World

Yemen Conflict Drives 290,000 Displaced, 6,100 Pregnant Women at Risk, UN Reports

By Al Jazeera Staff

A new surge of fighting in Yemen has displaced at least 290,000 people since the war resumed in August, according to the United Nations humanitarian office (OCHA). The conflict, involving forces loyal to Yemen’s internationally recognised government and Houthi rebels, has intensified in Taiz governorate and coastal areas, with thousands reported killed.

An OCHA report released on Friday warned that 65,000 refugees and asylum seekers in Yemen face a rapidly deteriorating situation, with services disrupted and food and fuel prices rising sharply. Among those recently displaced are 6,100 pregnant women, including 600 who are due to give birth within two weeks. The UN has deployed mobile teams and midwives to displacement sites, and aid groups have delivered food, hygiene supplies and emergency cash to about 249,000 people—roughly three‑quarters of the displaced population.

The rise in displacement comes as the war has escalated on several fronts and spilled across the border into Saudi Arabia. On Saturday, the Saudi‑led coalition said it intercepted and destroyed a “hostile” drone over the Riyadh region. Coalition spokesman Turki al‑Malki posted on X that the site was under inspection and that no casualties had been reported. This is the second interception over Riyadh in as many days. Saudi Arabia also reported drones downed near Mecca, Medina and Riyadh, and a Houthi missile fired toward the kingdom’s south. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree denied launching drones toward Saudi territory, calling the claims “egregious lies.” The Houthis have repeatedly denied targeting Islam’s two holiest cities while claiming responsibility for attacks on the Saudi capital, airports and oil infrastructure.

The Houthis’ attack on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on October 10 killed at least 13 people and wounded more than 300, the most lethal attack on Saudi soil in more than a decade. Saudi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud attended a G20 Foreign Ministers meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, where he discussed the situation in Yemen with U.S., Russian and European counterparts, according to the Saudi state news agency. Prince Faisal and Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand also issued a joint condemnation of the Houthi attacks on the kingdom.

Yemen’s internationally recognised government announced on Friday that the Houthis had fired at least three ballistic missiles at Maashiq presidential palace in Aden, the seat of government in the interim capital, and at Aden International airport, which had reopened on Thursday after a brief closure for repairs following an earlier Houthi attack. Both the palace and the airport have been repeat targets for Houthi drone and missile attacks in recent weeks. The cabinet denounced the attacks, calling the airport strike a “direct attack on the interest of citizens” and accusing the Houthis of seeking to disrupt “legitimate institutions” by striking the palace.

Spokesman for Yemen’s government forces, Majed Abdullah al‑Nuzaili, said on Friday that they had “neutralised” about 336 Houthi fighters and commanders and destroyed or damaged 112 vehicles, weapons and other equipment in recent hours. Warplanes, drones, artillery and rocket launchers targeted the group’s command centres, troop concentrations and supply routes on fronts including Taiz, Marib, al‑Jawf and al‑Bayda.

A mounting civilian toll has been reported. One civilian was killed and five injured, including a child, in Houthi attacks across Taiz governorate, according to the government‑aligned Saba news agency. The agency reported that a woman was shot dead, while the injuries came from shelling and gunfire. The UN has verified 270 civilian casualties since August, including 68 killed, half of whom are children. The Yemeni Network for Rights and Freedoms said its field team in Taiz province has recorded thousands of Houthi violations between September 1 and October 29, with at least 189 civilians killed, including 38 children and 27 women. The group also recorded 23 field executions and more than 300 abductions or enforced disappearances.

Roads have been closed by the fighting, blocking food, medicine, fuel and water to two million people in the vicinity. Taiz city has been bitterly contested throughout Yemen’s civil war. After seizing ground to its south this month, including al‑Turbah, the Houthis have tightened their grip around Taiz, leading to deteriorating humanitarian conditions within the city.

Yemen’s war began in September 2014, when Houthi forces captured the capital Sanaa, forcing the government south. The war intensified when a Saudi‑led Arab coalition intervened to support government‑aligned forces in March 2015. Following several truces between the two sides, fighting re‑erupted after Yemeni government forces targeted Sanaa International airport, preventing a plane carrying a Houthi delegation from landing. Since then, the Houthis have launched a sweeping offensive on Yemen’s coast, giving them control of the Bab al‑Mandeb strait. Yemen’s government has announced the launch of an offensive to retake territories from the Houthis.