'Over 158,000 displaced in Yemen this year'

SANAA, Yemen (AA) – More than 158,000 people have been displaced in war-ravaged Yemen in 2020, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Thursday.

“Since the start of this year, over 158,200 people have been newly displaced in Yemen, mostly by conflict,” IOM Yemen said on Facebook.

It identified the oil- and gas-rich Marib region as the “area where the highest displacement has taken place, with over 100,000 people moving to crowded displacement sites in the city and surrounding areas.”

For months, fighting between government forces and the Houthi rebel group has intensified on several fronts, especially in Marib, causing widespread casualties and displacement.

Yemen has been beset by violence and chaos since 2014, when Houthi rebels overran much of the country, including the capital Sana’a.

The crisis escalated in 2015 when the Saudi-led coalition launched a devastating air campaign aimed at rolling back Houthi territorial gains.

More than 100,000 Yemenis, including civilians, are believed to have been killed in the conflict, which has led to the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, with millions at risk of starvation.

* Writing by Mahmoud Barakat