Yemen faces highest risk of returning to war since 2022 truce, UN warns

What the report says

The United Nations says Yemen is at its highest risk of sliding back into full-scale war since the 2022 truce between the Houthis and the internationally recognised government. In remarks to the UN Security Council, Special Envoy Hans Grundberg said military activity has surged along frozen front lines in recent days, with reports of both civilian and military casualties. Al Jazeera, citing UN briefings and Reuters, reported clashes in areas including Marib, Hadramout, al-Makha and Taiz.

The article said forces aligned with the Aden-based government reported repelling a Houthi attack in Taiz, while the government also said it carried out artillery and drone strikes on Houthi positions across several governorates. Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council said Houthi actions would meet a strong response. Grundberg urged both sides to de-escalate immediately and move toward a durable ceasefire, warning that renewed Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping could also pull Yemen further into wider regional tensions involving the United States and Iran.

The UN also stressed the conflict’s humanitarian toll. Tom Fletcher, the UN humanitarian chief, said more than half of Yemen’s population lacks reliable access to enough food and millions face emergency-level hunger. He also highlighted the burden on women and maternal health. Al Jazeera noted that Yemen has been in conflict since the Houthis seized Sanaa in 2014, followed by a Saudi-led intervention and years of war, while negotiations on a lasting settlement have stalled since regional tensions rose in 2023.