UN: Yemen Faces the World's Largest Food Security Crisis

Stephen O'Brien, the UN's senior humanitarian coordinator, warned on Tuesday that Yemen is facing the world's largest food security crisis. According to the Associated Press, Stephen O'Brien told the UN Security Council that 17 million people in Yemen need food, including 6.8 million who are on the brink of famine. The senior humanitarian coordinator emphasized that Yemen is now facing the largest food security crisis in the world. He added that while the world watches, the people of Yemen are condemned to deprivation, disease, and death. Stephen O'Brien warned that the war in Yemen has placed the country on the path to complete social, economic, and institutional collapse. The senior humanitarian coordinator also called for international action to end the suffering of the Yemeni people. The Houthi Shiite militants and supporters of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh seized the capital Sana'a in September 2014, forcing President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi to flee the country. In 2015, a coalition of Arab countries led by Saudi Arabia intervened in the war to support Hadi against the Houthi militants. According to the Associated Press, Hadi's loyal forces control most of southern Yemen, but the Iran-backed Houthi militants also control the port city of Hodeidah in the south. In this context, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the UN Secretary-General's special envoy for Yemen, stated that the war and bloodshed continue in Yemen, and government forces are now trying to seize the port of Hodeidah and the city of Taiz. Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed has urged the Security Council to take immediate action to stop the war in Yemen. As the war rages in Yemen, the poorest Arab country, UN officials have warned of the spread of cholera in the country. Reports indicate that the war in Yemen has left over 10,000 dead and millions displaced. The conflict has also destroyed a large part of the country's infrastructure, including aid centers and hospitals. In this context, the World Health Organization has warned about the cholera outbreak in Yemen, and the International Red Cross has reported that thousands of Yemenis have contracted cholera, with dozens having died so far.