UN warns of deteriorating humanitarian access in Yemen

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned Monday that continuous airstrikes and clashes in Yemen are restricting the humanitarian access in the violence-plagued country. According to the OCHA, against the backdrop of airstrikes and armed clashes, medical facilities were reportedly seized by armed parties, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily briefing here. The agency also has called on all parties of the conflict to refrain from targeting civilian facilities, the spokesman said.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that more than 540 people have been killed and some 1,700 people have been wounded by the violence in Yemen since March 19.

Despite challenges, aid partners are struggling to bring in critical aid supplies, mainly to support hospital services, and to dispatch emergency medical teams, the spokesman said.

Amid an ongoing Saudi-backed airstrikes against targets of Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen and worsening humanitarian situations on the ground, the UN Security Council had closed-door consultations on Saturday at the request of Russia and began working on a draft resolution aimed to reach a ceasefire.

Yemen has mired in political gridlock since 2011 when mass protests forced former President Ali Abdullash Saleh to step down.

The three-year reconciliation talks failed to resolve the crisis but create huge power vacuum that could benefit the powerful al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula and other extremist groups. Endite