One child dying every 75 seconds as Yemen on brink of 'biggest famine in history'

 

David Rose

Fri, March 12, 2021

In this Nov. 23, 2019 file photo, a woman holds her malnourished boy at a feeding center at the Al-Sabeen Hospital in Sanaa, Yemen. After a visit to Yemen the World Food Program's executive director, David Beasley, warned that his underfunded organization may be forced seek hundreds of millions of dollars in private donations in a desperate bid to stave off widespread famine in the coming months. - Hani Mohammed /AP

Children in Yemen are dying at a rate of one every 75 seconds with the country at risk of suffering “the biggest famine in modern history”, the head of the United Nations food agency has warned.

David Beasley, executive director of the World Food Programme (WFP), described the situation in the war-torn country as “hell on earth” after a visit earlier this week.

"Just two days ago, I was in Yemen, where over 16 million people now face crisis levels of hunger or worse,” he told the UN Security Council on Thursday.

“These aren't just numbers. These are real people. And we are headed straight toward the biggest famine in modern history.

"It is hell on earth in many places in Yemen right now. Around 400,000 children may die in Yemen this year without urgent intervention. That is roughly one child every 75 seconds.

"So, while we're sitting here, every minute and a quarter, a child is dying. Are we really going to turn our backs on them and look the other way?”

His comments come after Britain drastically cut its aid to Yemen, which has been devastated by six years of civil war, while also condemning recent violence and calling for a ceasefire.

Workers prepare foodstuff for beneficiaries at a food distribution center supported by the World Food Program in Sanaa - Khaled Abdullah/Reuters

The Foreign Office has announced donations of "at least" £87 million for Yemen this year, down from £164 million in 2019/20, with ministers saying that the pandemic had created "a difficult financial context for us all".

British aid is helping to feed 240,000 of the most vulnerable Yemenis each month, support 400 health clinics and provide clean water for 1.6 million people, according to the Foreign Office.

However, the decision to cut overall spending has been condemned by more than 100 charities and MPs across the political spectrum. UN Security General António Guterres, said reducing aid was a "death sentence" for the Yemeni people.

The conflict between Yemen’s Saudi-backed government, Houthi rebels supported by Iran, and separatists in the south of the country has killed more than 100,000 people and left an estimated 2.3 million children under 5 suffering from acute malnutrition.

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https://www.yahoo.com/news/one-child-dying-every-75-105243231.html