Insecurity and fierce fighting in the northern governorates of Yemen have had a dramatic effect on the civilian population in recent months, forcing more people to flee the area.

More than 15,500 displaced persons are currently living under difficult conditions in camps near Sa'ada city and thousands more are scattered around the governorates.

The lack of clean water and medical care are particularly serious for the displaced, the sick, the wounded and isolated communities.

Spiralling food prices have placed an additional burden on the population.

To respond to the increasing needs of more than 100,000 people directly affected by the conflict, the ICRC in May 2008 appealed for additional funds to step up the provision of food, water, shelter, essential household items and medical care in all areas of Sa'ada Governorate.

However, the security situation has often prevented the ICRC from responding to the most urgent humanitarian needs in a timely and adequate manner.

Except in Sa'ada city and its immediate vicinity, it remains difficult or impossible for the ICRC to operate in the conflict zones of northern Yemen.

Working closely with the Yemen Red Crescent Society (YRCS), the ICRC has so far only provided basic emergency assistance, mainly to displaced persons in camps close to the city.

The ICRC is continuing to press the authorities for improved access to the areas most affected by the conflict.

As the organization continues its efforts to reach those in need, it expects to increase the number of expatriate staff in Sa'ada in the near future.

There are currently 13 ICRC staff based there, of whom five are expatriates.

Responding to the most urgent needs of displaced families The conflict escalated at the beginning of May 2008, bringing a new wave of displaced persons to Sa'ada city.

The ICRC has worked closely with the YRCS to set up three additional camps to accommodate these people, bringing the total number of IDP camps in Sa'ada to six.

The ICRC distributed such essential items as tents, jerrycans, kitchen sets and hygiene kits to the 8,000 families (60,000 people) in the camps.

Between the beginning of May and the end of June 2008, the ICRC also distributed food to people displaced by the fighting in Haydan, Razeh, Assaher and Al-Talh, and to people living in the Sa'ada town camps.

The food included flour, rice, vegetable oil, beans, sugar and salt.

Water and sanitation Water and sanitation remain priority issues.

The ICRC has been providing 280,000 litres of drinking water a day to displaced persons in Sa'ada, and has increased water storage capacity.

The organization has also built more than 400 latrines.

Over 2,400 people living in Al-Aredah and Al-Asaifi received drinking water, and the ICRC has installed new water pumps at these locations.

The ICRC had to postpone repairs because of renewed fighting, both in these areas and in Dahyan, where the ICRC had scheduled urgent work that would have provided over 14,000 people with clean water.

The organization provided water filters to over 1,000 displaced families in the Malaheet area and in Hajjah Governorate.

These will help to prevent diseases caused by contaminated or stagnant water.

Essential health and medical care Between April and June 2008, an ICRC surgical team based in Sa'ada treated more than 500 people who had been injured in the fighting and were unable to obtain proper medical care because of the hostilities.

Most patients were treated at the Al-Jumhuriyah Government Hospital in Sa'ada city, where about a fifth required surgery.

Others received treatment at the Dahyan Health Centre.

The ICRC also provided primary health care for displaced persons and vulnerable residents through the YRCS and the Ministry of Public Health and Population.

Three mobile clinics have opened in the newly built Sa'ada city IDP camps, bringing to seven the number of such clinics run by the YRCS with support from the ICRC.

Over 17,000 consultations have been carried out at the clinics.

YRCS staff continued to provide women and children living in the camps with health education, helping to prevent disease.

Two ambulances stationed in the camps helped transfer emergency cases to proper health facilities in Sa'ada city.

A total of 158 patients were referred to private and government hospitals for secondary health care, with the ICRC covering the costs of treatment.

The ICRC provided basic medical supplies to health facilities run by the Ministry of Health in the conflict-affected areas of Malaheet and Bani Sa'ad, covering the needs of 1,800 IDPs and close to 30,000 residents.

In the Ministry of Health's limb-fitting workshops at Aden, Mukalla and Sa'ana, ICRC-trained Yemeni technicians have been fitting high-quality polypropylene artificial legs and feet, together with orthotic and other devices.

Over 1,400 people have benefited from this service.

Children injured by mines and explosive remnants of war received a total of 47 artificial limbs and orthotic devices.

The ICRC has continued to help orthopaedic technicians upgrade their skills at two state-run orthopaedic centres by covering the costs of a three-year training programme for seven students.

Restoring and maintaining family links The ICRC enables Yemeni families to restore and maintain ties with relatives held at U.S.

detention facilities in Afghanistan, Iraq and Guantanamo Bay.

It also continues to help asylum seekers and refugees, mostly from the Horn of Africa, to locate family members abroad and restore contact with them.

During the period covered by this report, the ICRC located six people and enabled them to restore links with their relatives.

380 Red Cross Messages exchanged between people held in Guantanamo Bay and their families

33 ICRC-facilitated telephone calls between Yemeni nationals held in Guantanamo Bay and their families

165 Red Cross Messages exchanged between families in Yemen and their relatives detained in Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon

More than 1,000 Red Cross messages exchanged between refugees in Yemen and their families abroad

People deprived of their freedom In Yemen, the ICRC seeks to visit detainees according to its standard procedures, which include regular access to all detainees and private interviews with them to assess their conditions of detention and their treatment.

The ICRC is still engaged in confidential dialogue with the Yemeni authorities to obtain access to all places of detention under the jurisdiction of the country's Political Security.

Vocational training for women in ten central prisons continues in partnership with the YRCS.

The aim is to strengthen the women's literacy, sewing and weaving skills.

There are kindergartens in the central prisons of Hodeida, Taiz and Sana'a, where a number of children live with their mothers.

To help immigration authorities cope with the increasing number of people awaiting deportation, the ICRC, in cooperation with the YRCS, is continuing to assist those held at the immigration detention facility in Sana’a.

Currently, over 200 people are receiving food, basic health care and hygiene items.

Promoting knowledge of international humanitarian law The ICRC seeks to promote understanding among the Yemeni armed and security forces of international humanitarian law (IHL) and the ICRC's mandate.

In April, the ICRC participated in an IHL training course for military instructors, organized for the first time by the Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) and conducted by the Moral Guidance Directorate.

The week-long course was part of a national plan to integrate IHL into military training, and was attended by 35 officers from a range of forces, units and institutes.

In addition, 30 members of the Yemeni police and central security forces attended a two-day workshop on "International standards on the use of force and firearms in peace and wartime".

For further information, please contact: Simon Schorno, ICRC Geneva, tel: +41 22 730 25 90 or +41 79 217 32 08 Rafiullah Qureshi, ICRC Yemen, tel: +967 711 94 43 43 or visit our website: www.icrc.org

See also ICRC media contacts

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