitarian access sometimes deprived nearly 8 million people in Yemen of some form of humanitarian aid.
He pointed out that four fifths of the population in Yemen needs help to overcome the devastating effects of conflict, displacement and disease, adding that "millions of Yemenis are currently relying on food aid provided by the United Nations to survive, as food prices rose and the economy faltered, and a new hunger crisis loomed on the horizon".
The European Union’s Crisis and Humanitarian Aid Commissioner concluded: “There is no time for it to be wasted.
Yemenis need help and they need it now. The European Union and the wider international community cannot afford to ignore it.
