Yemen: Internal displacement continues amid multiple crises

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31 December 2012

As of December 2012, there were about 385,000 IDPs in Yemen. The country continued to suffer the effects of conflict between government forces and rival tribal and militant groups during the year, and the fighting led to the displacement of tens of thousands of people, principally in the south. More than 10 million people were estimated to be facing severe food insecurity and 13 million acute water shortages.

The popular uprising that began in February 2011 abated somewhat towards the end of the same year following the transfer of power to Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi, who assumed the presidency under a transitional agreement brokered by the Gulf Cooperation Council and backed by the UN. Intermittent clashes and urban protests continued until February 2012, however, particularly in Sana’a, and ongoing clashes and insecurity caused new displacement and hampered returns and reconstruction efforts in both the north and the south of the country.

In southern Yemen, clashes between pro-government factions and the Islamic militant group Ansar al-Sharia for control of the governorate of Abyan continued. Ansar al-Sharia had taken control of most of Abyan by mid-2011, and declared it an Islamic state. More than 100,000 people were displaced as a result of that conflict. In April 2012, government forces backed by the Abyan popular defence committees launched an offensive to retake control of the territory, which lasted until June and brought the total number of people displaced from Abyan to the neighbouring governorates to over 200,000.

In northern Yemen, successive rounds of armed conflict between government forces and the al-Houthi movement in Sa’ada governorate have been the leading cause of displacement since 2004. The latest round of fighting, from mid-2009 to February 2010, was significantly more destructive than the previous ones. The conflict spread to Al Jawf, Hajjah and Amran governorates and to areas bordering Saudi Arabia, displacing more than 340,000 people. Most of those who fled their homes remained in protracted displacement as of the end of 2012. Around 50,000 people were also internally displaced in early 2012, mainly in Hajjah governorate, as a result of intermittent conflict between al-Houthi, rival tribes and Salafist militants.

Ongoing clashes, checkpoints and landmines have prevented many civilians from fleeing or seeking assistance, and have also caused death and injury among those who have tried to do so.

The majority of IDPs live among host communities. Many have chosen not to live in camps because of the lack of livelihood opportunities available there, and cultural norms that dictate that women should not be seen by men other than their close relatives. Most IDPs live in rented and overcrowded housing or in makeshift shelters, schools and informal settlements. Many have inadequate access to clean water, sanitation, food and public services, particularly in the conflict-affected areas of Abyan.

The government has made return its preferred solution to resolving the displacement crisis. The humanitarian community has sought to provide support in an effort to ensure that returns are voluntary and carried out in safety and dignity. It has also tentatively explored other settlement options with the government for those who do not wish to return. Although the majority of IDPs in both the north and south have expressed a wish to go back to their places of origin, most have been reticent to do so given prevailing insecurity, the presence of landmines and unexploded ordnance, limited reconstruction efforts and a lack of livelihood opportunities. By December 2012, around 98,000 IDPs had returned in the south and 36,000 had reportedly returned in the north.

The humanitarian response in Yemen has been impeded by access restrictions, insecurity, limited resources and inadequate funding in recent years. In 2012, humanitarian access continued to be intermittent. In the south, it improved as the conflict receded, enabling a more extensive response. In the north, there were also modest improvements but access remained difficult.

The UN has been operating the cluster approach in Yemen since 2010, working closely with the Executive Unit on IDPs, which was established by the Yemeni government to respond to displacement. As of the end of 2012, the latest humanitarian response plan was only 57 per cent funded. Additional funding was requested for the UN plan to address the humanitarian situation in Abyan.

Yemen: Ongoing displacement amid humanitarian crisis, February 3, 2012

In Kisher District in Yemen’s northern governorate of Hajjah, hundreds of people have been displaced by clashes between members of the Al Houthi and Salafist movements. Hajjah is also the location of tens of thousands of IDPs who have been displaced since as far back as 2004 by the Sa’ada conflict between government and Al Houthi forces. 

The Sa’ada conflict has caused the displacement of over 300,000 IDPs in total. In April 2011, a fragile ceasefire was broken as Al Houthis assumed control over all of the northern governorate of Sa’ada. Intermittent conflict has since then continued between Al Houthis and Salafists in Sa’ada, Hajjah, and the other northern governorates of Amran and Al Jawf

According to the Yemeni government’s Executive Unit for IDPs, an estimated 144,000 people have also been displaced in southern and central Yemen since May 2011, over 80,000 of them from Abyan governorate alone. In mid-January, an estimated 2,500 IDPs returned to their homes in Zanjubar in Abyan to check on their property and gauge the possibilities of return, before going back to nearby Aden, where they had sought refuge following clashes between government forces and Islamic militants. 

The humanitarian needs of IDPs and others continue to be very significant. In late January UNICEF highlighted the plight of children affected by the conflict, poverty, drought and political unrest in the country. In some areas acute malnutrition affects 30 per cent of children, a rate near that in south Somalia and double the internationally-recognised emergency threshold.

Yemen: Conflict in various parts of the country continues to displace, August 26, 2011

The UN estimated on 3 August that at least around 375,000 people had been displaced by ongoing conflict and civil unrest in Yemen, which have led to the death or injury of hundreds of people since mid-May. In southern Yemen, continued fighting had internally displaced 91,000 people in Aden, Lahj, Abyan, and Sana’a. In the most recent displacements, notably in Taiz, Sana’a and Shabwa, over 11,000 people fled fighting between security forces and tribal militias.

In northern Yemen, close to 250,000 people remain in protracted displacement due to the Sa’ada conflict in Al Hajjah, Al Jawf, and Amran governorates. Sporadic fighting has caused significant new displacement: fighting in Al Jawf between Al Houthis and Al Islah has displaced over 3,000 people.

Limited access continues to hinder humanitarian assistance and the gathering of sufficient data on the specific needs of conflict-affected populations. Humanitarian agencies have underlined the lack of access for conflict affected populations to basic commodities such as food, drinking water and shelter, aggravated by the continuing fuel crisis. As of the end of July, the Humanitarian Response Plan for Yemen had only attracted 51 per cent of requested funds.

See also: IDMC Yemen country page

Yemen: Conflict in various parts of the country continues to displace, August 12, 2011

The UN estimated on 3 August that at least around 375,000 people had been displaced by ongoing conflict and civil unrest in Yemen, which have led to the death or injury of hundreds of people since mid-May. In southern Yemen, continued fighting had internally displaced 91,000 people in Aden, Lahj, Abyan, and Sana’a. In the most recent displacements, notably in Taiz, Sana’a and Shabwa, over 11,000 people fled fighting between security forces and tribal militias.

In northern Yemen, close to 250,000 people remain in protracted displacement due to the Sa’ada conflict in Al Hajjah, Al Jawf, and Amran governorates. Sporadic fighting has caused significant new displacement: fighting in Al Jawf between Al Houthis and Al Islah has displaced over 3,000 people.

Limited access continues to hinder humanitarian assistance and the gathering of sufficient data on the specific needs of conflict-affected populations. Humanitarian agencies have underlined the lack of access for conflict affected populations to basic commodities such as food, drinking water and shelter, aggravated by the continuing fuel crisis. As of the end of July, the Humanitarian Response Plan for Yemen had only attracted 51 per cent of requested funds.

Yemen: Continued fighting displaces thousands across the country, July 29, 2011

The raging conflict in Yemen has displaced over 100,000 people in the last several months. Hundreds of people have been killed or injured in almost five months of civil unrest which has dragged the country to the brink of civil war.

In southern Yemen continued fighting has displaced approximately 91,000 IDPs in the governorates of Aden, Lahj, and Abyan. In Aden, about 20,000 IDPs have found refuge in schools, while 42,000 IDPs are living with host families. An additional 16,000 IDPs are located in Aden and close to 13,400 IDPs are in Abyan. There have been further displacements in other areas in the south, notably in Taiz where close to 160 families have fled due to sporadic fighting between security forces and anti-government demonstrators. While in northern and central Yemen up to 2,000 families have been displaced due to significant fighting in Arhab, north of Sana’a city, 200 to 500 families in Al Jawf were also displaced after renewed fighting.

Though humanitarian access in Sa’ada has reportedly improved, access and security challenges in Arhab, Al-Jawf and Abyan governorates continue to hamper provision of humanitarian assistance. Humanitarian agencies have underlined the lack of safe and sufficient access to basic commodities such as food, drinking water and shelter. Services such as primary healthcare and sanitation remain erratic, as the ongoing fuel crisis is increasing supply costs for the delivery of assistance.

Yemen: IDPs in need of assistance across country, July 15, 2011

Reports have continued of large-scale displacement resulting from conflict in southern Yemen between militants and pro-government military units. As of 4 July, tens of thousands of people had fled the southern province of Abyan after militants took over the provincial capital Zinjibar in June. According to the UN, there were at the start of July more than 15,600 internally displaced people (IDPs) in neighbouring Aden, close to 11,900 in Lahj and an estimated 15,000 still in Abyan.

The IDPs require emergency assistance including shelter, protection, non-food items and health care. Access to Abyan has been limited due to the insecurity and further by the scarcity of fuel supplies and food and water shortages.

Despite the continued political unrest across the country, President Saleh has refused to step down from power. In Al-Hasaba in central Yemen, factional fighting has displaced at least 2,000 people, with the UN reporting that the number of IDPs may be higher. In the north, the ceasefire between Al Houthi and government forces has held since February 2010, and humanitarian agencies have been able to gain wider access. Nonetheless, IDPs, returnees and other war-affected populations in the north have outstanding urgent assistance needs.  

Yemen: Growing humanitarian crisis for IDPs in south, July 1, 2011

An increasing number of people have been displaced by continuing conflict in southern Yemen. UN agencies reported on 21 June that at least 40,000 people had been forced to seek refuge from conflict between Islamic militants and military units loyal to the government in Zinjibar, the capital of Abyan Governorate. As of 20 June an estimated 10,000 IDPs had fled to neighbouring Lahj Governorate and 10,000 to Aden, while an estimated 15,000 were scattered in Abyan. As of 10 June, around 280 people had been killed and about 3,600 injured by the unrest besetting Yemen since February.

Humanitarian needs in Aden and Lahj have increased as IDPs have sought refuge in schools, public buildings and among host communities. The World Health Organization has reported that Yemen’s southern governorates were facing an outbreak of diarrhoeal diseases, with very few public health services in Abyan functioning.

UN and other international and national organisations have appealed to the international community to address the rapidly growing humanitarian crisis. While local committees in areas including Aden have raised awareness of IDPs’ needs and sought to address them, other humanitarian agencies have faced logistical difficulties, with fuel scarce throughout the country and significant limitations to their access to IDPs in Abyan governorate.

In northern Yemen, over 250,000 people are still internally displaced over a year since the February 2010 ceasefire between the Yemeni government and insurgents of the al Houthi movement. Since April 2011 an estimated 342 families have been newly displaced by clashes incolving Al Houthi and tribal militias.

Yemen: Displacement reported across the country, June 10, 2011

Scores of families have fled the Yemeni capital Sana’a since fierce clashes erupted in late May between military units loyal to the government and loyalists to Shekih Said Al Ahmer of the Hashid tribe, one of the most powerful tribal coalitions. Witnesses reported heavy artillery and mortar shelling by rival factions targeting residential areas of Sana’a. Hundreds of residents were reported fleeing Sana’a in late May and hundreds more were displaced within the capital, including people internally displaced from elsewhere in Yemen and refugees from Somalia. The violence had left at least 29 dead and hundreds injured by 7 June, including women and children, according to UN OCHA; other media reported hundreds killed and thousands displaced. A truce was in place but access to affected areas continued to be difficult and intermittent clashes were still reported. 

According to the UN, over 260 people have been reportedly killed and close to 3,300 injured in Sana’a city and Abeyan governorate in southern Yemen since the start of civil unrest in February. In Zinjibar, the capital of Abeyan governorate, several thousand families have been displaced by heavy fighting between various military factions and militants allegedly linked to Al Qaida. As many as 95 per cent of the estimated population of 20,000 have been displaced. At least 4,700 IDPs have been registered in Lahj, and almost 10,000 more in various locations in Aden, but still more have reportedly been displaced. 

Fighting between military units loyal to the government and opposing military units has also been reported in other locations in Abeyan governorate and in Taiz, Yemen’s second largest city, which has seen some of the largest protests and the fiercest clampdown, and in neighbouring Ibb province.  

Meanwhile in northern Yemen, continued fighting between Al Houthi and other opposition tribes and various military units in Jawf has caused the displacement of over 150 families. Heavy rains in Hajjah heave caused significant damage to shelters, and hindered service provision in IDP camps; however little is reported of the situation of the majority of IDPs who reside outside the camps. 

The UN has urged all sides to accept a ceasefire. The United States, European Union, and Gulf states have condemned the serious human rights violations committed, and called for a cessation of hostilities and for the president to relinquish power. The international community has stopped short of imposing arms embargoes or individual sanctions similar to those in place against officials in Syria and Libya. 

Yemen: UN warns of humanitarian crisis as clashes continue across country, March 31, 2011

The UN’s Emergency Relief Coordinator has voiced serious concerns about the humanitarian situation in Yemen, and reported that the recent fighting and insecurity has affected displaced people who have still not recovered from earlier conflict. Humanitarian agencies lack the capacity to respond, particularly as rising insecurity has caused some to leave affected areas. At least 14 international organisations have expressed concern about deteriorating respect for human rights in Yemen, and urged the Human Rights Council to hold a special session on Yemen.

Yemen faces continued crisis as protests against the government continue in Sa’ana. In the northern governorate of Sa’ada, Houthi rebels have seized control of the whole governorate following clashes with local tribes, while in neighbouring Jawf, fighting between pro- and anti-government tribes has taken place.

Violent incidents and clashes between tribes, militants and government forces were also witnessed in the southern, central and eastern provinces of Shabwa, Abyan, Jaar, Mareb, and Hadramout. In Shabwa, militants associated with the Southern Movement have taken control of four major districts. In Abyan violent clashes have been witnessed between Yemeni Republican Guards and armed rebels, while Al Qaeda in the Southern Peninsula has allegedly taken control of several districts in Abyan and announced an Islamic emirate. In the southern port city of Aden, insecurity persists with armed forces attempting to stifle growing unrest. The city is divided by a series of road blocks, and curfews are in place. The government’s violent repression of protests in Aden was condemned by human rights NGOs.


Latest brief update of IDP situation in Yemen, January 8, 2010

Following intermittent clashes between Al Houthi groups and the Yemeni government in July 2009, the situation in Sa’ada governorate escalated into open conflict on 12 August, in the sixth round of hostilities since 2004. Tens of thousands of people have been displaced from Sa’ada and Amran governorates since the start of the ‘Sixth War’, adding to those displaced by previous rounds of fighting. For many, it is their second or third displacement over the last few years.

Until July 2009, United Nations Country Team (UNCT) had estimated 100,000 persons to be still displaced or affected from the pervious round of fighting. As of December 2009, the number is estimated to have reached 175,000 while up to 800,000 people are indirectly affected by the conflict, including communities hosting IDPs and residents who have lost access to basic services. In addition to concerns over the situation of IDPs, civilians unable to flee the fighting in northern Yemen and along the Yemen-Saudi border continue to face severe threats to their security and over all protection.

The number of IDPs is increasing with no sign of the conflict abating. The governorates of Sa’ada, Amran, Hajjah and Al Jawf have been particularly affected. Limited and sporadic humanitarian access has severely hampered needs assessments and prevented much humanitarian activity, especially in governorates of Sa’ada, Al Jawf, and areas of Amran governorate. The UNCT has identified the most urgent needs of IDPs and their host communities as being protection, food, water and sanitation, shelter, essential domestic items and access to health care.

The humanitarian community has repeatedly called for wider humanitarian access and that all necessary measures be taken by the parties to the conflict – Al Houthi groups, Yemeni and Saudi Arabia governments – to spare civilian lives. Human rights organisations have reported numerous allegations of indiscriminate targeting of civilian populations, and other violations, including forced child recruitment, and have called upon all parties to the conflict to adhere to their obligations and duties under humanitarian and relevant human rights law.

Humanitarian crisis facing IDPs in Yemen, September 9, 2009

With no sign of an end to fighting between the government and Al Houthi tribal groups in northern Yemen, humanitarian organisations have estimated that some 150,000 people are displaced in the Governorates of Sa’ada, Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah. This number includes many people displaced by previous rounds of fighting, who have been displaced for a second or third time. A truce agreed on 4 September proved short lived, and intense fighting has resumed.

Insecurity and limited access have continued to hamper humanitarian activities in Sa’ada. According to Islamic Relief, many internally displaced people (IDPs) have settled in camps in safer parts of the region or in neighbouring governorates, but they are facing shortages of food and water, and outbreaks of disease withour access to health care. The situation of 35,000 IDPs in Sa’ada town is of growing concern. There is a severe fuel shortage, and reportedly no electricity supply. Most roads into Saa’da are currently blocked and air strikes and fighting are making the delivery of aid impossible.

NGOs and the UN have continued to voice concerns over the protection of civilians, and particularly children, as the conflict continues; they launched a $23 million flash appeal and have called for immediate, safe and unimpeded access to assist IDPs. Yemeni human rights organisations have warned that displaced children face a humanitarian crisis, as well as recruitment by both sides and use as human shields. Several have also reported an increasing rate of arbitrary arrests.


New wave of conflict displaces thousands, August 21, 2009
 
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appealed for an end to fighting between government and rebel forces in northern Yemen, and for combatants to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance to trapped civilians. Clashes have escalated in number and intensity since internal conflict broke out again in Sa’ada and Amran Governorates in early August. The International Committee of the Red Cross / Red Crescent (ICRC) has reported that thousands of displaced families have reached Sa’ada city in need of shelter, water, food and medical care. Some of these families have reportedly sought refuge with host families, and others in camps or outdoors.
 
Insecurity and limited access has made it difficult to confirm IDP figures. The latest estimates put the total number of IDPs at between 125,000 and 150,000, including an estimated 100,000 still displaced from earlier rounds of conflict. Humanitarian agencies have struggled to access people in need due to the prevailing insecurity: on 14 August, 15 Yemeni Red Crescent Society (YRCS) workers, including doctors and nurses, were temporarily kidnapped from IDP camps in Sa’ada Governorate. 
 
While short-term measures have been taken to respond to current needs, the World Food Programme (WFP) and other agencies continue to lack funding. WFP announced that in July it was forced to halve food rations provided to IDPs as funds began running out.


New displacement feared as conflict returns to Sa’ada, August 11, 2009

New conflict broke out in Sa’ada on 11 August as the Yemeni army attacked rebels in many districts of the war-torn northern province. The official news agency Saba said a state of emergency had been declared there. The offensive marked an escalation in the long-running conflict between the Yemeni government and rebel supporters of Abdul-Malik al-Houthi. Al Jazeera has reported a rise in the number of people displaced, citing UN agencies the news agency notes that the number of IDPs has reached 130,000 in the last two weeks. In July, the World Food Programme reported to IDMC that 5,000 newly displaced people had been registered, and that UN agencies were estimating that some 100,000 people remained displaced from previous conflicts.

In recent years, Yemen has simultaneously faced intermittent internal armed conflict in the northern governorate of Sa’ada, civil unrest and popular uprisings across the country, a resurgent separatist movement in the south and increasingly active Islamic militants in the south and elsewhere (International Crisis Group, 3 July 2012; OCHA, 17 August 2012; Chatham House, January 2012) . This in the context of an already volatile and impoverished country with considerable development challenges and pre-existing humanitarian needs (OCHA, June 2012; IRIN, 4 August 2011). The resulting political instability has further limited the government's capacity to provide basic services, contributing to increased humanitarian needs among vulnerable groups. Fighting between various factions - government, opposition, tribes and militants - has made these conditions worse among populations already chronically impoverished and resulted in continuing internal displacement in the northern, central and southern regions of the country. (...)

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