Any military assault to capture a key Red Sea port in Yemen held by the Houthis (Ansarallah) would have a "catastrophic humanitarian impact", the UN warned Friday (June 8th).
Fears have grown as government forces backed by the Arab coalition have closed in on al-Hodeidah, the main gateway for aid into Yemen.
"A military attack or siege on al-Hodeidah will impact hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians," Lise Grande, UN humanitarian co-ordinator for Yemen, said in a statement that estimated up to 600,000 people live in and around the port.
"Humanitarian organisations have rushed to develop a contingency plan. In a prolonged worst case, we fear that as many as 250,000 people may lose everything — even their lives."
The statement warned that the likely "catastrophic humanitarian impact" would be worsened due to al-Hodeidah’s key role as the point of entry for some 70% of Yemen's imports.
"Cutting off imports through al-Hodeidah for any length of time will put Yemen’s population at extreme, unjustifiable risk," Grande said.
