(MENAFN- The Peninsula) At least 10 people were killed in heavy clashes in Yemen yesterday despite a five-day humanitarian truce, while aid distribution to the millions deprived of food, fuel and medicine by weeks of fighting and air strikes continued.
The ceasefire, which began on Tuesday, appeared to be mostly holding on Friday despite heavy ground fighting between local militiamen and the Houthis in the city of Taiz, residents said. A medical source said 10 were killed.
In the city of Dhalea residents also reported clashes but there was no information on casualties.
"Nothing has changed with this truce. People are still fighting and the Houthis are still in control," said Alawi Al Afouri, a resident in the southern city of Aden.
Meanwhile, tribal sources said yesterday Houthi fighters have withdrawn from the border area between Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
Impoverished and strife-torn even before the war, Yemen is now mired in a humanitarian catastrophe, as 300,000 people have been displaced by the conflict and 12 million are short of food.
The UN urged Saudi Arabia and its allies to ease inspections of Yemen-bound cargo, to accelerate imports of vital aid that is being held up despite a humanitarian truce. The aim is to get supplies to 2.5 million Yemenis deprived of food, fuel and medicine due to fighting by an Iranian-allied militia and air strikes against them by a Saudi-led coalition, violence that has killed at least 1,600 people, UN humanitarian coordinator Johannes van der Klaauw said.
The first UN aid flights landed in Yemen yesterday since a five-day humanitarian pause was declared on Tuesday night. Two of a planned six cargo planes, which will take a total of 150 tonnes of shelter and relief items, arrived in Sana'a, the refugee agency said.
A tightly enforced inspection regime has hindered delivery of humanitarian supplies, while roadblocks and continued sporadic fighting are holding up distribution inside the country, van der Klaauw told a Geneva news briefing via audio link from Sana'a. "The arms embargo and its inspection regime results in commercial goods, be it by air or ship, no longer reaching the country," he said, calling for inspections to be sped up so humanitarian goods, including "food and other life-sustaining necessities can resume".
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.