Hunger continues to rise in Yemen: WFP

SANAA, Yemen (AA) – The World Food Programme (WFP) warned Sunday that hunger was increasing across war-torn Yemen amid continued rise in goods prices.

"Food prices and hunger continue to rise," WFP said on Twitter. "The level of need is high with families depending on WFP food assistance to survive."

The UN agency warned that the protracted Yemeni crisis “is devastating for millions of families."

The humanitarian situation in Yemen is aggravated by the depreciation of the value of the Yemeni riyal, which reached more than 1,500 riyal for US dollar in areas under the Yemeni government’s control.

Before the outbreak of conflict in 2014, the dollar price was 215 Yemeni riyals in the Yemeni local market.

Yemen has been engulfed by violence and instability, when Iran-aligned Houthi rebels captured much of the country, including the capital Sanaa.

A Saudi-led coalition aimed at reinstating the Yemeni government has worsened the situation and caused one of the world’s worst man-made humanitarian crises, with 233,000 people killed, nearly 80% or about 30 million needing humanitarian assistance and protection, and more than 13 million in danger of starvation, according to UN estimates.

* Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara