Yemen's conflict, which erupted in late 2014, has brought the impoverished country to the brink of famine, and the UN has described Yemen as the world's worst humanitarian disaster.Yemen's conflict, which erupted in late 2014, has brought the impoverished country to the brink of famine, and the UN has described Yemen as the world's worst humanitarian disaster.
More than 17 million people in Yemen need food assistance and this could rise to 19 million in the second half of the year, UN bodies said. U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths told the same news briefing that aid agencies were already forced to cut back or stop food, health and other vital assistance in Yemen where the economy and basic services have collapsed in the seven-year war.Food prices, which doubled last year due to a blockade imposed by a Saudi-led coalition battling Yemen’s Houthi group, are set to rise further since a third of the country’s wheat comes from Russia and Ukraine.
The World Food Programme warned on Monday that without substantial new funding mass starvation and famine would follow.