Yemen Monitor/Newsroom:
A UN official said on Tuesday that operations at a Red Sea port in Yemen used to receive import aid had declined to about a quarter of its capacity, adding that it is uncertain whether a ceasefire in Gaza will end attacks between Iran-backed Houthis and Israel.
The Houthis have been launching attacks on international shipping near Yemen since November 2023 in solidarity with Palestinians in the war with Israel in the Gaza Strip.
This has prompted Israel to bomb ports and energy facilities, including the port of Hodeidah on the Red Sea.
Julian Harneis, the UN resident coordinator and humanitarian coordinator for Yemen, told a UN meeting in Geneva on Tuesday via video link that “the impact of airstrikes on Hodeidah port, especially in recent weeks, has been very significant.”
He said that four of the five tugboats in the port, which are necessary to escort large ships carrying imports, had sunk, while the fifth was damaged, without blaming any party.
He added that “the civilian crews working on these ships are clearly very hesitant. The port’s capacity has fallen to about a quarter,” noting that the port was used to transport a large portion of imported aid.
Since the ceasefire agreement in Gaza last week, the Houthis in Yemen have said they will limit their attacks on commercial ships to those linked to Israel, provided the ceasefire in Gaza is fully implemented.
Harneis said, “We hope that sanity will prevail and people will focus on solutions and peace, but we are nonetheless prepared as a humanitarian community for various forms of deterioration,” adding that the agency has contingency plans.
