Islamic Relief has been one of the only charities to get through a blockade and deliver much needed medical supplies to a city of around 300,000 people.
Islamic Relief has been working in Yemen since 1998, but, in response to the intensification of conflict in March this year, increased humanitarian intervention, distributing food and medication, non-food items such as kitchen sets, water and shelter.
This month, as conflict intensified about the city of Taiz, in south west Yemen, many of the organisations working in Yemen were turned away. Islamic Relief was able to negotiate safe passageway in order to deliver 14 trauma kits to Taiz, each with enough equipment and medication to help 250 people.
Mohamed Salah Eldin, Islamic Relief’s country director in Yemen, said: “The situation in Taiz is very bad. Much of the infrastructure has closed down and hospitals are overburdened by huge numbers of people who are wounded, malnourished, and unwell.
“People in the city are completely cut off from the rest of the country by either conflict or the Gulf of Aden, where security is also a concern. Medicine, food, water and fuel are all in short supply.”
Since March, Islamic Relief has distributed food to 2,213,071 people.
Figures from UN OCHA from the end of September estimated 2.3 million people with Yemen were internally displaced, and 21.1 million were in need of humanitarian assistance. Since the conflict intensified in March, nearly 5,000 people have died, and more than 26,000 people have been injured.
Islamic Relief is working with the World Food Programmes, UNHCR, UN OCHA, DFID, among others. From July to December, the World Food Programme has distributed 415,000 food packs – enough for more than 2 million people – every month.
Islamic Relief is planning to increase its support to Yemen, working in the areas of food security, livelihoods, nutrition, rehabilitation, and WASH and reaching 326,800 households in six main areas.
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