Yemen: Amran conflict Situation Report No. 6 (as of 16 July 2014)

Highlights

• Fighting in Amran and neighbouring areas of Sana’a Governorate has stopped, and the situation is reportedly calm. Humanitarian partners are ready to return to Amran as soon as access permits; a smaller-scale response is under way for IDPs living in Sana’a.

• Verifying information from Amran remains extremely difficult. The Amran Emergency Cell is using 45,000 as a working estimate of people displaced since the end of April. Of this estimate, over half have remained within Amran Governorate. These figures have not been verified, and partners emphasize that displacement is not necessarily equivalent to need for assistance.

• Response efforts last week in Amran were limited due to active conflict. With improving security, partners hope to expand relief programmes in the coming days. About 1,500 families are receiving food and NFI assistance in Amran, and partners are delivering aid to about 1,800 displaced families in Sana’a. The key response priority remains regaining access to Amran in order to deliver aid to affected people.

• The Humanitarian Coordinator hopes to travel to Amran City in the coming days in order to:

1. Urge parties to abide by the ground rules of humanitarian action in conflict-affected areas and guarantee the protection of civilians, humanitarian assets and property;

2. Negotiate access to affected people and ensure that aid reaches all those assessed to be in need;

3. Obtain parties’ commitment to the safety and security of aid workers.

Situation Overview

Fighting in and around Amran Governorate has ceased, and conflict-affected areas are reportedly calm. Media reports have widely cited an agreement by Al Houthis to withdraw from Amran Governorate, but local sources refer to the differing interpretations of the scope and contents of the agreement among conflict parties. Although Al Houthi affiliates have reportedly invited local government officials to return to work and have begun returning control of some military and government infrastructure to legal authorities, local sources report a continued large-scale Al Houthi presence in Amran City and neighbouring areas, with no indication of an imminent reduction. These sources also report that markets are open, and people are mostly moving normally – including leaving the city. However, some local sources assert that markets have been forced to open, and that any appearance of normality is artificial.