File photo. A child runs on the streets moments after Saudi-led coalition jets attacked a residential neighborhood in the Yemeni capital Sanaa in September 2015. (Photo credit: AFP)
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said in a press release on 12 March that at least 47 children have been “killed or maimed” in Yemen in the first two months of this year alone.
Since the Saudi-led coalition began strikes on Yemen in 2015, more than an estimated 10,200 children have been killed or injured, UNICEF said.
“Just over the first two months of this year, 47 children were reportedly killed or maimed in several locations across Yemen,” UNICEF’s Yemen representative, Philippe Duamelle said in a statement.
“Violence, misery and grief have been commonplace in Yemen with severe consequences on millions of children and families. It is high time that a sustainable political solution is reached for people and their children to finally live in the peace they so well deserve,” he said.
According to statement by Duamelle, the conflict has left around 80 percent of the population dependent on aid.
UNICEF called on “all parties” to the conflict in Yemen and those “with influence over them” to protect civilians wherever they are, especially the well-being and safety of children.
The Saudi-led coalition has committed countless war crimes in Yemen since the beginning of its campaign to oust the Ansarallah resistance movement. The coalition has bombed essential facilities, such as hospitals and water treatment plants.
The Yemeni government has repeatedly accused the international community and the UN of failing to investigate potential war crimes committed by the Saudi-led coalition.
The Saudi-led blockade on Yemen’s main port of Hodeidah has created a severe hunger crisis in the country, which in recent months has been exacerbated by the conflict in Ukraine.
Russian and Ukrainian markets make up around 29 percent of the world’s wheat exports, and the ongoing situation has resulted in an increase in global wheat prices.
According to the World Food Programme (WFP), this will severely impact the crisis in Yemen, as food prices in the country have already doubled over the last year.
The WFP has said that around 13 million people are currently facing starvation in Yemen.