On 17 November, unidentified armed men attacked a mobile medical clinic run by the Emirates Red Crescent in the Yakhtil area of Al Mukha District in Taizz Governorate, where staff were providing medical services to residents of Al-Mashqar Village. Bullets penetrated the vehicle while staff were inside.

“We urge the authorities to identify and swiftly bring the perpetrators of the attack to justice,” said Ms. Lise Grande, Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen.

“Humanitarian agencies in Yemen are working around the clock every single day to provide life-saving assistance to millions of Yemenis,” said Ms. Grande. “We do this in one of the toughest environments in the world.”

“Attacking those of us who are helping people survive is a shocking breach of international humanitarian law.”

Yemen is one of the most dangerous and non-permissive operating environments in the world. Humanitarian staff continue to face detention and harassment, and their visas are arbitrarily refused or withdrawn. Agencies are subjected to ongoing multiple administrative restrictions and impediments. Up to 9 million people who need assistance have been denied it because of these.

"Yemen is facing a real risk of large-scale famine,” said Ms. Grande. “We need donors to fund this operation so we can save the lives of people who will starve and die.”

Yemen remains the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. Nearly 80 per cent of the population – over 24 million people - require some form of humanitarian assistance and protection. By mid-November only US$1.58 billion of the US$3.2 billion needed in 2020 had been received.