According to the aid organization UNICEF, the war in Yemen, which has been going on for eight years, has devastating consequences for children: eleven million of them are dependent on humanitarian aid – around 2.2 million suffer from malnutrition.
According to UNICEF, eleven million children in the civil war-torn Yemen are dependent on humanitarian aid. Around 2.2 million Yemeni girls and boys suffer from acute malnutrition.
The lives of millions of children in Yemen are threatened by the unbearable consequences of the overwhelming, never-ending war.
540,000 children in imminent danger
According to UNICEF, more than 540,000 children are so severely malnourished that their lives are in immediate danger without treatment. The United Nations Children’s Fund also warned that without immediate countermeasures, the risk of malnutrition would continue to rise.
More than 2.3 million children are living in IDP camps, UNICEF said. There they are only inadequately cared for, there is a lack of medicine and sanitary facilities.
More than 11,000 children killed or seriously injured
According to UNICEF, more than 11,000 children were also killed or seriously injured in Yemen between March 2015 and November 2022. In their distress, families often make decisions that are harmful to their children, such as child marriage, child labor or conscription for military service.
According to UNICEF, more than 4,000 children were used as soldiers by the warring factions. In addition, hundreds of schools and health facilities were attacked or used by the military.
17 million people do not have enough to eat
According to the UN, a total of 17 million people in Yemen do not have enough to eat. In the country, a military alliance led by Saudi Arabia is fighting on the side of the government against the Houthi rebels. The humanitarian crisis in the Arab country can be traced back to a devastating interplay of factors: Eight years of civil war led to the collapse of the economy and, as a result, to the population’s basic needs, according to UNICEF.
According to UNICEF, it needs 484 million US dollars – the equivalent of around 445 million euros – to continue its humanitarian aid for children in Yemen this year. If the funding gaps are not closed, important measures for basic services and the well-being of children are at risk.