Fourteen international aid agencies on Friday expressed that they were “appalled” by the global community’s complacency regarding the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Yemen, and called for a resolution to the civil war that’s gone on for two years—while in its own statement, Amnesty International called for an end to complicity in the conflict from the U.S. and its allies.
“This is not the time for carefully balanced statements,” read a statement signed by groups including the International Rescue Committee, Oxfam, and Relief International. “The choice is between resolution, or complicity in the suffering; there is no third option.”
“The U.S.A., U.K., and France must immediately cease supplying arms to the Saudi Arabia-led coalition fighting in Yemen, which is impeding humanitarian assistance of items indispensable to the survival of civilians,” declared Amnesty International.
The current famine and cholera epidemic in Yemen have both been exacerbated by a blockade that the Saudi-led coalition supporting government forces escalated 12 days ago.
“The international community must break its shameful silence and use all possible means to lift the blockade on Yemen immediately.”—International Rescue Committee
Sanitation and water systems in the country had already been bombed out of commission before the blockade, which has now made it impossible for aid agencies to get a wide range of badly-needed supplies and services to the civilians who need them.
UNICEF reported on Friday that it has only enough of a diphtheria vaccine to last 15 more days. “If this vaccine is not brought in, one million children will be at risk of preventable diseases,” the groups wrote.
SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT