Publication

03 October 2011

New displacement due to unrest, displacement due to Sa’ada conflict continues

New displacement due to unrest, displacement due to Sa’ada conflict continues

In the wave of civil protests which have swept across the Middle East and North Africa, political instability and increasing violence involving the Yemeni government, protestors, rival tribal militias and militants have led to new waves of displacement in southern, central and northern areas of the country.

In northern Yemen, conflict between the government and the Al-Houthi movement has affected more than 800,000 people since 2004, and caused repeated large-scale displacement. In early 2011, more than a year after a February 2010 ceasefire, more than 250,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) remained in protracted displacement. Close to 93,000 people had reportedly returned to their place of origin, but their situation was unclear.

The instability and violence of 2011 has led to the new internal displacement of more than 100,000 people, particularly in the southern governorate of Abeyan but also in other governorates including the capital Sana’a. It has heightened the humanitarian needs of vulnerable populations throughout Yemen, including those displaced or otherwise affected by the conflict in the north.