The UN warned Tuesday (October 23rd) that Yemen was on the verge of widespread famine, AFP reported.
"There is now a clear and present danger of an imminent and great big famine engulfing Yemen," UN Under Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lowcock said.
He urged a humanitarian ceasefire around facilities involved in food aid distribution and infrastructure at a meeting of the UN Security Council convened on the British initiative because of the deterioration in Yemen.
"The parties to the conflict continue to violate international humanitarian law," he said, noting that while earlier UN estimates put those in danger of famine at 11 million, the real number facing it now is 14 million people.
Since the last UN warning in September, "the situation has gotten worse", Emergency Relief Co-ordinator Lowcock said.
