The deadly Israeli airstrikes on Yemen’s Hudaydah port on May 5 and the airport in Sanaa on May 6—which reportedly killed seven people and injured 97, according to the Ministry of Health—will further endanger civilians by cutting off the delivery of vital humanitarian supplies for people in dire need. These sites are essential for the import of supplies, fuel, and humanitarian aid.
Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) denounces these attacks, which have damaged important civilian infrastructure in a country that has already been devastated by more than a decade of war and relies heavily on humanitarian assistance. Primarily, it is civilians who will suffer the consequences of these acts of violence.
“This escalation threatens humanitarian operations and will likely push Yemenis further into an environment of serious food insecurity,” said Dennis Habaasa, MSF head of mission in Yemen. “There is a threat of a humanitarian disaster in Yemen, especially in the north of the country, due to the disruption of critical supplies and a lack of access to health care.”
After years of conflict and compounding crises, an estimated 19.5 million people in Yemen—over half the population—are dependent on aid.
MSF has already been facing ongoing difficulties sending supplies to Yemen, with even greater challenges delivering them to medical facilities in the northern part of the country. Destroying the airport in Sanaa and the Hudaydah port, which are critical entry points for humanitarian supplies and staff to reach northern Yemen, will be devastating for the Yemeni people, who are already facing a massive humanitarian crisis.
MSF calls for the protection of all civilians and civilian infrastructure, as well as for the unimpeded flow of food, medical supplies, fuel, and other critical humanitarian aid for people in dire need in Yemen.
