Yemen - Taizz: Red Cross can deliver relief supplies to besieged city for the first time in weeks

War of attrition in Yemen The Red Cross can deliver relief supplies to the besieged Taizz for the first time in weeks

The Houthis are besieging the city of Taiz, and hundreds of thousands of Yemenis are lacking water, medicine and food. Aid organizations warn of a catastrophe.

This Wednesday, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it delivered medical supplies to the Yemeni city of Taizz, which is surrounded by the pro-Iranian Houthi militia, for the first time in weeks. The four-truck delivery, including surgical equipment, was the ICRC's first delivery of medical supplies to hospitals in the city since September 23, an ICRC spokesman told AFP.

Houthi fighters have surrounded Taizz since early October. They are blocking the road connecting the city to Aden - the seat of Yemen's internationally recognized government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia. The United Nations has repeatedly raised the alarm about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Taiz, where the Houthis have restricted imports of basic supplies.

The Foreign Office in Berlin said on Wednesday that 800,000 people were trapped in Taizz and currently had no access to humanitarian aid. The city's adequate water supply is not guaranteed, and gasoline and food prices have multiplied. Germany will therefore increase humanitarian aid for Yemen by ten million euros to 28 million euros.

Germany called on the Houthi militia to stop their attacks “with immediate effect,” according to the Foreign Office. Accordingly, Federal Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (CDU) met his Yemeni colleague Afrah Abdulasis al-Suba in Berlin on Wednesday. In addition to the attacks by the Houthis, the situation in the region was also discussed.

After four years of relative calm, fighting between the Houthis and the Yemeni government flared up again in July. A military coalition led by Saudi Arabia is supporting Yemeni troops in their fight against the Houthis. The Iranian-backed militia has been attacking targets in Saudi Arabia almost every day for weeks.

dop/AFP